“Gum is serious,” Jordan reminded him, snatching the wrapper and opening it eagerly.
Three years later, after Jordan’s twelfth birthday party, Casey stayed the night. They were in junior high now, their elementary schools combined into one building, and a lucky year had the boys in at least one class together. They rode different buses, but the moment they arrived at school, they met at the same spot every morning, under a large oak tree outside the gym doors, and waited for the first bell to ring. They’d already heard in high school they could even choose some of their own classes, and they knew whatever was offered, they wanted to take the same ones.
Though his mother often said childhood friendships came and went, Jordan felt his relationship with Casey changing in a way he couldn’t q
