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I roll my eyes. I’m trying to act casual as we walk along the brick sidewalk, but it’s a challenge to pretend like this is anything normal.
Hanging out with Caleb is bizarre enough, but the last few years of animosity have established some familiarity between us. I can’t recall the last time I spoke to Jake Barnes. The only time I’ve talked to Colt Adams was when he approached me at Marcus’s party. And Luke Evans barely bothered to acknowledge my existence when he stopped to talk to Will after the basketball game.
Even before my family drama made me the school pariah, these were never people I was friendly with. Walking down the sidewalk now, it feels like I’ve stumbled into some bizarre alternate reality where I’m friends with four of the most revered guys in school. It’s a jarring shift compared to the infamous solitude I settled into freshman year.
The movie theater is bustling with activity when we enter it. It’s a dreary, overcast day, and there are few forms of entertainment in town during the winter months to begin with. The cinema is connected to an arcade and a diner, making it a popular spot for everyone to congregate.
After we buy tickets for a spy thriller, the guys all decide to buy snacks from the concession stand. I stay in the lobby, claiming I ate lunch just before Gramps and I went shopping. In reality, I don’t have any money to spend on overpriced candy.
Leaning against a wall watching others buy their tickets gets old fast, so I wander into the arcade area. I haven’t been in here since middle school. I’m surprised by how nostalgic I feel looking around at the flashing lights and listening to automated trills. The air hockey table was always my favorite, and it’s empty right now. I send the puck flying into the opponent’s goal for old time’s sake.
“Lennon?” I turn to see Will standing a few feet away, with Marcus Freedman beside him.
“Hi, Will,” I greet. “Marcus. How’s it going?”
“Not bad,” Will replies, giving me his usual friendly smile, then glancing at the table behind me. “You’re playing some air-less air hockey?”
I smile. “Yeah, I guess I am.”
“Are you here with Cassie, or…”
“Oh. I, uh, I—” I stammer and stall, trying to figure out how to respond. Will may be nice enough to pretend otherwise, but I know he’s aware I’m barely perched on the first rung of Landry High’s social ladder. There’s no easy explanation for why I’m here with those comfortably situated at the top. Mostly because I don’t understand it myself.
“Thought you were staying in the lobby, Matthews.” Caleb’s voice joins the conversation.
“I got bored,” I reply, internally cringing as I see Will’s wide eyes bounce back and forth between the two of us. Marcus looks shocked, too. “I’ll see you guys around.” I shoot Will a small smile, then turn to head back to the lobby.
“Masterson’s into you,” Caleb comments, falling into step beside me.
“Maybe.”
A warm hand encircles my wrist, tugging me to a stop. I face Caleb, raising an eyebrow. His throat bobs with a swallow. “Lennon…”
“We thought you left.” Jake approaches, Colt and Luke right behind him. Caleb’s hand drops, releasing mine.
I figured Jake was addressing Caleb, but his gaze is on me. “I just walked into the arcade.”
“Thank God,” Luke mutters.
I glance at him, confused. “If I wanted to leave, I would have,” I reply. “It’s not like Caleb would have bothered to stop me.”
Colt looks highly amused by my response for some reason. “Good luck, Winters.”
Caleb rolls his eyes. “I wouldn’t have invited you if I didn’t want you to come, Matthews. Hurry up.” He starts down the carpeted hallway that’s lined with movie posters and smells strongly of buttered popcorn.
“Winters is weird about missing the previews,” Luke informs me as we all struggle to keep up with Caleb’s brisk strides. “God forbid we just arrive on time for the movie we actually came to see. We have to be embarrassingly early, like we’re here for the senior discount special.”
“Yeah, he would watch movie trailers in History last year.” The words are out before I’ve thought them through, and Colt gives me a weird look.
I’m just as confused.Why do I know that? Why did I remember that?
Despite Luke’s complaints, the movie theater is already close to full when we enter the dark auditorium. I follow the guys to the top row of the stadium-style seating.
“Nice of you to finally join us.” Caleb smirks. I flip him off. I reached the top of the stairs only a few seconds after he did.
“Ladies first,” Jake says, holding his arm out like a game show host presenting the winning prize. Only instead of a brand-new car, I receive the gift of having to shuffle past all four of them down the row.
There’s some whispering at the top of the stairs, and then Caleb is the one who walks down the row and takes the seat next to me.
