Hearing about everything that’d been going on shocked and scared her, and it took a lot of reassuring to convince her that it really was over, that I was no longer in danger.
I worried that on top of being weirded out about me dating four guys, Mom would blame them for what happened—hell, I did at first. But the truth is, they’ve done more to keep me safe than I could’ve ever asked of them, lifting me up and giving me hope and support when I needed it.
And I hope she sees that too.
She and the guys talk for a few minutes, and I slip between Lincoln and Dax as they do. I can feel Mom’s gaze bouncing back and forth between me and them, and I think it’s this, more than anything else, that wins her over.
I can feel it, and maybe she can see it: the way their bodies shift toward mine as if constantly pulled closer by an invisible force, the way they seem to arrange themselves around me unconsciously, protective and attentive.
A smile blooms across Mom’s face, different than the one she wore when she first greeted them. This one is softer and sweeter, a reaction to some private thought. She casts her gaze over the guys one more time, then claps her hands together, straightening her shoulders.
“All right. What do you say we get the hell out of here?”
Mom and I both move back into the Black family’s house.
Samuel’s offer to give her back her Executive Housekeeper position when she got out seems like a promise made a lifetime ago, but he apparently hasn’t forgotten about it.
She and I talked a lot before she got out of prison about what exactly we would do now. Honestly, I was a little torn about her going back to her old job, for reasons I could never quite articulate. Maybe it’s because I was worried I wouldn’t be able to see her walking around the mansion in her work outfit without thinking of the night she was dragged out by police officers.
But it’s a good job, with good pay and a boss who appreciates her, who went above and beyond to help her daughter when she was arrested.
And she’s adamant about staying in Fox Hill, at least until I graduate. She says she likes this kind of work, and even if she stops working for the Black family eventually, she’s found her calling in managing staff and organizing events.
She takes over for Bri Marshall a week after being released from Fox Hill Correctional Center, and it’s almost eerie how quickly things settle back to normal. I have dinner with her every evening in her little apartment, and Lincoln sneaks into my bedroom most nights, or I sneak into his. His parents know we’re officially dating now, and they know about the other guys too.
I think Samuel Black is proud of his son. Not for the whole sharing thing, exactly—I think he’s still a little weirded out by that part. But for fighting for what he wants, for choosing me.
Samuel and Audrey’s marriage is dissolving, and I think Linc is right that his dad is heartbroken about it. I do feel bad for him, but I can’t blame Audrey at all for her choice. I hope he’ll be more careful with the hearts of the people he loves in the future.
A couple weeks after Mom’s release, Principal Osterhaut invites both of us into his office.
Part of me wonders if it’s just curiosity on his part—a burning desire to meet the woman who’s become fucking legendary at my school by this point. But, as it turns out, it’s for the much less exciting task of talking about my grades. My classwork in every single subject took a major hit at the beginning of the semester, and I’ve only just started to crawl out of the hole I dug for myself.
“We understand that you were going through something very… unique, and because of these unprecedented circumstances, it’s been decided that you’ll be allowed to do makeup work in all your classes to get a chance to bring your grades back up. You were a very promising student your first semester with us, so I have no doubt you’ll be able to make the most of this opportunity.”
Osterhaut leans forward, resting his elbows on the desk and affixing me with a fatherly stare that holds just a slight hint of interest—as if he’s hoping to pick up some little details about the ordeals Mom and I each went through but knows it would be impolite to ask.
Ugh. No way, buddy.
I’ve had to tell the story in everything from broad strokes to minute detail enough times that I hope I never have to utter a word about it again. Not to Osterhaut, not to reporters, not to any of the wide-eyed underclassmen who’ve staring at me and the kings as if we’re some kinds of celebrities.
“Thanks,” I say instead. “I’ll do my best.”
And I do.
It means that for the second half of the semester, instead of being able to relax and coast the way I feel I’ve earned, I have to buckle down and study my ass off. But I do.
The guys help, quizzing me on Calculus and finding… creative ways to reward me for correct answers. And the honest truth is, being buried in homework still beats being blackmailed by a psychopathic judge by a long shot.
With the spotlight thrown on the five of us after the story about Hollowell spreads, Savannah seems to realize that feuding with us is the fastest route to unpopularity she could take, so she backs off her threats to spill Linc’s family’s secrets or go digging for more dirt on the guys. We end up alone in the girls’ bathroom once right after spring break, and she turns to me, opening her mouth like she’s going
