Edison's mom smiled and greeted Kit when she knocked on their front door. It was still early in the day and sun's heat hadn't reached its full potential.

"Kit, come on in," she said. Edison looked a lot like her, except she smiled more and her smile didn't seem to be hiding anything, like his usually did. "Is it just you?" She looked outside to check before shutting the door. "I had the whole football team showing up all day yesterday to make sure Edison hadn't died," she chuckled. "But you are the first one today."

"It's just me," Kit said. "So, is Edison still alive or did he die of a sprained ankle?"

His mom laughed. "He is alive and well, but I can't attest to what kind of mood he is in. He hasn't been able to get around since he got home from the fair. He had to call out of work yesterday and today. I'm warning you, he might be in a bad mood."

Kit shrugged and smiled. "Don't worry, I don't scare easily. I also brought a peace offering; Al's waffles."

"That might do the trick. He is up in his room if you want to give him a chance. It's the second door on the right." She nodded towards the stairs.

"Thanks," Kit said, heading for the stairs.

She climbed them quickly, her shoes slapping against the wood. As she passed the first door, she heard a few young girls talking. Edison hadn't told her he had younger siblings.

She knocked sharply on the second door, but didn't receive any response. She knocked again, before she cracked the door open. Something thudded against the other side and she heard him mumble some complaint. She slowly opened the door further and another object hit it.

"Annie, I told you to leave me alone. I don't want to play with your dolls," he called out.

Kit pushed the door completely open and ducked as a third shoe was hurled in her direction. Edison didn't even bother looking to see who had entered his room. He was laying on his stomach on his bed, facing away from the door, typing on his phone.

She rested against the doorjamb and crossed her arms. "Are you sure you don't want to play with dolls? It can be really fun?"

He sat up sharply at the sound of her voice and turned. She smiled and waved. His faced jumped through a few emotions at the sight of her until it landed in a glower.

"I can see your mood has only improved," she joked.

"What do you want?" he asked.

He sat up, and she could see his ankle was still bandaged.

"The moon, a horse, to live forever." He gave her a stony look. "But I guess I can settle with hanging out with you."

"I didn't ask you to come over."

"I know. I'm just that nice." She cleared a few things from his desk and sat on it, curling her legs up beneath her. His room had the typical teenage boy décor and messiness. "I also brought you waffles from Al's, so that makes me doubly nice. You really should be happier to see me."

He pulled the corners of his mouth back into a flat smile. The result was painful looking. He held it for a minute, then his face dropped back down into a scowl.

"Fine. I'll eat the waffles then," she said. "I've always been a fan of second breakfasts." She pulled the Styrofoam box out of the bag and the air was filled with a warm, sweet smell.

He perked up and eyed the waffles hungrily.

"Your mom said you had a lot of visitors yesterday," she said. She dipped a piece of waffle into some syrup and took a bite. "Where is everyone today?"

He kept his eyes on the waffles as he answered. "At the water park," he said.

"And they didn't invite you!" she said, outraged. "It's okay. It seems they forgot to invite me too."

The corners of his mouth twitch and she knew he wanted to smile.

"They didn't forget to invite me. I didn't want to go. It's not an easy activity for someone with a busted ankle," he explained. "And they didn't forget to invite you. It's for Amanda's birthday."

"She didn't invite me? But I already got her a present," she whined.

He finally smiled and shook his head. He reached out his hand and she handed over the waffles.

"And what present was that? Another knuckle sandwich?" he asked. He dipped half a waffle into the syrup and stuffed the whole thing in his mouth. "Al's is the best," he mumbled, with a full mouth.

She laughed. "It is. His waffles are so fluffy and on the verge of tasting fake, but still somehow completely amazing." He nodded and continued to eat. "So, you like to play with dolls?" she asked.

He looked up and gave her annoyed look, his mouth full of waffle.

"What? I'm not judging you," she added.

"My sister is obsessed with dolls," he said, once he finished his bite.

"I didn't even know you had a younger sister."

"That's because I never told you."

"Yeah, I had figured out that much."

He chuckled and took another bite. She hopped off the desk and slowly walked around the room, taking in all the different pieces that represented Edison. The football trophies, some pictures of him, his mom and his younger sister. From the few pictures he had, it looked like it was just the three of them.

A few school books peaked out from under his bed, but his trophies dominated most of the desk and shelf space. She moved closer to read the events each trophy represented. Player of the week, MVP, player of the year, Freshman MVP. It seemed like he had every award there was in football. She turned back to him.

"You stole these, right?"

He laughed. "Of course. Do you actually think one person could be amazing enough to win all of those?"

She laughed and nodded her head. She looked at the few bites of waffle he had left.

"Hurry up and finish Reigns, we have places to be." She snapped her fingers and moved to the door.

"What are you talking about? I don't plan on moving all day."

"Oh, I know and it's pathetic. I'm saving you. Jump to it." He looked at his ankle then back at her. "You know what I mean," she said. "Finish eating and get dressed. You have five minutes."

"Or what?" he asked mockingly. "You're going to drag me out of the house. I'm twice your size."

She smiled and leaned against the door.

"No. I'll bring your sister and her dolls into your room. On second thought, why don't you just stay? A day of playing dolls is good for one's soul. Later Edison." She waved over her shoulder as she left the room. "Should I let Annie know you are ready to play?" she called over her shoulder."

"Don't!" he yelled.

She chuckled and popped her head back into his room.

"Five minutes," she ordered.

She only had time to look at a single shelf of family pictures, before Edison descended the stairs with a loud clatter. He had a pair of crutches in one hand while his other hand helped him crawl down, keeping any pressure off his ankle. As he neared the bottom, she reached out for the crutches so he could climb down the rest of the stairs using both hands. She examined the metal crutches.

"Seems a bit extreme," she said. "I mean, it's just a sprained ankle."

He was red in the face from effort as he stood and grabbed the crutches from her hand.

"I already had them, from when I tore my ACL," he explained.

He called for his mom as he hobbled into the kitchen. She was cooking something on the stove.

"Hey mom, I'm going out," he said.

"Good. I think getting out will be good for you. Where are you guys going?" she asked. They both looked to Kit.

"The lake," Kit said.

"Fantastic! It's the perfect day for the lake," his mom said.

Edison rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Let's go," he grumbled.

He started for the front door. His mom caught Kit's eye before she could leave and waved her over. Kit joined her by the stove.

"Thank you so much!" his mom said quietly. She checked to make sure Edison couldn't hear her. "He needed this. I needed this! He was so mopey yesterday, I was worried. It felt like he had torn his ACL all over again, and I don't think I could handle it."

"Kittery Maine, I'm the one with the busted ankle and I still beat you to the front door," Edison yelled. "Move you're a – "

"Edison Daniel Reigns, watch your mouth," his mother shouted. She quickly looked back to Kit and gave her arm a loving squeeze. "Thank you! Know you are always welcome here."

Kit just nodded. Edison's mom's confession had taken her by surprise.

"Thanks," she managed to say as they both walked to the door.

"There you are!" he said. He was resting his forehead against the open door. "Maybe sometime this year." He waved her through the door.

"Edison Daniel, I raised you with better manners," his mom said. She kissed him on the cheek and he grimaced. "Have fun, kids."

"I promise we will," Kit said. She smiled and led the way outside.

Kit took her time with the drive, in no rush to get to the lake, and her thoughts were absorbed with what Edison's mom had said. When anyone talked about the aftermath of Edison tearing his ACL they only talked about him not playing football. She had never thought about what it must have been like for him, losing the only thing he cared about. Or what it must have been like for his mom, watching her son lose so much.

They drove in silence, the radio filling the space between them, until a tunnel appeared on the horizon. Kit didn't really comprehend its approach until Edison rolled his window down and unbuckled. It took her a moment to catch on, then she smiled and rolled down her window.

As the tunnel raced to meet them, Edison pulled himself out of the window. The moment they were bathed in the orange light of the tunnel, they yelled, their joined voices exploding into the air. Edison's voice rang out deep and loud, almost drowning out Kit's. She ran out of breath halfway through and had to suck in a deep breath to continue.

She glanced over at Edison, his hands holding him out the window. For a moment, she caught a glimpse of someone other than the cocky, girl chasing person he presented to the world. Something a little deeper and real, but it disappeared as the tunnel ended. He sank back into his seat and they continued to drive in silence.

She drove them to a crowded parking lot on the water's edge, advertising paddle boats and pulled up to the small wooden building by the front.

"Do you want me to drop you off here? Or are you going to be stupid and proud, and insist on walking across the parking lot?" she asked.

"Walking across the parking lot wouldn't be as stupid as bringing someone with a busted ankle to ride a paddle boat," he countered. "Did the name not give it away? You have to paddle with your feet."

Kit smiled. A snarky Edison was preferred over a quiet, sulky one.

"Is that how it works?" she asked.

She rolled her eyes and began to look for a parking spot. Finding one in the back, she pulled in.

"It looks like we can be stupid together," she said, getting out of the car.

She grabbed her bag and waited by the back as Edison began the process of exiting the car. She watched him grab the crutches and use them to pull himself up. She would have offered help, but she knew he would only scoff at the idea. His forehead glistened with the hint of sweat when he finally joined her.

"One stupid thing down, one more to go," she said.

**********************************************************************

Heyo butternut!

So you know that I am odd. This is nothing new. But am I about to prove without a doubt that I am the oddest person ALIVE! Here we go...

I feel bad for killing insects.

Yup, not ever lying. I mean come on, it's not their fault they are stuck in my house. A bee is simply trying to get back to nature. A spider is just looking for a place to hang out. How awful am I to kill them just for wanting some peace! So yeah, I legit try to set the bee free because it deserves freedom, life is hard enough when you have a constant buzz going!

Okay, so yeah now you know how odd I truly am. I hope you still love me or at least still just keep reading my books!

Something weird you thought about as a little kid?

I thought if I looked hard enough at the sky I could see heaven. I swear I saw it at least once.

rauha, Rakkaus, Jäätelö (Finnish)

Would you look at how cute he is!