“You were up at all hours, talking to a boy?” he asks. I’ve never seen him at school with his students, but I imagine he’s a lot like this. “I was beginning to think that you weren’t interested in boys.”

“Um, that’s wrong.” I frown. “I like boys, Pops.”

“I didn’t say there was anything wrong with it.”

“Lydia likes boys, too, you know,” I say, bending my fingers back. “I’m not the only one who likes boys. It’s a totally normal thing.”

My tone is defensive, but I can’t help it. I don’t know how I’ll ever get to the point where I’m comfortable enough to talk about this. Sarah used to say that bi girls are just straight girls with a need for attention. I don’t want Pops to think the same about me.

“You’re right,” he says, pausing.

“Pops?” I raise a brow. He never talks about before Dad, not really. I know he doesn’t talk about his family because they’re homophobic. It makes me feel worse about the whole I might be bi thing. If Pops goes out with Dad, people know he’s queer. If Claudia goes out with Emma, people know she’s queer. If you’re bi, like Lydia, you can go out with a boyfriend and strangers will assume you’re straight. It doesn’t seem fair.

“You shouldn’t be on the phone that long.” Pops puts down his cup, startling me from my thoughts. “It’s inappropriate.”

“It wasn’t a school day,” I offer, swirling my spoon around in my coffee. “So at least there’s that.”

He looks like he’s going to say something else, but my buzzing phone interrupts him. I start, like a deer in front of a car, but I don’t move to answer it. Miles still doesn’t have a contact name in my phone, so it’s just a random number on the home screen. But judging by the look on Pops’s face, he knows what’s up. He stares at me, but I just blink.

The buzzing stops. Then a second later, starts again.

“You should probably answer that,” Pops says, sounding…Is he amused? “It’s rude to ignore people.”

My cheeks flush. Talking to Miles in front of Pops is probably the worst punishment of all time.

“It’s too early for a phone call,” I say, giving Pops a smile. “Especially not when I’m spending time with you. Everyone else can wait.”

“How kind,” he says. “But it’s almost six. You’re up at this time for school. Come on, why don’t you put it on speaker? I want to hear about the kid who has you up all night.”

“Ew, Pops.”

With a sigh, I accept the call and turn on speakerphone.