Page 16 of The Incredible Ordinary

I nod.

“The kid doesn’t have a reputation for going around and regularly beating up his classmates?” Wren asks.

I shake my head. “I don’t think so. Anyway, the principal wanted to suspend them both because neither was willing to explain what happened.”

Sutton makes a face. “Seriously?”

I nod. “That was my reaction, too, so now we’re doing forced proximity instead. Rory’s going to join the soccer team, and they’ll learn to cooperate.”

Wren and Sutton exchange glances, and they both grin.

“What?” I ask, looking between the two of them.

“Nothing. Nothing at all.” Wren’s grin widens. “Aww. Jordan has a project.”

I raise my brows at him and look between him, Sutton, and my father. “What does that mean?”

Wren holds his hands up placatingly. “Nothing. Nothing.”

I’m willing to let it go.

“It’s just nice to see you meddling in people’s lives again,” Wren says. “It’s been a while.”

They all snicker.

“I don’t meddle,” I say indignantly.

“That’s true,” Sutton says, looking at Wren. “He doesn’t meddle. He just knows the way things should be and nudges others in the right direction, too.”

I glare at him. “Okay. For all intents and purposes, you’re new. Let’s just keep that in mind, yeah?”

He grins at me. “It was a compliment. You’re good at it.”

I roll my eyes. “Sure.” I push my chair away from the table and get up. “I’m going to take a long, hot shower and then maybe a long nap before I go to bed.”

I start to head toward the stairs when Dad’s voice stops me.

“Did you talk to Kira?”

My face falls, but I make sure to arrange my features into a pleasant smile before I turn around. “Yeah. Yeah. All’s good.”

Dad’s face is blank. That’s not unusual for him, but in reality, it’s the eyes that show the emotions, and right now he’s calling bullshit with them. He’s not going to push, though. That’s not what he does.

“Night,” I tell them and head toward the stairs.

I poke my head into Theo’s room on my way to my own. He’s lying in bed, listening to music from the speaker on his desk, eyes trained on the ceiling, a frown marring his usual sunny expression.

I watch him for a bit before I knock on the doorframe. He glances at me and then scootches toward the wall, making room for me on the bed. I go and lie down next to him, leaning my temple against his.

We’re both silent.

“I like soccer,” Theo eventually mutters.

“I know.”

“Well, then, couldn’t you have suggested anything else for our punishment?” The frown deepens.

I sigh. “Like what?”