“Layla?” Valentina’s brown eyes went wide as she struggled to sit up in bed.
“Sorry. I’m so sorry,” Layla whispered, feeling like an idiot as she watched Mateo rush to his sister’s bedside.
“Are you guys back together?”
The sight of Valentina’s pale and drawn face lighting up at the thought of them reuniting almost convinced Layla to lie and say that they were. She loved the kid so much Layla would do anything for her, but even though it broke her heart to tell Valentina the truth, Layla couldn’t bear to lie to her.
Layla shook her head. Then, realizing she was still clutching her phone to her chest, she placed it gently onto her chair and joined Mateo at Valentina’s bedside. “But we’re still good friends.” She swallowed hard. Good friends. Why’d she feel the need to qualify it? Maybe the fact that they were standing there together proved it wasn’t a total lie, but things between them were still strained enou
gh that it felt like a stretch.
Valentina granted them each a hard stare. “Please. You sound like a celebrity press release.” Adopting her version of an adult voice, she went on to say, “We’ve decided to end our relationship. This is a very painful decision, but we remain fully committed as friends. We ask that you respect our privacy during this difficult time.” She rolled her eyes and went on to add, “RIP Mayla.”
“You’ve been reading way too many tabloids in here.” Mateo frowned.
At the same time, Layla asked, “Who’s Mayla?”
“You.” Valentina wagged a finger between them. “You’re Mayla. Only not anymore.” Her sad puppy-eyes look tugged at Layla’s heart. “Just because you got tired of my brother doesn’t mean you can’t still come see me, you know? I thought we were friends.”
“We are friends,” Layla said. “Actually, no. We go deeper than that. I consider you family.” She was barely able to eke out the words. As an only child, Layla considered Valentina the little sister she never had. But the girl was right. Layla really had abandoned her. And sadly, it began long before she and Mateo broke up. “Also, just so you know, I’m not tired of your brother. He’s a . . .” She needed a moment to ward off the sob that threatened from the base of her throat. “He’s a really great guy.”
“And yet, you still broke up.”
“It’s complicated,” Mateo interjected, clearly uncomfortable with the direction the conversation had taken. “Life is complicated.”
Valentina shook her head and stared stubbornly at the TV. “I don’t believe that. Life is easy. It’s all about breathing, and doing, and making a series of choices that lead you to the next step. It’s people who muck it all up by losing focus, creating drama, and making it more difficult than it needs to be.”
“When’d you get so wise?” Layla asked.
“I read a lot of tabloids.” Valentina laughed.
Though Layla laughed with her, she couldn’t help but wonder if Valentina was right. Like her brother, she had a firm grasp on the things that mattered most—friends, family, and home. While Layla was out chasing dragons and myths and the sort of things that led one farther and farther from home, without any real proof they even existed.
And yet, she couldn’t imagine living any other way. Maybe contentment was for other people, not her. Maybe it just wasn’t part of her genetic makeup. All she knew for sure was that while she’d always love Mateo and his little sister, and would always be there for them in whatever way they might need, at her core she was guided by a restless soul, willing to chase her dreams all the way to the edge of the world if that was what it took.
And then, of course, there was the issue of Tommy. But the thought left her feeling so disloyal she marched it quickly out of her mind.
“Are you keeping up with your homework?” Mateo asked. “Do you need any help?”
“Homework?” Layla feigned like she was aghast. “They’re making you do homework in here?”
Valentina shrugged good-naturedly. “It was my choice. I didn’t want to get too far behind. Besides, it didn’t take long for the thrill of watching TV all day to wear off.”
Layla was about to respond, when the same nurse who’d forbidden her from entering barged into the room, took one look at Layla, and said, “I’m going to pretend you’re not here.”
“What, her?” Valentina nodded at Layla. “She’s my first cousin once removed.”
“Yeah, yeah.” The nurse deposited a beautifully wrapped package on the bed and said, “Seems you have a secret admirer. There’s no card attached.”
That was all it took to send Layla’s pulse rocketing. But shy of snatching the box from Valentina’s fingers, which she hadn’t completely ruled out, she didn’t know what else to do but stand back and wait to see what happened next.
Would the box contain another diary entry?
Would she be forced to leap on top of the poor sick child and wrench it free before Valentina could see the horrible thing it most likely contained?
With a frantically beating heart, Layla watched Valentina work through the layer of wrapping paper and tape to reveal a plain brown box underneath that bore no identifiable markings of any kind. Though Layla had no idea what it was, she knew without a doubt it wasn’t good. They’d reached the part of the poem where she was supposed to claim it without causing too many tears. And she needed to act fast.
She rubbed her lips together, wondering how best to handle it. With the nurse and Mateo both watching, her position was an awkward one.