On the Edge of the Blade: Book One

Chapter Two

The rest of the school day was effective torture. Not literal torture – Winter had experienced that, and it wasn't at all comparable to school.

When the final bell finally rang, Winter was so happy he almost smiled.

Smiling at school? That was a new one.

The thought made him smile for real, and he laughed all the way out to the drop off loop, where Avy and Clyde joined him as he waited for his sister.

The car came after a few minutes of waiting, and before Avy or Clyde could protest, Winter hopped in the front seat.

"Hey," Iclyn said, her voice full of concern. That hurt more than anything, the fact that his sister was so unconfident in his social skills that she needed to be that concerned when she picked him up. "How was it?"

"Just great," Winter replied sarcastically. "How do you think it was?"

Iclyn sighed. Their car turned out of the drop-off loop and onto the main street. "Care to give more detail so I know what kind of a grumpy boy I'm dealing with?"

"I'm not grumpy!" Winter protested.

"Yes, he is," Clyde announced importantly from the backseat. "He was all brooding during lunch."

"I was not brooding," Winter informed him, weirdly offended. He wondered if he would be offended if it were one of his closer friends telling him that. "I was . . ." He trailed off, unsure how to finish that sentence.

"Sulking?" Avy suggested.

Iclyn laughed. "What were you sulking or brooding or complaining about during lunch, little bro?"

"Nothing. And don't call me that."

Iclyn laughed again as she pulled the car onto Fifth Avenue and got in the slow-moving traffic toward the Brooklyn Bridge. "Sure, little bro."

Winter sighed and leaned against the window. The nickname didn't bother him. If being perfectly honest, he kind of liked it. It seemed like proof that someone appreciated him. Winter just found it fun to tell his friends he didn't like things they did. So, when Iclyn repeated her original question, Winter grinned at her, the first sincere smile he'd given all day. "I wasn't complaining about anything. Or brooding, or sulking. I was a little annoyed about boring classes, though."

"Ugh, they were all so awful!" Avy exclaimed, giving a very popular-girl sounding groan. Winter wasn't quite sure how he knew it was popular-girl sounding, but it gave him that vibe.

"Hmm," Iclyn said, sounding unconvinced. "So tomorrow is an early release day, right? So what time am I picking you guys up?"

"We can bike to Icebreakers," Winter offered. Part of him wanted to. It would be good exercise, and it would also save him from half an hour of Iclyn trying to get him to tell him about his day. "Or we can take the subway."

"I'd prefer you didn't," Iclyn said. "Besides, you'll get to Icebreakers more quickly if I drive you."

Winter sighed. He'd tried.

"We get out at one," Clyde told Iclyn. "But Avy and I are going to the airport after school."

"Oh, that's right!" Iclyn exclaimed. She honked at an unruly driver the next lane over. "I forgot your parents are coming to visit."