“Mom has Reggie. I’m leaving for college next year.” She unbuckled her seat belt and angled her body toward him. “Dad, you need to start dating. The thought of you in this house all alone—” Her hands fisted in her lap. “I hate it.” Her concern warmed him, but—dating. The word alone made his heart clench in terror. He’d been awful at dating. Awkward and too quiet and…boring. In academic settings, he’d communicated capably. Outside of them, he’d become someone else. Old Sobersides. Mute Boy. Casper. Only he’d been the one ghosted again and again as a teenager. Sabrina had been his first
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