Chapter 2 – Part 1
Ronny catches the bus home and locks himself in his house once he’s home. Both parents are still at work, so he starts dinner and homework. He leans against the counter and sends a text to his friend, Rachel, even though he knows he won’t be getting a text back.
Rachel had left the school and moved at the end of Freshman year because of the bullying was too much. She hasn’t texted or called him for two years now.
Ronny doesn’t stop though. He worries about her and still thinks of her as his best friend since they knew each other since they were in kindergarten. Ronny puts his phone down and continues to cook dinner. He picks his favorite to make- spaghetti, salad, and garlic bread.
While he waits for the water to boil, he gets out his homework and sits at the table. He spreads out his books and paper and gets to work. His phone vibrates on the table next to him and he grabs it. He expects the text to be from either his parents or one of his buddies.
Ronny nearly drops the phone when he sees its a text from Rachel. Of course, it could just be someone saying he has the wrong number. Ronny wouldn’t be surprised if she got rid of her old number since she would get disgusting texts from the kids at school. Ronny readies himself for the text and opens it.
This time he does drop his phone on the table. It’s from Rachel after all these years of silence. Ronny grabs his phone and opens the message.
Hi Ronny,
I’m sorry I’ve never texted or called you for so long. I had a lot of healing to do. But your messages helped me a lot.
I hope I can see you soon. Thinking of coming back for a visit in a few weeks during summer.
Ronny laughs when he sees Rachel is thinking about coming to visit. He texts back that he wants to see her, and he hopes she does come back for a visit. He tells her how he has missed her and how the guys miss her, too.
He takes a screenshot and sends it to the guys. He instantly gets responses from each of them. They ask Ronny to tell Rachel they want to see her, too. He sends the group screenshot to her.
Oh, you guys. I can’t wait to see you all. I’ve missed my boys so much. I’ll see you soon.
Ronny sets the phone down and gets back to the food. He makes the salad, pops in the bread, and makes sure the sauce is hot. He sits back down and gets back to his homework. After a few more minutes of work, he packs up his things and clears the table so he can set it. He puts his bag in his room so he can finish his work after dinner.
He sets the table when he gets back to the dining room. By the time his parents walk in after 5 o’clock, the food is done and dished out, red wine is poured in two glasses in front of where his parents sit, and a glass of milk in front of where he sits. Ronny puts down the napkins when his mom kisses his forehead.
“Mom, I’ve got so much to tell you,” Ronny says, excited to tell her about Ingrid and about the text from Rachel.