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This past suot into a verbal argument and broke up and that after Matt left, someone I didn’t see attacked me from behind My fa to protect the to protect them

If I’d told Jax and Kaden the truth about what happened with Matt, they would have gone after him and then Matt and his friends would have retaliated All of it on the streets All of it in pure hatred The fighting would never end

And last nightII’ve built in order to protect Jax and Kaden I broke a rule I got involved I hit Matt’s little brother and Matt ant payback

Even though I ht decision I blow out a long breath It is It’s the right decision and I’ve lived with this lie for too long to let Matt’s brother ruin it

My eyes fall to my shoes on the floor and I silently curse If my uncle finds out that I wore shoes in the house, he’ll throw a fit

Snatching them up, I tiptoe down the wooden stairs in s on an exposed nail At the bottoroan betraying ht breathing of the nine other people sleeping in the house Straight in front of ht of the bathroom, my uncle’s loud snores can be heard past the shut wooden door, and in the rooles her American Girl doll as she rolls over on the floor in her sleep With her eyes still closed, ht brown curls

I take an iht and carefully maneuver over Jax, whose bed has becos fall off the couch Even before werooer brothers by taking over their room The Dictator banished them to sleep in the unfinished basement I offered to let them have the attic Jax threatened to kick the crap out of them if they accepted

In painfully slowJax and Kaden’s lie accounted forat the back of the house catches h blankets, pillows, T-shirts, socks, arreen kitchen that’s large enough for a stove, fridge, sink and a few cabinets What doesn’t fit is the large oval table that seats ten people It consumes the entire kitchen, and, even with themetal chairs pushed in, it’s difficult to walk around

I’m hesitant as I poke my head in, then I smile

Dad: dishwater-blond hair, tall like Kaden He sits at the end of the table, reading the paper while jotting so insideI can’t remember the last tiainst the doorfrainally assumed, I told my parents that I was late for curfew, ran ho without ardless of how it happened, I lost his medication Am I welcome anymore?

His eyes shine as he lifts his head "Haley--what are you doing up?"

"Just up" We speak barely above a whisper It’s rare when this house is quiet; rarer are the moments when anyone can find peace "How about you?"