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That’s my girl. Well, not my girl. But whatever.
I shrug my shoulders, fighting hard not to smile. For some reason, I love seeing her face when she’s taken by surprise. I love it even more when she’s pissed off and the tips of her ears turn red.
“Please tell me you’re joking, Rome?” It’s fair for her not to believe me. I thought about keeping it from her while I did my own little investigation. However, I realized that’s just stupid because if there is someone out there after her, and she has no damn clue, that doesn’t help her at all.
“Would I joke about something like that?” I take a turn a little sharper than I should and her body slides into the door.
“Yes. Probably.” Her tone is flat and it makes my anger tick up a notch.
“Not this time, Freckles. Someone has it out for you.”
She scoffs. “It was you, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah.” I huff. “You caught me. I carried you away from the party, put your drunk ass in your car, then I slashed your tires just so I would have to carry you back out of your car, into mine, and then drive your passed-out ass home, and put you to bed." Honestly, for someone so book smart, she really isn’t that sharp with people.
She rubs her temples aggressively. “I can’t handle any more of this. Why would someone slash my damn tires? I’ve lived in Willow Creek for two weeks. Who would hate me this much?”
I raise my hand slowly, warranting a fist to the shoulder from my sweet stepsister. This time, I actually let out a small laugh, but she doesn't hear it, thankfully.
“If I find out you’re behind this, Rome…” She shakes her head as her words trail off.
“Then, what?” I laugh, but the sound is empty of humor. “You’ll destroy my future?”
“Why are you so damn cruel and unforgiving?”
I veer off to the side of the road and slam the car into park as I turn my body toward her.
“Am I not allowed to be pissed, Elodie? Do you really think this is something I should just let go? This is my fucking life! Everything I had and worked my ass off for was destroyed because of you. I lost my mom, then my entire future because of you!”
I’m shouting at her now. My hands are shaking as my breaths come in harsh pants. But Elodie surprises me. Instead of shrinking back like she has done ever since she found out the truth, she meets me in the middle, her anger just as alive as my own.
“I get that, Rome. I really do. I messed up!” She throws her hands in the air, wincing from the fast movement. But she pushes on. “If I could go back and not make that call, I would.”
“Not make the call?” I shout. “How about not going into that fucking park in the first place? Or how about not pushing me in the pool in front of the entire school. In front of people who respect me and look up to me. You ruined everything that night, and you’re still ruining me now!”
She pushes a finger into my chest, just like before. “Don’t you dare! I will not apologize for standing up for myself. You were a complete ass to me and you tried to touch me without my permission. I should have slapped you across your damn face, but I went easy on you.”
I grab her hand and toss it back at her. “Just remember, Freckles. What goes around, comes around.”
“So you want to destroy me in return?” We are no longer yelling, but it feels like the car is about to overheat. Elodie looks and acts like this composed person all the time, no one ever gets to see this side of her. No one but me.
“Yeah. I do. Because you deserve to feel the same way I do.” I sit back in my seat and throw the car into drive, signaling to pull back out on the busy street as Elodie stares at me.
“And dragging me down is supposed to fix all your problems?” Her voice is much softer, as if it’s a real question.
“At least then I won’t be alone.”
When she looks at me with pity in her eyes, I know I should elaborate, but I leave it at that. It’s really fucking lonely knowing all my friends have their futures mapped out and I don’t know what the hell I’m going to do after graduation. I tried to help this girl out, even after she made a fool of me at the party, and in the end, I only fucked myself even more.
It’s quiet for a while as I make my way across town, and I’m glad for it. Everyone looks at me with pity. Everyone sees a kid who messed up his life by making one bad choice. The thing is, I’d do it again. I might want to strangle Elodie, but there’s something about her that I can’t ignore.
“I’m sorry, Rome. I don’t know what else to say.” She looks at me, then out the window. I refuse to make eye contact because I don’t want to see the pity again. I’m so fucking over it. At least if she’s angry with me, she doesn't have that look in her eyes.
“Then don’t say anything.”
Elodie taps the screen on her phone, and when I steal a glance, I see that she’s thanking Brady. A couple seconds later, I look again, noticing that he told her he’s going to find out who did it. With a heavy breath, she tucks her phone back into her purse and crosses her arms over her chest, glowering out the passenger window.
The rest of the twenty-minute ride is quiet. The tension in the small space is so suffocating I’m forced to roll down my window just to breathe.
