Faelorehn - Book One of the Otherworld Trilogy
Page 17
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That entire week consisted of me gradually convincing myself that learning about Cade’s girlfriend was a good thing and that my broken heart would mend within the month. But as each day passed, I yearned to see him, or simply get a note from him. I wanted an explanation of who the woman was, even though I already knew. I wanted to hear it from Cade. And besides, I had taken off that day without ever letting him know I had been there in the clearing. Surely he was just as curious as I. Didn’t he want to know why I never showed up? I squashed that thought right away. He doesn’t feel the same way about you Meghan. After that fight with his girlfriend, he probably forgot all about you.
“What’s been up with you lately? You’re not sick again, are you?” Tully asked around a mouthful of tuna salad sandwich.
“Huh?” I blurted, snapping out of my daze. I sighed, twirling my cold spaghetti salad with my fork. “Oh. Nothing. I’m fine.” I tried a smile, but it felt very foreign to me.
Robyn stared at me. “Nothing? Are you serious? You’ve been walking around as if you are living in a different dimension all week!”
I cringed. If she only knew how accurate she was . . .
“Just ready for summer, that’s all.”
“Most people who are ready for summer are antsy. Hyped up and talking about the beach and the lake,” Will commented as he polished off a soda.
“You’re acting as if . . .” Robyn trailed off and her eyes grew wide. “Meghan, you’re acting as if you’ve got it bad for some guy! Is it Clay again?”
The blush that flooded my face responded automatically and completely without my permission.
“Who’s Clay?” Thomas asked.
“Meghan? Is this why you’ve been acting so distant for the past month?” Tully asked gently.
I had totally forgotten about the fabricated Clay, but I wasn’t in the mood to talk about any guy, invented or real.
“No!” I said in response to my friends’ questions. I scooped up the remains of my lunch and headed towards the closest trash can. “There’s no one!”
After getting rid of my lunch, I merely walked away, leaving my four friends to gawk after me in shock. I didn’t want to talk to them about Cade. How would I explain everything to them without sounding like I’d finally gone off the deep end? I was so glad that I wouldn’t be seeing them for the rest of the day and that it was a Friday. I could use the weekend to recover my bearings and maybe come up with some excuse or story to tell them.
I had been avoiding the swamp all week, but today I decided it was best if I take the back way home and take my chances. If Tully and Robyn couldn’t find me in the parking lot after school, then they couldn’t force me to talk about Cade.