Goodbye from Nowhere by Sara Zarr

Author:Sara Zarr [Zarr, Sara]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2020-01-25T00:00:00+00:00

12

HE WOKE up on the floor to the sound of someone in the kitchenette. When he peered around the couch, he saw it was Megan’s roommate, Julie, her back to him. She had black hair in a buzz cut, or was growing out a shaved head. Black T-shirt, green basketball shorts. Nice, cut calves.

“Hey,” he said, quietly as he could. “Um, I’m here. It’s Megan’s brother. Kyle. I didn’t want to scare you.”

She glanced over her shoulder, smiled. “Yeah, I know. Megan told me before she went to bed last night. Want coffee?”

“No thanks.” He’d had coffee a couple of times and did not understand everyone’s obsession with something so nasty.

“Did you sleep okay?”

“Sort of . . .” There was a note on the laundry basket and a ten-dollar bill—If you need gas money, in Megan’s handwriting.

“The bathroom is free right now if you want it, but I have to get in there in like ten minutes to get ready for work. So you know.”

“I’m good.”

Julie came into the living room and sat on the other end of the couch with her coffee and her phone. She had a tattoo on one of her shoulders, medium sized. He squinted.

“Is that the bear from the California flag?”

“Hell yeah it is. I’m ready for us to secede and run our own country here.” She sipped her coffee. “You’re the first person from Megan’s family I’ve met.”

“I figured. She’s not that into us.” He pulled his fleece blanket up around him. Julie was just going to sit here on the couch for ten minutes? “Um, that food from your parents’ restaurant was amazing, by the way.”

“They both grew up in Thailand, so they pretty much know what they’re doing.”

He searched for a topic. “So, what does Megan say about us?”

“About your family? That you’re capitalist pigs who will die in the coming revolution.” She paused. “I’m joking. We don’t talk about it that much. Our work schedules don’t line up and we have our own lives, but she’s never said anything that makes me think she wants to disown you guys or anything.”

He was looking again at the bear on her shoulder. Her arms were pretty. Her neck. The way he could see the whole curve of it because her hair was practically nonexistent. “Do you play basketball?” he asked when he realized he was staring at her calves again, tried to pass it off like he was looking at her shorts.

“In high school I did, but only for fun anymore. I’m too short.”

She sipped her coffee, did some stuff on her phone.

Kyle said, “I play baseball.” Julie glanced up at him, nodded, looked back at her phone. He felt self-conscious and young and wanted to be back in a place where he knew what he was. “I guess I’ll go ahead and grab a quick shower.”

He was two hours late for school. Mrs. Ito, Coach Ito’s wife, worked in the office and told him his dad had called to excuse his lateness.

“Really?” He’d meant to call home but had forgotten to charge his phone at Megan’s and now it was dead.

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