Page 92 of Room to Breathe

He smiled back at me. “I have a place for us to talk.”

“Okay.” We were heading straight for the end of the hall to his parents’ room. So Iwasgoing to have to talk to her? I was a ball of nerves. I had stood up to her at the door, but I was worried I’d expended all of my bravery.

But when he opened the bedroom door, the room was dark. He flipped on a light, then led me to the window. My heart started beating faster as his intentions became clear.

“Do I get to sit on the roof?” I asked in excitement.

“You told me you believed answers to life’s problems would be easier to solve on one of these roofs.”

“I did,” I said.

“I hope you’re right.”

“I am,” I said.

He smiled, opened the window, then popped out the screen. He stepped out first, then offered his hand to me. I hesitated. It was higher than it looked from inside and not as flat as I’d pictured it.

“Scarier than you thought?” he asked with a chuckle.

I nodded.

“I got you.” He took a step closer. “Just don’t look down.”

I nodded and held on to his arm and shoulder tightly as I stepped through the window and onto the roof. It was breezy out and the wind blew my hair across my face. I pushed it out of the way with one hand, and he led me slowly to a flatter section, where we sat.

The sun was low in the sky; we’d get to see it set in the next thirty minutes or so.

The ocean in the distance settled my nerves. “This is magical,” I said. “Just like I knew it would be.”

“It’s pretty cool,” he agreed.

“Does your mom know you’re out here?” I asked.

“She does.”

“With me?” I clarified.

“Yes,” he said.

“What happened? What did she say?”

“She didn’t say much. I did most of the talking. I let her know that if she didn’t want me to resent her forever, that she needed to understand and accept how important you are to me.” He pulled something out of his pocket and handed it to me.

It was the fortune teller from the bathroom. I didn’t realize I’d left it in there. I thought I’d packed it up with all my other things.

I laughed. “You saved it.”

“Ask it a question,” he said, nodding toward it.

I smirked. “It only worked in the bathroom.”

“No, it’s doubly effective now.”

“Oh yeah? Why’s that?”

“Because the universe has easier access to it.” He pointed to the sky.

“No dirty bathroom ceilings to get through?”