Jamie chose that moment to almost fall down the stairs. Mae took his whole weight and grabbed the banister. Seb reached out but Jamie shied away, and Nick gave Jamie a push in the chest that was clearly intended to right him, but that nearly had him toppling over backward. Balance eventually restored to them all, Jamie gave Nick an approving look. "You are my friend," he told him. "Yeah, I am," said Nick. "But these stairs," Jamie said sadly. "They are not my friends.
Sarah Rees BrennanOh no, Nick" Jaime said in tones of supremely unconvincing shock, "how could you? When my back was turned for one momement. And my food was so delicious.
Sarah Rees BrennanRomance is something people make fun of others for caring about, and yet itโs something thatโs very natural to care aboutโitโs a loving connection between people, like family and friendships: itโs a significant emotional choice people make.
Sarah Rees BrennanI donโt know what I saw. It couldโve been a hallucination. You get those from sniffing glue.โ โYouโve never sniffed glue!โ โIโve smelled glue,โ Jamie said after a pause. โIn art class.
Sarah Rees BrennanI'll do a deal with you McFarlane," he said. "You can exist. And you can even have coffee. But if you raise your voice or make any sudden movements, I shall die. And that'll show you." Seb shrugged in return, hiding how pleased he was pretty badly. "Fair enough.
Sarah Rees BrennanIt was all right. Nick thought about this and decided that what Alan said was true. He'd never been helpless before, not since he could remember, but now he was and everything was all right. He did not have to speak, he was not able to move, all he could do was lie there and have his brother hold him, hunched over and shielding him from the world.
Sarah Rees Brennan