Page 58 of A Good Book

I wiped my eyes as he lifted his gaze to mine. “I picked the right guy to have a crush on.”

He grinned. “I’m honored.”

“Had this gone further, do you think you might have called me Julianne?”

Matt laughed. “Perhaps. Does that make you feel better?”

I nodded. “Are you lying?”

He rolled his lips between his teeth to hide his grin.

I stepped back, shaking my head. “Of course you wouldn’t say the wrong name. Duh. Of course, I’m the only stupid one.”

“Come on,” he stood. “I’ll drive you home,Jules.” He shoved his feet into his tennis shoes.

I smirked.

“Oops. I mean Jenny. Wait. No. What’s your name again?”

I shoved him playfully as he passed me to open the bedroom door.

Had someone told me that before the end of my first semester of college, I would almost have sex with Matt Cory, kiss my best friend, and watch him get in a car to go home because he lost his hearing to meningitis, I would have laughed at an idea so preposterous.

As Matt drove me home, I mourned the loss of dreams and reluctantly welcomed the beginning of what my sisters promised would happen at some point: questioning my faith in God.

CHAPTEREIGHTEEN

JANET JACKSON, “MISS YOU MUCH”

Gabby

“How’s Ben?”I asked my mom while Olivia painted her toenails red. Snow swirled with the wind outside our dorm room window. It was one week until Thanksgiving.

“Gabriella, I appreciate the daily calls as opposed to weekly check-ins, but you can’t expect me to have new updates about Benevery day.”

It had been seven weeks since he left.

Seven weeks without talking to him.

Seven weeks of sending him letters without a response back.

Seven weeks of feeling lost.

It was also the first time I’d gone more than a week without seeing or talking to him.

“Did you tell Carmen to tell him to write me back?”

“Yes, dear, but she said he’s been shutting everyone out. Your dad suggested we give him space, keep him in our prayers, and in time, God will speak to him. We just have to be patient.”

“Is he learning sign language?”

“No. He has no interest in learning it right now. And until his parents learn it too, it won’t do much to help him.”

“Did you tell her you’ve been learning it?” Olivia mumbled.

I shook my head at her. It was my goal to surprise Ben at Thanksgiving. I was taking it three nights a week through Ann Arbor’s community education courses. But it would not be a pleasant surprise if I was the only one who knew how to sign anything.

“How’s he going to come back to school if he doesn’t get his hearing back, and he doesn’t learn sign language?”

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