“Joanna—”
I cut him off. “No. You moved me my senior year. You swear how cool you are with my choices, and now it’s like you’re saying that was all a lie. The trip offer is awesome, but like you said, you would have agreed eventually, and I’ve saved my own money for it. What would really make me okay with this is the radio show.” I know I’m pushing here. But maybe this show would be the thing that could make living in this town bearable. If my new grandparents figure out I’m intelligent and thoughtful, if the local listeners get some insight into how to be better Christians, Dad might not freak out about us having to be on our best behavior. And I won’t have to adhere to this ridiculous new rule. I could help make the world, and my new town, a safer place for kids like me.
Now Dad’s the one pacing. Five steps toward the yard, five back to me. He does this twice. Twenty steps to decision.
A kid yells, “Cannonball!” and there’s the sound of a huge splash from somewhere over the fence.
Dad stops walking. “Okay.”
“Okay?” I’m sort of shocked.
“But.”
Nothing good ever comes after that word.
“Any agenda you have needs to be approached cautiously. I want us to work on the planning together.”
I deflate, then shake my head and roll my eyes. Yeah, it’s what I wanted, but if it’s too watered-down it might as well be pointless. Although, maybe a foot in the door is better than being locked out. Once I’m in, proving my salt, gaining my own following, then I can pull out the big guns . . . and, blam—queer girl sucker punch. I can do anything for a year if there’s a rainbow at the end of it. If they love my dad, they’ll love me. And maybe once they love me, I can make some real change and talk about being young, queer, and faithful. It might make this worth it.
“Okay.”
This time he’s the one who’s shocked. “Okay?” He lets out a huge breath of air and plops back next to me, pulling me into a side hug. “This means a lot to me, kid. I wouldn’t have asked otherwise. You know I’m proud of you.”
I nudge him in the ribs with my elbow. “I love you, Dad. I want you to be happy.” But I don’t tell him I know he’s proud. Because for the first time since I told him my truth, he’s acting like it may be a problem.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
JAYE ROBIN BROWN lives in the mountains of Western North Carolina, and teaches art at a public high school. You can visit her online at www.jayerobinbrown.com.
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BOOKS BY JAYE ROBIN BROWN
No Place to Fall
Will’s Story
Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit
COPYRIGHT
WILL’S STORY. Text copyright © 2016 by Jaye Robin Brown. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
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