Episode 1: Home

Avery leans over in her desk, sliding a note onto it. I sigh quietly but look up to see if the teacher was watching so that I could read it anyway.

*Joshua was totally checking you out!*

I internally roll my eyes at her and reply to the note with: *He was not. Now pay attention so you don’t get the both of us in trouble.*

I return the note to her after glancing at the teacher once more. I go to ignore my best friend but I hear her chuckle at my denial. Choosing to ignore her, I focus on my work for the remainder of the class period.

Thankfully, this was my last class before It was time to leave. After school, I had to wait in the parking lot for my brother to finish up with baseball practice. I didn’t mind waiting, it gave me time to catch up with Malachi. His little brother plays as well. Malachi and I were childhood best friends, but as the years went by, we stopped hanging out. But now that his brother and mine play the same sport and his mom gave him bleacher duty like mine did to me, we have time to talk and laugh about our day.

I always look forward to the time I get to spend with him.

“How was your last hour?” He asks me cautiously.

“Fine. Why?” I answer.

“Oh, no reason. It’s just that you look moodier than normal and figured that Avery did something to put you in a bad one.”

I chuckle at that. “No, she didn’t put me in a bad mood. I’m just thinking about something.”

“About what?” Malachi pulls his book bag off of his shoulder and slides onto the sun heated bleacher seat beside me. Practice was starting, I watch the boys battling and catching and pitching pop flies to one another.

“Something Avery said in Latin.” I chew my lip and squint my eyes as I watch my brother, Charles, pitch with expertise.

“Oh, so it was Avery that put you in a mood.” Malachi states matter\-of\-factly .

“Once again, Mal, not in a bad mood.”

“Just tell me what she said.”

“She told me Joshua was checking me out in class. I didn’t believe her at first, but then I looked a little behind me and \-bam\- he was watching me.”

“What’s the big deal? I thought you were over him.”

“I am, but feelings come back really quickly. So it kind of freaked me out. I don’t know. I mean, what if he likes me? What if he finally likes me literally two months after I forced myself to move on from him. What if he asks me out and I don’t feel anything for him anymore?” I go on.

Malachi blows out a breath of air before he answers. “So what? He asks you out, you say no, that’s it. You’re making this more complicated than it has to be.”

“First of all, what do you mean ‘so’? *Sooo, *I spent three years being in love with him. And I forget about him and that’s when he decides to like me back… that’s depressing.”

That earns me a laugh. “Alex, just relax and let everything happen. If you and him are meant to be together, then you’ll find *some *way to be together.”

I contemplate his words of advice. In many ways, he’s right. But he can be wrong.

Speaking of the devil, Joshua strides across the field, his bag heavy with equipment. I may not like him anymore, but he will forever be one of the most beautiful boys I will ever see in my eyes.

I study him, watch his confident walk, his head tilted high. He knows what he’s worth but isn’t cocky about it like most boys are. He’s the Captain of the baseball team, so, I understand why he’s so self assured.

Right at that moment, Joshua looks up at the stands, right where he’ll know I’ll be, and waves at me with a smirk. I feel my eyes round but quickly fix my face before waving back.

He’s never done that before. I mean sure, we’re in the same grade and he and my brother play the same sport and I’ve been coming here since I got my driver’s license, but he’s only ever spoken to me a few times. And every time it was very brief.

Joshua goes back to focusing on practice, he catches one of my brother’s balls and they go back and forth.

*This* *is* *going* *to* *be* *a* *long* *practice. *I think to myself as I slide down in my seat.

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Charles and I walk through the door only to find mom and dad sitting at the kitchen table. My brother and I look at each other. What the hell is going on.

“Mom?” I ask, looking between both parents. “What’s going on?”

She looks up at my question. “Take a seat, both of you.” Oh no.

I walk closer to them and drop my bag beside my chair as I pull it out from beneath the table, then I plop down. I don’t like where this is going and they havent even started talking yet.

“Where’s Bennet and Stevey?” Charles asks.

“I put both of your brothers up for naps.” Mom says. Dad stays quiet.

The room falls into a flat silence as we sit at the table starting at our parents.

“Ok, what’s is it? You guys are freaking me out.” Charles outbursts.

Mom sighs as she gazes at her son. “We have news that’s e want to share with you both, but we’re not sure how you’ll take it.”

“Just tells us and get it over with, please.” I tell her.

“Ok, but you can’t get angry.” Mom prepares herself to spread the news as we wait, but then that’s when dad wants to blurt out, “We decided to foster a kid.”

Mom glares daggers at her husband. “So? Why would we be mad that you were fostering a kid, that’s awesome.” I say. Charles nods his head in agreement. “When do they get here?”

Both mom and dad share a surprised look at our enthusiasm. Why would they be so shocked that we would be so excepting of a foster kid?

“That’s another thing, he arrives tomorrow.” Dad says slowly. “We waited to tell you at the last minute.” He smiles unsurely.

Tomorrow? That’s so fast. But it’s fine, I mean, we’re helping to give a child a home. “Ok. Tell us what you need us to do and we’ll help out with whatever.”

“Oh, well, I was going to go to the store to change up the guest bedroom for him, if you want to come with me pick some things up? You can.” Mom suggests. I look to Charles and I turn back to mom and nod my head.

“How old is he?” This comes from my brother.

“Alex’s age.”

Older than I expected, but I can work with that.

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Three hours later and we’ve got a bunch of stuff for Falcon. I like his name, it’s different. Sounds like something straight out of an action movie or something. He’lol be here at 12:00 tomorrow, so mom is letting us skip school so that we can all introduce ourselves.

Now I’m sitting in my room doing homework on the floor. We ate fast food tonight. Chinese. Charles and Bennet are all of the egg rolls and I only got one.

Finishing up my trig paper, a knock sounds at my door. “Come in!”

“Hey,” it’s dad, he walks through the door and steps around the homework papers that are spread out all over the floor. “I just wanted to thank you for being so understanding about this situation. I know it’s a lot, but he needs a good stable home. And we can give that to him. You don’t know the things that poor boy went through growing up. Even CPS don’t know the full of it.”

He stares off in space for a moment before realizing what he was doing. “Anyway, thank you.”

“It’s fine really. I think it’s cool that you and mom are doing this. I just wish that you’d have told us sooner so that I was more prepared.” I give him a look.

“Yeah, we actually didn’t mean to prolong it so much. We just didn’t know how to approach the subject to you two.”

“Do Bennet and Stevey know?” I ask.

“Yeah, we told them before their nap today.” It’s quiet for a second, kind of awkward. “This is getting kind of awkward. Ok, let me get out of here so that you can finish your homework.” He stands from the edge of my bed and bends down to kiss my forehead.

“Your mother wants us all downstairs for breakfast tomorrow at 8:00, so you’ll have some time to sleep in.”

“Sure.”

And then he leaves me to it. I suddenly have these giddy nerves. I’m excited and anxious and nervous all at the same time.

I pull my phone off my bed and check the time. 10:40. Realizing how late it is, and how little homework I have left, I decide I’ll just finish it tomorrow since I won’t be going to school.

I crawl in my bed and curl up in a ball. Sleep comes easily after the day I had.

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