“Oh you do, do you,” she says, slowly. Says to me, I realize.
“Uh, yeah.” I nod. “Totally.” I cough. “Girl power, or whatever.”
“Mhm. Okay.” She takes a step back, but her eyes stay on mine just a little too long, in a way I can’t quite read.
Under my jacket and my shirt and my binder, my heart gives a jolt of panic. And somehow, I catch Fox’s gaze as he looks around the wreckage. Immediately, he frowns. Looks at me just a touch too long, so that I have to react.
“What?” I grunt.
Fox backs off. “Nah, I just…” But his frown doesn’t go away. “You good?”
I nod quickly. “Fine.”
And Iamfine.
Down on the sidewalk, Pan picks up his helmet and peers at his reflection.
“I think she gave me a damn black eye,” he mutters, disbelief in his voice.
“Maybe she likes you,” Kit stage-whispers back. Pan levies a kick at his legs, which misses.
“I can still hear you, you know,” Zusanna puts in. “And I am lesbian.” She pauses. “Besides, your hair.” She gestures at Pan. “It is stupid.”
Pan scowls, but gets up, setting his helmet back on his bike. Blue, though, has gone still.
Thoughtful.
“Money,” he says, tilting his head at Zusanna. “You said you didn’t need his money.”
“Yes?” She looks around distractedly. “No. Yes, I did, no I didn’t. Who has my phone? I?—”
“But you said you took a loan from him,” Blue goes on.
I dart a glance at Pan and wiggle Zusanna’s phone—should I?
Pan widens his eyes and backs away in a kind ofplease, proceedbow. Like he doesn’t want to get beat up again, which—fair. I hold out the phone to Zusanna.
“Thankyou,” she says, and flashes me what might be the first smile from her all morning. Which fades as soon as she snaps back to Blue. “Different money,” she says, thumbing her phone unlocked. “Hiskind of money, I don’t need. And God, now I bet he ishappyabout this!” She groans as she starts to type furiously at her phone. “Baba did not want me opening here,” she goes on, still glued to her screen. “Said he’d find me better space somewhere else, somewhere ‘safe’”—she draws one-handed air quotes—“but nowhere in whole stupid Valley is any good but Marina! He think I can set up high-price, luxury kickboxing gym next to smoke shop and tattoo parlor? Maybe if I wantstupidclientele?—”
“Hey,” Pan interjects, but I silence him with a glance.
“—but I am offeringtop-tierexperience, you know? And still he says, ‘Zuzu, bad neighborhood is better than bad neighbors.’ Lecture me like I am still some little girl.”
All of a sudden, I feel…on.
Maybe it’s the three cans of caffeine jittering in my system. Maybe it’s being in the Marina at all, but I feel…too much. Too active.
Krye’s words from the other night echo in my mind.
Lay low, like normal boy Tink.
I’m trying,I think.But sometimes I just can’t.
Not when I’m around the Lost Boys.
“What…what’d he mean by that?” I ask, softly. “Bad neighbors?”
“Hm?” Zusanna looks up from her phone, shrugs. “Oh, you know. Big casino, dog track, all that. Territorial, want piece of pie. But like I say, I’m not here for that business anyway, so?—”
