Ava laughed. “No, they’re good.”
“You been listening to anything I might like on those headphones?”
She shrugged. “Super Junior.”
“Oh yeah, I think I’ve heard of them. Cool.”
She nodded, still staring at me.
“You know,” I said, placing my hand over my mouth and whispering like I was letting her in on some big conspiracy. “Franklin and Rory think you’re Goth.”
Ava giggled loudly. “Yeah, I heard them say that.”
“They’re confused, though,” I said with a grin. “Because you listen to K-pop.”
Ava rolled her eyes. “They don’t get it.”
“Of course not,” I said. “Adults never understand teenagers. I remember that. But even though I’m an adult, I still know you’re not Goth. Do you know how?”
She shook her head. “How?”
“Because Goths dance like this…” I said, dropping my shoulders and then stomping around like a ghoul while I made sad faces.
“No one dances like that!” Ava said with a laugh.
“And do you know how Goths who listen to K-pop dance?” I asked, still stretching my face down in a frown, even though it was hard not to laugh.
“No!” she said, covering her face with her hands.
“Like this!” I answered, then started to jump around, still slouching my shoulders and frowning at the ground while I leaped.
Ava broke out in hysterical laughter, and for one glorious minute, I forgot about everything else. I forgot about the fact that my life might well be over and that this could actually be my last day ever with Franklin and Rory. All of that disappeared, and I got to just be goofy and normal.
It was like a dream.
“You’re weird,” Ava said. “You’re as weird as they are.”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “They are pretty weird, aren’t they?”
“Yeah,” she said. “But I like them.”
“I do, too,” I agreed, then held up my fist for her to bump. “Weirdos unite, am I right?”
She laughed, then bumped my fist. “Whatever.”
Ava slipped her headphones over her ears, then turned and wandered back to the house. Shaking my head, I slipped the safety gear back on and returned to work.
Maybe I’ll leave a couple nice memories behind in Seattle after all, I thought.
It was at least a nice fantasy, no matter what was in store for me next.
RORY
From the window behind the kitchen sink, Frankie and I watched as Asher jumped around in front of Ava, making her laugh her head off.
“She hasn’t laughed like that since she moved here,” he said. “Not even at my best jokes!”
I patted his back. “Just be glad she’s moving through her grief. It’s a good sign, Frankie.”
He nodded, but for one brief second, a cloud came across his face. It was a memory of his sister, I knew, something distant and bittersweet. When he turned back outside, his eyes falling back on Ava in her laughter, his smile returned.
“It is a good sign,” he said.
With my arm on his shoulder, we watched Ava and Asher, laughing and getting to know each other. Out of nowhere, a sense of contentment and warmth rolled through my body. After the last year had upset so much in our life together, it finally felt like the pieces were falling back into place and that we were finding our new normal.
“He’s a great guy, isn’t he?” Frankie said. “He’s had a hard time, but he’s pulled through it.”
“Just needs to love himself,” I agreed. “Same as everyone else.”
Ava came back inside, a little more chatty than usual. She had a sleepover at her new friend’s house that evening, so Frankie and I busied ourselves asking a million unnecessary questions, like the nervous new guardians we were. Once we had her loaded up with enough supplies to last a week, Colleen came to drive her by the girl’s house in time for pizza, and Frankie and I prepared for an evening alone.
"It looks like Asher is packing up,” Frankie said, glancing out the back window. “I’m going to run out and see how the work went.”
“I’ll join you,” I said, adjusting my glasses. My mind should have turned to lecture preparation, I knew, but I felt too eager to catch a little more time with Asher, while I had the chance.
It surprised me, actually, how happy I was walking out to the shed with Frankie. The weather was gray, as it always was that time of year, and it was nothing more than a regular Saturday, same as any other. But still, that feeling that everything was right pervaded the afternoon. Frankie’s new side job was taking off, and Ava had already made herself friends, and we had settled into an exciting, comfortable rhythm with Asher in our lives.
“Are you finishing up already?” Frankie announced as we approached. “That must have gone quickly.”
Asher had a gray thermal shirt that hung loosely off his lithe muscles. Flecks of sawdust were stuck in his sandy hair, and he wore a heavy pair of denim that hung off his hips, held up only by an old belt. The air was cool, but sweat glistened on his forehead, and I was struck by desire to reach out, caress him, and feel the heat of his body in my hands.
“Oh yeah,” Asher said, turning his eyes away like he had earlier. “I’ll have to come back tomorrow to finish, but we should be on time.”
Frankie turned to me, picking up on Asher’s mood as well. “I’m glad it went well,” he said. “Do you want to go over plans one more time before you take off?”
Asher glanced over his shoulder, then shook his head quickly. Even though I only caught a flash of his expression, my heart thudded and clunked when I saw the hurt in his eyes, pain rippling across his face.
Something is wrong.
“I should be all set,” he said with a shaky voice. “We can talk tomorrow.” As he talked, he reached up, stretching to return the drill to the shelf. When he did so, his shirt rose up, and I saw a large blue-and-red bruise, spreading across his lower back and wrapping around to his stomach.
“Asher,” Frankie gasped. “What happened?”
Asher startled, then glanced down. He pulled the bottom of his shirt up to see the bruise himself, then winced. “It’s nothing.”
“It’s not nothing,” I said firmly. “And it looks fresh.” I stepped forward, closing the distance between us. “Have you seen a doctor? Tell us what happened.”
Frankie reached out, but hesitated. I watched his hand poised in the air, his fingers arched and ready to land on Asher’s back.
“Asher…” he said softly.
“It’s okay, Asher,” I added. “Whatever it is, it’s okay.”
He turned slowly, and when he faced us, I saw the tears that stung the corners of his eyes. Frankie lowered his hand, patting Asher’s back. Asher sucked in a ragged breath, then turned the rest of the way to face us, stepping between our arms.
“My friend,” he said. “I made a mistake…”
I extended my arm and pulled him close. Asher lost himself in our embrace, his body falling against our chests as he shook, something between a sob and tremor escaping his lips.