Heroine by Mindy McGinnis

Author:Mindy McGinnis
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2018-12-29T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Nine

accusation: the act of charging with an offense

I could almost be okay the next night.

Carolina comes over for dinner, and she even silences her phone before she puts it in her hoodie pocket. Mom gets takeout, and we’re falling back into a familiar pattern—dissecting the game just past, analyzing who did and did not do certain things, and talking about the next team we’ll face on Thursday. It’s almost the same, but not quite.

Dad isn’t here to listen intently to Carolina like he was last season, chin resting in his hand while she explains the best way to hit another pitcher’s curveball. And even though she did put it on vibrate, I can still hear texts coming in on her phone—probably from Aaron—as we talk. Carolina ignores it, which I appreciate, but every time I hear a buzz coming from her direction it sets my teeth a little more on edge.

We’ve almost put away the entire order of wonton soup, the egg rolls are gone, and Carolina is diving back into the General Tso’s chicken when Mom’s phone goes off. She’s on call again, so silencing is not an option. Mom pops a fortune cookie into her mouth and puts it on speaker when she sees that it’s Dad.

“Hey, what’s up?”

“Um . . . there’s no good way to say this,” Dad says, his voice uncharacteristically cautious. “So I’m just going to spit it out. Devra thinks Mickey is on something.”

Mom’s hand slaps down onto the phone, taking it off speaker before he can say any more. I stop chewing, the last bits of Chinese food that I’ve managed to force down turning tasteless in my mouth. Carolina drops her eyes, suddenly interested in arranging her chicken a certain way on her plate.

“What the hell, Geoff?” Mom is up and leaving the table in an effort to make this a private conversation, but there’s too much emotion in her voice to bring the volume level down. I clear my throat, looking for words to use, anything to say that can drown out Mom.

“You get enough to eat?” I ask Carolina.

It’s a stupid thing to say, something a mom or a grandma would ask. Not a best friend. Or any friend. But it’s all I can come up with, a question that doesn’t require a vocal answer, so Carolina only nods her head as more of Mom’s responses drift to the table.

“Because she needed a tampon? Geoff, do I really have to explain menstruation to you again?”

“The soup was good,” I say.

“Right, right . . . of course,” Mom goes on, voice rising again. “Of course everything is falling apart here, without you. That’s right. The second you leave your daughter becomes an addict. I couldn’t possibly be a good doctor and a good mother—”

“Mickey . . . ,” Carolina says, turning her spoon upside down so that rice cascades off it.

“Oh, fuck you, Geoff. FUCK. YOU.”

“I think I should probably go,” Carolina says, pulling her phone out so she doesn’t have to look at me.

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