“Dude, look at me.”
Reluctantly, Elliot obeyed.
“All you see of yourself right now is the junk, but I see someone who wants to live better than the rotten hand he was dealt, someone striving for a good life.”
“How can you possibly see any of that?” No one else did. No one had ever believed in him from his earliest memories.
“You walked here, didn’t you?” Isaiah asked. “I mean, you could have walked anywhere else, a homeless shelter, stayed beneath an overpass. You could have shacked up with a friend.”
“I don’t have any friends.”
Silence claimed the space after that remark, but more the silence of thought than any embarrassment. Isaiah stuck out his hand. Elliot stared at it.
“Shake my hand,” Isaiah said.
Elliot made no effort to do so. “Why?” he asked.
“I’ll be your friend, and if you want to change, I’ll help you.”
“Why would you bother? You have no obligation to me.”
Isaiah’s gaze became reflective. “This isn’t simply a bed to sleep in, Elliot. This is a lifestyle change. Ask yourself what you really want out of life.”
“What I want? I’ll tell you what I want. I want to get up in the morning and not look over my shoulder wondering how wasted my dad is and if he’s violent today. I want money in my pocket and food in my stomach and an end to the pain. I want …”
“To be one of us.” Isaiah finished his thought. “So shake my hand and commit to being one of us. We’ll stick with you no matter what else happens.”
Elliot stared at him. People didn’t do this for others. They were all about how much they could bleed out of you by the end of the day, especially for a boy like him. He’d seen it too many times.
“Take the offer,” Isaiah said. “Insta-families only come once in a lifetime, and this is yours.”
Still Elliot hesitated. “What if the others don’t agree, like your parents?”
“I’ve talked to my parents. They know you’re here. And Denny feels the same as me. As to Indy …” He shrugged. “That’s something you’ll have to ask her yourself.”
Elliot grew quiet and stared unblinking at Isaiah’s hand. What if he took the offer? He hadn’t thought out what he’d do once he got here, only that they’d take him in and he’d have a roof over his head for a while. But what if … what if he stayed? Here was better than some unknown location, broke and starving. If they’d really stick by him, maybe his past could be just that … in the past.
“Don’t be a fool,” Isaiah said. “Shake my hand, and from here on out, you’re as much my brother as Denny.”
Elliot stared at Isaiah’s offered fingers, knowing he’d be an idiot to refuse. At least, if he accepted, he’d have a place to live for a while. He raised his hand and clasped hold of Isaiah’s. “I hope you know what you’re getting into.”
Isaiah’s reply struck him hard. “I don’t, but I know Someone Who does.” And with that, he pointed up.
Reluctantly, Elliot obeyed.
“All you see of yourself right now is the junk, but I see someone who wants to live better than the rotten hand he was dealt, someone striving for a good life.”
“How can you possibly see any of that?” No one else did. No one had ever believed in him from his earliest memories.
“You walked here, didn’t you?” Isaiah asked. “I mean, you could have walked anywhere else, a homeless shelter, stayed beneath an overpass. You could have shacked up with a friend.”
“I don’t have any friends.”
Silence claimed the space after that remark, but more the silence of thought than any embarrassment. Isaiah stuck out his hand. Elliot stared at it.
“Shake my hand,” Isaiah said.
Elliot made no effort to do so. “Why?” he asked.
“I’ll be your friend, and if you want to change, I’ll help you.”
“Why would you bother? You have no obligation to me.”
Isaiah’s gaze became reflective. “This isn’t simply a bed to sleep in, Elliot. This is a lifestyle change. Ask yourself what you really want out of life.”
“What I want? I’ll tell you what I want. I want to get up in the morning and not look over my shoulder wondering how wasted my dad is and if he’s violent today. I want money in my pocket and food in my stomach and an end to the pain. I want …”
“To be one of us.” Isaiah finished his thought. “So shake my hand and commit to being one of us. We’ll stick with you no matter what else happens.”
Elliot stared at him. People didn’t do this for others. They were all about how much they could bleed out of you by the end of the day, especially for a boy like him. He’d seen it too many times.
“Take the offer,” Isaiah said. “Insta-families only come once in a lifetime, and this is yours.”
Still Elliot hesitated. “What if the others don’t agree, like your parents?”
“I’ve talked to my parents. They know you’re here. And Denny feels the same as me. As to Indy …” He shrugged. “That’s something you’ll have to ask her yourself.”
Elliot grew quiet and stared unblinking at Isaiah’s hand. What if he took the offer? He hadn’t thought out what he’d do once he got here, only that they’d take him in and he’d have a roof over his head for a while. But what if … what if he stayed? Here was better than some unknown location, broke and starving. If they’d really stick by him, maybe his past could be just that … in the past.
“Don’t be a fool,” Isaiah said. “Shake my hand, and from here on out, you’re as much my brother as Denny.”
Elliot stared at Isaiah’s offered fingers, knowing he’d be an idiot to refuse. At least, if he accepted, he’d have a place to live for a while. He raised his hand and clasped hold of Isaiah’s. “I hope you know what you’re getting into.”
Isaiah’s reply struck him hard. “I don’t, but I know Someone Who does.” And with that, he pointed up.
❤
An abusive past. A new beginning.
Elliot Jersey turned up on the Russells' doorstep, sick with the flu and filled with a lot of secrets. A knife fight with his dad forced him to run from home and filled him with a lot of self-doubt.
But soon, staying with them feels like a mistake. He has no right to fall in love with their daughter. A girl as great as her has no business with a boy like him.
*Other ebook retailers includes: Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple, Tolino, Vivlio, Smashwords, Gardners, Fable, Everand, Overdrive, Odilio, cloudLibrary, Hooplan, BorrowBox, Bookshop
----------
Suzanne D. Williams, Author
www.suzannedwilliams.com
www.feelgoodromance.com
0 comments