Am I? I play it off as no big deal though. With a shrug and a quick laugh. “What? Drew’s been a family friend forever.” I try to be nonchalant, but Knave isn’t buying it. Mentally, I’m worried. Can Drew ever accept me being The Mad Hatter?
“Maddie, he’s out to get you. He won’t understand your reasons for this mess.”
Knave paces back and forth in front of me. He’s been my best friend since we were in Pre-K together. I can count on him to never let me down. Besides, he accepted what I was doing the minute I told him all about it. He wanted to kill for me, but I’ve kept his hands clean. For now.
“What are you doing here, Knave? You already graduated, remember?” I tease him because he hated school. There should be no reason for him to be here now.
He chuckles sinisterly. “I came to give you this.” He hands me a small bag, and I look at him, confused.
“What’s this?”
“Open it.” He puts his right ass cheek on the desk and looks at me expectantly.
I pull back the flap and reach in. It’s a Mad Hatter pin, four new decks of white rabbit cards, and a knife. I look at the knife that has my initials engraved on it. Biting my lip, I look up at my best friend.
“Happy Birthday, Pumpkin.” He gets up from where he’s slouched against the desk and wraps me in his arms. “I know I won’t be here for your birthday, but I had to give this to you.”
I blink away the tears he’s caused. I hate crying in front of people.
“Thank you so much, Knave. This means a lot. I know you and Mike are going to his parents’ anniversary party, but I’m going to miss you.”
He kisses the top of my head and lifts my chin. “If I weren’t madly in love with Mike, I’d definitely be pursuing you. But he stole my heart, so you are stuck with me being the best friend, forever.” He winks at me and helps me put all the items back into the bag.
I laugh at him and gently hit him on his ass. “You just want to see me naked, you pervert.” Knave stands before me and slowly brings his hands up to my face. He knows I have a tough time with people moving quickly toward me. He holds me gently and smiles at me.
“I’ve taken care of your wounds. Wounds I never should have had to take care of. But I do it because you are my best friend, Maddie.”
I gasp and he looks at me. “I meant what I said. If you want me to finish the …”
With a hand to his lips, I cut him off. It’s sweet he wants to do this for me. But this is my vendetta. Not his. “I’ve got it, Knave. Thank you.”
He releases me, and I’m almost certain I see desire in his eyes.What?No, I’m being silly. He’s my best friend. He’s gay, for goodness’ sake. With a chuckle, I open my backpack and put my gifts inside.
“You better get going. If you're late for class, you'll be in trouble. I’ll call you when I get back into town. The house is open if you need it.”
“Thank you, Knave.” I hug him one last time and leave.
* * *
I askedDrew to meet me after school an hour later than normal. The reason? I was leaving the white rabbit cards that Knave gave me on multiple lockers. I mean, why not? It’s important to keep these assholes in line.
I wish I could have stayed home with Drew tonight. Instead, here I am trying to teach this jock something he should have learned two years ago. The hour is dragging by. Slow as fucking molasses. The school basically passes the students that play sports so they can play on game days. But when it comes to their senior year, they have to get tutored so they can pass the basic skills test.
I feel sorry for William because he’s trying hard to get the material. The problem is that he has a short attention span. I’m going to tell Coach I need more money. Fifty dollars a session isn’t enough to handle William. He needs extra learning material, and that’s going to cost money.
“I’m sorry, Maddie.” He puts his pencil down in defeat. I don’t blame him, to be honest. I watch him bang his head against the table.
“Stop, William. You’re going to hurt yourself. We can get the homework done, but you have to listen to me and stop texting.”
The front door of the library opens, and the warning bell rings.
“Were you expecting someone?”
Before he can say anything, we spot some of his teammates walking toward us. They haven’t spotted us yet.Fuck.My hackles rise, and my hand twitches, ready for a fight. I help William because he’s always been nice. He’s never been a jerk like the other idiots on his team.
“Fuck, hide Maddie. I don’t want anyone to see you,” William grates out. He pushes me under the table and anger brews within me.
I stare at him incredulously. “What?”
