The Healing Power of Sugar: The Ghost Bird Series: #9 (The Academy Ghost Bird Series) (33 page)

I was considering how much time we had. North was trying to score points. I looked at Kota, questioning.

“Stick with the plan,” he said.

Did he really want North to win?

The line started to move, and I ran around people and toward the goal line. Some of the kids started to follow me, until Luke intervened and tried to trick them into a second tag game.

I almost stopped paying attention to watch Luke play with the kids when I spotted a ball zooming in my direction. It was a strong throw, and I reached up to catch it, sure that it would smack me in the face.

A broad hand reached out, blocking the ball before I had a chance to catch it. It held firm, and I’d heard the loud smack of the material against his palm. My heart raced, sure it hurt. I recoiled as if I’d been hit by it.

North recovered, pulling the ball back and then looked down at me, holding the ball in his hand away from his body. “You good?”

“Yeah,” I said, thinking I could easily reach out to him and touch him, causing a down.

“You’re getting good at this game,” he said. “But if you’re ever looking at a ball coming toward your face, back up a few feet and catch it in the stomach, or somewhere else. Just not the face.”

A blush radiated from my cheeks. “I think I’ll leave the football games to you and Silas.”

“Swimming seems to be more of your sport,” he said. “Unless you like something else.”

I glanced at the sidelines where someone was urging North to start running. They were also telling me to reach out to get him.

And then I realized we were still in play; he was running the clock down.

I let him distract me! I lunged at him, reaching to touch.

He let the ball drop on the ground, and then went in after me, scooping me up around the waist, and holding on carefully so I wasn’t showing any underwear, and held me over his shoulder.

I smacked against his butt. I couldn’t believe he would stoop to this. “North! Put me down.”

“Nope,” he said. “We’re about to win. You’re going to stay right here until it’s over.”

A dropped ball meant a free ball. Any team could grab it. No one on my team seemed to be able to get to it, though. I held myself up, calling to Luke and Kota, but both were preoccupied with little kids. Our adults were trying to pull them off of Kota. As soon as one kid was put down, he’d run right back, crashing on top of Kota again.

Right behind North was the blue princess. She’d followed North, and seemed to have been waiting for this. She scooped up the ball, but then hesitated, looking at me on North’s shoulders.

North turned to her. “You! Run!” He said to her. He pointed to the long distance down the yard to their goal line. “Go! That way!”

The girl stared at him with wide eyes.

Dr. Green was jumping up and down wildly on his side of the goal line, encouraging her. Everyone else seemed to be shouting at her, too.

The girl seemed confused, standing where she was. Her face started to turn red as her eyes darted around to everyone who was shouting.

“Hey,” I said, in a cheerful voice, giving her a large smile. I spread my hands out. “Little princess.”

She looked at me, seeming perplexed as she hugged the ball.

“Dr. Green wants a hug,” I said to her. I pointed to Dr. Green, who was jumping around wildly, bright-eyed and excited, and yet always so friendly. “Remember your buddy?”

North whipped around to try to turn me away from her. “Don’t listen to her,” he said to the princess. “Go run down there.”

I squirmed, getting upright on his shoulder so I could look over it back at the girl. “Dr. Green wants a hug!” I cried out. “Hurry and go give him one.”

The girl looked down the field, at the long route it would take to get to their goal, where there were scrambling kids and a Kota trying to get other kids to run after her. Some adults were closing in from our team.

“Go give Dr. Green a hug,” I said again and then laughed. I was trying not to scare her, since everyone else was yelling. “Sean. Your friend Sean. Over there. He needs a hug. Hurry, hurry!”

She spotted Dr. Green, and then started to march toward him. The crowd laughed and Dr. Green was waving his hands at her, trying to encourage her, but to go in the other direction.

North started to put me down. “You did not,” he said, although he seemed to have given up by this point. I couldn’t tell if he was just tired or he was allowing it to happen. He put an arm around me, and we watched as the girl, excited that Dr. Green was excited, raced toward him, holding onto the ball, but clearly looking for Dr. Green to give him the hug he needed.

When she was close enough that she would have crossed the line anyway, Dr. Green surrendered. She was too determined to get to him for him to resist. When she was close enough, he scooped her up, crossing the ball over the line.

“Three points!” the crowd cried out. “That was worth three!”

North slapped his palm to his face. “Jeez.”

“Time!” Kota called out under a pile of kids. He encouraged them to get off of him and waved at the timekeeper.

The timekeeper looked at his watch and then laughed. “It ended ten minutes ago.”

There was a good laugh among everyone, although North argued that they had been ahead in points ten minutes ago. It didn’t seem to matter. They declared Kota’s team the winner for scoring the last point.

After that it was a confusing mess of people walking over the field. Some of the older kids took the ball to the street for a real game of touch football amongst them, and the parents found chairs and settled themselves together, talking.

North, with his arm around me, walked me back toward Kota. The others had gotten up, Luke and Mr. Blackbourne, Victor and the rest or our own family, and gathered in a circle.

“Well, well,” Dr. Green said with a laugh in his voice. “Sang’s a little too clever for you, North.”

“I thought for sure she’d run to the goal line,” he said. “She’d been talking about getting the goal all day.”

“She did,” he said. “Just not for our team.”

“Maybe next year,” Kota said in a huff. He had little dirty feet marks all over his shirt where the kids had walked all over him. Silas was the same way. Most of the ones who played were incredibly dirty. Even Mr. Blackbourne was rumpled, with dirt in his lap from the pebble collection.

There was a silent agreement between them all that their play time was done and it was time to help clean up. To me, it was a relief; it had been an overwhelming day.

When we walked toward the tables, I realized then that there was a lot of work to do. Clearing the tables probably should have been done before the game.

However, it seemed North and Silas really had thought ahead. Victor, Luke and I collected pumpkins, placing one on the doorstep of every home along the street.

Silas wheeled in a big trash can already lined with a bag. North and Silas, with Kota assisting, gathered up the tablecloth around the mess, picked it up and neatly dumped it in the trash can.

That was clever. I was grateful North had thought ahead of time.

The leftovers on the buffet table were collected by Dr. Green and Mr. Blackbourne. Mackenzie and the Native man came by, directing where the leftovers should go. Each box was given to a specific house. “People with the most kids should get the leftovers,” Mac said.

By the time Victor, Luke and I returned from delivering pumpkins, all that was left was to fold tables and chairs. Everyone folded their own chair and they were stacked with the tables back onto the trolley. One of the men rolled it away to someone’s shed where they were stored.

The kids were busy playing. The teenagers had disappeared to watch television in one of the homes. The grownups sat on porches, watching the kids play and talking about the game.

“Great Thanksgiving this year,” Mac said. She reached out with an open palm toward Mr. Blackbourne.

Mr. Blackbourne shook it. “Fantastic, as always,” he said. “Thanks for providing the venue.”

“Thanks for providing the food,” she said. “We still have enough leftovers for the weekend. Maybe. Some of these men have bigger appetites.”

“Some of the kids have bigger ones,” the Native man said.

By the time I was escorted to a car at the end, I didn’t even focus as to which car I had joined. I simply knew we were heading off, and that I was completely exhausted.

My eyes closed.

FAMILY

I
didn’t wake up until we were pulling into Sunnyvale Court. I was in the back seat of Kota’s car, with Nathan in the front passenger seat.

I sat up a bit, having slumped against the door, and yawned.

Nathan turned toward me. His hair was a reddish mess on the top of his head. His eyes had tired shadows under them. “The turkey get to you?”

“I think the kids got to her,” Kota said. He yawned, and stretched his back. “I think they got to me, too.”

I twisted my neck to get out a kink, looking at the dark and empty diner as we passed. There was a sign near the door, big enough to be seen from the main road, announcing that they would be open in the morning, wishing everyone a happy Thanksgiving.

The rest of the street was quiet. The sun was kissing the tree line, ready to sink down below the horizon, and driveways were either crammed with cars or completely empty.

After such a long day, being on this familiar road was welcome. I’d enjoyed Thanksgiving but I wanted to quietly enjoy the rest of the day in peace, curled up in Nathan’s bed.

Now that it was over, and I remembered all that had happened, I could see doing it again next year. I would prepare better and know what to expect.

The car was quiet as Kota pulled into his own family’s driveway. He parked the car in the far corner and then turned off the engine. He took out the keys, and kept them in his hand as he turned, looking back at me.

I rubbed at my eyes and sighed. I’d thought I would merely be enjoying a good Thanksgiving dinner with Kota and his family, and possibly with Nathan and a few of the other boys. Instead, it had been busy and chaotic. My face felt windblown and I imagined my hair was a mess.

“I’m a bit gross,” I said.

“We can wash up before dinner,” Kota said.

I looked at Kota’s house. Lights were on inside. “Is this Thanksgiving part two? Or three?”

“Yup,” Nathan said. “Time to eat whatever Erica made. She knows we go do charity work most of the day.”

“Is she expecting me?”

“Of course,” Kota said.

I tried to comb my hair back, wondering if she’d see me coming in the door before I had a chance to clean up. Then I realized Mr. Blackbourne’s jacket was still around my waist. “Ugh,” I said, tugging at the sleeve. “I stole his jacket.”

“He’s got more,” Nathan said. He had gotten out but then paused, leaning in. He looked at me, still sitting in the car. “I’m hungry again, but I don’t want to overdo it.” He looked at Kota. “Stop me if I reach for more potatoes? Or a roll? I shouldn’t have any rolls.”

“I think you did enough of a work out at the game to warrant a second roll.” Kota said with a chuckle. “Are we ready for this?”

I shook my head, although to be honest, I was hungry. I was tired, too. I fought with myself over whether to go to sleep or be polite and eat first.

“Yeah,” Kota said with a chuckle. “I’m not sure I’m ready for this, either.” He got out of the car and then moved over to open my door. He looked in on me.

I had no energy to even reach out for him. My muscles wanted me to relax in the back seat and go back to sleep.

He reached in for me and then held on to my arm. “Come on, sweetie,” he said. “Just a little further.”

I found some energy and let him support me as I got out. I leaned on him as we walked toward his house.

Nathan followed quietly behind us. “Sang,” he said. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” I said. “Just so tired. I shouldn’t be. I didn’t play in the game that much.”

“You’re very much an introvert,” Kota said. “Too many new people probably zapped your energy.” He patted me on the shoulder. “It’s okay. Victor gets the same way. That’s why he didn’t really play in the game. Loud team sports really aren’t his thing.”

I really did feel zapped. Once we were at the door, Kota turned the knob and opened it, letting me walk in first.

The smell of turkey hit me on a waft of warm air. It was a delicious mixture of other foods as well, and it startled my stomach into waking up.

“Kota?” called Erica from the kitchen. “Is that you?”

“We’re here,” Kota said, walking ahead of me. I lingered behind, looking at Nathan. I was nervous even though I shouldn’t be. Erica was nice, but this was a family occasion, and I was just the girl up the road. Wouldn’t she ask about my family?

I thought about my sister and how she was alone today. Shame filled my heart then. I’d spent so much time with the boys, that I’d forgotten about her, and that she was probably by herself on a day for families.

Kota moved to the threshold between the hallway and the dining room. He paused there, blocking my view. “Mom,” he said. “We’re kind of dirty from a football game. Is it okay if Sang goes upstairs to shower and change? Nathan and I can take turns in the downstairs bathroom.”

“Sure,” she said. “You all hurry, though. Dinner’s ready. We were just waiting on you.”

“Let me just go show her where everything is,” he said.

It was amusing to me the way he said it, like I was so rarely in his bedroom, and had no idea where things were. Maybe it was still better his mother believed that. As much as Erica trusted Kota, it probably was still too much to ask every time I spent the night.

The boys and I clamored on up to Kota’s room. It was odd to be given permission to enter a boy’s room by a parent. My stepmother used to have a fit if I even spoke to a boy. The stark contrast between her and Erica still had me in such awe about her. I liked her a lot.

Upstairs, Nathan collapsed onto Kota’s bed in a heap. “I am so tired,” he said. “The kids were more interested in playing airplane landing on top of Silas than the game. My arms are like noodles.”