Alice avoided Peter the rest of the day, though it wasn't hard to do so. He seemed to be doing the same to her. From the look of the growing bruise on his upper arm and the torn hem of his t-shirt, he'd endured more than just abusive words from his brother.
Alice's guilt swallowed her happiness and, despite her desire to fit in, she found herself withdrawing all over again.
She waited for him after school, determined to apologize for leaving him alone, but Peter didn't show. Finally, saddened by her own cowardice, still clutching the wrinkled note he'd given her and Ben had tried to destroy, Alice considered going alone. She had no illusions about herself or her motives to make things right with Peter. She was the first to admit she needed him to come to the store with her. So she wouldn
