Page 55 of The False Flat

“Where’s Halo?” I asked.

Once Chuck got back from the bathroom and we located Halo, we could leave. I wanted to go home, but I dreaded the ride back because I didn’t want to be near Grant right now or ever. And why hadn’t he ridden with Elaine?

King shrugged his stick arms. “Don’t care. We broke up.”

William elbowed me, and I tried not to smile. But inside, I gloated, which kept me from noticing Grant until he was right beside me.

“Did you have a good time?” he asked.

“Oh, it was great.” I blinked too many times and licked my lips twice, two times too many. It was like the features of my face were malfunctioning.

“I got you something.” He leaned into the van and pulled out some fluffy pink cotton candy.

I hate you, Grant. I really hate you.

His eyebrows scrunched when I didn’t take the spun sugar. “Didn’t you say you wanted cotton candy earlier?”

“Yes! Thank you!” Too loud. Wrong inflection.

I had said that, but I hadn’t thought anyone was paying attention. If we were going to be friends, he needed to stop being so damned thoughtful.

“William, what are you eating?” King shouted as he ran toward William, who’d been digging in the trunk. King grabbed an empty Tupperware container from William’s hand. “That was my spare! I already promised it to a guy.”

William swallowed, looked annoyed. “It’s one marshmallow. I’ll buy you some more.”

Chuck returned from the bathroom. “He ate one of them LSD marshmallows? Deanna’s gonna be pissed.”

William whipped toward King, who was laughing so hard I was sure he was going to snap in half. “You put LSD in those marshmallows?”

“It’s fairly standard, newbie. Where have you been this whole time?”

“Not on an LSD trip!” William was now pacing. “What do I do?” He looked at each of us—all laughing nervously—in plea.

Grant sobered and looked at me. “You should call Deanna.”

“Me? Why me?”

“She’s your friend.”

I shoved him. “She’s your sister.”

He nudged me back. “I’m scared of her, okay?”

Chuck leaned in. “You two need to stop flirting and call Deanna.”

“We’re not flirting!” My face reddened as I protested, again too loud and too quickly.

Grant blew air out his nose. He was irritatingly un-red as he reached for the van door. “Let’s see what happens.”

As we were nearing Nashville, William put his hand in the air and swayed, an imaginary rainbow coming out of his fingertips. “The coloooors!” He unbuckled himself and attempted to climb over the seat to catch the musical notes he swore were physically coming out of the radio.

A long belch trailed out of William’s mouth as Chuck pulled him back into his seat. “I can actually seeeee my burp! This. Is. Excellent!”

“Nobody sees your foul-smelling mouth fart,” Chuck growled.

“Mouth faaaaart!” William grabbed Chuck’s face and got way too close. “Did you make that up?” Then he felt around for a pen in his pocket. “I’m writing that one down.”

King howled.