Just You by Jane Lark Page A

subway to work. I hated going in now, ‘cause I hated Justin ignoring me–and now I had dinner with my parents to look forward to. Awesome.
    I climbed the stairs to the floor our offices were on, delaying facing him by avoiding the lift. But it was inevitable. When I walked in, he was leaning on Becky’s desk talking to her.
    People started saying, “Hi,” to me. He glanced up, but when he saw it was me he looked back at Becky, grinning and saying something, before he walked away and sat down.
    Becky looked over as I got close. “Hey. Do you want a coffee? I was just gonna make one?”
    “Hi. Yes. Thanks. That would be cool.”
    I slipped my coat off and went to hang it up, trying to ignore Justin who was ignoring me.
    It felt like I was back at boarding school. Sharing rooms with girls always meant you’d fallen out with someone.
    Maybe that was why I had grown up so tough. I’d had to be tough. If you let things like this–like Justin–beneath your skin, then you were lost and miserable.
    I took my seat, and made a decision to have one more try…
    ‘I said I’m sorry, Justin.’ I sent the email.
    There was no response.
    He was pretty tough-skinned too and obviously not miserable. But then he had his family, he didn’t need me.
    I needed him.
    Sighing, I got up to collect Mr. Rees’s mail. When I sorted it, there was a solicitor’s letter in there from a firm in Oregon, about a paternity case. That rocketed up my anger. Was that the reason he’d been black and blue and buying his wife presents a few weeks back…?
    It wasn’t what I wanted to think about when Dad was in town and I had to see him tomorrow.
    Most of the day, I felt trapped in Justin’s sentence of silence. Becky and Crystal talked but I didn’t really listen, anxiety knitting up inside me. I could hear the needles clicking, and my heart pumped away, like it was pounding out the rhythm on a base drum.
    My hands shook when I got up to go out for lunch and I had a feeling that I was going to break into a full on panic attack soon.
    I hadn’t seen my parents for seven months. I didn’t want to see them.
    When I came back into the office, I looked at Justin, his head was down a little, and he had headphones in, listening to music as he worked, no doubt to drown me out if I spoke.
    I’d got used to him being there when I’d needed someone. Being nice. He’d listened. God no one had ever listened to me before.
    He understood too, ‘cause of his Dad. I’d trashed that.
    Awesome.
    I sat down, there was no point messaging him again, he wasn’t going to answer.
    I sighed and got back on with my work. God, I wished he would be there tomorrow night.
    The idea exploded in my head like a whole pan of popping corn breaking from the kernels all at once.
    He’d wanted me to tell people we were together. The two things could collide tomorrow; if I asked him to come. There was no bigger statement. It would make us front page news if I introduced him to my parents.
    I looked over at him. He wasn’t looking at me.
    But how could I ask him when he wasn’t even talking to me… and did he even like me now?
    ~
    A knock hit the door. I looked up at Mom, and saw Robin do the same. We were sitting ‘round the table eating dinner. It was eight already, too late for it to be someone selling stuff, and no one visited. Mom didn’t have friends, she was too busy working, and she didn’t let any of us encourage friends to call either. She wanted us all where she could see us, not on the streets were too many kids walked around with knives and guns. Or if she was working–where I could see them.
    Jake glanced at me nervously as I stood up, like he was looking to his older brother for help. It was unusual for him. I gripped his shoulder for a moment as I lifted my other hand to tell Mom to sit back down as she stood too. “I’ll go.”
    If it was trouble, it was better I was the one meeting it at the door. The conversation started up again behind me as