Chapter 4 Out For A Walk

Jordan took her siblings for a walk to help clear their minds. It had been a long week, and they all needed a break. They wandered through their quiet neighborhood, passing rows of neatly trimmed lawns and parked cars.

Benji, full of energy, kept jumping on the cracks in the sidewalk, pretending the ground was lava. And Beth? She rolled her eyes but played along, carefully stepping only on the solid pavement. Jordan just watched, half-smilling, hands stuffed into her hoodie pockets.

They stopped at the small park down the street. It wasn't much-just a couple of swings, a slide, and an old basketball hoop with a rusted rim. But it was enough.

Playful Benji sprinted toward the swings, demanding that Jordan push him higher and higher. Beth sat on the bench, scrolling through her phone, pretending not to enjoy the moment, but Jordan noticed how she looked up every now and then, soaking in the peace.

After a while, they walked over to the corner store. It had that old-school charm, with a little bell that jingled when they stepped inside. The air smelled like candy, newspapers, and something slightly dusty. Jordan let Benji pick out an ice cream-chocolate, of course. Beth grabbed a soda, and Jordan settled for a bag of chips.

They sat on the curb outside, eating in silence. The sun would soon set, painting the sky in soft pinks and oranges. For a moment, everything felt... normal. No stress, no worries-just the three of them, together.

Benji kicked a small rock, watching it bounce down the sidewalk.

"I miss Dad," he said suddenly, his voice quieter than usual.

Beth sighed, staring at the melting ice cream on her cone. "Me too."

Jordan swallowed hard. She missed him too, but saying it wouldn't change anything. Instead, she nudged Benji's shoulder. "Hey, don't I do a pretty good job filling in?"

Benji grinned. "You don't have a dad voice."

Beth smirked. "And you definitely don't have his bad jokes."

Jordan rolled her eyes. "Excuse me, my jokes are amazing."

Before Beth could argue, Jordan's phone buzzed. She glanced at the screen-Zoe calling.

She picked up. "Hey, Zoe."

"Jordan! Remember the promise?" Zoe's voice was sharp but playful.

The promise. They were supposed to check in on each other's performance at school-Jordan, Zoe, and Mary. But Mary had moved to the UK, leaving just the two of them. Their parents hadn't found out yet how they'd done, and it was time to compare.

Jordan sighed, rubbing her forehead. "Yeah, yeah, I remember. I'll stop by."

Zoe hummed. "You better. As far as the results go, if I did worse than you, I'm moving to the UK too."

Jordan laughed. "Give me thirty minutes."

She ended the call and stood up, stretching. "Alright, guys, time to take you back home."

"If it's a promise, you won't be able to go. Mom will be waiting, and you know she won't let you leave."

Jordan nodded. "I know, Beth. That's why I'm dropping you off first." She hesitated, then added, "But I'm not going in."

Beth folded her arms. "Oh, so you're just going to throw us at the door and run?"

Jordan smirked. "Exactly. And if Mom asks, you know what to tell her."

She glanced at the time-4:30 PM. "Let's get moving before Mom starts calling."

To Zoe's house she went, her stomach tightening a little. Zoe's dad was home.

She had nothing against him, but he always had this serious, no-nonsense energy that made her nervous. He was the kind of man who barely smiled, spoke in short sentences, and somehow made you feel like you were guilty of something-even when you weren't.

Jordan took a deep breath and knocked.

The door opened, and there he was-Mr. Carter. Tall, slightly graying, arms crossed like he had been expecting trouble.

"Good evening, sir," Jordan said, standing up straighter.

He gave her a nod. "Jordan." A pause. "Here to see Zoe?"

"Yes, sir."

Another pause. He didn't move, just looked at her like he was scanning her thoughts. Finally, he stepped aside. "She's in her room."

Jordan let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding. "Thanks." She stepped inside, not making a single unnecessary movement.

Walking toward Zoe's room, she heard footsteps rushing down the stairs. Zoe appeared, grinning. "You made it. Let's go."

They went straight to Zoe's room, shutting the door behind them.

Zoe grabbed the student ID numbers from her desk. "Alright. Who's going first?"

Jordan shrugged. "You."

Zoe tossed her the paper. "Go ahead. Let's see how bad it is."

Jordan scanned the results-subjects, grades, remarks. Then she looked up, smirking. "You passed."

Zoe raised an eyebrow. "For real?" She snatched the paper back and did a little fist pump. "Yes! Alright, now you."

Jordan handed over her ID number. Zoe checked her performance, eyes moving down the page. She stayed silent for a second before grinning. "You passed too."

Jordan let out a relieved sigh. "Okay, good. I didn't want to be the only failure in this room."

Zoe laughed. "Same."

For a moment, they just stared at each other, both realizing they had done better than expected.

"So... what now?" Jordan asked.

Zoe thought for a second, then jumped up. "We celebrate. Stay right there."

She disappeared for a moment and came back holding a plate of cookies and two juice boxes.

Jordan grinned. "This is your idea of a celebration?"

"Hey, don't complain. These cookies are homemade."

Jordan took one, biting into it. "Alright, I approve."

They sat on the bed, snacking, finally letting themselves relax.

"You know," Zoe said, "it's weird doing this without Mary."

Jordan nodded. "Yeah. Feels incomplete."

Zoe leaned back against her pillow. "You know what? We should call Mary."

Jordan nodded, already pulling out her phone. "Yeah. She better pick up."

She dialed Mary's number, and after a few rings, the call connected.

"Hello?" Mary's voice came through, a little breathless.

Jordan and Zoe exchanged glances before Jordan spoke. "Mary! Finally, you picked up."

Mary sighed on the other end. "I know, I know. I've been so busy."

"With what?" Zoe asked, shoving the last cookie into her mouth.

Mary hesitated. "Helping out the people I stay with. You know, my relatives-the ones giving me shelter."

Jordan frowned slightly. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah, just a lot going on. We had some guests over, so I was running around, making sure everything was in place."

Zoe smirked. "So, what you're saying is... you're the unpaid house manager now?"

Mary chuckled. "Basically."

Jordan shook her head. "That's not fair. You should be getting some time for yourself too."

Mary sighed. "It's just how it is. Anyway, why did you guys call? Something up?"

Jordan and Zoe exchanged a look before Zoe answered, "We checked our results."

"Oh?" Mary's voice perked up. "And?"

Jordan grinned. "We both passed."

Mary gasped. "No way! I knew you guys would! I told you, remember?"

Zoe rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. We were just waiting for official confirmation."

"Well, congrats!" Mary said. "I wish I was there to celebrate with you."

Jordan smiled. "We wish you were too."

Zoe nudged Jordan. "Tell her about the cookies."

"Oh yeah," Jordan said. "Zoe celebrated by feeding me homemade cookies."

Mary groaned dramatically. "You're telling me I missed cookies? Now I'm really mad."

They all laughed, the distance between them feeling a little smaller for a moment.

"Anyway," Mary said, "I should get back before they start wondering where I disappeared to. But I'm really happy for you guys. We'll talk again soon, okay?"

"Okay," Jordan said. "Take care, Mary."

"You too. Bye, guys."

The call ended, and for a second, the room was quiet.

Zoe let out a breath. "She sounds... different."

Jordan nodded. "Yeah. Like she's carrying too much."

Zoe frowned. "I don't like it."

Jordan didn't either. But what could they do? Mary was miles away, in a different country, living under someone else's roof.