Free Don't Forget to Breathe by Cathrina Constantine Page B

in the Hallow was freaked with…with Mom and all.”
    “My God,” she cut in. “He threw that in your face? I’m going to kill him.”
    “Please, Nona. Hear me out.” I paused until she stopped prattling. “He just said he was sorry about what happened a year ago, and he thought Mom was a cool. She was his English teacher.” I expounded on my bizarre desire to spill my guts at Earl’s, and how I developed into a blathering, weepy dope. “He probably thinks I’m insane.”
    “You’re beating yourself up for nothing.” Nona reasoned. “Your crippled condition, as you call it , is understandable. The threat and incertitude of what transpired last year needs to be solved. It’s that cold case that needs a solution so you can get on with your life. Don’t you agree?”
    “Ah-h…” I sounded unsure. “Yes, that’s it.” I sat up and glanced at my wrinkled jumper. “All I remember is waking up strapped to a gurney in the hospital. My throat was so swollen and sore from screaming. The killer was still in the house. What if I actually saw him?”
    “Stop with the twenty-one questions, girl. Let’s get back to Becket.”
    She flipped the conversation to get my mind off the murder. Sounding meek, I said into the cell, “He kissed me.”
    “What’s that? I thought it went downhill at Earl’s? Now you’re saying Becket kissed you? You’re holding back on me.”
    “I was as shocked as you are. He looked mad like my meltdown totally ruined his afternoon. He called himself an ass.” Nona yiked into the receiver. “He really did. I think he blamed himself for making me cry, bringing up Mom and all. He walked me to the door, and…and then…kissed me.”
    “He kissed you. That’s all you’re giving me. No spicy details?”
    “It was…it was sweet, gentle…perfect.”
    “Oo-o-o-o…” she cooed. “I knew it. I knew it. He knows how to reel in the ladies.”
    “That doesn’t make me feel better. And it won’t happen again.”
    “What makes you say that?”
    “He won’t ask me out after today’s debacle. Not after my nuclear meltdown. He felt sorry for the lunatic, that’s why he kissed me.”
    “Leo, stop that nonsense. I’d come over there to straighten you out, but Reggie’s taking me for ice cream.” Then she said as an afterthought, “Hey, you can come with us.”
    A pat sounded on my window. “Nona, someone’s knocking on my window.”
    “Hey—do you think Becket’s come back? Check it out.”
    I peeked through the levered blinds. “It’s Henry.”
    “Shoot, why’s that boy coming to your window?”
    “I don’t know.” Drawing open the blinds, I gave Henry the wait a minute signal. He nodded. “I got to go. Enjoy your ice cream.”
    “Hey, don’t forget,” she spoke breathy like she was moving around. “Mrs. Zweigler wants us at the school an hour before the game starts tomorrow to practice that new routine. I’ll have Reggie pick you up at six o’clock, okay?”
    “Sure, see you then.” Before scraping up the casement window, I tossed the cell on my bed. “Why don’t you come to the door and ring the bell like a normal person?”
    “’Cause your father loathes me.”
    “He does not.”
    “Yes, he does. He practically told me.” Gripping the casement with two hands, he scrambled up and over the sill, tumbling onto the floor. Not as athletic as Becket and I tried not to snicker.
    “Did my father say he didn’t like you?”
    Henry brushed down his jeans and readjusted the cockeyed glasses on his nose. “He said it to my face over a week ago.”
    “No—My father wouldn’t—”
    “I’m not lying. Exact quote, ‘I don’t like you, kid. If you hurt my little girl, I’m gunning after you.’ End of quote.”
    Pinching my lips, I squashed laughter. “He was being fatherly.”
    “You call that fatherly?” His pockets bulged as he unzipped his gray hoodie. “I call it a threat.” He checked to ensure the door was locked before making himself