His words reminded me so strongly of Marco’s on the night he was killed that I instantly threw my arms around Nico, clinging to him tightly.

He huffed out a laugh, patting my back gently. “Dang, Sof, you’re strong for a girl.”

“Don’t ever leave me, Nico.” I whispered the words into his chest, afraid to let go.

His arms tightened around me. “I’m not going anywhere, I promise.” The humor was gone from his voice, and I knew that he understood how important this was to me.

When I pulled back, I gave him a shaky smile, then darted inside without a goodbye. There was no reason for goodbye when we would see each other again. Summer wasn’t as terrible as I had expected, but I still counted down the days until school started again. On the first day back, I walked anxiously out to the playground. To my amazement, I found Nico already planted on one of the swings, waiting with a wide grin plastered across his face.

“Hey Ladybug Girl, wanna swing?”

And that was all it took. We fell into step as if there’d been no disruption. Each school year, we found every chance we could to see each other, and no matter how much or how little we were together over the summer, we picked up in September as if we hadn’t been apart at all.

When I arrived for the first day of junior high, I could tell something was different. Nico was waiting for me at my newly assigned locker. I wasn’t even sure how he’d known where it was, but there he stood, leaning against the wall of metal with his arms crossed smugly over his chest.

He’d grown over the summer, even more than he usually did. His T-shirt was snug around his arms, and I had to look up at him more than I ever had before. Something about seeing him there waiting for me made my belly feel weird. Instead of running into his arms like I had every other year, I gave him a shy smile. I’d seen him a few times over the summer, but my dad no longer allowed him over for playdates like he had in the past.

“Hey, Ladybug. Drop your books, and I’ll walk you to class,” he offered confidently. He took my backpack from me as I worked the combination on my locker, which I had practiced endlessly on back-to-school night.

“You don’t have to. I brought my schedule and know where my classes are,” I offered absently as I clicked open the door.

“Don’t be silly. I want to—that’s what guys do for their girlfriends.”

I almost dropped my new math book on my foot when his words registered. Girlfriend? Was I Nico’s girlfriend? I was a girl, and we were friends … was that all it took? I’d seen my older sisters discuss boys and even caught Maria kissing one once, but I hadn’t even thought about any boys that way.