Page 41 of #Lovestrong

"You said your best friend was killed too?" Candice turns in her seat and moves slightly closer to Lena, reaching up to take her hand on top of the counter.

I can't look away from Lena's face.

"Camilla. I'd known her my entire life. She was sitting at a table with the guy she was dating. She was shot three times— shoulder, stomach, and the left side of her chest. They said she was gone before she even slumped over onto the bench. Cam was shot five times, all in the back. He was dead before the two of us hit the ground."

A strange silence hangs in the room for a moment. Losing friends at our age is hard enough, but I can't imagine losing Jackson or Candice to murder. To a scene like what Lena's describing. No one of any age should go through what she's been through, to be subjected to something so violent in a place where we're all supposed to feel safest.

"Lena," Candice finally says, barely above a whisper. "I know you might not be interested, but would you like to come to church with us next Sunday?"

Lena's eyebrows raise slightly as she stares at Candice, and then her eyes fill with tears. "I'd really like that."

Candice wraps Lena in a hug, and they both sit back and wipe their eyes before turning right back to their plates and shoveling more bacon in their mouths. I glance over at Jackson and he nods just enough for me to notice. We're going to get Lena through this. Not just me, but all of us.

I know it in my bones. She's going to be okay.