FOR THREE MONTHS, MY STEPDAD DISAPPEARED AFTER MIDNIGHT AND CAME HOME BEFORE DAWN WITH BLOODSHOT EYES, CUT HANDS, AND GREASE UNDER HIS NAILS. ON MY 16TH BIRTHDAY, HE SAID, “I’M SORRY I CAN’T AFFORD TO BUY YOU A CAR.” THEN HE UNLOCKED OUR OLD SHED—AND I FINALLY LEARNED WHERE HE’D BEEN EVERY NIGHT.
“I’m sorry.”
Those were the first words Marcus Cole said to me on the morning I turned sixteen.
It was 6:40 a.m.
He was still wearing yesterday’s work shirt.
Grease marked one sleeve.
Fresh cuts crossed the backs of his hands.
And instead of looking at me, he stood beside our kitchen counter in Bellmere turning an old brass key between his fingers.
“I’m not the kind of dad who can buy you a car.”
I frowned.
“I never asked for one.”
“I know.”
He nodded toward my phone.
“But sixteen is a big birthday.”
Right then, my screen lit up.
A message from Madison.
A photograph of her standing beside a white Jeep with a huge red bow tied across the hood.
BEST PARENTS EVER!!!
Marcus saw the picture before I flipped my phone over.
“Yeah.”
He smiled weakly.
“That’s what I mean.”
And I hated how embarrassed he looked.
