Chapter 22

“I’m on the track team at school, and we were all out after practice one night last week,” he started. “We decided after a tough practice we would go out to eat.”

Ryan scanned the room, looking for something to take his mind off what he was describing.

“So we were at this pizza place, and then right as we were about to leave, I got a call from my mom. She’s yelling at me to get home right now because it’s a school night, and she couldn’t be worrying about me being out because Jonathan, my brother, was sick, and she needed to watch him.” He sniffled. “Jonathan’s twelve.”

Ryan sniffled again. Julie wondered if he was trying to keep from crying. “I told her not to worry, that I’d be back soon. I tried to tell her that me and the guys were just out getting dinner, but she got angry. Then I heard her yelling in the background about getting the cold medicine from the cabinet in the bathroom. I fig