Page 28 of Fragile hearts

“Worse than you already told me?”

“It depends on what you think worse is. I know people who had a harder life, but it wasn’t pretty.” I blow out a breath, starting at the beginning. “Micah and I were abandoned on the street shortly after we were born. The nurses in the hospital named us. We bounced around a lot. Some places were nicer than others. We were lucky if we had a bed or three meals a day.”

“How did people not notice? I mean, you must have been underweight, right? If they weren’t feeding you.”

“We were. I still have trouble eating. I’m so used to being hungry that I forget to eat sometimes. I have alarms on my phone, so I don’t forget.”

“Jesus, Alexis,” Carson pauses, asking his next question carefully as if he’s bracing for my answer.

“Did someone ever, hurt you?”

I rub my finger over the small scars littering my body. “Yeah, some worse than others, but I got used to it after a while.”

Carson curses, clenching his fingers into fists.

The way I grew up was normal for me. I thought it was normal for someone to hurt you because you spilled milk. It wasn’t until I told my teacher about it and was removed for his care that I realized your parent wasn’t supposed to hurt you. But it’s a surprise for Carson. He grew up in a nice family. And I’m glad he did. “I was six when I found out what birthdays were. A classmate invited me to his party. I had no clue you were supposed to celebrate the day you were born. Micah and I didn’t know our birthdays. I only found out when he died.”

“You never celebrated your birthday?”

“Nope, it was just an ordinary day for me.”

“Fucking hell, no one got you presents or a cake?”

“No, I obviously know my birthday now, but I still don’t celebrate. It was just me for a while, then I met my best friend Ash, but he never celebrated his birthday either, so we pretend it’s like any other day.”

“February thirteenth, right?”

“Yeah, but it’s okay, I’m used to it.”

“You shouldn’t be used to it. You have me now and my family. Trust me, they love birthdays. They would love to celebrate yours. You can invite your best friend. My mom will bake a cake. And we’ll get you presents. What do you like?”

“Like?”

“Yeah, things you like to do. I like playing card games. Every birthday I play a card game with my dad. It’s our birthday tradition.”

“I don’t have that. Ash and I don’t do anything, but I like puzzles.”

“Puzzles? Okay, we can work with that.”

Work with that? I never knew birthdays were such a big deal for people, but the thought of having a birthday tradition and having people to celebrate with makes me giddy inside.

“I’ll talk to my parents, and I promise you, Sunshine, you will never have to celebrate a birthday alone. Nobody deserves that, but especially not you.”

Chapter Eight

Carson

It’s the blinding light that wakes me. It feels like somebody is pointing a flashlight in my eyes. I curse under my breath, using my arm as a shield, stretching out the cramps in my legs. The grey blanket I had seen yesterday is draped over my middle.

“Good morning, sleeping beauty.”

What the—?

I open my eyes, blinking several times until I get used to the light. Alexis is standing in the kitchen holding a cup in her hand. From the steam and the smell reaching my nose, I’m assuming it’s coffee.

Fuck, it worked. I slept the whole night. I can’t remember the last time I did that.

“Did I—?”