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My cousin called it an initiation. He talked about needing to make sure he was trustworthy. I don’t care what he says to justify it. That was a lame move and he knows it.
Apparently, Kendrick and Ryder spent a long time in Colton Gate following us every time we went out and thinking of ways they could mess things up. While Kendrick and I were staying at the penthouse, Will and Alex recruited Ryder. Kendrick called them and sent his new puppet after us as soon as he woke up in Tom’s apartment and saw that I was gone. Kendrick arrived to town shortly after Ryder did. I have no idea how they tracked us down so quickly, and I was way too angry to ask. This explains Ryder randomly buying me a dress and offering me passes to the fair. But what this doesn’t explain is his recycling of the “fair passes” trick on another girl the next day.
My guess is… he’s just an asshole.
Kendrick tried to hide behind the fact that this was partly Maria’s request. She called and asked him to go watch over me even after our phone call because she couldn’t sleep not knowing if I was okay. What she didn’t know was… he was already in Colton Gate creeping on us. Maria or not, I’m still mad. He could’ve just made sure that I wasn’t dead like she asked instead of adding “let’s ruin Haze and Winter’s relationship” to his mission description. This is on him. He has to own it.
Alex walks into the room. “Still not talking to you?”
“She’s stubborn.” Kendrick rolls his eyes.
Alex’s been waiting around the house for twenty minutes now. He got here way too early. We’re all supposed to go to the movies together today, and I’m nowhere near ready.
But what I’m even less ready for is returning to this hell they call school tomorrow. Tanner agreeing to leave me alone unfortunately means going back to my regular life, which includes school. Kendrick said Tanner promised to make good use of his contacts all around the street fighting community to get people off my back. It’s time to start living again. I can’t spend the rest of my senior year in hiding.
Plus, Maria said that I have to prepare for the finals if I want to stand a chance at graduating. I feel like I’ve missed so much. At least, now that I’m single, I’ll have plenty of time to catch up with my online classes.
I put my cereal bowl away—that I couldn’t fill all the way because Will drank all the milk again—and walk out of the kitchen. I’m in desperate need of a shower and silence, which doesn’t exist in this house since Will’s been staying with us. It’s been a few days now. He said something about needing a break from some family drama. As the overly nice person that she is, Maria said yes. I think the guys are starting to grow on her.
I wince, thinking back to Haze alone in Colton Gate. I haven’t heard from him since I left town.
I mean, you did block his number. It must be pretty hard to contact you.
Inner Winter?
Yeah?
Shut up.
I can’t stop wondering what he’s doing. If he’s seen Riley again since I left. If she finally got what she wanted. I bet she was very pleased to find out that I was gone.
The bathroom next to the kitchen is occupied, so I try the one on the second floor. Just before I can turn the doorknob, voices flare on the other side. Two voices to be exact. I press my ear to the door.
Riley at the beach and now this.
Eavesdropping is my new thing, apparently.
I can barely discern a low voice saying, “I’ll talk to him. I promise. No more lying.”
I hear nothing for a while, then footsteps. I hide in my bedroom, which gives me a direct shot of the show, and peek through the partially closed door. Someone walks out into the hall.
Kass.
Who was she talking to? I swear I heard a guy’s voice. She looks around as if to make sure that nobody saw her, goes back into her bedroom, and closes the door. My doubts turn into facts when someone else walks out of the bathroom.
Will.
It hits me.
I remember running into him in the morning a day before the fight. He was leaving the house in a hurry and looked like he’d been caught red-handed.
I can’t believe I didn’t see this sooner.
He was probably sneaking out of the house after spending the night with Kass. Something’s going on between these two. They’ve totally been shacking up behind Kendrick’s back. This might also be why Kass has changed recently. She looks freer, less uptight. More Will. When it’s not me and Haze, it’s Kass and Will.
Oh, well. Kendrick is going to be pissed, but I ship it.
I lock myself in the bathroom and ignore the unwanted flashbacks of the rather heated moment Haze and I shared the morning before everything went to hell. Thinking that this will never happen again feels surreal… impossible.
