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"Listen," Sawyer said as alked "Whatever your parents tell you, you didn’t do anything wrong Don’t let them make you feel like you did They can punish you all they want, but don’t let them convince you that you’re a bad person, because you’re not"

I nodded, hardly hearing hi to let ain," I breathed

"We’ll see each other at school," he said gently "And after we graduate in May, what they say won’t matter"

I wasn’t sure this was true I’d planned to live with ust Even after that, conceivably they could continue to jerk e tuition if I didn’t do what they said

Sawyer’s words et around unfair rules, which was totally foreign to ether in May, no matter what

At least, he talked the talk

When he reached the passenger side of my car, he dropped his flip-flops and slapped his wet clothes across the roof "Give me a sec to put my clothes on," he said "I’ve moved from Harper’s house into the B and B"

"Oh, have you?"

"Yeah, and I don’t want to frighten the elderly"

While he got dressed, I fished in e froot into the car "They must be worried about us One froht now," Sawyer said

"--two from Quinn, four from Harper, six froht have gottenwith Sawyer, or he didn’t care

"I’ll call theet hoo I’ll leave out all the near-naked parts Nobody at school will ever hear about that unless the cops blab"