The Girl in the Love Song (Lost Boys 1)

“Why do you keep staring at my house?”

“I’m not. It’s just…big.”

“It’s all right.” I slumped down against the wall like he had earlier.

He smirked and sat beside me. “What’s wrong with it? Not enough butlers?”

“Ha ha. The house is fine. It was perfect, actually.”

“And now it’s not?”

“My parents aren’t happy lately.”

“Whose are?” Miller tossed a pebble into the dark.

“Yeah, but I mean, they’re a lot unhappy. Like screaming matches and throwing things…never mind.” My cheeks burned. Why did I say that?

But Miller’s eyes widened in alarm. “They throw things? At you?”

“No, it was just the one time,” I said quickly. “Maybe twice but that’s it. No big deal.” I cleared my throat. “All parents fight, right?”

“I wouldn’t know. My dad died a few months ago,” he said, looking away. “Just me and Mom now.”

“Oh my God, I’m so sorry,” I said softly. “That’s got to be hard.”

“What do you know about it?” Miller asked with sudden tightness in his voice. “At least you can live here. At least if your parents start shouting, you probably have a big cushy room to hide out in, instead of…”

“Instead of what?”

“Nothing.”

Another silence fell. Miller’s stomach growled, and he quickly tried to cover up the sound by scuffing his boots. He started to rise. “I gotta go.”

But I didn’t want him to go.

“Today is my birthday,” I said.

Miller froze and then sat back down. “Yeah?”

“Yeah. I’m thirteen. You?”

“Fourteen in January. You had a big party, I suppose.”

“No. My friend Shiloh and I saw a movie and then my parents bought me a cake. I only ate one piece, and I don’t think Mom and Dad had any. There’s a lot left. Do you want some?”

Miller’s narrow shoulders rose and fell.

“It’s going to go to waste if we don’t eat it,” I said. “And there’s nothing sadder than a birthday cake with only one piece cut out.”

“I can think of a hundred things sadder,” Miller said. “But yeah, I could eat some cake.”

“Great.” I got to my feet and swiped dirt off my butt. “Let’s go”

“Into your house? What about your parents?”

“It’s safe in my room. Dad sleeps in the den now. Mom will be in her room, but she never checks on me. Like, ever.”

Miller frowned. “You’re gonna let me hang out in your bedroom?”