Sometimes you just have to pack a suitcase and walk out the door

Marly knows her older sister, Kit, is tall, beautiful, and outspoken—everything Marly isn’t. But does everyone have to remind her of it all the time? Since her parents’ divorce, her mom hasn’t had a single nice thing to say—and even if she did, she’s always working. So Marly packs her bags and catches the bus to stay with her dad. She knows he’ll want her, and hopefully his new wife will too.

Ed and Sally are surprised to find Marly on their doorstep but excited to take her in and become a family. They cook together and laugh together, and no one ever shouts at anyone else, a big difference from Marly’s life with her mom.

Marly has kept quiet up until now, which has given her a reputation for being well behaved. But once she starts getting used to being treated like an actual person, she begins talking about what’s important to her. She may not be able to stop—and she may not want to.