He had arranged to get her car window replaced, and was constantly offering her food and supplies. When she’d protested that she could buy her own toilet paper, Peter had just laughed and showed her the stockpile his mother had accumulated.

“She probably buys a few dozen rolls every time she goes shopping,” he’d told her. “Like there’s suddenly going to be a shortage or something. There must be a few hundred rolls in this pile. I doubt she’ll miss half a dozen.”

And more and more, without even being aware it was happening, Tessa had begun to depend on him – both for his friendship and his guidance. After so many years of having to look out for her mother, of worrying about how they were going to pay the rent, or when Gillian was going to uproot them yet again, it was a relief to have someone to rely on at least a little. Even though she was still relegated to sleeping in her car, Tessa felt safe knowing that Peter was just a short distance away, that all she would have to do was send him a text and he’d be right over.

But there was nothing in the least bit romantic about their relationship. Peter had never attempted to kiss her or indicate that he was interested in her that way. She wondered at times if he was gay, but nothing he had ever said gave her cause to believe that. She did know that he disliked being touched, would almost cringe if she casually touched him on the arm or shoulder, though he didn’t seem to have a problem touching her in a similar manner. A few of their co-workers at Old Navy had made comments to her from time to time, asking if she and Peter were dating, and she had truthfully replied that no, they were just good friends. The evenings they spent in his room watching a movie or eating tacos certainly couldn’t be considered a date, and were no different than the times she’d done the same thing with Michelle.

He was kind to her, and Tessa hadn’t known much kindness in her life, so that automatically made her grateful to him. She told him frequently how much she appreciated everything he’d done for her, and that she wished she had someway to repay him. Peter had assured her that just being his friend was more than enough, and that he knew she would do the same if their positions were reversed.

Tessa’s life had fallen into a comfortable though somewhat unorthodox daily routine, and she had begun to think she could actually pull this off, could keep up this sort of existence for another year until she was of legal age. She and Peter had applied for summer jobs at the local Parks and Recreation department, and while the pay wasn’t great – barely over minimum wage – the money she’d earn would be added to what she had already saved in preparation for living on her own next year.

But history had a nasty way of repeating itself when one was least expecting it, and mere days before Peter’s graduation and the end of the school term – on a Wednesday, of course – the other shoe was dropped, and Tessa’s life as she knew it was shaken up yet again.

It was during her break at work when she noticed the voice mail on her cell phone. She recognized the number as Michelle’s, and frowned worriedly as she began to listen to the message. Michelle had quit her job at Forever 21 almost a month ago, and hadn’t kept in close touch, so for her to be calling out of the blue this way couldn’t possibly be good news.

“Tessa, hey, it’s Michelle. Sorry I haven’t called in awhile, life’s been a little crazy. I’m staying with Denny now, and we plan on leaving for San Diego at the end of June. But that’s not why I’m calling. I – oh, crap, no way to break it to you gently, I’m afraid. Stupid Brittany opened her big fat mouth and blabbed to your case worker when she stopped by for an unannounced visit that you aren’t living at the house any longer. And of course the woman called Mom right away, and that’s when all hell broke loose apparently. Mom’s furious at Brit because this means the support checks are going to be stopped, and your case worker is pissed at Mom for keeping her in the dark. Anyway, the bottom line is that your case worker is planning to come by your school tomorrow morning and have the principal call you in for a meeting, so I thought you should be prepared. Hey, give me a call when you get this and I’ll fill you in on the rest.”

With shaking fingers, Tessa placed the call to Michelle, though there really wasn’t a whole lot more to tell. Michelle had evidently received the information second hand, so she didn’t have all the facts, but it was more than enough to send Tessa into a panic. She was quivering all over by the time she ended the call, her phone almost slipping from her nerveless fingers.

“Hey, what’s going on?” asked Peter in concern as he walked inside the employee break room. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

She raised tear-filled eyes to him, her mouth trembling as she fought back tears. “Worse. A monster.”

Peter remained as calm and impassive as always while he listened to her recount the phone conversation with Michelle. At the end of it, he merely gave her hand a little squeeze and told her quietly, “We’ll figure something out, okay? I don’t want you to worry about it, Tessa.”

She stared at him in disbelief. “How can I not worry about it? By this time tomorrow I’m going to be living in some awful group home, Peter, with recovering drug addicts and juvies for roommates. I – I can’t live in a place like that, Peter. I just can’t. I don’t think I’d be able to stand it.”

He took hold of both her hands in his and gripped them firmly. “You won’t have to. I promise, okay? Let me think about this for a little while. By the time we head home I’ll have come up with a solution. Try not to worry about it until then, hmm?”

But it was all Tessa could think about for the next two hours, despite Peter’s admonitions. Fortunately it was a slow night at the store and nobody noticed how distracted and out of sorts she was. She fretted about what might happen to her when she met with the case worker tomorrow, worried as to where she might be living twenty four hours from now, and wondered somewhat wildly if she ought to just grab the few things she’d stored at Peter’s and drive as far and as fast as she could.

By the time their shifts were over for the evening, Tessa was a bundle of nerves and rapidly beginning to descend into real despair. Peter, on the other hand, had a look of grim determination on his face as they walked out to their cars.

“Let’s go over to Starbuck’s and I’ll tell you about the idea I’ve come up with,” he told her. “It’s not ideal, and you might not go along with it, but it’s the only solution that seems workable on such short notice.”