Trailing Stars (Trailing Stars #1)

Chapter 6

I don't fall asleep until three in the morning and somehow get up at eleven. I blame my thoughts, but that's what I get for writing that poem so it's my own fault. It's always my fault.

I drag myself out of bed to get ready for the day before I head downstairs to get something to eat. Mom and Hannah are in the living room while Dad and Kate are in the kitchen. Probably better to be with Dad and Kate than have Hannah ask more questions. I spare Mom and Hannah a smile and wave before I head into the kitchen.

The second I sit at the table, Dad slides a bowl of cereal over to me. "What time did you get home last night?"

"Around eleven," I yawn.

"Doing what?" Kate asks. "Reading poems?"

She says it like we were really out murdering people in cold blood, and I have to laugh. "Yeah, for a while. Then, we went ice skating."

Kate's eyes light up and she leans forward. "They ice skate?"

I glance up and off to the side. "Well... Nathan's just learning. Clara claims she knows how to skate, but she didn't last night."

My sister's eyes dim, and she settles back in her seat. "At least that's better than your old friends." Dad arches an eyebrow at Kate. She shrugs, looking away. "Just saying..."

Dad laughs. "There's nothing wrong with Kassie, Leah, and Jason."

The look on Kate's face says otherwise. She tightly crosses her arms and shifts slightly away from us. "Sure, Dad."

Dad glances at me, and I shrug. As far as I know, those three never really interacted with Kate. Most of their focus was always on Morgan. He always had a way to draw people's attention to him whether he wanted it or not. And most of the time, he wanted it. So I wonder what happened between those three and Kate if my sister thinks there's something wrong with them...

"Nathan and Clara seem cool," Kate says, stirring her rainbow-colored milk around. Her eyes flicker to me and back to her bowl. "Are you gonna hang out with them again this break?"

The doorbell rings before I can answer. Dad gets up to see who it is. I watch him slip out of the kitchen before turning back to Kate. She's already looking at me, her expression blank but expectant.

I shrug. "I might if I run into them again."

Kate doesn't say anything for a second, her expression unreadable as she studies me. For a moment, I think I see her eyebrows furrow, but the moment I blink, she's emotionless again, mixing the remnants of her cereal.

"Okay," she says.

Unlike yesterday, Kate doesn't even try to start a banter going. I slowly set my spoon against the bowl, sitting forward. Kate catches the movement, and her eyes flicker up at me. We watch each other. She doesn't make a move to say anything, so I guess she's waiting for me to start the banter. Except nothing comes to mind. We sit in silence until Dad comes back.

"Clara's at the door," he says.

I do a double-take. "She is?"

Dad nods, frowning at my reaction. "Do you want me to send her away?"

I shake my head, standing. "No. It's okay."

My eyes flicker to Kate. She's already staring down at her cereal again. I take a deep breath and turn away to head for the front door. Maybe we'll have a conversation another time. Maybe things will be okay. Another time.

I take a deep breath once I'm staring at the front door. Sure enough, when I open it, Clara's there. She smiles when she sees me. "Hey. I wasn't sure if you'd be up. Nathan wasn't when I called him."