Jude

He’d never made another human this happy.

Well, maybe Spider. For two minutes.

Not that Spider was fully human.

They were in Gladys’s backyard, keeping as quiet as they could so they wouldn’t wake her parents. Gladys brought out some water. A bunch of cheese sticks, too. Pookie gobbled them so fast Jude was scared she’d choke. All the while Gladys was telling her how amazing she was, how astonishing and brilliant and extraordinary. The words kept falling, like stars. He imagined them making sparkly piles all around them.

Through the branches of the sycamore, streaks of yellow light.

He borrowed her phone to text his mother that he’d gotten up early to go see Gladys. It was a lame excuse but he prayed she’d swallow it, considering how Ms. Suza was on her good side.

Pookie rested her snout on his knee. He’d thought the massive happiness he’d felt before was a one-time-only deal, but it kept coming back.

They’d found each other. Him and Pookie.

Gladys smiled at the two of them. She was wearing a T-shirt that came down to her knees and her hair stuck out like a mad scientist’s. Jude looked at her little hands and more stars fell. He wanted to hold one. Her hand, not a star.