Free The Broken Curse by Taylor Lavati Page A

it's perfectly quiet.
    After filling our plates, Kara and I sit at a random, vacant table and dig in. We're quiet, mostly because between bites Kara taps away on her phone. It isn't long before Junior and Ollie find us and when they do, both of their faces light up with joy at the sight of us.
    "Hey," I say in between bites. Junior's tray is loaded with all different kinds of sugary breakfast cereals and Ollie's is nearly identical, though he grabbed a bunch of slices of bacon—one of his favorite foods.
    Junior sits beside Kara, and Ollie takes the seat directly next to me. His tray lands with a bang, and I glance over with a question. He smiles, though.
    "Hey," I whisper to Ollie and smile up at him.
    "Hey back." He nudges my shoulder with his. I lean against him as I eat and savor the warmth that floods into me.  
    "So, what's going on today?" Junior asks Kara. She grins at him, staring right into his eyes. It's like they can speak in just glances and looks.  
    "We're going to the gym after breakfast, but I'll be around all afternoon. Right?" She looks at me as if asking for permission.
    "Yeah. I'll only make you stay at the gym for an hour or two."
    "Where were you guys this morning?" Junior asks, rubbing his eyes like he just woke up. "You totally left without a peep," he whispers to Kara.
    She points her finger at me and says, "Ryder, here, made me go for a run."  
    "You asked me to go!" I yell, chucking a Cheerio at her face. She dodges it, but doesn't have enough time to anticipate and react to the next one. I stick out my tongue at her, and she mimics me back.
    "Guess what? A couple guys attacked us on our trail," Kara says, widening her eyes like it's actually a good story. I kick her under the table to shut her up. She yelps, and then Ollie glares at me, his eyes wide.  
    "What happened?" Ollie frowns and scoots closer to me.
    "It wasn't even a big deal," I try to brush it off.
    "What happened?" Ollie repeats. He ignores me completely and stares right at Kara, his eyes penetrating her.
    "There were two guys. They came at us, and Ryder totally kicked butt. They ran away into the woods before she could finish them off."
    "Are you okay?" Ollie looks me up and down as if checking for injuries.
    "I'm fine. It wasn't even a big deal. They weren't strong at all. And since they ran away, it was clearly just an isolated incident. I wouldn't worry about it." I nod at him, flashing a smile so that he knows I'm sincere.
    "Well, we shouldn't go out alone anymore. Always be in a pair," Ollie says, as if he makes the rules. His arm tugs me close to him, and he kisses me on the top of my head. I lean against him while I finish off my Cheerios.
    I watch as Junior and Kara exchange loving whispers. Both of them have smiles permanently glued to their faces. Junior nuzzles his nose right along her cheekbone and kisses her temple. Her eyes flutter shut as he peppers her with love. They're so adorable it hurts.
    "Come on, Kara. Let's hit the gym," I say after we all finish eating. Junior and Ollie still have food on their plates, but I'd rather go to the gym with just us than with the boys, too. Kara doesn't need distractions—what she needs is to focus her skills and work hard.
    "I'm really tired," she says, faking a yawn. "I think I'm going to have to skip the gym. We'll work up to the two a day workouts."
    "Are you serious?" I ask back, deadpan. I stare at her, wondering why, when I see Junior's arm wrapped around her, the other on the other side. They're totally going to go upstairs and make out. I guess that's her version of a workout.  
    "Whatever. See you later," I say as I toss my tray in the garbage bin and head towards the large double doors. Just when I think I've made it out alone, Ollie hollers from behind me, asking me to wait up.
    "Pairs, remember?" he smiles, a big toothy one. For some reason his smile transports me back to our first meeting. I get lost in the memory of our relationship before it got all messed up.