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losing Nora, the news about Duke, and then the break with him, it could leave you feeling . . . upset. Now, I get how it might seem like everything is crashing in on you. No one would want you to do anything to yourself.”
    My mouth fell open. “You think I’d kill myself over Colton?” Did people really think he was so great that without him I’d fall apart? We weren’t even officially broken up, unless Colton had forgotten to mention that part to me.
    “No, I’m not saying that. I meant more because of everything happening at once, you might be overwhelmed. Sometimes when things are going bad, people make bad decisions.” He shook his head sadly. He was still waiting for me to deny it.
    “I’m not thinking about killing myself.” I tried to ignore the fact that he was implying that my life was so pathetic thatit might seem reasonable to me to end it. “I’m fine. I told my parents I was going to be okay. I got upset at the funeral, but I’m doing better now.”
    “Your parents are worried about you, huh?” He gave a chuffing sound. “Parents can drive you nuts sometimes.”
    Great. Now we were buddies in this together. Then I saw Brody. He was standing by the closed door to the office. There was a pane of glass, about a foot wide, that ran alongside the door. Brody pressed his face to the glass when he recognized me.
    “My parents have been great,” I said, trying to ignore Brody. I could imagine what Nora would do if she was here. She’d start telling Bradshaw stories, things about how she was a cutter or was being bullied for being gay. Anything to get him all riled up and excited. She’d string him along just for her own amusement.
    “Well, that’s good. You need to know that you’re going to feel many things over the next bit. Lots of ups and downs.” He waved his hand like it was a roller coaster.
    I glanced over. Brody puckered up his mouth, doing a perfect Fishman impression. I pressed my mouth together to keep from laughing.
    “Avery?”
    My head spun around. Bradshaw was looking at me, his guppy lips pooching in and out. Uh-oh. He must have said something that required an answer. “Sorry,” I mumbled. “I was just thinking about how lucky I am that you’re so willing to listen. It’s hard to find an adult who isn’t judgmental.”
    A person with an ounce of insight would have realized that I was laying it on thick, but Bradshaw wasn’t known for his keen ability to smell sarcasm. He actually believed that the students all loved him. He and Coach Kerr should date. I stood up to leave and he came around his desk. There was a moment when I thought he was going to break the strict no-hugging rule, but then he settled for one of his bracing slaps on the back. He slapped my back so hard I thought my spine was going to fly out of my mouth.
    “Now, my door is always open. Remember what I said.”
    “It’s okay to be upset,” I said as I opened his door.
    “And to expect the ups and downs.” He gave my back another whack. I was going to need a chiropractor to realign my spine when this meeting was over.
    “I sure will.”
    Brody leaned against the wall in the hallway outside the office. I could feel the hum of excitement in Bradshaw’s voice when he spotted him. He likely dreamed of students seeking him out versus being forced to make an appointment.
    “Brody! Good to see you.” He held out a closed hand so they could fist-bump. This was Bradshaw’s way of keeping it real. Brody paused for a moment and I thought he might leave him hanging there, but in the end he halfheartedly met Bradshaw’s fist with his own.
    “You sent me a note saying I was supposed to see you,” Brody said.
    Bradshaw suddenly clapped his hands together, making the both of us jump. “I just had a brilliant idea!”
    Neither Brody nor I said anything, but I had the feeling he was as skeptical about this brilliant idea as I was.
    “Brody, I brought you down so we could talk about your senior project,