Chapter 10: Say No to Me

Eli had not meant to read it.

He had come to sit in the lamplight and not be alone.

The notebook lay open on the desk with its pages turned toward him.

The handwriting was Laurence's, small and slanted.

Laurence stood up so fast that the chair fell over.

"Don't."

Eli had already seen the first line.

Eat sitting down.

"What is this?"

"Give me that."

"It's my name." Eli's finger rested on the page. "That's my name at the top."

It was.

Sorrell, in the margin, with a date from before the first day of classes.

Laurence reached for the notebook.

Eli's arms closed around it before he could think.

He held it against his chest and turned the pages.

Coffee at six, on a tray. Do not ask if he wants it.

The coat. Say it is an order, not a gift. He will take an order.

Midnight: make him cook. He skipped dinner. Make him eat his own.

The burn. Hold it under the water until your hands stop shaking.

Do not touch his shoulder, jaw or hair unless he is sick. Wait for him.

Thunder: he will go down. Take his face. Make him look at you.

The last entries were from the past week.

Sleep till eight.

Stay in bed. Stay in bed. Stay in bed.

Let him keep his mail. Do not ask about the letter.

He will tell you when he can.

Eli's mouth had gone dry.

Each line was an order.

Each order, he saw, was a thing a person does for someone who has no one.

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