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“I want to kill those fuckers,” he fumes suddenly, pulling away from me with clenched teeth and seething anger. “I can’t believe they did that to you.”
“Well, the police don’t seem to think we have any way of proving they did it,” I shrug.
His eyes cut over to me, full of as much disbelief as mine were when I first talked to the police. But there’s also a look of acceptance. He knows as well as I do how things work around here, and we’re better off not holding our breath for the new Elites to ever suffer any consequences for their actions. Conveniently, all the evidence is crashed down in the valley anyway. Right where I would be lying right now if it weren’t for Coach Granger.
“Well, all that matters is that you’re okay,” he softens, pressing his lips to my cheek again. “I don’t know what I would’ve done, Ophelia…if…”
“Shhh,” I whisper into his ear. “Don’t think about that. What are you doing right now? Let’s get out of here. I need to see you…like, really see you…alone…” I playfully trail my fingers down the front of his pants, teasing between his legs.
“Don’t you have practice?” he asks reluctantly.
“Shit!” I remember suddenly. “You’re right. Ugh…I want to skip it. I’m sore and I’d rather be with you.”
“You better not,” he insists, looking just as disappointed as me. “You’re in the home stretch now and you need to be in tip-top shape for all those scouts that have been sniffing around.”
“I know, you’re right,” I sigh.
We linger there getting in as many long, deep kisses as we can before I force myself to leave him to go to practice. Despite my aching joints, I do surprisingly well. I figure it’s from all the anger boiling in my veins. It pushes me to fly past all the other girls on the team. I make a special point to show up the brunette who is one of the Elite’s newest members.
Coach Granger is nice enough to give me a ride home. But when I get there, Brendan and my mom are in a panicked state of planning. They can’t afford to get me a new phone or a new car right away, and their work schedules prevent them from being able to drive me around everywhere until we can afford everything. I assure them Emmett will help at times they can’t, and there’s Coach too. As for money, I suggest getting a job, but they insist that the only things I should be focusing on right now are school, exams, and track.
Somehow, we manage to figure it out, but each day I feel li
ke more of a burden to everyone. I’m feeling particularly bummed out one day as I step out of my last class and pull out my cheap refurbished flip phone to text Emmett. I thought he’d take me home, but then I remember he said he’d be busy this afternoon. With no other choice, I walk to the bus stop and wait. By the time I finally arrive home, I’m angry to see my mom’s car sitting in the driveway. She could’ve saved me at least a half-hour by coming to get me if she was free.
But I quickly realize why she didn’t pick me up when I step inside the house. I find her at the kitchen table with none other than my good old dad, Theo, sitting across from her. Great, I think. I’m already in a terrible mood. This is just what I need.
“What the hell are you doing here?” I blurt out, too tired to play nice.
“Ophelia!” my mom scolds. “Language! Please!”
Theo just smirks. “That’s okay, Lala. I guess it is still a shock to see me pop up, which is my own fault.”
A bitter, suppressed laugh sneaks out of me. He still hasn’t answered my question, and I’m in no mood for any of this.
“Ophelia, honey. Come sit down,” my mom beckons, making this little meeting of theirs sound important, which only makes me more nervous.
“What’s going on?” I ask impatiently as I join them at the table.
She looks to Theo who nods and pulls a slender white box from his pocket. He slides it across the table into my hands.
“What’s this?” I raise a brow at him, feeling skeptical.
“Open it,” he commands with a grin.
I pull off the thin lid and gasp at the sight of it. A brand-new smartphone. I’m instantly excited and imagine tossing my old flip phone into the fireplace. But it all fades quickly as I remember who handed the box to me. I look up at Theo who has a huge, smug smile plastered across his face. He’s getting way too much satisfaction from rushing in to help when I’m in no position to say no. It irritates me so much that, for a moment, I forget my mom is sitting next to us. I slap the lid back on and slide the box right back to him.
“Ophelia,” my mom gasps in disappointment and embarrassment.
“Thanks, but no thanks,” I bark.
“I appreciate your independence,” he responds slowly, biting back anger. “But you need a phone, Ophelia. One that can access email and other things. Now more than ever while you’re deciding where you’ll go to college and taking your final tests. Graduating. People need to be able to get in touch with you.”
“The flip phone works fine,” I quip back stubbornly. “We’ve made it this far without your help, Theo. We’ll be okay without your handouts.”
My mom lets out a heavy sigh, gearing up to lecture me. But Theo raises his hand to silence her and gets ready for his own speech. I hate seeing them together like this. Like two parents working together. Which I guess is what they are, but I still have a hard time seeing Theo as anything beyond a sperm donor.
“It’s not for you. It’s for me,” he explains, almost looking choked up. “I can’t do anything about the past, but I do think about it all the time. All those years I let go by without making more of an effort to see you. To help you two while you struggled…”
