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“Happens to who?” Scarlett stood just outside of the bumper car track with a bag of Chick-fil-A in her arms. “I come bearing snacks.”
“Awesome.” Vin jumped up and went to her. “Did you get fries? I could kill for fries right now.”
“Whoa, whoa, I brought stuff foreveryone, jackass.”
I settled back in my car and watched the two of them argue over who got what. A month ago, I wouldn’t have imagined being here, doing this. I didn’t fit in a place like Credence High, but Evan had told me that I needed to find my people. And maybe I had.
Scarlett, Lilly, Jay, even Malachi and Vin—were they my people now?
CHAPTER18
“You okay?”Scarlett said as we neared the door to school.
I nodded, my lips pressed together in a flat line. Scarlett had picked me up. She’d insisted, and I was grateful. I knew I had to face everyone at some point, even if skipping afternoon classes yesterday made me look guilty. My heart thumped against my rib cage as we entered school, but to my surprise, the whispers and snickers rolled off me. Maybe it was because Scarlett and Lilly flanked me as we made our way to my locker. Or it could have been Evan’s words replaying over and over in my head.You have me.But I moved on autopilot, ignoring the tsks of disgust and critical glares as I searched him out. We rounded the corner, and Evan was there, leaning against his locker. Waiting. Our eyes collided, heat licking the inside of my stomach. Evan lifted his chin, moved off the wall, and started walking down the hallway… away from us, in the other direction.
What was he—
Scarlett snapped her fingers in front of my face. “Becca, earth to Becca.”
“Huh, what?” My heart plummeted into my toes.
“Are you coming to hang at Jay’s tonight after work?”
“Maybe.” I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the lockers. Evan had walked off, acting like nothing had changed. That he hadn’t dragged me to that office and kissed me senseless yesterday. That I hadn’t had my hands jammed down his jeans less than twenty-four hours ago.
“You gotta come, and bring some of those burgers again. The ones with the relish.” Jay grinned.
“Jay.” Lilly shook her head. “I swear you only think with your stomach.”
He leaned in close to her and pressed a kiss to her nose. “That’s not the only thing I think with.”
“Eww, you’re disgusting.” She craned her head around Jay to me. “But you should come, Becca. It’s not the same without you.”
“Maybe,” I said, distracted. Trying to figure out what was going on with Evan.
“I’m out, fuckers. Malachi, shall we?” Scarlett started down the hallway, and he moved past us. “See you guys, later. Don’t let them get to you, Becca.”
“Yeah,” I murmured. That was the plan, although I knew it was easier said than done. Especially if Kendall had anything to do with it.
* * *
Morning classes were bearable.A couple of guys tried to proposition me, but the teacher soon shut them down. I was more concerned about lunchtime. Unless I hid in the bathroom, running into Kendall was a given. Lilly met me by my locker, and we walked to the cafeteria together.
“We could skip lunch?” she suggested.
“No, I’m not hiding. I did nothing wrong, Lilly. Nothing.”
“Good for you. Besides, the guys are going to meet us in there.”
True to their word, Jay and Malachi were standing guard outside the doors. Jay scooped Lilly up in a bone-crushing hug while Malachi offered me a half-smile. “Ready?” he said, pushing open the door. I nodded and ducked underneath his arm.
The room didn’t fall silent, which was something. But everyone watched me, no doubt waiting to see if there would be a repeat of yesterday. My eyes landed on Kendall across the room. She stood up slowly, hand on hip, making no attempt to hide her anger at me being here. She obviously hadn’t expected me to come back so soon, and from the looks on most people’s faces, she wasn’t the only one.
“Come on. Let’s get something to eat and then get out of here,” Lilly whispered, sliding her arm through mine. We walked to the counter like that with the guys flanking us. Part of me felt bitter that Evan wasn’t here to support me. He’d cared enough to come out to Rogues and check on me.But does that count when he dismisses me in public?
We reached the counter and grabbed our trays. I added some soda and chips, eyeing the hot dishes when Lilly whistled through her teeth. “She’s coming over here.”
My eyes shuttered, and I sucked in a sharp breath before turning to face Kendall. Her expression narrowed, ablaze with fury. “Didn’t I make it clear enough yesterday? This is a no-slut zone.”
