I wasn't expecting him to sit down, but it made my smile grow a little further. It was pretty great, I realized, how a little bit of kindness could begin to make up for all the terrible things Peter had put me through.

It didn't bring back Charlie or Sal, it didn't make any of my scars disappear, but it made something loosen in my chest. Just a little. And it was a reminder that not all boys were going to be like Peter.

"Gross," I said and laughed, because I didn't really mean it. I smiled as I sat down, too, only a little awkwardly because of the stitches in my thigh. "You would have had a hard time on the island where I lived. All we had was deer and wolf skin. I had to wear deerskin trousers."