Free Jaden Baker by Courtney Kirchoff Page B

lie.
    “Nope,” he said. “Kinda weird, huh?”
    “You didn’t seem surprised about it,” Derek said. “In fact, you acted like you expected it to happen.”
    “I did? Well, I didn’t. How was I supposed to know that would happen?” It dawned on him he was arguing with an attorney. He picked up his book but couldn’t read a word. Both the Kauffmans stared at him. The sweating continued. Their forced calm was obvious. From the backseat Jaden read the tenseness of their postures.
    “Jaden?” Jenny said. “Are you being truthful?”
    No.
    “Yes,” he said, flipping a page carelessly.
    “Jaden.”
    “I don’t want to talk about it,” he said, meeting her eyes. “It freaked me out.”
    “Us too. Let’s discuss it together.”
    “Because I don’t want to.”
    Jenny shut her eyes and released a large sigh. “We have to talk about some things, you know. We can’t let you shut us out forever. Especially this.”
    “I’m not shutting you out, I just don’t want to talk about that thing.”
    “Because it has happened before?” Derek asked, wide eyed. Stupid lawyer.
    “Okay fine, yes, it’s happened before. Happy now? It’s happened a lot. I don’t know what it is or why it happens; it just does. I know it’s weird, and I don’t want to talk about it, okay?” He crossed his arms and frowned at the back of the chair.
    Jenny’s mouth was thin. She stared at him.
    “What now?” he snapped.
    “Don’t get smart,” she said. “Don’t talk back to me like that.”
    Seriously? They corner him about...whatever it is, make him confess, and now he’s the bad guy? They think getting him some books gives them the right to snoop into his privacy? He told, they forced it out of him, the gig was up. He’s a weirdo. They got themselves a strange one. It was all out in the open now, yet he was still going to be tongue lashed?
    “Fine,” he grunted. “Sorry.” He stared out the window the rest of the way home, refusing to say another word on the subject. The Kauffmans peeked at each other the entire journey, as if conversing by blinks. He failed ignoring them. When they pulled into the garage, he stayed inside the car while Jenny and Derek went in.
    His bag of newly purchased books sat beside him, judging him. It was hot now that the air conditioner was off. The only sound was the tick, tick of the cooling engine.
    It wasn’t their business. It was his, whatever it was. It didn’t belong to them, it belonged to him. He wanted to keep it a secret and had tried ever since he arrived here, losing sleep to keep it away from their eyes. Why couldn’t they have ignored it and let it be?
    Would you have ignored it?
    Okay, it was probably hard to ignore. To be fair, they had waited until after noon to say anything. They also asked nicely rather than assume the worst and lock him in the closet and not feed him or let him use the bathroom for three days.
    Maybe he’d jumped to conclusions.
    You assumed the worst of them again .
    Jaden picked up his new book and squeezed it in his hands. They were nice people, good people, not mean or cruel, hot tempered or freaks. They were good. The only reason they’d send him back was if he kept acting like they would abuse him. Because that would be hurtful. They’d never threatened him.
    He opened the car door, grabbed the book bag, and hopped out. He’d have to apologize for real. Unlike Finn, this wouldn’t be rehearsed. It would still be difficult.
    They were both inside, not speaking, when he walked into the living room. They didn’t look at him either.
    “I need to say something,” he mumbled.
    They watched him now, Jenny from her chair, Derek from the couch.
    “I’m sorry if I overreacted or whatever, before, in the car, about the...thing. I know you just wanted to know what it was.”
    Jenny smiled warmly and nodded.
    “Well. There it is then.” He spun on his heel and started toward his bedroom when a thought came to him. He wheeled back