"What were you thinking?" My mom's voice boomed through the living room.

I'd lost count of how long we'd been there--me on the couch, Indy beside me for some much needed support, and my mom pacing back-and-forth, fuming. She hadn't let me get a word in, going on a rant every time I tried to answer her. If she knew why I left in the middle of the night...

"Anything could've happened to you."

"Nothing happened," I said, weakly.

I thought she'd talk over me again, but she stopped in the middle of the room. "That is not the point, Daya. You can't just leave whenever you want. You didn't leave a note or answer my messages or calls. And all of this for what? A scavenger hunt?"

She must've talked to Mr. Hayward. Indy turned to me, her dark eyes full of questions. I hated how easily she could read me. She knew I didn't sneak out for a game.

My stomach knotted. I had to tell her and my mom why I left. The words stuck in my throat. Tears stung my eyes.

"Well?" My mom snapped. Her question wasn't rhetorical that time.

I quickly wiped away a fallen tear. "I, um...I went to see Lamar."

Indy pulled away from me, her jaw hanging. She looked so betrayed. More tears fell. "You met him? You knew how to find him and didn't tell me?"

"Sorry," I choked out.

"What do you mean you met Lamar?" My mom demanded. "Why were either of you looking for him?"

Indy stood, staring down at me with hard eyes. She was on my side a second ago. Now she looked just as upset as my mom. She worked her mouth to say something else, but nothing came out. My sister was out the door in a huff.

"What is going on, Daya?" My mom joined me on the couch, a notable distance between us. "This past month you've been acting out. I know I've been busy with work and the blog, but you know you can talk to me."

"No, I can't." I said, finally looking up at her. "Not really. I don't mean to disrespect you, or your rules, but it's hard when you treat me like a baby."

"I'm just trying to keep you safe."

"From what?" I turned to her fully. "I can't get rides from my friends. I can't get my ears pierced. I was scared to even tell you about my date with Andre, because I thought you'd say I couldn't go. And you probably would've if Indy hadn't been there. Because apparently you trust her more than you trust me."

She shook her head, eyes glossy with unshed tears. "It's not that I don't trust you. I just..."

"What is it then?"

"I don't want to lose you again."

Again? "What are you talking about?"

Tears spilled down her cheeks. After a breath to steady herself, she told me, "You were taken when you were a baby."

I froze, my mind going a mile a minute. "What do you mean 'taken'?"

She stared down at her hands, wringing her fingers. "You were two and I'd started taking nursing classes. My neighbor, Jackie, and I had a deal to watch each other's kids from time to time. She'd been watching you for months without incident. Then, one day, I went to pick you up after I finished my class...and you were gone. Jackie and her son were gone. That house was empty."

My mom scrubbed tears from her chin before continuing. "At first, I thought she took you two to the park--she did that sometimes. But after she ignored all my calls, I started to panic. When I called the police, they questioned me like I did something to you. I could feel them judging me, blaming me. And I just wanted you back."

I was crying now, too. Why didn't she tell me before?

"It was almost a week before they tracked down Jackie," she continued. "Once I had you back, I didn't let you out of my sight for a second. The only person I trusted to babysit was your grandma, and even then, it was hard to leave you."

She turned to me, taking my hands in hers. "I know you're getting older and you want to be more independent. But you're all I have. If anything happened to you--" she choked out another sob.

I wrapped my arms around her, hugging her tight because I didn't know what to say.

● ● ●

My mom grounded me indefinitely. That mean school and home. Except Friday's, when I was babysitting at the Wright's. It wasn't too bad being home because my mom was there most of the time.

After what she told me on the couch, I felt horrible for ignoring her calls. I couldn't imagine how she felt waking up to find me gone. There was no way I could make up for putting her through that. But I could try. Even if that meant listening to her geek out over common household items.

After I explained everything--and I mean everything--to my mom. She was more sympathetic than mad. Especially after I told her about my interaction with the sperm donor.

"That's why I hadn't responded to his email," she told me. "Lamar was really good at reeling someone in, knowing the exact thing to say or do to distract you from seeing his true colors."

When I brought up the sweatshirt she still wore around the house, she simply said, "Why do you think I only wear it when dealing with the trash?"

Being alone also gave me time to think. About Romeo. About Andre. About what I was going to do with them. My mom let me stay home on Monday, which I was grateful for. I didn't have it in me to face either of them.

But the next day, the universe cashed in my bad karma. Andre and I arrived at school at the same. As soon as I hopped out of my mom's car, he pulled into the lot. My legs carried me to his car before my brain could come up with a plan. Suddenly, I was standing in front of with nothing to say.

"Hi." I croaked out, immediately regretting it.

He was like a statue. "Hi?"

I couldn't tell if he was annoyed or not. To be on the safe side, I got the words out as fast as possible. "About what happened this weekend, I'm sorry. I--"

"Don't," he said, glancing at something just over my head. "You don't have to explain. I knew what I was getting into."

My head titled as I looked up at him. "What do you mean?"

He played with one of the many rings on his fingers, shrugging. "It was obvious there was something going on between you and Rome. Even if you were both in denial about. I thought maybe if you gave me a chance, I could change your mind."

He was so nice and understanding. It only made me feel more guilty. He was right. I didn't give him a chance. Not really. The few times we hung out, Romeo had infiltrated my mind.

"I'm sorry," I said again. "And whenever you publish your book, I'll buy like twenty copies. Even the really expensive audio book version."

His lips curved a little. "I'll hold you to that."

● ● ●

Talking to Andre was easy compared to seeing Romeo. So, I didn't go to our usual spot. Instead, when I walked into school, I found the one person I wanted to talk to most.

Indy was inside the tiny cafeteria, surrounded by members of the dance team. She wore the biggest smile as she talked to them and they were hanging onto her every word. That smile slipped right off her face when she saw me.

She met me halfway, like she didn't want me anywhere near her friends. Her arms were crossed, brows raised like I wasting her time. "What?"

"Can we talk?"

She rolled her eyes, walking past me out the doors. I followed her to a more secluded area, away from the busyness of the quad. "I went to see him for you."

She stopped, eyes slit at me. "Funny, since you didn't tell me about it."

"I wanted to make sure he was a good person. I didn't want you to be disappointed by him, too."

Her expression hardened. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Just that I noticed your mom isn't around much."

Indy shifted her weight to the other foot. "So? She works. What does that have to do with Lamar?"

"I wanted to make sure he was legit," I told her. "That he was someone who'd actually be there for you."

She chewed at her bottom lip, staring at the ground. "And?"

"Human garbage."

Her eyes darted up to me.

I told her about the email he sent. How he tried to distract me with pictures and fake interest in my life when all he wanted was a place to stay. I told her that, if it hadn't been for Romeo, I might've fallen for it.

"But if you want to check him out for yourself, I still have his address."

She thought about it for a moment, worrying her lip between her teeth. Then she shook her head. "No. If you say he's trash, I believe you. But--" she pointed at me. "Next time you decide to skip town in the middle of the night, call me and I'll come up with something that doesn't stress out your mom."

I laughed. "I will." The bell rang. Classes were about to begin. "Come by after practice," I told my sister before she ran off.

I had to walk back to the trailers, possibly passing Romeo and Nia and Keraun. Had Romeo told them anything about what happened? About what he said to me?

The three of them rounded the corner. Keraun and Nia were laughing at something Romeo said. My heart felt like it was being squeezed.

"Look, it's the other runaway," Nia announced, stopping in front of me. "Keraun and I are getting sick of being left out of all the fun stuff."

I glanced at Romeo, who stood off to the side. He must not have told them anything about his confession.

"I'm one hundred percent fine being left out of Y2K cosplay," Keraun said.

Nia pinched his arm, making him yelp. "Don't undermine my guilt tripping."

Keraun and Nia pinched each other as they walked towards their classes.

Romeo finally looked at me. My stomach went wild. He held out a white envelope. "I got the pictures developed."

At first I thought he meant the ones on his phone, then I remembered the disposable camera. He must've taken more pictures after he dropped me off because the envelope was kind of thick.

Before I could say anything, he was weaving his way through the crowd. I dropped the envelope into my bag and rushed to class before I was late.

● ● ●

My mom and I sat on the couch--me doing homework and her working on another blog post. A show about sexy doctors played in the background. When the doorbell rang, I was happy for the distraction from math. I was even happier to see Indy at the door.

"Finally! I told you to come straight after practice."

She removed her slides at the door, smelling fruity and sweet. "I was sweaty and gross."

"Whatever. I have to show you something." I took her arm, pulling her down the hall, stopping when we got to my bedroom door.

"Stop smiling like that," she said, eyeing me. "It's creepy."

I ignored her comment. "Open it."

She did as I said, her eyes on me as she turned the doorknob. "Seriously. Stop with the serial killer smile."

I fixed my mouth into a straight line.

As soon as she turned back to my room, the smile sprang back on my face. Indy went still in the doorway. I peeked over her shoulder, having to stand on my toes to do so. "You like it?"

My sister turned on me, her voice the softest I've ever heard it. "You got me a bed?"

I edged past her, stepping into the room. My room wasn't that big, and with two full sized beds crammed in, the size was greatly diminished. With my mom's help, I decorated the room. The color scheme was lavender, black, and gray. I even framed the picture I took of Indy at the basketball game's halftime show and set on her nightstand.

"Yes, I got you a bed because I meant it when I said you're welcome here whenever." She was still in the doorway, so I grabbed her hands and dragged her in. "Also, you keep stealing my bed and the couch really isn't that comfortable."

She made a noise. A mix of a laugh and a sob. "This is..." She paused, blinking away tears. "Ugh. You got me crying over a bed."

I laughed, hugging her. "You're welcome."

Indy hugged me back, so tight I thought I might snap. "Thank you, Daya." She pulled away. Taking my hands in hers, she shook my arms like they were noodles. "Now I can annoy you, go to sleep, wake up, and annoy you some more."

"Oh, yay."

"Is that a tattoo?" She pulled my wrist up to her face to get a better look at. I avoided washing the heart away in the shower, but it was hanging on for dear life.

I've caught myself multiple times spacing out while gazing at it and remembering the day I applied it. The things Romeo said to me, the picture and the captions. Something strange happened in my chest every time one of those memories bubbled up to the surface.

"Hey?" My eyes snapped up to my sister. I must've zoned out again. "What really happened this weekend?"