Page 41 of Save Us
“Yes, please,” I say, and James mumbles an agreement. Then I mop up the juice and start to set the table.
Meanwhile, James gets on with squeezing the rest of the oranges.
“Did you sleep well?” Dad asks him.
“Yeah, it’s a really comfortable sofa. Thanks again.”
Dad just nods.
After Mum got home, we told her what had happened. She didn’t even hesitate, just instantly invited James to stay here until things with his dad settled down. I gave her a grateful smile, but that only lasted until she took me aside and informed me seriously that she was trusting us and that I shouldn’t abuse that trust. After that, it took about half an hour before I could look her in the face again.
“James and I are going to see Lydia after breakfast, Dad,” I say.
“Need the car?”
I shake my head. “No, we’ll go in James’s.”
“Even better. Your mum and I have a bit of shopping to do today.” Dad opens a drawer on his right and pulls out a pan, which he sets on the cooktop.
“Dad’s been looking forward to his knife-buying trip all week,” says Mum, coming into the kitchen just then. “Good morning, everyone.”
“Morning,” James and I answer simultaneously.
Mum pulls out a chair and sits down. She looks around the kitchen. “Is that fresh juice?”
James nods and holds a glass out to her. “Here you are.”
“Well,” says Mum, raising her eyebrows at him. “I could get used to this.”
“Me too,” I say quietly, keeping my eyes fixed on James.
James
“What’s your favorite color?”
Seems weird that Ruby would pick that question to start with.But then again, I’m amazed she’s never got around to asking me before—it’s so very Ruby that I have to smile.
“If you have to spend that long thinking about it, it’s not your favorite,” she remarks when I don’t answer right away.
I keep my eyes on the road ahead, through the windshield. We’ve been on the road about an hour and a half, and we’re about halfway there. It’s strange to be driving myself on such a long journey, but with Ruby beside me, I’m about as happy as I’ve ever been.
We started bombarding each other with questions yesterday evening, and I love that we can chat this casually despite everything.
“Green,” I say in the end.
I glance quickly over and see her wrinkle her nose. Apparently, she’s not taking that for an answer. “There are hundreds of shades of green. You have to be more specific.”
I shrug, because there’s no way I can reply “the color of your eyes” without immediately throwing up over the dashboard. But it’s true. Before I met Ruby, I never had a favorite color.
Now I do.
“That beautiful shade of puke green there,” I say, nodding at the bag on Ruby’s lap. There’s no way she can have packed more than me, seeing that I’ve grabbed a load more stuff from Lydia’s room, but the bag seems to be bursting at the seams.
“Hey! This bag has given me years of loyal service. Leave it alone.”
“Ember told me this morning that you’ve had it since primary school.”
“That’s not true,” she says indignantly. “It’s no more than six years.”
