Page 232 of Broken Brothers

“I should go,” I said.

“We can stay friends if you want,” Layla said.

“I’ll think on it,” I said.

I wanted her in my life. As friends might have been too cruel, too much of a reminder of what could have been, but it would at least keep her around. But I didn’t want to say anything right now that could have caused trouble or felt like a broken promise later.

“Bye, Layla,” I said as I meekly walked out of her apartment and shut the door behind me.

92

EIGHTEEN YEARS BEFORE

Iwas scared.

I was in a shelter, waiting for a new family to adopt me. Where was my mommy and daddy? One day, I was with them, and the next, I didn’t know where they were.

I was really scared. I just wanted someone to hug me.

Then I looked up and saw a boy and his parents approaching. I was nervous, and so I didn’t look up at them much. But the boy approached me with a smile.

“Hi, I’m Morgan,” he said.

He put his arm around me, and I felt strangely comforted. I was still scared, but I felt like I had someone who could make me feel happy finally.

“Do we really gotta do this?” the big man said. “You know I only want one.”

“Hush, Edwin, he’ll be a great addition,” the woman said.

She then crouched before me.

“Hi, I’m Melanie,” she said before putting a hand on me.

I went over to her and hugged her, causing her to go aww. I heard someone make what sounded like a groaning sound.

“I am your new mommy,” she said. “I will take care of you. But I promise you that if you ever want to see your real mommy, I’ll help you do that. OK?”

I nodded my head nervously, staying downcast.

“Can you say your name?”

I finally looked at the new mommy.

“Chance,” I said.

“Chance,” she said. “Welcome to the Hunts. I and the rest of us are here to support you with whatever you need, including seeing your real parents if you want.”

“Yeah,” Morgan said. “I like you, Chance. I’ll help you however you need.”

Present Day

The disappointmentof Layla still stung, and thankfully, Mom seemed to pick up on it, choosing to remain silent as I stared out the window of our car on the three hour ride up to Rhode Island. I wondered why we didn’t just fly, but I understood why Mom had done it.

She wanted to give me the chance to ask any questions I had in private. It was just yet another way that my mother proved to be a wonderful woman that deserved more credit than she had ever received in her life from Edwin.

At the moment, though, I was just peering out the window, looking at the skyline of Manhattan recede in the rearviewmirrors. It felt like an appropriate image—I had thought multiple times about just following Layla to Chicago.

But even beyond that, even if Layla refused my advances in Chicago, I was beginning to wonder if I would find what I was looking for in New York City. I wanted love, peace, and calmness; New York City might give me someone whom I could love, but it was hard to find peace and calmness in a city where taxi cabs honked at all hours of the day. I knew that the fact that I was asking myself this question meant I wasn’t going to live in Manhattan forever, but obviously, moving tomorrow and moving in ten years were two very different things.