Because apparently it didn’t matter.
“It’s fine, Via. Don’t worry, I’ll keep out of your way from now on. You don’t need to rub it in by hiding from me.”
“That’s not what this is,” she protested, but there was no force to it.
His fingers tightened around the crutches, knuckles turning white. “You know what sucks the most? You think that night was the most humiliating thing that’s ever happened to you. But for me it was the greatest. I guess I’ll see you around, Via.”
He paused, but there was no answer. No doubt she was already pressing herself back into the trunk of the tree, trying to pretend he didn’t exist.
Well, she could join the line.
xxxx
Hudson let his crutches fall to the floor and flopped down on the bottom bunk. So, that happened. Via had bailed on him. The first time she’d done it, he’d definitely been to blame and had spent the last two years feeling like a douchebag. But this time the only thing he did was let himself fall for her.
Let himself kiss her.
Let himself get destroyed by her.
Part of him knew she hadn’t wanted to hurt him, but it didn’t make anything better. He was still alone. And worse than before. Because she had given him hope, then ripped it away.
He wasn’t sure how long he lay there before a crack of light appeared as the front door slowly pushed open and his aunt walked into the cabin.
“There’s someone here to see you,” she said in a gentle voice.
Via?
Hope slammed in his chest as he sat up, but it wasn’t her. Instead his mom stepped into the cabin. Followed closely by his father. As ever, their timing was impeccable.
He fell back on the bed and shut his eyes. “What are you both doing here?”
“Hudson—” his aunt started.
“It’s okay, Ruth.” His dad cut her off. “He has every right to be pissed. We haven’t exactly been fair to him this summer.”
“Or since the divorce,” his mom added in a softer voice. “Please, H. We really are here to talk. No more arguments. We want to see what you want.”
For a start, he wanted to have not been dumped by Via Mackenzie after only two days.
He reluctantly opened his eyes and propped himself up on an elbow. “Fine. Talk.”
“Here?” His dad looked around at the sparse cabin.
“We can’t all go to Seattle or on a cruise for the summer,” Ruth interjected, then gave Hudson an encouraging smile. “I’m going to leave you guys to it. But Hudson, I’m right outside if you need me.”
“Thanks,” he murmured and hauled himself out of the bunk. His crutch was nearby, but he ignored it and limped over to the table in the middle of the room. He sat down and his parents joined him. His mom was tanned, but there were purple smudges under her eyes, and his dad’s mouth was in a tight line. “What do you want to talk about?”
“How about parents behaving badly?” His mom let out a long sigh. “Ruth called and gave us both a wake-up call. Your father and I were so angry at each other…and at life…that we didn’t consider how you were handling everything.”
“Your mom’s right. You’ve always done so well at school, and even as a kid, you never demanded much attention. We assumed you were doing fine. Whereas we were both trying to navigate new lives, new relationships.”
He folded his arms, still not really sure what they were doing here. Any minute now it would end up in a bickering match and they’d stick him in the middle of it. Or forget he was there. His mom flinched and seemed to pick up on his mood.
“None of which is any excuse.”
“I take it your summer hasn’t been great.” His dad sounded guilty.
“Does it matter?” He shrugged.
“Yes,” his mom said in a fierce voice as tears fell down her cheeks. “It does matter. We messed up, Hudson. We’d like you to come back to Cricket Bay today and we can sit down properly. Work out a way to make all of our lives work. Together.”
“That’s if you want to. Though I hope you do, buddy.”
He shut his eyes.
A week ago, all he wanted was to leave Camp Doom. But now…
But now nothing’s changed.
If he stayed for the last week, he’d have to see the spaces where Via should have been, if she wasn’t hiding from him. And if he did see her—
Well, he already knew how it would be.
She’d ghost him. Like it had never happened.
He opened his eyes and nodded. “Okay. I’ll go.”
12
This was why she didn’t date. Because it wasn’t worth the effort. Crushing on someone led to heartbreak and humiliation. Correction. Crushing on Hudson Trent led to heartbreak and humiliation.
For both of them. At least with the science fair, she’d been the only one who was hurt.
Why hadn’t she been able to find the words to say how sorry she was?
Instead she’d been forced to watch his face drain of color. Hurt flicker in his caramel eyes. All while she was stuck in a stupid tree. Well, she was done. No more boys.
She let out a bitter laugh. It had never been a problem avoiding boys. Which meant it was only one boy she had to stay away from.
A lump caught in her throat.
“Nature girl strikes again,” a voice said from somewhere below. She didn’t bother to look down. Just pressed her back farther into the rough bark. Her breathing was still shallow. She screwed her eyes shut.
“Go away, Zac.”
“Negative.” There was a rustle of branches, and she tightened her grip. Falling out of a tree once might be an accident, but twice was irresponsible. Her brother was suddenly on
