Page 25 of Small Sacrifices

When Reid arrives at work the next morning, Marisol's desk is cluttered with her things, but she is nowhere to be seen. It takes a while until she slinks out of Mr. Wright's office. There's a harried look on her face, which Reid understands. Mr. Wright does that to people.

"Are you feeling alright?" he asks, blowing on his tea and then recoiling when his glasses immediately fog up.

Marisol frowns as she nods. She's not looking at him, instead righting items on her desk and searching through her little cabinet for hand sanitizer. "Of course. You know Mr. Wright."

Reid does know Mr. Wright, but something still feels wrong. He's not sure what to do about that. If she denies that anything is wrong, is he expected to believe her? Or is he expected to know she's lying, and why, and offer comfort? His dad keeps telling him that women are like that.

"Are you sure?" he asks. That's a good compromise, isn't it? At least he's not outright accusing her of lying.

"Yes." She rubs the gel on her hands aggressively.

A pungent mixture of flowers and vague red fruit smell wafts over to Reid and prompts him to roll his chair back a few inches.

Just the smell, really. Not at all the dangerous glint in her eyes.

"But you might not feel the same later today.

Because if I understood correctly, the governor is going to drag his son with him on this publicity trip. "

Oh no. "Which one?"

From what Reid has gathered, Everett doesn't seem like the type to willingly participate in a media circus. The governor's trip is, at least partially, a PR stunt. And the reporters won't be kind. Why would anyone subject their child to that?

"Apparently, Everett volunteered. You guys will be able to spend more time together these next few days."

Oh dear. Reid clenches his hands. He's pretty sure that spending more time with Everett won't end well. He's rude and confident, and he makes Reid feel weird. In his private life, that would be bad enough. He does not want to have to deal with him on a work trip.

Also... "Why would he volunteer?" He doesn't know Everett very well, but he's got a feeling that's out of character for him. From what Reid remembers of Governor Mackenzie's first run for office, Everett was barely in any of the pictures even then. Mostly, it was just Max smiling and waving.

Marisol snorts. "Oh, I don't know. Probably for absolutely no reason at all. I'm pretty sure he just wants to revel in the spotlight a bit."

The sarcasm is clear, but Reid is unsure why. Did he upset her, or does she have an issue with Everett? She seemed to like him well enough yesterday. Well, him and his butt.

Reid wants to ask her, but he senses that might not go over well. Instead, he tries another approach. "I don't think Everett is really into politics."

Marisol sighs. When she buries her head in her hands, it almost looks like she collapses, because her shoulders come right down with it. It's like someone cut her strings. "That's probably true. Sorry, I know you guys are friends now."

"No, we’re not." They barely know each other. Reid would even hesitate to call Marisol his friend, given that they only met a few weeks ago. But whether they're friends or not, he feels deeply concerned. "Are you sure you're good? Was it that bad?"

A tired smile is aimed at him, but it feels wrong. In books, characters always say that fake smiles don't reach the eyes. Marisol's eyes crinkle like they should, but they don't dance. The warmth is gone, replaced by a bone-deep tiredness. "I'm fine, really. You don't need to worry."

It's not reassuring. But he can back off if she wants him to. Everett was a safe topic of conversation, so he returns to that. "So, do you think Everett is just going to stand next to his father and smile and nod?"

Marisol hums, massaging her temples. "I think they want him with the kids.

He's good with kids. I mean, look at his brother.

" Her voice still sounds slightly muffled and definitely tired, which is why Reid doesn't point out that Everett's brother is not a child anymore.

It's not like he has seen them together more than just the one time, but it certainly seems like Everett cares about him.

"As long as he doesn't talk to the adults," he says.

That finally gets Marisol to raise her head. She snorts at him. "See, you say you guys aren't friends, but you seem to know him well enough for someone who's only just met him. I don't know how many other people here would make that assessment."

"He ran away from me yesterday," he says. "I'm not sure how friendly that is."

"He what?"

Ouch. Reid flinches at the sudden noise.

But this little snippet of gossip has finally broken through her earlier mood, and now her eyes are wide and sparkling with curiosity.

Seeing that relieves him so much that he begins talking.

He tells Marisol everything about his awkward encounter with Everett.

"And you're sure you didn't say anything else? Like, about queer stuff?" There's laughter dancing in her voice.

Queer stuff? "No, that's all I said."

She tilts her head. "Wait, are you queer?"

That makes Reid pause. "Well, I'm certainly strange." He's never really thought about it. It's difficult enough to get through day-to-day life without adding a relationship to that—and his focus has always been on his education and work. His sexuality isn't something he's given much thought.

"That's not what I asked."

Her eyes are way too alert for Reid to keep looking at her.

He turns his head down, looks at the sticky note he keeps sticking to and ripping off the table.

"It's the most precise answer I can give you right now.

" His stomach twists uncomfortably. This is.

.. why doesn't he know this? Why didn't he ever think that he should know this?

That's weird, right? But also... "Wait, what does that have to do with Everett? "

Maybe that was the wrong thing to say, because the way her eyes widen is downright comical. "Oh, nothing."

Sure. That sounds believable. He wants to ask, dig deeper, but then Mr. Wright swans out of his office and walks right by their desks.

Immediately, Marisol withdraws into herself again, hands in her lap and eyes stuck to her desk.

Still, she takes the time to hiss a "just be careful" out of the corner of her mouth.

Reid has no idea what he's supposed to be careful about. But she's right that they should stop talking about it in the middle of the office. He unsticks his sticky note one last time and then crumples it up to throw into the trash can. Maybe he can ask her when they're on their lunch break.

Reid is immersed in a 2005 planning proposal for the school when a whisper starts up, so he doesn't pay it any attention at first. Which is a mistake, because the solution Marisol finds to that problem is a sharp pinch to his biceps.

Thankfully, he manages to suppress the reflexive expletive, because when he looks up with tears burning behind his eyes, the governor is at the head of the room. One of these days, he's going to have to talk to Marisol about how she tries to get him to pay attention.

All around them, people are talking in hissed whispers, moving their chairs and tidying up their desks.

In the general hum of the office, Reid almost misses Everett sauntering into the room.

As it is, he has to look twice to be sure.

Because the look on his face... that's not Everett.

Everett smiles and laughs and teases. Every time that Reid has seen him so far, he's been very expressive. He doesn't look this aloof.

As Everett's eyes roam across the room, they seem to catch on Reid's face for a moment. But he doesn't answer the smile Reid gives him, doesn't even show an ounce of recognition. He just moves on. And that stings way more than it should.

"Alright, folks, listen up!" the governor says when he's finally had enough of the hubbub. "I just need five minutes of your time. We're leaving for Chesterton tomorrow, and I need everyone to know what's happening."

That could've been an email, Reid thinks to himself. A quick look at Marisol doesn't show the shared irritation he'd like to see, but her less familiar poker face.

"An email will go out to everyone who's coming along," Governor Mackenzie continues, "but I want to make sure everyone hears it straight from me.

There will be a mediation with the parents, and then I'll visit Chesterton Hospital and attend a public town hall meeting.

I won't be offering a personal apology, because, as we all know, I'm not to blame for this mess. "

He gives a winning smile. "Lieutenant Governor Coleman will be joining us to make public statements that are less likely to end up in court.

Our official stance is: We are devastated that children were hurt and are still hurting.

They should have received help earlier, and we are committed to ensuring they get all the support they need.

We're traveling there to ensure their voices are heard. "

There's a brief pause, and for a moment, Reid thinks the governor is finished.

But then he continues, "I'm bringing my son to show how seriously I'm taking this.

He grew up in that community, and had he been younger, he would have attended that school.

This isn't just about corporate negligence; it's about families.

That's why I'm bringing mine. I would've brought Maximilian, but he has an important test tomorrow.

" The governor winks. "So, we'll just have to make do with Everett, won't we? "

Everett smiles so broadly that it looks uncomfortable. "Oh, I think they'll love me."

"Of course you do. Well," the governor spreads his arms invitingly, "questions?"