The Rule of Threes by Marcy Campbell (android e book reader txt) 📕

looked a bit ghostlike thanks to the moonlight coming from my window, he was definitely real.

“I can’t sleep,” he said. “It’s too quiet downstairs.”

I sat up and rubbed my eyes. Mittens was purring at my feet, and I heard Grandma snoring in the other room. Somehow I’d gotten used to it, and it didn’t even bother me anymore, kind of like how I’d stopped noticing all the new smells in the house.

“You can sleep next to Grandma,” I joked groggily. “It’s not too quiet in there.”

I could just make out Tony’s smile from where he stood at the bottom of my ladder. He chewed his nail.

“You’re going to chew that thing right off, you know,” I said. “I’m surprised you haven’t already.”

He looked down at his thumb like he was seeing it for the first time and wiped his hand on his pajama pants.

“Are you okay?” I asked. “I know Grandma kind of . . . upset you earlier. Are you still thinking about that?”

“Yeah,” he said. “I mean, no, not really.” He walked over to my window, pulled the curtains back and looked out. I couldn’t imagine there would be much to see on the street after dark except a person or two getting one last dog walk in, or some raccoons looking to dig through any trash cans that weren’t covered.

“I’m thinking about my mom,” he said. “She actually called earlier. It was a super short conversation. You probably didn’t even hear it.”

“No, I didn’t, but that’s good, right, that you got to talk to her?” Tony had been so upset after school that she wasn’t calling. “That’s progress, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, it is. It’s just that . . . she doesn’t like it there.”

“Of course she doesn’t,” I said. “That’s why she’s going to get better and get out.”

He kept looking out my window, which was starting to bug me, like there was a monster out there or something. I wasn’t typically afraid of things like that, except in the movies, but it was weird.

“What are you looking at?” I asked.

“Nothing,” Tony answered. He sat on my beanbag chair, and I leaned over my bed rail. He’d left the curtain open so the room was brighter now. I could see his bare feet. His toenails were too long and kind of gross-looking. I wondered if his mom used to cut his nails. My mom still cut mine.

“Will you visit her again? At McDonalds or something?” I asked. If he wanted me to go with him again, for moral support, I would. I just hoped the visit would turn out better than the last time.

“We have a meeting set up in a couple weeks,” he said.

I could tell by his expression that it wasn’t nearly soon enough for him. Mittens had climbed down from my loft, and Tony petted her. She started up her purr motor.

“Dad told me how important it is that she really stays committed to her program,” he said. “That’s why I really hate it when she does stuff like miss calls, because I figure she’s messing up other stuff, too.”

Suddenly, he gave my beanbag a punch, and I worried, not for the first time, he’d send Styrofoam pellets everywhere. “I hate this,” he said, too loud for a whisper.

“Shhh,” I said. “Do you want Mom and Dad in here? Or Grandma?”

“Who cares?”

He put his head down in his hands so I couldn’t see his face anymore. I didn’t know what to do. Should I climb down and give him a hug? Should I go get Dad? I was still so out of it. I’d been having a dream where I was chasing Mittens down a dark alley, and it really got my heart thumping. Here in the present, everything was still and calm. But I knew there were shadows in the dark downstairs, and Tony was sleeping down there all alone.

“Hey, Tony?” I said. “If you want to stay in here tonight, that’s fine. I mean, it’s just for the night because tomorrow you’ll have your own room again.”

He looked up, his eyes bright with excitement.

“Really?”

“Yeah, well, you’ll have to sleep on the floor, but if you bring all the blankets in and stuff . . .”

“That’s fine, that’s fine. I’ll be right back!”

I vaguely remembered him mumbling good night from his nest of blankets, but I was already back in my dream, only this time I’d found Mittens, and she was purring as I scratched her in just that perfect spot under her chin.

One More Thing

When I woke up, Tony was gone. His pillow and blankets were folded and stacked against the wall. I hadn’t set my alarm since I didn’t need to go to school, and I’d really slept in. It was almost 10 a.m. already. The house was quiet, which meant Mom and Grandma had probably already left. I was sad I didn’t get to say goodbye to Grandma, but I knew I’d be visiting her soon.

It was probably for the best that I’d slept in. Dad had told me yesterday that I might want to stay out of sight this morning. He said Mom didn’t want to have to lie to Grandma about my suspension. “We really don’t need one more thing to deal with,” Mom had told him. “Not one more thing.”

It wasn’t so bad having the day to myself; I had plenty of things to do. I needed to finish my social studies report—that was first on the list—but I needed to do some thinking, too. I felt like I should reach out to Rakell now that I knew about her parents, but I wasn’t sure how, and I wanted to check in with Olive.

After a couple bowls of Lucky Charms, I was in the living room on the couch with my books spread out on the cushions, looking for some facts about the Revolutionary War. Then, all of a sudden, Tony burst through the door, threw his backpack and coat on a chair, and sat on the couch, putting his head in his hands just like no