Chapter 20

He had never told them how he felt about anything, good or bad. It was way overdue.

“What’s wrong?” Ned asked around a slurp of soda.

“Nothing!” Peter snapped.

His father came in right then, terrible timing. “What’s wrong with you?” He asked.

“Nothing! Nothing at all that a puppy and some cookies wouldn’t have cured, or prevented! You’re taking my son away from me with all this happy clappy stuff! A puppy! How can he leave a puppy behind and move to his real home, with his real father—that’s me if you haven’t noticed—in a week when I, and he, we, go home?”

Ned stopped chewing, then started again, but slowly. His eyes switched from easy-going, peace-making Peter, to Peter’s father. He’d have never dared speak to his father like that. His old man would have killed him good. He felt a bit of his old fear rising in his chest, just watching, and hearing the words. He stopped eating and almost forgot to swallow. He felt guilty all of a sudden and wasn’t sure why.