If my mom wasn't picking me up until noon, I would be stuck for eighteen hours in the cabin of people who didn't want me there.
For maybe half an hour, I sat on the couch, trying to understand how everything had gone so badly. Mark had invited me. I thought he trusted me.
And then he turned on me. Right away. Before we even got halfway to the cabin.
I felt terrible about cutting his face, of course. But this whole thing was unfair. Friends were supposed to accept you—not push you around or criticize you for everything.
And not try to whip you with a stick to get a reaction.275Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6MI0O5LdGP
Mark kept telling me I was immature. He kept calling me a baby, and I tried hard to convince him I wasn't.
But now I understood.
He never wanted me to be his friend. He just wanted to feel superior to me. I wasn't sure why I didn't see it before, but now I did.
My backpack was leaning against the sofa where I'd put it when we'd arrived hours earlier. I grabbed it and left the cabin.
If they didn't want me here, why should I wait until tomorrow?
None of this made sense.
Mark probably told his parents I went crazy and hit him for no reason, and they probably told my mom. I had no bruises, so I couldn't prove anything else. I couldn't imagine what she was thinking.
I walked back up the gravel driveway to the roadway that hugged the side of the mountain. I figured I could take it back into the village, get someone to let me call mom on their phone, and then tell her that she had to come up tonight.
It was still only late afternoon and probably wouldn't be dark for at least a couple of more hours, so I decided it would be safe to follow the road. There weren't too many cars anyway. It took us ten minutes to drive from the cafe, but I wasn't sure how long it would take to walk back to the village on foot. An hour?
But I'd decided I wouldn't let Mark or his family—or my mom—push me around.
I walked down the roadway for half an hour before seeing the large "Welcome to Miller Lake" sign and finally realized I was walking in the wrong direction. I felt stupid. I turned around and walked back again, passing the cabin and heading uphill toward town.
Nighttime came faster than I thought, and it was already dark by the time I got to the little main street. The cafe where we'd had lunch was still open, so I headed there. My mom had given me some money for the weekend. At least I could have dinner instead of finding something random in the cabin.
The cafe was crowded, and I had to wait a while. I wondered if this was the only place to eat in the entire village.
After fifteen minutes, a small table finally opened up in one corner, and I sat down.
"I'm Denise; how are you today?"
Denise, the server, was an older lady with long grey hair tied together behind her. She had a friendly smile.
"Hi, Denise."
"Are your mom and dad joining you?"
I smiled, "I'm here on my own."
Her eyebrows rose in surprise. I'd seen it before.
"I'm thirteen," I told her, "I know I look younger."
"Ah..." I could see she felt awkward.
"It's okay," I smiled at her, "I'm used to it. At least you didn't give me the children's menu."
She held the back of her hand up to the side of her mouth like she was sharing a secret, "Then I really would have been in trouble!"
I liked her right away and decided that she was the person whose phone I would ask to borrow. I'd wait until after dinner, though.
I gave her my order for a hamburger and fries, gulped down a glass of water, and then went to the restroom to get cleaned up.
I was filthy. My hands were dirty, but so was my face—way more than I expected. So it was kind of embarrassing Denise had seen me that way. My hair was crazy messy, too. There were bits of leaves in it.
Denise probably thought I was insane.
I washed up and combed my hair, and by the time I returned to my table, my dinner was already there. As soon as Denise saw me, she came back, smiling as usual.
"Is everything okay?"
For an instant, I wonder, how did she know? But then I realized she was talking about the food.
I nodded, "Thank you."
"You need anything?"
The ketchup was already on the table.
"No, I'm good."
It was the best hamburger I'd ever tasted—maybe because I could eat it in peace without Mark stressing me out.
I calmed down and decided I was ready to make the call. As I guessed, Denise let me use her phone, though I lied and told her I'd left mine at home. I was just about the only kid I knew that didn't have a phone, and it was far too complicated to explain.
I told mom I was calling from the cafe and got right to the point.275Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdSqjSD3ibu
"I need you to come up tonight." 275Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzxoT4tHaOV
I was careful to keep my voice steady and serious. I didn't want to sound whiny.
"I'll be up tomorrow." She was still using her talk-to-little-Charlie tone, and I was really annoyed. She continued, "I talked to Mark's dad—"
"NO! I'm not staying in that cabin. They don't want me there!"
Mom hesitated. I could tell I confused her. I had never talked to her like this.
"I can't drive up there tonight. Now, I've talked to Mark's dad—"
"HE'S A LIAR!"
I shouldn't have shouted, but she wasn't hearing me.
"Okay," I told her, "then I'll sleep in the trees."
I ended the call. I knew it was a stupid thing to say, and I wasn't sure what I was going to do, but I knew I wouldn't go back to the cabin. I didn't care what my mom thought.
I gave Denise her phone when she came back around to my table. A minute later, she brought me a slice of apple pie.
"On the house," she told me gently. I guess she heard me shout at mom.
I ate the pie, wondering where I would spend the night.
A few minutes later, I felt that I was being watched. 275Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJjrfWaml3e
I looked up.
Mark and his parents were standing at my table.
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