Lilly and Griffen exchanged glances and left to catch up with Haley and Ben.
Ro shouted out, “Where are you going, Griffen?”
“I came with him, not you.”
“Griff?”
But the boy was already at the car. As soon as Ben took off, Haley lit into him. “I could have handled myself.”
“Yeah, I saw how well you did that.”
“I coulda done it if you hadn’t butted in. Why did you do that?”
“’Cause he was drunk and he was pawing you and you’re too stupid to see it.”
“He wasn’t pawing me and you’re too stupid to trust me.”
“Haley, shut up and let me drive before I have an accident. I can’t see too well, okay?”
Lilly said, “How’s your eye?”
“It hurts.”
The rest of the ride was silent. When they got home, Haley stormed away. Still in pain, Ben waited a few seconds to get his composure back. He went inside the house. Mom took one look at him and her eyes got very wide. “What in the world happened?”
Haley said, “What happened is my brother is an idiot!” She stalked off to her room.
“Oh my God!” Mom exclaimed.
His father said, “Laura, go get an ice pack.”
Mom hurried into the kitchen. Lilly looked at Griffen. No one moved.
Ben said, “I’m all right. C’mon, guys, let me take you home before it swells shut.”
Laura came back with a bag of ice. “Benjamin, what happened?”
“Little difference of opinion. No big whoop.”
“You got into a fight?” Dad was incredulous. “You?”
“With who?” Mom turned to Dad. “Hold this under his eye, William. I’m going to get some Advil.”
Dad did as instructed. “Who punched you?”
Ben took the ice pack from his father. “It’s not important.”
“Ron Weekly,” Griffen said. “He was acting like an idiot.”
“Ron has always been an idiot,” William said. “Why were you fighting with him?”
“He was goading Ben by disrespecting Haley,” Lilly said.
Dad whipped around. “What’d he do to my daughter?”
“Nothing, honestly,” Ben blurted out. “It’s not important.”
“He punched you?” Dad was furious. “I’ll kill him.”
“I overreacted.” Ben stared at Lilly and Griffen with one eye. “Sorry if I embarrassed you guys.”
“If you had gotten clobbered, it would have been embarrassing,” Lilly said. “But you left on a high note.”
Griffen grinned. “Man, you shoulda seen the look on Weekly’s face when you threw him halfway across the field.”
“What?” Ben’s mother said.
“You really clocked him!” Griffen said. “It was cool!”
“It’s nothing, Mom. It’s just part of being a guy.”
Griffen said, “Man, that was supercool! I’m glad you decked Weekly.” Anger had seeped into his voice. “He’s a real asshole.” The kid looked at the adults. “Sorry.”
“He is an asshole,” Dad said.
Ben adjusted the ice pack. “C’mon, kids. Let’s get home. It’s late.”
“You aren’t going anywhere.” Dad stood up. “I’ll take them home. And if that jerk ever touches you again, I will sue his family until they’re begging for mercy.”
Ben smiled. That’s how lawyers attacked. They sued.
Laura said, “Is this going to come back to bite you, Ben?”
“Nah, it was off campus. But even if it were on campus, no one’s gonna say anything. It’s just guys being guys.”
“Especially because Weekly was drunk.”
“You took Haley to where there was alcohol?” Mom was aghast.
Lilly said, “If Ben didn’t go, she would have gone with Griff’s sister. I told her she was being stupid, but who listens to me?”
“It’s true,” Griffen said. “Ben had to go to keep a watch over Haley.”
“He should have brought her home and let me deal with her anger,” Mom announced. “I am going to talk to that girl right now!”
Ben held her arm. “You don’t need her crap. Let me handle it.”
“I’m her mother!” Then she deflated. “I am so tired of all this!”
“C’mon, Mom. It doesn’t happen very often. You relax and let her yell at me.”
“He’s right,” Dad told her. “Don’t stress. If she starts screaming at you, you’ll get upset.”
“I’m already upset.”
“It’s late, Mom. I have to talk to Haley anyway. She’s furious at me.”
“Why is she so mad at you for defending her?”
“Because at the moment she thinks I’m ruining her life.”
“Oh, for God’s sakes!” His mom’s eyes were wet. “You think that after all that has happened, at least we could all get along.”
“We do get along. This is normal stuff. And unlike the real problems, this will pass.” Ben readjusted his ice pack. “Go rest, okay?”
Defeated, she retreated to the bedroom and slammed the door. After his father left with Lilly and Griffen, Ben knocked on Haley’s door.
“Go away.”
“Open up the door or I’ll pick the lock.” A moment later the lock sprang back and Ben walked inside. Haley’s face was full of utter contempt. “You had to pick on the most popular boy in school.”
“Second most popular. JD is number one.”
“Well, he’s a lot cuter than JD. I hate you.”
“Haley, he was disrespecting you.”
“If he’s disrespecting me, let me handle it. Not you. Me!” She threw a pillow at Ben. “Now I’m gonna get tortured by everyone and it’s all your fault! It’s bad enough you’re a geek. Why do you have to bring me down to your level?”
“I may be a geek, but Weekly’s an asshole.”
“It’s my life, Ben. Just butt out.”
“I know Weekly much better than you do. He’s an ass. Most boys are asses.”
“You’re an ass.”
“I’m an ass but I love you.”
She threw another pillow at him. “God, how am I going to show my face on Monday?”
“I promise I’ll keep a low profile, all right?”
“Too late for that.” Her fists were balled up in fury. “God, why did Ellen have to die?”
Her words hit him like a wrecking ball. Even if he had a comeback, his voice would have stuck in his throat.
In the few seconds of ensuing silence, Haley realized what she had blurted out. She was genuinely horrified. “I didn’t mean it that way, Ben.” Tears formed. “I just thought about sisters and—”
“’S’right.” Ben stood up. “No explanation needed. Sometimes I wonder about that myself.” He left, gently shutting the door behind him.
He collapsed onto his bed with searing pain in his head. Haley was knocking at his door a moment later. He still couldn’t talk.
Haley said, “Ben, open up.” She was crying audibly. “Please? I’m so sorry.”
Exhaling, he got up and opened the door. Then he plunked back down on his mattress. When she turned on the light, he told her to turn it off.
Haley was at the foot of his bed. “I didn’t mean it like that.” She was sobbing between breaths. “I just . . . sometimes wonder . . . what it would have been like to have a sister . . . but not instead of a brother.” She was digging the knife in deeper. More sobs. “I’d die if anything happened to you.” She attempted to hug him. Teardrops fell on his shirt. “I’m so sorry.”
“It’s all right, Haley. I’m not mad. And I’m sure that Ellen would have handled it better than I did. She was socially adroit.”