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Before I met Yaya, before her opinion mattered to me, I knew the answer to that question. Protect my family. Hide anything that could hurt them. Brush all Sullivan mistakes under the rug.
But dad did that to Lucy and my sister ended up drunk driving and being forced into rehab.
Do I want that for Talia?
I just don’t know.
CHAPTER12
the surprise scam
YAYA
Anger froths in the center of my stomach. It’s not irrational—at least I don’t think it is. But maybe it’s a tiny bit exaggerated because I’m still recovering from ‘the incident’.
You know… the one where my lips met Dare’s face. Again.
The moment we walked into this room, the principal’s body language was one of servitude. Exaggerated smiles. Batting eyelashes. Nervous hand twitches. They were paired with quick glances at Dare’s face, scanning him intently, checking for his approval.
Am I missing something? Dare made it seem like Talia was in trouble. I don’t get that vibe. It seems like the principal is apologizing, down on her knees, begging him to forgiveher.
Power imbalance.
Pure and simple.
It irks me.
Maybe because that power imbalance is affecting me on a far more personal level.
Dare has been talking with the principal for almost five minutes now. Jenny isn’t here, so I can only read their body language to follow the conversation.
Lipreading is out of the question. The principal talks so fast, I can’t even tell if she’s speaking English. Dare has his back to me, so even if I wanted to, I couldn’t make out his words.
When he turns and fills me in, I feel a tug of displeasure. I am completely dependent on his interpretation of what’s going on. There’s no way to confirm that he’s telling the truth. They could be talking about an alien invasion for all I know, but if Dare says it’s about cream cheese and hors d'oeuvres, I have to believe him.
The itchy, uncomfortable feeling gets worse.
Did he tell Jenny not to come on purpose? I noticed back at the photoshoot that he sent everyone away and signed in his base-level ASL. As much as he’s growing, I need an interpreter—or two—to understand a conversation with this many people.
If I’d known he’d kick Jenny out, I would have arranged for an interpreter myself.
The anger churns and morphs into a tidal wave.
I’ve spent my entire life building a foundation of independence. But in moments like this, when I’m at the mercy of a hearing person, I’m reminded of how unfairly the scales tip in their favor.
This is why I can’t let him get to me.
I’ll admit, for a moment during ‘the incident’, my defenses wobbled. I considered letting that warm, addictive feeling grow. Thought maybe it wouldn’t besobad to… possiblylikeDare.
Ridiculous.
Me? Attracted to a hearing person?
Now I realize, it was a moment of insanity. Temporary. Gone with the wind.
Dare suddenly faces the door and I glance that way too. Jenny is there, breathing heavily. Sweat dots her forehead and, from the way her purse is askew, she was running.
“Sorry I’m late,” she signs, straightening tiredly.