Peter didn’t know how to finish that sentence. Then he got irritated at being made to feel worse than he already had.

“It’s OK,” said Teddy. “You don’t have to think of something nice to say.”

“But why would you go up there for me?”

“Because it won’t hurt me.”

“I wouldn’t get hurt,” said Peter. “Why does everyone always think I’ll get hurt?”

“I only meant that going up there won’t hurt my heart. It might hurt yours.”

Peter clenched his jaw and said nothing.

“I’m here for you,” said Teddy.

“Cooper’s here for me. And my friend Becky too. It’s just that they’re—”

“It’s just if you needed a friend.”

“I’ve got friends.”

“Oh, I know.”

“And Cooper’s more than my friend.”

“I know that too.”

“He’s my boyfriend.”

“Yes. I know.”

Peter nodded. “Good.”

Peter kicked the base of the tree with the heel of his boot and started to make his way back through the woods in search of the road.

“Haven’t you looked forward to being here for so long?” said Teddy calling back. “People like you and me have longed to be part of a world where we know we’ll make more sense. But now all everyone can talk about is what Cooper knows and what he might do and why the Returnees have started to fall into that trance, and it sometimes feels like they’ve forgotten all about us. Sometimes it doesn’t even feel like it’s our turn at all.”

Peter stopped. He wasn’t sure about anything any more. He tugged a frosted pine cone from its branch, crunching it inside his fist until the brittle scales bit. But the truth was, it did feel that way. He didn’t know if he liked Teddy. What was taking place here was hardly friendship. Maybe it was nothing more than an understanding. But it felt good to be understood. And it felt good to be wanted. Peter turned back and held Teddy’s gaze. Whether he liked it or not, Teddy had come out here looking for him when all Cooper had done was head into the woods to escape.

Peter offered a smile. “Pedicure.”

“What?”

“The name of your nail spa. Teddy-Cure. It’s a play on words for pedicure.”

Teddy beamed like his whole life had been made and Peter drew that warmth right in, feeling better for gifting him with it.

“I don’t think some of the people Cooper’s spending time with are even from here,” said Teddy.

“What do you mean?”

“They’re not from town.”

Peter sighed. The only good thing that could possibly come out of knowing that would be if this whole mess had something to do with them instead of Cooper.

“My Dad says Cooper’s mixed up in something called Timberdark,” said Teddy after a while.