Oh. That’s right. I’d forgotten about the party.
Angie snorted as she slung her purse over her shoulder, along with her book bag. “What? Did you forget?”
I had. “No.”
She stared at me with narrowed eyes. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
Then her hand went to her hip. My eyes widened. I knew what that meant.
“Alex.” Her voice dropped to the no-nonsense tone. “What aren’t you telling me?”
“I forgot about Mike. Really.” I scratched the back of my head. “But I thought it was Carl, his brother.”
“Oh, yeah.” The hand fell away.
Thank god.
And we were walking again, towards the parking lot. “So, who are you thinking?”
“For what?”
“For prom.” Angie threw her hands up. “I swear that I’m having a conversation with myself here. Are you here? Are you actually Alex? Or did we leave you somewhere I don’t remember?”
“Yeah, Las Vegas,” I muttered before I realized what I said. Then my hand clamped over my mouth and I stopped in my tracks. I had not said that. I really hadn’t.
But Angie grew quiet and looked away.
I had said it.
When she turned back, I wasn’t expecting the tremor in her voice as she rasped out, “I’m sorry, okay? I thought it was for the best if you and he stopped doing whatever it was that you were doing. I didn’t expect for you to be like a zombie again.”
A baseball formed in my throat and I swallowed it away. It was painful as it slipped down, but I mustered up a tentative smile. “It’s okay, Ang. I was going to end it with him anyway. I just did it ten hours earlier than I had planned. That’s it.”
“Really?”
I touched her hand and she held onto it tightly. “Really.”
She let out a deep breath of air. “Thank god. You don’t know how guilty I’ve felt since that trip, not to mention Marissa.” She sneered as we went past the name-we-rarely-used’s locker. And she was there. She straightened with a book in hand and glared back, but her eyes flickered as they rested on me for a second. Sarah Shastaine cleared her throat behind her and the name-we-rarely-used turned her back to us.
That was the most interaction we’d had with her since Thanksgiving break.
“Ugh,” Angie growled. “She drives me crazy.”
“Yeah, that happens when people suddenly drop out of your life with no explanation.” There was heat to my words and I was surprised at myself. Where had that come from?
“What’d you say?”
“Nothing.”
“Oh. Okay. Well…” We approached the parking lot now and she paused by the door. “If no one’s asked you, then I think you should ask someone. What about Eric?”
My stomach dropped. “Like hell.” He already had chewed me out once. I wasn’t giving him another reason to do it again. Eric and I were better left forgotten, like everything else in my life.
“Okay.” She grinned. “But he asked Justin about you at baseball practice. He wanted to know if you were still with Jesse.”
“Really?”
She nodded and then pushed through the door. The sun was blinding, but the air immediately rushed at us. The air conditioning inside was cool, but I warmed up as soon as we took another step outside. “So I think you should go to his party with us tonight. Talk to him there.”
“Talk to Eric?”
“Yeah. He and Brianna broke up. Can you believe he dated that cheerleader?” She snorted. “Although, I think he did it to piss off Marissa since they’re on the same squad together.”
“Good,” I murmured. I meant it.
“Yeah…” Angie’s eyes had taken on a thoughtful look to them. She was biting her lip.
I readied myself. She had something on her mind and she was going to say it. I knew the signs like the back of my hand by now.
“So.”
Here we go.
“What happened to your parents, Alex?”
Dread filled me, but I forced my tone to be casual. “What do you mean?”
“I mean…” She looked around and inched closer. Her voice dropped low. “The counselor called me into her office today. She said she’d been trying to reach your parents, but she can never get a hold of them.”
“What’d you say?”
“Nothing. I mean, I don’t know anything. I know they went on that trip, but to be honest, I haven’t seen them since. That’s weird, Alex. Really, really weird. Are your parents around? Please tell me they’re around.”
“My dad travels for his job. You know that.”
“Yeah, but he wasn’t gone all the time. He was gone some of the time and your mom was always around. How is your mom? No one knows about what happened to her. I only knew because my cousin told me and it was her friend who mentioned it to her. She knew I was close with you, but please tell me that I’m exaggerating. I come over twice a week and you’re always alone.”
I jerked a stiff shoulder up. What lie would sound normal here? And then I was disgusted at myself. “Just leave it alone, Ang. Okay? I don’t want to talk about my parents right now.”
“But—”
“I mean it,” I interrupted her. I shouldn’t have to cover for my parents or lie that they hadn’t ditched me. That wasn’t my lie to tell, that was theirs and I had some pride not to cover for them. So what if they abandoned me? It was for the best. It had to be for the best.
“Okay.” She held her hands up in surrender. “I won’t bring ‘em up again. Promise.”
“Good.” That’s what I wanted, but why didn’t I feel good about it?
“You work tonight, right?”
I nodded.
“When do you get done?”
“I close with Ben at 9:00 tonight.”
She chewed at her lip. She was thinking again.
I sighed, “What is it?”
“I’ll come over at 9:30? Will you be ready by then?”
“What about Justin?”
“He’s got the baseball game. Some of the guys want to start as soon as they’re done, so I figure I’ll be driving tonight anyway. I’d rather take my car.”
“Or I could pick you up and you can drive his car home? You don’t have to worry about both of your cars.”
Angie snorted as she slung her purse over her shoulder, along with her book bag. “What? Did you forget?”
I had. “No.”
She stared at me with narrowed eyes. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
Then her hand went to her hip. My eyes widened. I knew what that meant.
“Alex.” Her voice dropped to the no-nonsense tone. “What aren’t you telling me?”
“I forgot about Mike. Really.” I scratched the back of my head. “But I thought it was Carl, his brother.”
“Oh, yeah.” The hand fell away.
Thank god.
And we were walking again, towards the parking lot. “So, who are you thinking?”
“For what?”
“For prom.” Angie threw her hands up. “I swear that I’m having a conversation with myself here. Are you here? Are you actually Alex? Or did we leave you somewhere I don’t remember?”
“Yeah, Las Vegas,” I muttered before I realized what I said. Then my hand clamped over my mouth and I stopped in my tracks. I had not said that. I really hadn’t.
But Angie grew quiet and looked away.
I had said it.
When she turned back, I wasn’t expecting the tremor in her voice as she rasped out, “I’m sorry, okay? I thought it was for the best if you and he stopped doing whatever it was that you were doing. I didn’t expect for you to be like a zombie again.”
A baseball formed in my throat and I swallowed it away. It was painful as it slipped down, but I mustered up a tentative smile. “It’s okay, Ang. I was going to end it with him anyway. I just did it ten hours earlier than I had planned. That’s it.”
“Really?”
I touched her hand and she held onto it tightly. “Really.”
She let out a deep breath of air. “Thank god. You don’t know how guilty I’ve felt since that trip, not to mention Marissa.” She sneered as we went past the name-we-rarely-used’s locker. And she was there. She straightened with a book in hand and glared back, but her eyes flickered as they rested on me for a second. Sarah Shastaine cleared her throat behind her and the name-we-rarely-used turned her back to us.
That was the most interaction we’d had with her since Thanksgiving break.
“Ugh,” Angie growled. “She drives me crazy.”
“Yeah, that happens when people suddenly drop out of your life with no explanation.” There was heat to my words and I was surprised at myself. Where had that come from?
“What’d you say?”
“Nothing.”
“Oh. Okay. Well…” We approached the parking lot now and she paused by the door. “If no one’s asked you, then I think you should ask someone. What about Eric?”
My stomach dropped. “Like hell.” He already had chewed me out once. I wasn’t giving him another reason to do it again. Eric and I were better left forgotten, like everything else in my life.
“Okay.” She grinned. “But he asked Justin about you at baseball practice. He wanted to know if you were still with Jesse.”
“Really?”
She nodded and then pushed through the door. The sun was blinding, but the air immediately rushed at us. The air conditioning inside was cool, but I warmed up as soon as we took another step outside. “So I think you should go to his party with us tonight. Talk to him there.”
“Talk to Eric?”
“Yeah. He and Brianna broke up. Can you believe he dated that cheerleader?” She snorted. “Although, I think he did it to piss off Marissa since they’re on the same squad together.”
“Good,” I murmured. I meant it.
“Yeah…” Angie’s eyes had taken on a thoughtful look to them. She was biting her lip.
I readied myself. She had something on her mind and she was going to say it. I knew the signs like the back of my hand by now.
“So.”
Here we go.
“What happened to your parents, Alex?”
Dread filled me, but I forced my tone to be casual. “What do you mean?”
“I mean…” She looked around and inched closer. Her voice dropped low. “The counselor called me into her office today. She said she’d been trying to reach your parents, but she can never get a hold of them.”
“What’d you say?”
“Nothing. I mean, I don’t know anything. I know they went on that trip, but to be honest, I haven’t seen them since. That’s weird, Alex. Really, really weird. Are your parents around? Please tell me they’re around.”
“My dad travels for his job. You know that.”
“Yeah, but he wasn’t gone all the time. He was gone some of the time and your mom was always around. How is your mom? No one knows about what happened to her. I only knew because my cousin told me and it was her friend who mentioned it to her. She knew I was close with you, but please tell me that I’m exaggerating. I come over twice a week and you’re always alone.”
I jerked a stiff shoulder up. What lie would sound normal here? And then I was disgusted at myself. “Just leave it alone, Ang. Okay? I don’t want to talk about my parents right now.”
“But—”
“I mean it,” I interrupted her. I shouldn’t have to cover for my parents or lie that they hadn’t ditched me. That wasn’t my lie to tell, that was theirs and I had some pride not to cover for them. So what if they abandoned me? It was for the best. It had to be for the best.
“Okay.” She held her hands up in surrender. “I won’t bring ‘em up again. Promise.”
“Good.” That’s what I wanted, but why didn’t I feel good about it?
“You work tonight, right?”
I nodded.
“When do you get done?”
“I close with Ben at 9:00 tonight.”
She chewed at her lip. She was thinking again.
I sighed, “What is it?”
“I’ll come over at 9:30? Will you be ready by then?”
“What about Justin?”
“He’s got the baseball game. Some of the guys want to start as soon as they’re done, so I figure I’ll be driving tonight anyway. I’d rather take my car.”
“Or I could pick you up and you can drive his car home? You don’t have to worry about both of your cars.”
