Reeve Wilmot is forced to return to her town after being gone for nearly two years.
Once back she has to face the music and face the people who don't believe her truth. She'll also have to confront her feelings for Adrian Stovak, the boy she loved...
Smalls tries to balance on the curb as we walk. He lives near me, well that's what he says. Jada lives in the other direction. We haven't talked yet. I don't know what to say.
Then Smalls asks, "Remember what I asked earlier about your brother?" I nod. "You don't have to answer but is it true?"
"No."
I did attend therapy and other things but I didn't go to a mental ward. My mom might have thought I needed to go but in the end, I didn't. I probably should have though.
Sometimes we joked about that in Chicago, not at first but eventually, I was able to joke about stuff like that. It took a lot of time though.
Smalls then asks, "My mum is making cookies would you like to come over?"
I shrug my shoulders, I don't need to be home and nothing is waiting for me there, "Sure. That sounds better than hiding out in my room."
He smiles, "Just a warning, I've only ever brought Jada over so my mum doesn't think I have friends."
I chuckle, "That's fine. No one thinks I'm capable of making friends besides my friends, I know it's not the same but I get how you feel."
He meets my eyes and laughs, "That's super depressing."
I laugh along with him, "I know."
We walk the rest of our walk to Smalls's house in silence. When we arrive, he opens the door for me, "Welcome to my humble oasis."
Upon entering the smell of burning sage along with cookies greets me, somewhere in the house someone is playing Jimi Hendrix. I look up to Smalls who is actually tall, "It smells nice."
He grins. A lady comes running down the steps, "The cookies are burning. The cookies are burning. The cookies are burning."
That makes me smile. The woman rushes past us and into the kitchen. Smalls scratches his neck nervously and tells me, "That's my mum."
"She seems great," I tell him.
Smalls and I both stand there for a minute before he clears his throat, "Come on I'll introduce you."
I follow him into the kitchen where his mom is pulling perfectly fine cookies out of the oven. She sighs when she places them on the stove. Smalls clears his throat, "Mom."
She turns around to face us. "Oh good Sam you're home, I need help hanging up the lights."
Stepping to the side of Smalls because I now realize she probably couldn't see me. Her eyes widen, "Mom, this is Reeve Wilmot. She just moved back to town."
When he finishes talking she hugs me and exclaims, "Oh Sam I'm so happy you have another friend." Then to me, she says, "It's so nice to meet you, Reeve."
Her hug doesn't make me feel, it feels like I'm welcomed. Her house also makes me feel welcome too. It's not like at my mom's where everything looks like it's straight off of Pinterest and organized.
This place is cluttered with family pictures. There's a stack of mail on the table along with a glass of tea with a small ring of condensation around it. Even right when we entered the smells were unique and like a home.
I hug her back and say, "It's nice to meet you too."
I mean it too.
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