I nod solemnly, trying not to smile with relief. My plan is working even faster than I thought it would. Good.
I leave out my weird staring contest with Young-gi (it wasn’t much of a contest anyway, now was it?), and the way I threatened Brian, and pick up the story with Janessa’s confession by the lake–just that she never slept with Brian, not that she is secretly in love with Kira–and Brian’s chase through the hallway. At the time, I knew I could’ve taken those boys on, but I don’t say that to the girls. Instead, I keep it to the bare, bald facts; the three boys cornered me, and chased me through the house with the intention of hurting me.
Jumping out the window to escape him just seemed like the easiest way out, but the girls act as if I’m admitting to jumping into shark infested waters.
“I rolled onto my back to break my fall,” I explain. “That’s what the bruises are from.”
“Brian teased you in the ring,” Lexie thinks back, her tone drifting as she remembers. “He said you didn’t ‘stick the landing’. He was talking about chasing you out of a window! That horrible, horrible,ugh!I don’t have a word strong enough for how horrible he is!”
Lexie looks right into my eyes, and her hesitation is almost entirely gone. I might as well be the honorable, harmless boy she met in her garden again. Instead of an attacker, now I’m the victim, and she forgives me. Just like I wanted.
“I’m okay,” I reassure her, trying to sound humble, but I’m feeling pretty victorious and smug.
Their anger and disbelief derails the conversation, and they talk over themselves and each other, animated and passionate. They shake their heads, exclaim and gesture wildly with their hands as they go over the whole story again, and devolve into a gossipy discussion about Brian and Janessa and the entire summit. They ask me questions–and I read their unspokendesire to hear the juicy parts of the story one more time, so I tell it all again, but with even more drama this time - and the girls gasp and exclaim all over again like it’s the first time hearing it. It’s almost fun. Like a play.
Kira’s phone rings with an alarm, making us all jump with surprise. She gasps, her hands flying to her cheeks. “Oh, crap! It’s time to go! We’re late!”
Lexie screeches, and they both fly out of their stools and race down the hall. I follow, curious and much more comfortable now that I know they aren’t mad at me anymore.
“Where are we going?” I ask, leaning against the doorframe of a very feminine, soft, princess-core bedroom. Kira’s, I’m assuming.
The closet door is open, and they’re all the way in Narnia, so I repeat my question louder to make sure they can hear me back there.
“Oh! Tommy–” Kira pops out of the closet with all her accessories on and her hair in a quick up-do. “Lexie and I have class today. We’ll be back tonight, after labs.”
Wait…“Am I not going? I could wait around campus, I don’t mind.”
Take me with you. Take me with you.
Kira’s expression is apologetically polite, and I know she’s going to reject me before she even opens her mouth. Of course, she’s sweet about it, so I can’t even get mad at her. “Sorry, Tommy, it’s a private university. But we won’t be gone that long, just a couple hours. Watch some movies on my big screen, you’ll love it! Lexie, come on!”
“Coming!” her voice echoes from the closet; goddamn, it must be big. “I’m coming!”
She flies through the door, panting like she ran a mile, smoothing her hair into place. “Let’s all go to dinner after class. I want to talk more about what happened, Tommy.”
“Maybe we should call Janessa?” Kira’s question is tentative, and she’s leading Lexie through the hallway, and it’s like they already forgot about me. Like they already left, and I’m not even here.
“I don’t know…” Lexie chews her lip as they stuff things into their purses and backpacks near the front door. “Maybe we should. I want to know what the hell she was thinking. Like…why?”
“I just want to make sure she’s okay,” Kira says, because of course that’s all she wants. She’s more of a saint than Mother Teresa.
I drift behind them, like a dog, but I’m trying hard not to whine like one. I try like hell not to show how the anxiety is building as they get their things. I listen and hover between their conversation about Janessa and whether or not they should reach out, but the words flow over me because I’m not part of their life. I’m just the pretend fiancé.
I’m not really…here.
“Bye, Tommy!” Lexie calls over her shoulder at the front door.
“The phone for the staff is on the wall in the kitchen,” Kira says quickly. “There’s a chef, laundry service, personal shopper, security, and a driver. Don’t go anywhere without checking in with security first. Watch some movies, okay? Okay, bye!”
And the front door slams behind her.
And I’m left all alone.
By myself.
In this big, soft, quiet place.
My heart speeds up immediately, but I force myself to move calmly and slowly back through the house. With deliberate thoroughness, I inspect every room, pretending like it’s some great task, letting it take up some time because I’ve got too much of it and not enough to do with it. By the time I’ve investigatedevery drawer and cabinet and closet, it’s probably been a whole half an hour.
