In Search of Tomorrow ✓

Eleven

When I got back up to Maddie and Clare's bedroom, I saw that Cameron had changed the washcloth on my little sister's forehead, and she was dozing off into a feverish sleep. Clare had retired to the corner of the room, sitting on the cushion on the windowsill with her knees pulled up to her chest, staring out into the backyard.

"Clare, why don't you work on your homework in my room today?" I asked her, making her glance up at me as if I'd yanked her out of a dream. "I don't want you to catch what Maddie has."

Clare studied me a little sulkily and then left the room, dragging her backpack behind her.

"All right, then," I said once her footsteps had retreated across the hall, "What are we working on today?"

Cameron flipped open my homework planner and began scanning my assignments—I realized a little belatedly that I had embraced my inner middle school and had doodled hearts in it during bio that day. He didn't seem affected, though, because he snapped it shut a few seconds later and said, "Whatever you want to work on. You're actually doing pretty well in everything, so I don't think there's much I can do."

I could practically feel my high spirits sinking to the pit of the stomach as I expected him to stand and begin packing up, but instead he stayed sitting on the carpet, staring at my now-closed homework planner. He glanced up at me and I thought I saw a little sparkle in his crystal eyes, and then he looked away and ran his hand through his short brown hair.

"So..." I said, to ease the awkwardness that was quickly growing.

Starting, he opened my planner again as if he hadn't just looked at it five seconds ago. I leaned against the wall and waited for him to say something, but he didn't look at me. His hands, usually so confident and sure, hesitated a little as he opened his backpack and pulled out a pencil.

"I guess it never hurts to study," he said. "I made you this during study hall today—you can work on it now if you want. It's for your conic sections test."

He handed me an extremely thick packet of neatly handwritten notes and practice problems. I noticed the back half of the stapled papers consisted entirely of detailed answers and explanations.

"When did you have time to make this?" I asked, my eyes widening.

He shrugged. "Like I said, I had study hall."

I started in on the assignment without further questions, but the fuzzy little glow had grown back until I felt like I was holding a lantern.

There was a silence as I scribbled and Cameron pulled out his science textbook, flipping through it and commenting occasionally. It was peaceful, in the lamplight and with the quickly darkening radiance of the sun.

The atmosphere was interrupted when Maddie woke up sick again, and I had to hurry over and tend to her while Cameron checked the math that I'd done so far. Once I'd settled my sister back into her blankets and pressed my cool hand against her flaming cheek until she fell back asleep, I returned to my position on the carpet.

"Things have been so crazy around here, sorry," I said as I sank back down on the floor and pulled my math back towards me.

Cameron had made tiny black check marks in pen next to each of the problems I'd completed so far, so I hurried to finish the last nine before it got too late. He had set his textbook on the floor and was now watching me work—though it seemed like he was staring at me more than my math.

Flushingbrilliantly, I angled my head so that I couldn't see him except in my peripheral vision and punched in some numbers on my calculator. Still, my eyeballs kept swiveling to the right so that I could see if he was looking at me—he always was.