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gang were happy to have her hang out with us. She was
friends with this girl, Ali, who also seemed to be a bit
of a loner, and a couple of others. But she didn’t hesi-
tate when I asked if she wanted to come along to a party
Rafe’s friend Alex was having, and she seemed to have a
good time.
I asked Rafe about it a few days ago. He hesitated
before he spoke.
“Lucy had kind of a bad time a while back—I guess
it was near the end of ninth grade. Her dad died, and she
seemed okay at first, but then…I didn’t know her very
well, so I don’t really know what happened, and anyway
I guess it’s up to her to tell you if she wants to. But she
disappeared for a while, and then partway through the
following fall she came back, looking like she does now.”
“What did she look like before?” I asked, though it
was the least of my questions.
Rafe shrugged. “I dunno. More like everyone else,
I guess.” I pointed silently at his loud Hawaiian shirt, and
he laughed. “Don’t get me wrong—it’s not that I think
everyone
should
look like everyone else. I like Lucy, and
I’m glad we’re hanging out more.” He shrugged again,
and I could see he was baff led himself. “I think we
were…well, maybe a bit scared of her when she first came
back. Maybe it was just easier to stick with the friends we
already had.”
So overall, things were going pretty well for me.
I thought maybe Noah was having a harder time of it,
