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Clint: Where were you?
Me: Kira’s for Homecoming stuff.
Clint: Your mom’s working?
Me: When is she not?
Clint: True, true. We’re at Marky’s house. Want us to swing by and pick you up?
Me: Sure.
I must’ve made a sound because Theresa asked, “What?”
I typed as I replied, “Clint has already started drinking. He’s with some of his baseball friends.”
Theresa grinned. “Clint is funny when he’s drunk. Also, he’s funny to watch with you. You have your own language.”
I paused mid-type. “We do?”
She nodded. “Oh yeah. It drives Kira nuts.”
“How would she know?”
“Everyone knows. The first day you showed up, you were big news. You have no idea how big.”
My phone buzzed again, but I let us inside before putting my quesadilla on the counter and reading it.
Clint: We’ll pick you up in an hour. PJ is driving.
Me: DON’T FORGET
Clint: NEVER!
“We’ve got an hour. They’re going to pick us up.”
“So . . .”
I looked up.
Theresa looked concerned as she set her food next to mine. “We’re, like, actually going to the game with your cousin and then the party afterward?” I’d filled her in on the way over.
“Yeah. Is that okay? We’ll get home. I promise. Clint or Alex or Trenton will make sure we’re good.”
She reached for her phone and began typing. “Could we crash here tonight then? Me and Gem?”
“That’d be fun actually. I’ll let my mom know, but she won’t care.”
“Speaking of your mom, wine?”
I laughed and went to find it. I gave both of us a full glass. Then, I sat down and began unwrapping my quesadilla.
“God. I love you.” Theresa took a sip of the wine first.
My phone buzzed again.
Scout: Answer?
Oh, shit.
We’d not talked since our shower, which was fine with me. Even in study hall, we’d stayed away from each other. It felt right. I mean, there was always the pull for him, but that mixed with the push away when he began talking and I’d been emotionally exhausted from everything. It’d been easier to stay away, but now, he was texting and seeking me out, and I was remembering how nice it felt with him.
I’d started texting him back when there was a knock at the door.
“Yo . . .” Scout just walked in, but he trailed off, seeing Theresa at my counter.
I grimaced, holding up my phone. “I was just texting you back.”
He hit the door closed behind him. “Garcia.”
“Hi.” She looked between us.
He walked past us to the fridge and opened it.
She looked my way, her eyebrows going up.
I ignored her. “Sure. Make yourself at home.”
He ignored me, pulling out a water. He stood on the other side of the counter, pulled my food over to him, and took a bite of my quesadilla.
“Hey!”
He watched me while he ate the food. He reached for more.
I batted away his hand. “Stop. That’s my food.”
He shrugged me away, pulling my food more firmly in front of him, getting comfortable. “Garcia. What’s up with you and Kunz?”
I was distracted now and wanted to know, too, but, gah. My stomach was growling. Slipping off my stool, I got another plate and put half of my food on it. I slid that in front of Scout before taking the rest away .
He transitioned to eating that instead.
“I . . .” Theresa shook her head. “Right. Uh, nothing. We’re on a break right now. Had a fight. The usual.”
I didn’t know what the usual meant, and was just going to ask.
“Until he wants to fuck and gives you a call?” Scout narrowed his eyes.
Theresa choked on a sip of wine. Pressing a hand to her mouth, she wiped it clean. “I . . . how’s that your business?”
His eyes slid my way. “You chose him over her. She’s my best friend’s cousin. I’m making it my business.”
She choked out a sound, her head folding in. “I—we’re off, and with all due respect, fuck off about it. I’ve apologized to Ramsay about that. And again, Kunz and I are done. He’s an asshole.”
“But you like screwing him.”
Her mouth flattened. “Fuck. Off.”
He kept eating, kept watching her with the same impartial expression. Then his eyes slid my way. “Your cousins are only half badass since you came to school.”
“What?” I reared back. “You’re starting on me now?”
He stopped eating, now fully focused on me. “Rice is gone. We don’t need to worry about him anymore, but what about your ex? What if he comes here? How are your cousins going to handle that?”
“We’ll be lucky if they don’t kill him,” I said back frostily. “They’re not half badass since I’ve come to school. You’re trying to piss me off.”
His eyes narrowed.
What was he doing?
He said, “You interfered once. That messed them up.”
I glared at him. “No. What messed them up was you threatening me. You did that. Not me. Don’t put that shit on me.”
