My alarm blared loud and strong. I covered my head with my covers. How could I go to school after such a roller coaster of a weekend? I decided to make the most of it and finally, but slowly, got ready. When I got to the kitchen Blair and David were already at the table, chewing forkfuls of chocolate chip pancakes. My grandma stood at the stove, flipping over two good sized ones I hoped were for me. "Morning, Sashka." David said cheerfully through a mouthful of pancake. Blair laughed at the use of my pet name. I shook my head in amusement. "Morning, Dave." Though David called us by his unique names, he disliked being called by his. "My name's David, Sashka. Not Dave." Blair spit out the milk she'd been drinking, laughing too hard to keep it in. "Oh, Blair. Look at the mess you made, sweetheart." My grandma wiped the milk off of the table. "Why don't you go change your shirt. It's completely soaked." Still giggling, my sister skipped up to her room. My grandma brought me over a plate of pancakes which I doused with syrup. "You didn't have to stay, grandma. I could've gotten them ready." My grandma waved my comment away. "Oh, it's nothing, dear. I wouldn't want you to have to take care of the two rascals on your own." David crossed his arms, not looking very happy about being called a rascal. "Besides, your father's coming home this afternoon so I'll be out of your way soon enough." She gave me a wink that said Or so you think.
"Hey, Sash!" Will called through his open car window. I hopped into the passenger seat and was startled when Will leaned over to kiss me. I smiled against his lips, reliving every second of the day by the lake. "Nice to see you too." On the way to school, Will kept one hand on the wheel and the other gently holding one of my own. "So, how are things going at home." I sighed heavily, making him laugh lightly. "The kids don't know about mom yet, if that's what you mean." His smile faded slightly and he gripped my hand a little tighter. "Maybe that's a good thing. The less they know the better, right?" I searched for an answer. Was it really for the better? What good was waiting for someone who might never come home? I shook the idea off immediately. The last thing I needed was Will to see the look on my face. I didn't want him to make me feel pitiful or anything. "Yeah." I replied. "Maybe."
Morning classes went by smoothly. I was able to finish all of my assignments the night before so I didn't have to use any dog-ate-my-homework excuses. Good thing too, because I don't have a dog. Mr. Schwartz wasn't even in class, leaving us with a bored looking substitute who fell asleep a few minutes into class after telling us that we had yet another free period. Will and I walked hand in hand to our library corner. "Oh! That reminds me." Will reached into his backpack and handed me a package wrapped with blue paper and tied with a string of white twine. I looked at him in complete surprise. "What's this about?" He smiled and pushed the gift towards me. "Just a little something from the best guy ever." I kissed him on the cheek, not worried about anybody seeing us in our secluded corner, and sat down to open it. Inside the neatly wrapped package was a hardcover book. I traced the letters on the spine. Jane Eyre. My eyes filled with tears as I remembered my previous copy, reduced to scraps because of the incident with Simon. Now here it was, a new copy. Hardcover. So even Simon wouldn't be able to harm what was inside. On the dedication page was a note, written in Will's haphazard handwriting. For you, Sasha. For both of us. We are equal. The tears slipped down my face and I wiped them away quickly. I caught something else in the bottom corner, written in little parentheses. Good thing I didn't have to lose a leg for it to happen. I laughed, remembering the ending of the novel, which I finished the night of the incident with Simon. I looked up at him. He was smiling, crooked and wonderful. "You're my Rochester." I smiled and fixed his crooked glasses. He laughed. "Hopefully I'm not as brooding as he is." We laughed together, curled up in that corner, reading my favorite passages from the novel, putting ourselves in the story's world where nothing could touch us.
