Four days later, Kira was just finishing the day around three o’clock when she thought, again, about the fact she hadn’t seen B.C. It’d become his kind of joke to come to all her classes. He said he had to get ‘special permission’ to add all of her classes to his schedule. It was more than a bit unnerving, but also, she had to admit she liked it.

Most of the time he’d stay and flirt after. Too bad the seventies guy, Gary, also liked to stay and flirt. She could tell it was grinding on B.C., which made it kind of funny.

B.C. had become such a meaningful, fun, flirtatious part of her days. In fact, it had actually surprised her that Doctor Schneider had asked her to start doing a night meditation class, too. She’d agreed, of course, because it paid another forty bucks an hour.

She checked out at the front desk with Clark and Tricia when Clark did his patented hit-on that she’d also grown accustomed to.

“What are you doing tonight, Kira?” He looked her up and down.

She was tired of him acting like he could just stare at her all the time. She pulled her shrug tight around her shoulders.

Tricia smiled at her, but rolled her eyes at Clark. "We’re all going out, meeting at the dance club your cousin works at. Want to meet us?"

She didn’t. “Uh, can’t.” She couldn’t. It was exhausting going through all Nana’s records and she was still trying to figure out the system and the recipes and learn how to fill all the orders Doctor Schneider had been asking for.

Clark’s gaze swept her from top to bottom. He was one of those guys who looked clean cut, but he always gave her a weird vibe. “Are you sure?”

She tried not to look creeped out. “I better go.”

That’s when she heard the shouting before she saw him.

“You selfish, ungrateful, brat!” There was a woman stalking down the hall from Dr. Schneider’s office.

B.C. was there, following her, his jaw tight, and his eyes bloodshot. If she didn’t know better, she’d think he’d been crying. “Don’t do this, Mom. Do. Not. Walk. Out.”

She clicked down the hall in her stilettos and tight, gold pants. Kira was shocked to notice extremely long fingernails and very eighties hair-band hair, like it had been Aqua-Netted. She had a fierce scowl and looked like she would rip someone’s head off.

“Mom.” B.C. caught up to her.

She spun on him. “How dare you say that to anyone.”

Dr. Schneider appeared. “Mrs. Knight, please. Come back to my office and we can sort this out.”

“I will not!” she shouted. She shook her head and looked exasperated at B.C.

Kira saw B.C’s anger turn into a cool, calm face.

He’d slipped into a mask so easily. It was impressive, really. It also made her feel bad for him.

He narrowed his eyes at his mother and took a step back, putting up his hands. “Fine, Mom, do whatever you want."

She huffed and looked around at everyone in the hall. "What are you all looking at?” She growled, looking like a cat cornered in an alley. “Haven’t you seen a dysfunctional son before?” Her eyes stopped on Kira and flashed even more anger. She pointed at her. “You…you’re the one he met the night before he checked in here.”

B.C. was instantly next to his mother, taking her forearm and pulling her back. “Mom, stop.”

She kept her angry glare on Kira. “Be careful, my pretty. He told me about how you talked beneath the stars.”

“Mother!” B.C. looked angry.

She let out a witchy laugh and turned back to him. “I bet you were stoned, drunk, and out of your head, like you always are.” She let out another laugh. Her gaze turned back to Kira, she glared at her. “I won’t even tell you what he said about you.”

Kira was speechless.

For a brief second, B.C.’s eyes flashed to hers. His mask actually slipped. She saw…neediness, desperation … pain. The guy from the first night, the one who had told her about his friend Troy when they were sitting on the boulder “I” on top of the Dixie rocks, looking out over the town. He reached for his mother, putting a hand on her shoulder. “Please stop.”

His mother yanked away and rushed to the doors yelling back to him. “Just get your butt out of here and get the bills paid!”

In the aftermath everyone was quiet.

Kira’s heart was racing and she couldn’t believe how horrible it had been to see that. Kira thought about the fact Litsea was currently diffusing in the background. Nana always said Litsea would help one rise above the fear of rejection and being misunderstood, B.C. needed that right now.

Her mind flitted back to his mother. What had he told her?

B.C. looked at her, then a ticked-off looked washed over his face and she saw his hands clench into fists.

She wanted to reach out to him, to soothe him somehow.

“B.C.” Dr. Schneider was next to him, putting his hand on his shoulder. “Let’s go back to my office.”

They disappeared down the hall toward the doctor’s office.

Kira walked out, thinking about B.C. It might be stupid or completely insane, especially since he was a movie star in a drug rehab facility. Not to mention the fact she was in the middle of a semi breakdown in her own life, and she’d probably lose her job over it, but…she had to know if he was okay. To do that, she’d have to get closer to him.

Her mind flashed to Spence and she thought about the fact she was missing him less and thinking about B.C. more and more. It seemed her crazy life was only getting worse by the hour and she wasn’t sure how she was going to fix any of it.