“Oh, come on,” she argues. “It still merited a face-to-face.”
“Nah,” Gillian disagrees, siding with me. “People make sucha huge deal over breakups. I like Ryan’s approach. Cut him loose, send a text, no drama.”
No drama? I almost laugh. The past few days have been anything but. Every time I see Everett in class or walk by him in the hall, he looks at me with those unhappy eyes. I haven’t had a proper conversation with him since the party. Every time he’s tried, I’ve made excuses. I also blocked his number. I know he doesn’t understand that. He’s waiting for an explanation I can’t give, and now the school week’s almost over and I’ve resorted to ducking into side corridors to avoid him and pretending I don’t see him when I walk into government class.
Jasmine frowns at me. “I still don’t get why you ended it.” Nor will she ever. It doesn’t matter how many times I recite my rehearsed explanation. My cousin can’t fathom a world in which someone rejects Everett James.
“I don’t want a boyfriend,” I say for the hundredth time.
“But he’s sohot,” Gillian says.
My aunt and uncle enter the kitchen, and I’m grateful for the interruption. Dan pours Maggie’s coffee first like the gentleman he is, and she leans in to press a kiss to his cheek as she thanks him. They’ve been extra lovey-dovey this week. I guess they made up after their fight. The hushed sounds I heard echoing behind their bedroom door last night didn’t sound angry, that’s for sure.
“Ryan,” Maggie says, “am I picking you up after school today or are you going to the shelter?”
“I’m with you,” I tell her as I bite into my apple. “JP’s training two new volunteers today, so he’ll have plenty of help.”
Dan rests his hip against the counter, watching me over the rim of his coffee cup. “You still enjoying it there?”
I chew and swallow before answering. “Yeah, I love it. I wish we had a dog.”
“Hey, you know how you could get your dog fix?” Jasmine’s eyes gleam with humor. “Go to Everett’s house. Oh wait. You dumped his ass.”
Gillian snorts.
Maggie and Dan don’t comment, but I see my aunt’s features soften with sympathy. I assume Dan told her about my breakdown in the woods. But she hasn’t mentioned it, thankfully.
At school I pay a visit to my locker before English, which also doubles as homeroom. As I’m spinning the dial, something bangs hard on the locker next to me. I look over to find Chase there. He wears faded jeans and a black T-shirt, his trademark combat boots on his feet. I hate that we have similar taste in footwear. I don’t want to have anything in common with him, not even fashion sense.
“You work fast,” he drawls.
His presence is so unnerving that I miss the lock combination on the first try. “What?”
“You did it. And in less time than I thought you would.”
Finally I yank my locker open. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Everett.” His jaw tightens. “You led him on.”
I can’t help but gawk at him. Is that what this tantrum isabout? What does it matter to Chase? This has nothing to do with him.
I shove my ponytail off my shoulder, and it goes swinging down my back. “Maybe you should concentrate on keeping your butt out of juvie instead of worrying that Everett might get his feelings hurt. He’s a big boy. He can handle it.”
Chase’s scowl deepens. He shoves away from the locker and stalks down the hall, away from me.
I’m trembling as I grab my books for the next class. It doesn’t help that Chase and I share homeroom, followed by English. His gaze bores into the back of my head the entire time. I’m relieved when it’s time for second period, until I remember I sharethatclass with Everett.
I’m at my seat when he walks in. He looks right at me and the corner of his mouth lifts into a hesitant smile, but I quickly avert my eyes. For the next hour, I sit there, staring straight ahead, desperately willing the bell to ring and class to be over.
The second it is, I launch myself out of my seat. I’m halfway to my locker when I hear his footsteps behind me.
“Ryan. Ryan, wait.”
I speed up.
He finally catches up to me at the wall of windows near my locker. He tugs on my upper arm, forcing me to spin around.
“I can’t do this right now,” I tell him. “I need to grab my camera before the bell.”
