“I wonder if birds have ears.” Tessa says, staring into her bowl of oatmeal. 

“They probably do.” I say, yawning. “How else would they hear each other’s singing?”

“Maybe they don’t ever hear each other’s singing, and they’re deaf.” Tessa argues, picking up a dried blueberry with her spoon. 

“Stop talking about birds and get off to school!” Mom says, shoving our bags into our laps. Tessa shovels in a few more scoops of oatmeal, then runs out the door next to me. 

“I wonder if the Evans are going to school.” Tessa asks, as we pass the Mortimers’ house. Jack and George come out the door of the house. “Well, I guess they are.” Jack and George catch up with us, and walk next to us. 

“Excited for school?” I ask Jack, who is next to me. 

“Excited and nervous.” He replies, his books under his arm. “Are the other students kind?” He asks. 

“Nope. Most of them aren’t.” I say, then look up at his distressed face. “But I’ll be your friend.” I say with a smile. Jack smiles back and stops fiddling with the strap on his bag. 

“Thank you.” He says, and opens the door for me as we go into the school. Henry immediately runs over to Tessa, and offers to carry her books. George goes to ask for directions to his first class, and Jack stands next to me awkwardly. “This is a lot different than the old red brick schoolhouse.” He says, taking in the chatter, and the crowds of people. I put my hand on Jack’s arm, and lead him towards the mathematics classroom.

“I have a boyfriend! I have a boyfriend! I have a boyfriend! I have a boyfriend!” Tessa cheers, running around our bedroom. I pick up my pillow, and throw it at her. “Sorry.” She says. 

“I don’t like Henry.” I say, leaning against the bed frame. “I know he’s said he has feelings for you, but what if he’s lying?”

“Let’s say he is lying.” Tessa says. “What could possibly be his motivation? We’re not rich.” Fair point. But I’ve got a few fair points. 

“But you’re also smart. He could be using you to cheat in school. He could be taking advantage of your kindness.” Tessa rolls her eyes. “And you’re pretty. Boys just want a pretty girl to show off to their friends. Most of the time love isn’t involved.”

“You’re just being suspicious of everyone!”

“He jokes around. What’s to say he’s not just planning a prank, and trying to humiliate our family?”

“He jokes around because he isn’t afraid of fun like you!” Tessa says, waving her hands in the air. 

“Dad wouldn’t like this.” I say. 

“Well, Dad’s not coming back, is he, Lara?” Tessa yells. 

“You don’t know that!” I yell. “He told me he would be back.”

“We were eight, Lara! He said that just to shut you up!” I stand up. 

“I’m not going to lose hope, Tessa.” I say, my fists clenched. 

“Well, it’s about time you do.” Tessa says. “I overheard Mom on the phone. Dad’s stopped sending money. He’s got a new family now. He remarried.” I sit back down, biting my lip, and sit on my hands. “So you can’t use him in an argument any more.” Tessa grabs her coat off the hook. “I’m going to hang out with Henry, whether you approve of him or not.” She leaves, and I watch her through the blinds, walking towards the Dearing house. I close the blinds, so only a few small stripes of sunlight shine through onto the floor. I turn the lights off, and sit down in the dark, tears already dripping off the end of my nose. I decide to take a shower to cool me off. Again, isn’t it supposed to be autumn? I pass a picture frame on my way to the bathroom. It’s our family before we got broken. Tessa and I sit on the grass, both of us missing at least two teeth. Dad has his arms around me. I remember taking that picture. Dad kept trying to get us to sit still. It didn’t work, of course.

“That’s the third knock at the door today!” I mutter under my breath, drying my wet hair with a towel. I hang the towel on the back of a chair, and open the door. It’s Cal Wilson, a boy in my class. 

“Tessa isn’t here, and she already has a boyfriend.” I state very routinely, leaning against the door frame.

“I’m not here for Tessa.” He says with a smile. I have a faint idea of what he’s talking about, but I don’t like it. Deny it until he gets annoyed by your personality and leaves. 

“Well, my mom is taken too, and she’s too old for you.” I say with a really dumb smile on my face. 

“I’m not here for your mother, Lara.” He says, putting his hands in his pockets. 

“Then, my little sisters perhaps? Maybe you have little siblings, and you are gathering all the kids in town together to play at the park?” Cal rolls his eyes. 

“I know you know who I’m talking about.” He says, sighing. “Stop playing dumb. It’s not going to make me like you less.”

“I’m sorry. Lara Austin doesn’t care right now. Would you like to leave a message?” I ask, folding my arms. Cal doesn’t seem amused. 

“Here’s your message, sweetheart.” Cal grabs my face and pulls my lips down to meet his. His fingers tangle themselves in my wet hair, and hold my head in place. He pulls my arms up so they wrap around his neck. I’m starting to run out of air, so thankfully Cal releases me. 

“You shouldn’t have done that.” I say, gasping and leaning against the door. Cal rolls his eyes.

“You’re pretty, okay?”

“Oh, and that gives you the right to invade my personal space?”

“Fine. Just be the only girl in school without a boyfriend.”

“That was my intention all along!” I shout. Cal sighs. 

“You sure you don’t want another kiss?” He asks, a teasing look in his eyes that I’ve seen whenever boys flirt with Tessa. I don’t like it. 

“Go away.” I say, and resist the urge to kick him in the shins. 

“Your loss.” He scoffs, and walks away. Jack, in his front yard, watches me. I fake a smile in his direction, then close the door and sit down on the front lawn, groaning. Jack walks over, hands in his pockets. 

“Are you okay?” He asks. “I-I saw what happened.” I nod, rubbing my eyes. “Can I sit?” 

“Sure.” I say, and pat the grass next to me. “Sorry if I’m in a bad mood. I just have a sudden urge to destroy the male species.” Jack nods, then gets a confused look on his face, and bites his lip. 

“‘Male species?’ Has science in the 60s revealed that we are different species?” He asks. 

“No, I just call it that because boys and girls are so different. And boys always seem to have smaller brains.” I look up from the ground and realize what I just said. Jack frowns at me. “I’m so sorry. I wasn’t talking about you. You’re not an idiot. I didn’t mean to call you that. You’re different from other boys.” Jack’s bright smile returns. 

“I’m not offended.” He says, squeezing my hand. “We’re friends.” I smile and look down at our hands, sitting in the grass, warm with sticky summer sweat. 

“Well, I’m glad that my friend was raised in the good old days when boys still had manners.” I say, grinning. Jack smiles humbly and looks away, his face red. 

“You’re too kind, Miss Austin.” He says, and lets go of my hand. 

“No, I’m not. And you can call me Lara.” I say, setting my hand down in the cool grass. “Oh. Right. You were born in a very different time.” I rub my sweaty hands on my skirt. “Nowadays, people do what they want, and girls wear shorter skirts, and music is loud and fast, and it’s all so different for you.” He smiles. “I'm sorry.”

“Thank you for being so considerate.” He says.