Page 85 of The Other Brother

I glance at our sisters. Forget pandas in a zoo. They’re staring at us like we’re purple and pink alien-unicorn hybrids who’ve just started hula-hooping.

I remove my hands from Cody. He runs his hands through his hair as I grab my keys and phone from the coffee table.

“Let’s hit the road,” I suggest.

“Yeah, okay.” Cody says. He nods toward Kate and Mel. “See you guys later.”

“Yeah, later,” Mel says weakly as we make our exit.

I catch a snatch of Kate’s voice just as the door shuts behind me. “Okay, so I didn’t see that one coming.”

Chapter22

Cody and I spend the rest of the day together. He’s remarkably unconcerned about the whole telling-our-sisters thing. I’m not quite as relaxed as him, although I hide my discomfort. I just get the feeling it’s not the last I’ve heard on the issue.

On Monday Mrs. Steinberg welcomes us to the week by springing a pop quiz. But thanks to Cody’s tutoring, I’m staying up-to-date with the work, so I’m pretty sure I manage to pass.

As I’m leaving class with Grace and Mia, the star chart my mum had when I was a kid as an incentive to do well in tests flashes into my mind. Can I talk Cody into setting up a rewards system for my biology results? Although I’ll suggest different prizes than the Star Wars figurines my mum used to offer.

“What are you plotting?” Grace asks.

“Plotting, me?” I ask with an air of innocence.

“That’s definitely your Ryan-is-plotting something face,” she says.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

We reach the picnic tables where everyone is hanging out, and the usual clowning around begins. But something is off with Oz. He’s sitting at the end of the table, not saying much.

When I try to engage him in a friendly arm wrestle, he shrugs me off.

After the bell rings, I hang back to talk to Harvey.

“What’s up with Oz? He’s not pissed about the PlayStation thing, is he?” I don’t get it. Oz isn’t the type of person to hold grudges.

Harvey looks at me silently for a few seconds before answering. “His grandmother’s really sick. They don’t know if she will make it.”

“Oh.” I pull up. “Why didn’t he tell me?”

Harvey shrugs. “No idea.”

The second bell rings. I’ve got to go or there’s a late detention slip with my name on it in the immediate future.

Last period I have English.I slip into a seat next to Oz.

“Hey, sorry about your grandmother,” I say in an undertone.

He stiffens. “Did Harvey tell you?”

“Yeah. Why didn’t you say something to me?”

Oz shrugs. “What would you have said?”

I don’t know how to answer that question. I fiddle with my pen.

“That’s the thing,” Oz continues. “You’re always good for a laugh, but you’re not exactly the go-to person when shit gets serious, are you?”

His words cut at me. I drop my pen through the small gap between our desks and use the time leaning down to pick it up to wipe my face clean.