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“Almost everyone gets a headache in math,” she says. “Mr. J. is so monotonous.”
“He really is,” I agree. “I swear I even saw him fall asleep for a second while he was giving his own lecture.”
“Oh, he did that once already.” She laughs. “Literally, he let out this snort then woke himself up. It was so funny.”
I laugh. “Really?
“Yep.” She grins. “Anyway, I wanted to apologize for not giving you a ride to school. I totally spaced off this appointment I had.”
“You’re fine,” I assure her as we head in what I hope is the direction of my locker—I’m still trying to get my bearings here. “You didn’t owe me a ride or anything.”
“I know, but I told you I would, so now I feel bad. Next time, I won’t blow you off, I swear.” She brushes a wisp of hair out of her eyes. “So, totally off the subject, but I heard a rumor about you today.”
Tension zaps through my body, and I nearly trip over my own feet. “What? What’d you hear?”
She gives me a sneaky smile. “That the one and only Jaxon Capperellie was super friendly with you this morning. He even walked you to class, which is kind of weird ’cause I thought you and my brother had a thing going.”
I can’t tell you how relieved I am to hear her say that. For a second, I thought she was going to tell me she heard I was a murderer.
“Both of them have been nice to me, but we’re just friends.” Sort of. Honestly, I don’t know what we are. Colleagues? Yeah, I can’t tell her that. “Jax didn’t walk me to class, though. He had the same class as me, so we walked in together.”
“It’s still weird.”
“Why?”
“Because Jax barely speaks to anyone besides Hunter and Zay, let alone go to class with someone.”
I wish I could tell her that the only reason he’s hanging out with me is because I agreed to help them spy on my aunt and uncle, but I’m unsure if she’s supposed to know that. Probably.
“Well, to be fair, I think he only did it because we rode to school together, and we had the same class first period, so he offered to show me where it was.” I slow to a stop at my locker, giving myself a pat on the back for being able to find it.
She slants against the locker beside mine with her arms crossed. “It’s still super weird. In fact, I think the last time he even paid attention to a girl was Lana.”
I spin the combination to my locker. “Who’s Lana?”
“The only girl he’s ever dated. They broke up a while ago, and he hasn’t dated anyone since. I think everyone assumed he was still in love with her. Now, though …”
This Lana girl must be the same girl in the hallway that Jax ran from, I’m guessing. “Now, though, what?”
She gives me an insinuating look, but it takes me a moment to catch on.
“Wait—do people think Jax and I are dating?” I ask, taken aback.
“Not everyone,” she stresses. “But I’ve heard a couple of people talking about it.”
I open my locker. “Just because we went to class together?”
She lifts her shoulder. “Call it the perks of a small town. And being friends with my brother and his friends.”
“Yeah, about that …” I put my bag into my locker then shut it. “What’s the deal with Hunter, Zay, and Jax? I mean, Katy basically corners me yesterday to tell me they’re scary, but they don’t seem scary to me. In fact, they’ve been nice. And everyone stared at us this morning when I walked down the hallway with Hunter and Jax.”
“Well, personally, I don’t find them scary, but they’ve done some stuff that’s given them a reputation. It’s for a good reason.” She presses her lips together, almost seeming frightened.
“What is it?” I wonder.
She rubs her lips together, contemplating. “Has Hunter or Jax told you much about this town and the families who run it?”
“Families who run it?”What?
