“It’s okay,” I told him and opened my book again. But as the minutes passed, I couldn’t concentrate on the words in front of me. “Do you want to talk about it?” I finally asked.
“I’m fine,” he told me. “It’s just really frustrating when I can’t have any privacy. My mom is constantly checking on me. I’m surprised she hasn’t started sleeping on my floor at night.”
“She’s just worried about you,” I said, not sure how to respond. I hadn’t the slightest idea of what he was going through. It must be hard to always have someone with you, never alone.
“I know.” He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “But I just want my old life back.”
“Yeah,” I mumbled, looking down. Then we were both still, lost in our own problems.
The door banged open again. “Hey, Jackie?” Alex asked, beaming like an excited child.
“What’s up?”
“Not much. I was just wondering if you wanted to come to my baseball game later today. It’s the last one of the year.” The corners of his mouth rose in a hopeful smile. How could I say no to that cute grin?
“I’d love to, Alex,” I told him, patting the spot next to me on the bed. “But you have to do me a favor first.”
“Sure,” Alex said excitedly.
“You need to study for anatomy.”
***
As I washed my hands, I whistled the tune of a song Nathan had been listening to. Somehow I’d managed to convince Alex to go over our anatomy definitions together, and along with Nathan, we’d been holed up in my room for the past two hours. When Alex’s attention span finally waned, I walked him back to his room and took a quick bathroom break.
Turning off the faucet, I heard a giggle.
“Who’s in here?” I demanded and spun around. Someone tried to suppress another laugh, and I flung the shower curtain back. “Benny!” I cried when I saw him curled up in the tub. “What are you doing?”
“Playing hide-and-seek. Mom took away the water balloons,” he explained, a frown of disappointment on his face. But then he smiled and added, “Do you always wear polka-dot underwear?”
I counted to three in my head to contain my anger. “Benny,” I said, after taking a few calming breaths, “why didn’t you say something when I came in?”
“That’s not how you play hide-and-seek,” he whispered and put a finger to his lips. “You have to be quiet, duh.”
“But I needed to use the bathroom,” I said.
The door slammed open. People really needed to learn how to knock in this household. “I found you!” shouted Zack.
“Did I win?” his twin asked eagerly and climbed out of the tub.
“No!” Parker complained, pushing into the bathroom as well. “Zack cheated. He was peeking when I hid!”
“Did not!”
“Yes, huh!”
“You’re just a shitty hider!” Zack said, shoving his sister.
“Am not!” Parker shouted back.
“I won! I won!” Benny sang as he danced across the tile in celebration.
“Guys!” I said, trying to break up a fight. “How about we start over? I’ll play too. This time, no peeking.”
I gave Zack a no-funny-business look, and he flashed me a grin before running back to his room to count. “One. Two. Three,” he started slowly. Then, “Four-five-seven-ten!”
Parker dashed out of the bathroom as Zack rushed to sixty, and as I searched for a place to hide, I realized I had acquired a tiny shadow.
“Benny, you can’t keep following me around,” I told him. “I’m trying to find a spot.”
“Can I hide with you?” he asked. His bottom lip was out stuck out in a pout as he looked up at me with big eyes.
“Oh fine,” I said, unable to say no to his adorable face. Opening the linen closet, I yanked out a few towels, clearing off a shelf. “Come here, you,” I said, lifting Benny up and helping him climb onto the shelf. He pulled his knees up to his chest, and I covered him with the towels. Then I stepped inside and closed the door, throwing us into darkness.
“He’s never going to find me,” Benny giggled.
“Hey,” I whispered. “I thought the rule was you had to be quiet.”
We hid in the darkness for only a minute, and I was already starting to get antsy. Even though I had just gone, my bladder was turning tight. It was the one thing I hated about playing hide-and- seek—you always ended up having to pee. Just when I couldn’t take it any longer, someone pulled open the door.
Cole jumped back in surprise when he saw me. “Jesus,” he shouted, almost dropping the towel that was wrapped around his waist. He must have been heading for the shower. “Why are you creeping in the closet?”
“Peaches, peaches, apple pie. If you’re not ready, holler I!” Zack shouted from his room, and I felt Benny tug on my shirt in panic. Crap, we were going to be found first.
“Get in here,” I said, grabbing Cole’s wrist and yanking him in.
But there wasn’t much room. With the door shut, I could feel the shelves digging into my back. And then there was the part where Cole’s entire body was pressed up against mine.