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“This is all your fault!” Zara cried.
“My fault? You’re the one who won’t stop antagonizing him!” Dean snapped.
“Well you’re the one who keeps bringing it up!”
Jesse broke into a run, accidentally pulling Raina along with him. “What’s going on here?” he demanded, throwing open the common room door. He glared at Dean and Zara, who were standing by the fire with their arms crossed, and then looked to Theo, who was sitting on the ground staring blankly at his phone. “What happened?”
Zara shot a scathing glare at her brother. “Ask him,” she spat. “He’s the one who tattled to Uncle Alex.”
“I told you, I didn’t do anything!” Dean protested, throwing his hands up. “You were being so obvious about it, it’s no surprise he found out!”
“Found out about what?” Raina asked quietly, but none of the Ashcrofts answered.
“Are we talking about Zara’s girlfriend?” Jesse asked. Zara nodded. “Great. Now why is Theo sitting on the floor looking like someone killed his puppy?”
The twins exchanged guilty glances.
“Well—”
“Um—”
Theo looked up from his phone, his eyes suspiciously red. “My dad canceled family dinner.”
ChapterTwenty
Raina followed Gracie up the steps, catching her friend’s hand in her own. They’d gone upstairs to give the cousins some space.
“I’m a little confused,” she said as they walked into their dorm, keeping her voice low. Annalisse had her curtains drawn, and if she was sleeping, Raina didn’t want to accidentally wake her. She continued whispering as she pulled her dress over her head, exchanging it for comfy pajamas. “I thought Theo was at odds with his dad?”
Gracie winced, sitting down on Raina’s bed and propping herself up against a throw pillow. “It’s a bit complicated. Out of all the Ashcrofts, I think Theo and his mom are the only ones with an actual relationship. Jesse’s parents are never home, Dean and Zara’s mother isn’t much of a mom, and Theo’s dad—Vice Principal Ashcroft—is focused on his job, so he isn’t home much either. But Theo still wants a relationship with his dad, because who doesn’t? I feel bad for him; his dad doesn’t seem like the greatest person, and from what Dean’s said, he’s let Theo down a lot. I don’t blame Theo for being upset.”
Raina nodded, reaching down to slip her borrowed heels off. Straightening, she caught a glimpse of a light coming from Annalisse’s corner. It distracted her momentarily before she returned her attention to Gracie. “I don’t know him well. He’s one of those people you’re friends with because of mutual friends.”
“I get that. He’s pretty great, though. Musical theater obsessed and will often randomly burst into song. He’ll do anything to help a friend, but he’s not good at accepting help himself.”
“Who are you talking about?” Zara asked, entering the dorm room with her bag clutched in one hand. She dropped it on the floor and yanked her ponytail out of her auburn curls.
“Theo,” Raina and Gracie said at once.
Raina eyed Zara carefully. Was she still fuming from the argument downstairs?
“Ahh. He’s been a bit off lately, don’t you think?”
“Okay, you know it’s serious if Zara notices something,” Gracie declared, running a hand through her hair.
“Hey, I notice things!” Zara protested.
Raina left Gracie to scoff at their friend, instead drifting over to Annalisse’s bed. She poked at the curtains, moving them enough to let Annalisse know someone was trying to get her attention. Sure enough, Annalisse’s head peaked out a moment later.
“Raina. Want to join me in my lair?”
Raina had to laugh at that. “Sure.”
She crawled through the curtains, settling herself cross-legged on the animal print bedspread. Annalisse glanced up as Raina entered, smiling at her roommate. Her eyes had the same drowsy look Gracie’s got when she was reading a good book.
“What’s up?” Annalisse asked, tucking a bookmark into her paperback.
Raina shrugged. “I wanted to come say hi, I guess. I know we’ve been roommates for like half a year, but I feel like we don’t know each other super well. Um, I’ve been realizing I kinda boxed myself into a corner, and I want to change that.”
