I knelt down to help. The word “EVICTION” stared back at me in large letters. Below, in neat handwriting: “What we take away first in the event of eviction.”
“Lizie…” My voice cracked. “What is this?”
He froze, his lips pressed together, his fingers twisting the hood of his sweatshirt.
Sam gasped. “Lizie, you didn’t say it was that serious!”
Dan came in. “What’s going on?” He saw the papers.
I held up the envelope. “Lizie, honey… are you and your dad losing the house?”
He stared at the floor, clutching his bag. “My dad told me not to tell anyone. He said it’s nobody’s business.”
“Honey, it’s not true,” I said softly. “We care. But we can’t help you if we don’t know what’s going on.”
He shook his head, tears in his eyes. “He says people will look at us differently. Like we’re begging.”
Dan crouched down beside us. “Isn’t there anywhere else you can go? An aunt or a friend?”
She shook her head harder. “We tried… but there wasn’t room.”
