"And put it park," Maddox says as I pull into a parking space at the comic store. I put the car in park and turn off the engine.

"Do I meet your standards for driving your car?" I ask, dropping the keys into his hands.

"We both know you do," he replies, nodding as he takes off his seatbelt.

"Are we reverting to old times?"

"Do you not want to?"

"I honestly don't know how to answer that," I sigh, my hands still holding the wheel. "It's been a few years of the back and forth. I miss my best friend. The one who taught me how to fend for myself during my first year here."

As usual, Maddox goes silent. He does that every time I bring this up.

"Why do you do that?" I ask, turning to look at him and almost regretting it.

"Do what?" Maddox sits back and crosses his arms over his chest. He's not the scrawny teenage boy he once was. His arms are all buff.

"You become a locked vault and ignore my questions," I explain, motioning to him with a wave of my hand. "Every time I bring up the past, you lock down, change the subject, or walk away. All I've been looking for is a simple explanation."

As if on cue, he clams up and looks out the window, away from me. I sigh and remove my seatbelt.

"Wait," he says as I'm about to get out of the car. "Obviously, a lot changed when you became friends with Honey and her sisters. I didn't mean for it to, but that's what happened."

"Honey and her sisters are not an excuse," I say softly.

"No, they're not . . . We should get to work. We can talk later."

He doesn't move, so I agree to talk with him later.

"Okay."

***

Around lunch time, I go to the front door of the store and turn the closed sign around. I add the time we'll open again and head to the back room. Maddox is sitting on the floor against a wall. It's a four by fifteen-foot office space, but is used for breaks and lunches. And it's the link to the basement office, but customers don't need to know that.

"Is now a good time to talk?" I ask, grabbing my lunch from the nearby table and joining Maddox on the floor.

"Yes," he replies, sighing. "I feel like Honey has had it out for me since the day she arrived in the home."

"She saw you teasing me," I explain, unwrapping my turkey sandwich. "That particular day, you'd taken it a little too far, if you remember. Of course she had out for you. Doesn't explain why you decided to bring that teasing to a level of near-bullying afterwards. But also, Honey's had some rough experiences, so you had a red X on your back already."

"Which brings us to the part where you didn't stick up for me."

And we come to the root of the matter.

"I did," my voice grows soft. "You didn't have to be in the same room for me to say something. But it didn't help that you kept going. You could've staked your claim as my best friend. I pretty much gave up after three months."

The room is quiet for a while. Even though we are elbow to elbow, I feel completely alone. My sandwich is untouched. Until Maddox reaches over and tears off a small piece, popping it into his mouth.

"Didn't you bring your own lunch?" I ask slowly, not wanting to sound bitter; which I'm not. Definitely not.

"I was going to get something next door," Maddox replies, shrugging as he takes another piece. "I don't feel like it now."

He gives me a sideways glance. My sandwich is cut into halves. I can spare the half he's eating for me.

"Here," I say, handing him the sandwich. "You can have this half. Just beware. I've been told I have cooties."

He cracks a smile and says, "Turtle cooties aren't so bad."

I find myself smiling back. Because the way he just said that was so like his old self.

"Comic book truce?" I extend my hand to him.

Maddox takes another bite of the sandwich and looks at my hand a moment. Then, after wiping his right hand on his leg, he shakes my hand.

"Comic book truce," he says, nodding.

***

When Maddox and I get back to the group home, after our shift ends, the truce is forgotten. He mumbles something about hanging out with Charlie, and leaves me on the sidewalk as he drives away. To say I'm disappointed is an understatement. I'm frowning as I walk through the front door. I go to the office and slump into the chair as Mrs. Gonzalez's desk.

"What's the matter Hun?" she asks, putting a book away on the shelf. "By the sound that sigh, you're feeling sad or disappointed."

"Ding-ding-ding! What do we have for her, Johnny?"

My outburst makes the woman turn and scowl at me. Honestly, she should be used to my antics by now.

"What has that boy done now?" Mrs. Gonzalez moves to her chair and sits with her hands folded on the desk. "I think you're old enough to let his teasing roll off your back."

"It's not that," I shake my head, taking a deep breath. "We were able to push past our differences at work today. He painted a little picture of why he's been such a jerk. We called a truce and then the second we get home, the jerk's back. And he's headed for Charlie's right now. Thought you'd like to know."

"Ah, I see. He was your best friend for a long time when you first came here."

"Exactly. That best friend is still in there. I saw a glimpse today. Would it be so terrible for him to be my friend again?"

"I'm choosing to think that's not the case," she clears her throat and looks behind me. "Oh, Andrea. Are you ready to go?"

"Yes ma'am," Andrea stands next to my chair and rubs my shoulder. "Am I going by myself, or is someone taking me?"

"Ingrid will be going with you. I think she's in the kitchen."

"Okay, I'll see you later, Myrtle."

I touch Andrea's hand as she walks away.

"Why do you choose to think that's not the case?" I ask, picking up my purse and going through it for the cell phone I use when I go to work.

"Because Maddox does care about you," Mrs. Gonzalez replies as I hand her the phone. "Could it be he doesn't want to come between you and your friends? You took Honey, Michelle and Stephie under your wing when they arrived. Since then, they've become your army. How much do they know about you from before they came?"

"Not everything, I guess."

"You might want to think about changing that. If they are your closest friends, you should trust them to know everything about you."

I nod, but I don't know how I'll be able to do that.

"Can I call my dad later?" I ask, changing the subject.