Page 95 of Running With Lions

Carly calls him a bum and shoves his legs off the couch to make room for herself. She always scrubs a hand through his hair before stealing the remote. Tonight, the Food Network drones. Carly asks, “All right, pup?”

Sebastian shrugs.

“How is counseling going?”

Sebastian blinks, then says, “Pretty good.”

After the Carl incident and Coach’s speech, Sebastian knew it was time to talk to his parents. Maybe not abouteverything, but some of his ghosts. It wasn’t easy. When is telling your parents about your insecurities easy? But they were patient, understanding; that helped. Carly’s calls helped. And the counseling helps, too.

“It’s good. Real good,” he repeats.

“Anything else?”

During their phone calls, Sebastian’s considered telling her about being bi, about Emir, about totally freaking out over graduation and the foreseeable end of all his happiness. Carly isn’t brilliant with advice, but she’s levelheaded. Then, too, she’ll call Sebastian a dumbass in the most loveable way. They’ve always been close.

“Last year of school,” he says with a grunt, and she nods knowingly.

Carly passes him the bowl of popcorn and the remote. “Is that it?”

Sebastian hesitates. His phone vibrates in his pocket, but he doesn’t answer. It’ll be Mason or Willie. Carly stares at him with soft eyes and a crooked smile like their dad’s. Sebastian’s breaths stutter. Since he got home, he’s been walking around like a zombie fromWarm Bodies, and now he’s finally awake.

“Is this about a boy?” Carly says it as though it’s nothing, as though she’s been waiting.

And Sebastian just shudders and nods.

Carly nods too. She squeezes the bottom of his foot and grabs a handful of popcorn with her other hand. “Yeah, that sucks,” she says, turning back to the TV. “If you ever want to talk, you know. Call me, pup.”

She leaves it at that. No lectures, no scary sister stink-eye for being bi, or for being a total idiot about a boy who hasn’t called or texted since camp ended. Emir doesn’t even have Sebastian’s cell number. He never asked, and Sebastian never gave.

“Do Mom and Dad—?” Sebastian stops, barely able to get a word out.

“Nope. But let me know when you’re gonna tell them.” Carly angles her head, exposing her devious expression. “I want to record and post it on Snapchat.”

Sebastian tosses a throw pillow at her head. He slouches, feet propped on the coffee table, and pretends he’s not thinking about Emir.

It’s all he thinks about.

* * *

On the first Monday ofschool, Willie has his surgery. Sebastian’s last class is an elective course. His teacher, an elderly gym instructor, doesn’t bother with roll call, so he ditches to hop into Hunter’s beat-up Honda Accord. They burn down the freeway toward the hospital, jamming to Hunter’s random playlists.

Hunter wears a shaky smile; he’s too shy to admit he’s wound up over how Willie’s doing. Sebastian feels the same way. But he cracks jokes and Hunter laughs. His hands beat on the dashboard to the Fugees track Hunter’s iPod cranks out.

“Nice selection, bro,” he says, awed.

Hunter’s fingers eventually relax on the steering wheel, creating a weird butterfly effect on Sebastian until he’s mellow, too. Why haven’t he and Hunter hung out before now?

“Mind if I go in first?”

They’re in the main lobby, with their backs to the grumpy desk nurse who gave them shit about not being “immediate family.” Hunter’s a charmer when it comes to adults. And Sebastian, in his Bloomington track suit, can pull off a great Boy Scout smile.

“Nope.” He smacks Hunter’s arm, jostling him but earning a grin. “He’s all yours.”

Hunter’s skin is slightly darker thanks to summer, but the faint blush blossoming on his cheeks stands out. “Okay,” he says, rubbing the back of his neck. “I won’t be long.”

Sebastian wiggles his eyebrows suggestively, says, “Take your time,” and gets reprimanded by the nurse for laughing too loudly when Hunter trips while getting away.

Comfy pumpkin-orange chairs are parked in one corner of the waiting room. Sebastian kicks his feet up on a table cluttered with boring celeb magazines. He pulls his laptop and headphones from his backpack and watches YouTube videos.

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