Broken

Chapter Six

"Hi, Grandma," I said as I walked into her room. "I hope you don't mind, but I brought someone with me today." She was laying in her bed reading a book this time. She had her reading glasses on her nose. She looked up from her book to see us and I saw a smile come to her face.

"You brought Justin," Grandma said as she looked at him. "It's good to see you again."

"Good to see you too, Mrs. Allen," said Justin.

"I'm so happy you two aren't fighting anymore," said Grandma. She pointed down at her book. "I just want to finish up this chapter real quick."

"You told your grandma we were fighting?" asked Justin quietly so she would not hear. He knew exactly how to do that too. Grandma had been hard of hearing the past year, so any whispers went unnoticed by her.

"She put two and two together when you were never with me," I said quickly and quietly. "I just told her we weren't talking to each other."

"Really, because I remember texting you and talking to you at school," said Justin. "You were the one that wouldn't talk to me. You didn't want to tell her that, did you?"

"Will you drop it or I'm going to ignore you again," I said. Justin shook his head at me.

"All done," said Grandma. She put her book mark in her book and sat it aside. "I forgot the game is tonight. Are you two excited?"

"Yeah," I said with a nod.

"It'll be good to be back on the field," said Justin with a shrug. We had both sat down on the small couch. I did not mind the closeness of it, but it felt a little off. Maybe because every time I realized how close we were, Nora came into mind.

"That's great," said Grandma with a smile. "I'm sure you boys will do great as normal. You made the playoffs last year, right?"

"Yes," said Justin with a nod. "We lost the game before the championship."

"I think you all will get there this year," said Grandma.

"I sure hope so," said Justin. People had been talking about our football team for a while now. Last year was a great year with that last upset. A lot of people had Bridge Wood predicted to win the championship this year. For a lot of the players, it was their senior year and the last chance at it.

"How is school going?" asked Grandma as she set her eyes on me. "Your grades better be nothing but A's." Grandma had come to expect a lot out of me after she realized what I was capable of. It was a lot of pressure, but if it made her happy, it made me happy. It really was not too much to ask. I knew it would be best for me overall.

"I'm pretty sure that she doesn't have to try to get an A," said Justin.

"Trust me, I'm trying pretty hard," I said.

"Good," said Grandma.

"How are you feeling?" I asked her.

"The same as always," said Grandma. "Please don't waste your time worry about me, Hayley. I am fine here and taken care of so you don't have to worry. You should focus on your school work and being a teenager while it lasts."

I had never felt like an actual teenager. It was hard to when you live alone and have bills to pay. We talked to Grandma for as long as we could. I think she was happy that I brought Justin and I would hear about it the next time I came. I was glad she liked him. It made things a lot easier. We left the nursing home and Justin let me drive again. We just listened to the radio for a while until Justin suddenly turned it down.

"So," said Justin. I glanced over at him and he was holding up the envelope from my dad. "Are we opening this now or later?"

"Later," I said. "But not that later. I just want to open it when we get to my house. It's all right if we stop by there, right?"