Gunner didn’t comment at how weird that was. His eyes didn’t fill with tears like Mom’s had when I accidentally let something slip. He also didn’t press me about how it made me feel like Dr. Marshall would have. Gunner just nodded like it was perfectly normal.
We spent an hour together, stumbling through two games of checkers, which I lost horrifically, and a conversation that ran into multiple stumbling blocks. Gunner gave me a crash course on music by playing songs he had stored on his phone. I scooted closer, amazed at the number of songs the phone held. If I had one I would never need a cassette player ever again.
We were just starting our third game of checkers when Mom swept into the room looking stressed out and panicked.
“Mia,” she gasped, pulling me in tightly for a hug. “You weren’t in your room.” Her voice struggled coming out of her throat.
“Uh, is that not okay?” I asked, bracing myself for a punishment. I kept my eyes averted from Gunner. Whatever was about to happen, I wished he weren’t around to hear it.
Mom sniffled, pulling back from our hug. “Of course you can leave your room,” she said, flashing me a watery smile. “I was just worried when I didn’t find you there, that’s all.”
Gunner sat in his chair, looking expectantly in the direction of Mom’s voice. I blushed again, forgetting that introductions were socially expected.
“Mom, this is my friend, Gunner. Gunner, this is Mom,” I said, feeling awkward that I had goofed the introduction by not using her name.
“Pleasure,” Gunner answered. “Don’t worry, by the way. The worst thing that happened here was that your daughter got her butt kicked at checkers. Oh, and we discovered she’s addicted to Reese’s cups,” he continued, smiling.
I could see it on Mom’s face the instant she realized Gunner was blind. I recognized the look. It was the same pitiful expression I’d received countless times myself in the last few days. I thought about how much it must have sucked for him to put up with it constantly until I reminded myself he couldn’t see. He had the perfect shield.
If Gunner could sense how Mom was looking at him he gave no indication. I envied his ease. Even without sight he didn’t have an ounce of my social awkwardness. I could only hope that one day I would be able to fit in.
“Yes, well, we really need to get going,” Mom answered, nodding toward the door like we were trying to keep my exit a secret from the poor blind kid. “You have an appointment with the nutritionist in fifteen minutes.”
I reluctantly rose to my feet. “See you later, I guess,” I said to Gunner. I wasn’t sure if I should reach out to shake his hand.
“Definitely. We’ll pick up the game another time,” Gunner told me, flashing another one of his wide grins. “Hey, tell the nutritionist the only thing you want to eat is peanut butter cups. It’ll be funny to mess with her.”
The corners of my mouth rose into a smile and a warm feeling spread throughout my chest. It took me a moment to recognize the foreign emotion. I was happy. It wasn’t the short bouts of pleasure I would get when I knew I had done something to please Judy. This was legitimate happiness. Gunner genuinely seemed to like me. For a small slice of time he made me forget that I was a circus sideshow attraction.
“Did you eat breakfast?” Mom asked, tucking my arm through hers as we strolled down the hall.
I nodded, feeling the ease of a few minutes prior leaking away. Things were harder with my family. Every time I opened my mouth I felt like I was spouting something that would make one of them flinch or clench their fists in anger. It was easier to keep my mouth closed.
“I talked to your doctors this morning and they all came to the agreement that you can be released next week,” Mom chattered on. “Your weight is still an issue, but our meeting with the nutritionist should get us headed in the right direction. The rest of your injuries are healing as well and soon all this will be a distant memory,” she added in a voice that sounded forcefully cheerful. I caught her glancing at my neck briefly as she steered me into my room.
My fingers moved to my neck. I knew I wouldn’t feel the bruises, but the faint yellow discoloration was a reminder of what had happened. The marks were a flashing sign of Judy’s anger and one of the reasons I couldn’t look in the mirror. They were the first thing everyone seemed to look at upon meeting me, but painted a picture they didn’t understand. Everyone assumed Judy’s attack on me was unprovoked, but they had no idea about the part I had played in it. Dr. Marshall kept insisting I was the victim. I wondered what she would say if she knew the truth. Would she still think I was the victim if she knew all the times I’d been a bad girl?
True to his promise, Gunner came to my room after my family left later that evening. He was carrying the checkers game in one hand and his walking stick in the other. “Up for another game?” he asked, standing in my doorway.
“Yes,” I answered happily. His timing was impeccable. My visit with my family had been trying and left me on edge.
Gunner made his way effortlessly to my bed. He was able to navigate my room like it was his own. I was tempted to ask him how long he’d been blind, but felt it would be rude. I had already alienated my share of people this evening. There was no reason to push my luck.
“How’d your appointment with the nutritionist go? Did you tell her about the peanut butter cups?” he asked, climbing up on the foot of my bed and folding his walking stick.
I folded my legs to give him room and pulled the wheeled table between us for the checkerboard. “It was fine, except that the joke didn’t go as planned. Everyone walks around on eggshells so much with me that when I told her all I wanted to eat was peanut butter cups she didn’t know what to say. It’s like no one wants to take the chance of upsetting me. When I told her I was kidding, she didn’t laugh. She weighed me and then gave my mom a high-calorie diet for me to follow.”
He chuckled, opening the checkers box. “You could definitely use that to your advantage.”
“Really?” I asked, setting up my pieces.
“Oh yeah. Tell your mom you want a pony or something crazy like that.”
We laughed together. I loved how well Gunner and I were getting along. I had been so afraid that I would never be able to make friends.
“And as far as the high-calorie diet, you’re seriously lucky there. Every girl I’ve ever known complains about their waistlines. I once dated a girl who literally lived off cele
ry and five cheese cubes a day. I once offered her a single bite of my cheeseburger and you would have thought I pushed her into a vat of chocolate. Needless to say, we weren’t right for each other.”