Richard’s lips curved into a small, almost sheepish smile. “My aunt,” he said. “She’s a model, does some big campaigns, runway stuff. She joked she’d be my prom date since my earlier attempts… weren’t exactly a success.” Shirley hesitated, then asked the question that had been weighing on her for two weeks.
“Richard… where did you go? I stopped by your house the next day. It was empty. Completely empty.” He let out a quiet breath. “I did go home. I just didn’t stay long. My parents got a call from the school saying I’d walked out, and they were furious the staff didn’t even notice.