Dream Smashers by Angela Carlie Read Free Book Online

people because it feels good?”
That’s a bit selfish.
    “Yes, but that’s not the only reason. I help
others because they need our help.”
    “Oh.” Not so much selfish.
    “You want to come with me sometime?” He puts
the spoon in his mouth, not wasting one drop of flavor, reminding
me of a puppy licking his dish clean. Of course Evan is somewhat
like a puppy. The innocence and light about him leaves me wanting
to know more, a desire to dig deeper to find the secret of such
happiness. Is it a trick? Why does he seem so carefree?
    “Sure. I think I’d like that,” I say.
    “Awesome!” He picks up both of our cups to
throw them in the trash can. “How about on Monday afternoon? What
time do you get out of school?”
    “Monday is fine.” I don’t dare tell him that
it’s the first day to my new life. The first day of the rest of my
life. Volunteering will be a great way to start it. Evan seems
happy enough doing it. “Around three.”
    “I promise you won’t regret this. I’ll pick
you up at three then?”
    We walk out the door. The sky weeps, but
gently. Lights in the parking-lot illuminate the fog, creating a
magical feel, like walking through clouds. Evan opens the passenger
side door for me.
    “Hey, do you think Rainy would like to help?”
he asks.
    I think she’ll probably laugh her butt off if
I ask. But he looks so hopeful. “She might. I’m not sure
though.”
    “Let’s go ask her. Is she at home?” He closes
the passenger door before I can answer and walks around the car to
get in the driver side.
    “She might be. Actually, if you ask her, it
might be better.” Only because I don’t think she can say no to a
puppy dog. She will say no to me though.
    “There’s no harm in asking, right? Point the
way.”
    “Right.”
     
    ***
     
    For as long as I can remember, Rainy has left
the window to her basement bedroom open for easy entry without her
parents knowing. It also makes life easier for friends, like me,
who don’t necessarily want to deal with her parental figures—so
annoying and boring. Sometimes I’ll sleepover at her house an
entire weekend without her parents knowing. Yeah, they’re that
involved with her life.
    “I don’t know if I’m comfortable with this,”
Evan says.
    “You can go back to wait in the car if you
want. That’s cool.” I squat down onto my knees to push the cracked
window open enough to peek my head through.
    The room is dark. “Rainy,” I whisper. No
answer. A red glow from the alarm clock casts a shadow over the
laundry littered room. Her bag isn’t hung on the door where she
keeps it and her jacket is gone. I close the window, leaving it
cracked, and stand, brushing the wet bark from my knees. “She’s not
here.”
    “Oh. Well, maybe you can just ask her later
or something.” He pauses. “I thought she wasn’t feeling good. Maybe
we should check with her parents to make sure she’s okay.”
    “No, no.” I shake my head. “Her parents won’t
know. She’s probably just hanging out with someone else.”
    Evan’s eyebrows rise. “I don’t
understand.”
    “I can see that.” I laugh. “Rainy is a
complicated person and her relationship with her parents is even
more complicated. Or more like non-existent as far as she’s
concerned. And, no, she wasn’t really sick.”
    “She wasn’t?”
    “Nah, she ditched us.”
    Evan’s mouth drops open, horrified. “She
did?”
    “Ha! I take it you’ve never been ditched?
That’s funny.”
    “Why?”
    “Oh, I don’t know. It just is. I’ve been
ditched a gazillion times by Rainy. You’ll come to find that she’s
not the nicest person you’ve met. It’s mostly a front though. I’ve
known her forever and deep down, she can be nice.” I shrug. “She’s
just been going through a lot of crap with her brother and her
parents and school and junk like that, so she takes it out on
everyone else.”
    “Aren’t you worried? Maybe we should go look
for her.”
    “Nah, I’m sure