“Hey, mom?” Harper poked her head uncertainly into the study as she spoke.

As she’d predicted, she found her mother working at her computer. Hope normally worked from home on Thursdays, and today was no exception.

“What’s up, Pumpkin?” Hope smiled as her daughter entered the room.

Harper had to resist the urge to roll her eyes. She’d given up asking her mom to stop calling her that years ago. It was no use.

“I’m going out for a couple hours.” She said at last. “Just didn’t want you to freak and wonder where I went or something.”

“Out?” Hope asked curiously. “Where?”

“Uh, just down to the library… I’m meeting Rylie and Devin there.” Harper replied. “They’re in my group for a history project.” Technically nothing she’d told her mother was a lie, right?

Her mother furrowed her brow for a moment. “Rylie and Devin? Do I know them?”

Harper shook her head. “They’re cool though.” She assured her. “So… I’m okay to go?”

“Hmm… I don’t see why not. Especially if it’s for a project.” Hope smiled. “Want me to give you a ride?”

“No! No, it’s fine. It’s not too far to walk.” The thought of being dropped off by her mother was beyond mortifying. “Th-thanks though.” She added hurriedly.

The older woman shrugged. “Okay, if you’re sure, sweetie.” She smiled. “You’ll be back for dinner though?”

“Hmm… Depends.” Harper smirked playfully at her mother. “What are you making?”

She knew her father was working the closing shift that night, which meant her mother would be the one cooking dinner. And, unfortunately, there were very few meals Hope made that came even close to what Zayne could do.

“I was thinking spaghetti.”

Harper’s eyes lit up. “With your grandpa’s meatball recipe?”

Hope nodded. “And your Oma said something about maybe treating us to some ice cream afterwards… We’ll make it a girls’ night?”

“Alright, I’m sold.” Harper laughed brightly. There was no way she could turn down ice cream. “I’ll make sure I’m back by 7:00.”

“Have fun, Pumpkin. Text me when you get there, okay?”

She rolled her eyes, but kept her smile. “I will… Bye, mom.”

“Love you! Good luck on the project.”

————————————–

When Harper arrived at the library, Rylie and Devin were already there waiting for her. She felt a slight flurry of butterflies in her stomach at the sight of them, though she couldn’t understand why. Harper did her best to will the feeling away as she sent a quick text to her mother and drew closer.

“You made it!” Devin called happily. “We were worrying you’d bail on us.”

“Dev was afraid you’d bail.” Rylie corrected him. “But I knew you’d show up.”

“Too bad you didn’t bet money on it.” Harper teased.

“Ha! Maybe next time.” Rylie flashed her a smile, then glanced over at Devin for a moment. “So now that the gang’s all here… Where to?”

Devin shrugged his broad shoulders. “How the hell should I know?”

“Pfft… Fucking useless.” She laughed, punching his arm playfully.

Harper could not help but watch in awe for a few moments at how comfortable the two of them were together. It had been a long time since she’d felt that close with anyone. The thought made her strangely sad… and jealous too.

“So… I’ve gotta ask.” She began uncertainly, finally breaking the silence. “If we aren’t gonna work on the project, why even meet at the library in the first place? Like, of all places, you guys had to pick here?” Harper let out small chuckle.

Devin nodded. “Duh. Of course we did.”

“Um… Care to explain why?”

“Alright, let me ask you something…” He replied slowly. “Where did you tell your parents you were going?”

“The library.” Harper replied with a shrug.

“And who did you say you were going with?” Rylie chimed in, smiling.

Harper suddenly had a feeling she knew where this was going. “My partners for the history project…”

“So are they gonna be freaking out and worrying and wondering what you’re up to?” Rylie beamed at her.

“Nope.” Harper almost laughed at the absurd genius of it all. “And I didn’t technically lie either…”

“Exactly!” Devin chuckled heartily. “Perfect, right?”

The girl shook her head in amazement. “More like genius.”

Rylie took a little bow. “At last, someone understands my true genius!” She cried in a silly, over-dramatic voice.

Harper giggled, only now realizing that they’d already left the library behind them. She’d been so caught up in their conversation that she hardly noticed that they’d begun wandering down the street.

“If only your parents understood.” Devin turned toward his friend. “Maybe they’d finally lay off…”

“God, I wish!”

Harper’s eyes widened slightly. “Your parents too?” She asked, her surprise apparent on her face. She had been secretly wondering how Rylie and Devin had ended up in such an academic program. Maybe it was for the same reason she had.

“Yup, unfortunately.” Rylie sighed. “And Devin’s too.”

He nodded. “I’ve always scored really high on all those stupid tests they give us.” He admitted. “I keep trying to tell my parents that knowing shit and liking school are two totally different things. But thy’re convinced I’m ‘hiding my true potential'”. Devin rolled his eyes. “They’ve been trying to shove uni down my throat since I was like, twelve.”

Rylie patted his shoulder sympathetically for a moment. “And my older sister’s some kind of fucking prodigy.” She explained, turning her attention back to Harper. “So my parents are convinced they can turn me into one too. Ugh. They’re so goddamn annoying…” She shook her head. “Your parents just as bad?”

“Definitely.” Harper nodded. “And they’re total hypocrites too! Neither of them ever went to uni.. And my Oma’s told me my Papa hated school.” She paused for a moment. It felt a bit strange to be opening up to two people she barely even knew… But they were just so easy to talk to. It was nice finally being able to share her frustrations with someone who could relate. “I guess they just want me to do better than they did or something? I dunno.” She shrugged. “They’re always pushing me to do everything. I hate it.”

“Welcome to the club.” Rylie laughed softly. “Sorry you gotta put up with their shit though. I had no idea… I guess I never realized you were stuck in the same boat as us.”

“Me neither.” Devin agreed. “No offense or anything, but you’re kinda hard to read. I mean, I guess it kinda took a while to figure out what your deal is.”

She rolled her eyes. “Let me guess, I was basically just the poor deaf girl, huh?”

Devin shook his head. “Nope. Your family’s loaded and you’ve got a hearing aid.”

“So you’re the rich, half-deaf girl.” Rylie gave her a small wink as she finished her friend’s thought.

Harper could could not help but laugh. She supposed, coming from someone else, it might have sounded offensive. But not from them. Instead, she felt almost giddy to be part of their playful teasing.

“So… what’s that like, by the way?” Devin asked as Harper’s laughter finally began to die away. “I was always kinda curious.”

“What’s what like?”

“Not being able to hear right.” He explained. “I mean… you seem to be doing okay right now?”

“Wow.” Rylie rolled her eyes at him. “That’s not rude at all.” Her voice dripped with sarcasm. She paused for a moment before turning back toward Harper. “But, uh… I’ve… kinda been wondering too.” She admitted almost guiltily.

Once again, Harper found herself laughing. And, once again, she was not offended by their questions. In fact, she appreciated them. She could not remember anyone ever actually asking what her hearing loss was like. They always just assumed.

“It’s fine, I don’t mind talking about it.” She replied at last. “And you’re right, I am fine right now. Well, mostly fine… As long as there isn’t a lot of background noise I’m usually okay. Being able to see the person’s face helps too.”

“So can you like, read lips or something?” Rylie asked curiously.

Harper shrugged. “Kind of? I do it a little, I guess. But I’m not very good at it. Mostly it’s just easier to focus if I can see the person.”

Devin smiled slightly. “Cool. Doesn’t sound like it’s so bad then.”

“It’s not, most of the time… And I guess it’s kinda nice to be able to turn my ears off when I don’t wanna pay attention.” She smirked playfully at the pair of them.

A bright burst of laughter passed Rylie’s lips. “Where can I get one of those off switches?” She asked through her giggles. “Sign me up!’

Harper beamed at the pair of them as they continued on down the street. They had no clear direction in mind — they just spent the next two hours wandering around downtown, laughing together and sharing stories. It was amazing how familiar and at-ease it felt to be with them.

For so long, she’d watched Rylie and Devin from afar, torn between admiration and fear. But not anymore.

Instead, she felt… Well, Harper couldn’t quite think of the right word for it.

It made her think back to what she’d written in her journal, about drifting alone out at sea. She was still drifting along in her little rowboat, of course. She still had no idea where she was going or what she was doing… And maybe she never would.

But for the first time ever, it felt like she wasn’t drifting alone.