by Chris Cannon
What was he talking about? And that’s when I got it. This morning at her locker. Somehow her comment about not sleeping last night had hit the rumor mill and been taken the wrong way. “I gave her a dog. He kept her up all night.”
“Seriously?” the guy said. “That’s just sad.”
“You’re just an asshole.” I really wanted to punch this guy, or at the very least shove him out of his chair. And I was about thirty seconds from doing that when Lisa put her hand on my arm.
“Let’s leave,” she pleaded.
I ground my teeth together in frustration. I looked at her. “I really want to punch him.”
Her face was redder than it had been before. “Can we go?”
“Your call.” I picked up my coffee and the bag with the scones and followed her to the exit.
Once we were in the truck, I said, “Are you okay?”
She nodded. “He said something stupid to embarrass me and it came out of nowhere and for the first time in my life I had no words.”
“Still want to punch him,” I said.
“That won’t accomplish anything.”
“It would make me feel better.”
She grabbed the bag with the scones. “Maybe after I eat I won’t be so mad.”
“I’ll still be mad.” I ate my scone and drank my coffee and tried to figure out what to do next.
Once she’d finished eating, she sighed. “Nope. I’m still fantasizing about having you punch him.”
“I can do that,” I said.
“No. My mom says sometimes you have to ignore the idiots of the world and move on with your own life. Let’s go buy some toys for Harry.”
“Okay.” I could go along with that plan for now. Then I’d point the guy out to Charlie and he could accidentally elbow him in the face. It was a good system. That way the guy would know it was from me, but Charlie could claim it was an accident and I had nothing to do with it. Justice would be served.
At PetSmart, Lisa perked back up. We walked up and down the aisles checking out dog toys, collars, and leashes.
Chapter Thirty-One
Lisa
“Can you go grab a cart?” I asked Matt.
“Sure.” He headed up to the front of the store. I picked up a dog toy shaped like a bunny. Watching Harry chomp on a cute furry rabbit might be mildly disturbing, so I set it down and grabbed a stuffed toy shaped like a hot dog. Much less disturbing visual.
I was trying not to think about what that guy at the coffee shop had said to me. I’d never been the object of slut-shaming before and as far as I was concerned no guy had the right to talk to a girl like that…whether she’d slept with her boyfriend or not. It was none of his or anyone else’s business.
Matt came toward me, pushing a cart. He stopped suddenly and seemed to be listening to someone off to his right. Then he turned the cart and headed in that direction.
What was going on? Had someone mistaken him for one of the employees? Maybe a little old lady was asking for help reaching the cat food on the top shelf. That was just the kind of thing Matt would do. I was thinking warm fuzzy thoughts about him when I peered around the corner and saw him talking to a certain blonde. A blonde he supposedly no longer cared about. I ducked back down the aisle and headed over to dog leashes and collars.
Why was he talking to Jane? He said he was over her. Wait. What was I thinking? He’d known her forever. I’m sure she practically thought of him as a brother. There was no reason for me to be concerned. Matt would probably tell me all about it when he brought me the cart. No need to worry.
I focused on picking out a cute leash and collar.
“There you are.” Matt came toward me with the cart.
“Took you a while,” I said. “Did you run into someone you knew?”
“No.” He picked something up out of the cart. “I was hunting down Minty’s for small dogs.”
And he’d just lied to my face. Why would he do that? There was only one reason to lie. He was still into Jane. I shouldn’t jump to conclusions. I gave him another chance.
“I thought I heard you talking to someone.”
He reached over and picked up a camo leash. “Oh, right. I bumped into Jane.”
“And you weren’t going to tell me because…” I was hoping he’d fill in the blank with an answer that wouldn’t tick me off.
“Because I was just saying hello to a friend and if it had been anyone but her I would have told you. I figured we’d had enough drama for the day.”
“Don’t lie to me again,” I said. “Even if you think the truth will upset me. I have to know that I can trust you.”
“I won’t.”
“Okay.” I grabbed a navy blue leash and collar set. “What kind of food should I get?”
“They make the same kind we buy Chevy and Ford in small dog size.” He pushed the cart and I followed along beside him, feeling a little less good about this whole situation.
By the time we checked out, I just wanted to go home and hug my dog.
Matt helped me carry everything into the house. Harry did the puppy dance of happiness, spinning in a circle, and then he made a beeline for the back door.
“Right.” I ran over and opened the door. He dashed out to the grass and did his business. “He really is a good dog. It’s kind of sad that someone loved him but couldn’t keep him.”
“He has a good home now,” Matt said. “And that’s all that matters.”
“Would you really have kept him if my mom said no?”
Matt nodded. “Absolutely. Since I can’t keep him, I think I’ll keep you instead.”
“Oh, really?”
He reached out and pulled me close. Speaking in a quiet voice, with his mouth right next to my ear, he said, “You’re cute, and small, and soft, and cuddly.” His warm breath hit my neck and my ear, sending a shiver down my spine. “And I think you should be my girlfriend.”
Rather than answering him, I turned my head and kissed him. Heat flowed between us, making it hard for me to think. This one, my hormones screamed. We want this one.
Harry barked, pulling me from the hormonal haze I’d fallen into. I blinked, looking around. Matt appeared as stunned as I was.
Harry scratched at the glass patio doors.
“He must want food,” Matt said.
I wasn’t capable of rational thoughts at the moment, so I walked over and opened the door for Harry. We followed him inside where I opened the bag of dog food and put about ten pieces in his new bowl.
It took him three point five seconds to suck down his food.
“Isn’t he supposed to chew his food?” I said to Matt, since between us he was the dog expert.
“Yeah, but I don’t think he knows that.”
Harry walked over to the counter where I’d left the PetSmart shopping bag. “Woof.”
“I think he knows that stuff in the bag is for him,” Matt said.
I walked over and pulled out the bag of long-lasting chew sticks. “You’ll have to use your teeth on these.” He sniffed the small twisted-up piece of rawhide I held out to him, chomped down on it, and trotted into the living room where he lay down under the end table.
“Now that he’s taken care of…” Matt grabbed my hand and pulled me to the couch. He kissed me, and it seemed like the most natural thing in the world. Maybe this could work out. Maybe we did belong together.
…
“I’m definitely experiencing the thank-God-it’s-Friday feeling today,” my mom said as she sat across the kitchen table, drinking her coffee with her eyes half closed.
“Me, too,” I said, because it’s what she expected to hear. Truthfully, I wasn’t sure. The days seemed to be flying by. A week from tomorrow was our three-week deadline. Matt and I hadn’t talked about that yesterday. If I didn’t bring it up, he’d probably completely ignore it.
“How are things going with Matt?”
“Good… Confusing but good.”
“Why confusing?”
�
�I don’t know. I really like him. He’s kind and protective and cute but he lied to me yesterday.” I told her about running into Jane at the pet store.
“That’s not a deal breaker,” she said, “but I don’t like it.”
I felt the need to defend him, so I told her about the jerk at the coffee shop.
“Okay…Matt’s definitely looking better. I’ve never understood why so many men have a Madonna Whore complex.”
“What does that mean?”
“Women are either sacred virgins or streetwalkers. There’s no in-between, which is ridiculous because women are people and sex is a normal part of a grown-up relationship. Some men still don’t seem to get that. And while we’re on the topic, you do know that you can talk to me about anything.”
“Yes, but can we not talk about it right now? Please. You already explained the birds and the bees so I’m good.”
“I’ll just hit the high points. You’re smart. Love can make you stupid. Never let any guy pressure you into doing anything you don’t want to. Never believe the everyone-else-is-doing-it line. You’re better off waiting until college or later. And always insist on a condom.” She grinned. “There. I think that’s it.”
“Thanks for that completely awkward breakfast conversation.”
“You’re welcome. Now you better go get in the shower.”
Once I cleaned up, I surveyed my wardrobe options. Today felt like a comfortable T-shirt and jeans kind of day. The one good thing about dating Matt is he didn’t care about what I wore. If I decided to date him…because we weren’t really dating. Then again, we weren’t really faking it anymore, either. He’d asked me to be his girlfriend yesterday. I hadn’t answered him but I had kissed him. Did he think that meant he was my boyfriend? Why was this dating stuff so complicated? I swear I could feel a brain cramp coming on.
Whatever it was that we were doing, he knew me already and had seen me with makeup and without and he didn’t really distinguish between the two styles. That was a bonus.
Some girls wore makeup all the time. That was their choice. If it made them happy then I didn’t think people should comment on it. I preferred the more relaxed approach. I didn’t feel like putting that much effort into my face for a normal school day so I went with my light pink lip gloss and a messy bun.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Matt
I woke up on Friday in a good mood. Lisa hadn’t officially answered me when I asked her to be my girlfriend, but she hadn’t said no, either. Things were moving in the right direction. I just couldn’t mess up again like I had when I’d lied to her about talking to Jane. No more keeping the truth from her. Not that I made a habit of it, but little white lies seemed to be better than hurting someone’s feelings. Especially if the truth wouldn’t change anything.
After breakfast I checked the time on my cell. I could pick Lisa up for school if she wanted a ride. Would that be weird? West gave Nina a ride to school every day. As Lisa would say, it was a couple-y thing to do, so I called her.
“Hey,” she said. “I was just about to get into my car. What’s up?”
“That’s why I’m calling. Do you want me to come get you? We could ride to school together.”
“Oh…”
She hesitated a little too long. My neck muscles tensed up. “Never mind,” I said. “I’ll see you there.”
“No. Wait. Nina and I were heading to the bookstore after school, so that will work. I just need to text my mom, so she doesn’t wonder why my car is still here.”
“Cool. I’ll be there in a few minutes.” And I could relax again.
I drove across town, wondering what West and I would do while Nina and Lisa did their book thing. We’d figure something out. Lisa was smiling when I picked her up.
“Good morning,” I said.
“Morning.” She climbed in and buckled up. “Do you know what today is?”
“Friday?” I hoped she wasn’t going to bring up our deal because as far as I was concerned we weren’t playing that game anymore.
“Well yes, but it’s also buy-a-book-from-the-clearance-section-and-get-one-free day.”
“Do we need to fix up your bookshelf so it can hold more weight?” I asked.
“Maybe.” She grinned. “I like that you don’t judge me for my book habit.”
“As long as you don’t expect me to read them, too, we’re good.”
“You know…Nina and West read together.”
“I hope that’s not a deal breaker,” I said, “because it’s not happening.”
“That’s okay. People need to have separate interests.”
“We should meet up after the bookstore like before when you ran into us at The Slicery.”
“That sounds good.”
I hit every green light on the drive to school. I decided to take that as a good sign. The school parking lot was crowded, but I found a spot up front because someone was pulling out. Another good omen.
“You seem happier than usual today,” Lisa said as we walked across the parking lot, holding hands.
“Things seem to be falling into place.” I squeezed her hand but didn’t say anything else at the risk of freaking her out.
When we reached the lockers, Nina and West were there like normal. Not so normal was the addition of Jane pacing in front of my locker with a worried expression on her face.
“Hey, Matt. I hoped I could talk to you before school,” Jane said.
I dropped Lisa’s hand and moved closer to Jane. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes. It’s just that I have this plan and it’s a good plan but no one else seems to agree.” She reached out and grabbed my hand. “And I was hoping I could count on you.”
“Sure.” I liked that she thought she could count on me. “Whatever you need.”
Someone cleared her throat behind me. I turned to see Lisa looking less than pleased.
Crap. I pulled my hand away from Jane’s.
“Did I suddenly become invisible?” Lisa asked.
“What? No. I could tell Jane needed help with something.”
“Sorry,” Jane said. “Do you mind if I steal your boyfriend for a few minutes?”
“I might mind.” Lisa crossed her arms over her chest. “What did you need to talk to him about and why don’t you want me to hear it?”
“Oh.” Jane blushed. “No, it’s not that I didn’t want you to know. I didn’t really think about you…and now this is awkward, isn’t it? Anyway, I want to throw a surprise party for Haley next weekend, and I need Matt’s help to make it work. I can pay you in cupcakes.”
I looked at Lisa. “Jane makes amazing cupcakes. Want to help me help Jane throw a party for my sister?”
“What’s the party for?” Lisa asked.
“Her birthday is next month, but I know she’ll be expecting a party then so I wanted to surprise her,” Jane said, like that made total sense.
“So it’s a surprise-because-it’s-not-your-birthday surprise party?” Lisa said.
“Yes.” Jane bounced.
“Please don’t encourage her.” Nathan, Jane’s perfect boyfriend, came walking toward us.
“You don’t know what I’m doing,” Jane said.
“You bounced. It’s a dead giveaway.” Nathan came up and put his arm around her. “We discussed this. Bryce wants to throw her a surprise party.”
“Yes,” Jane said. “On her actual birthday. This one is early so it’s not the same. Right?” She looked at me to back her up.
“Umm,” Lisa said. “I’m not sure your logic makes sense.”
I laughed. “It’s Jane logic so in Jane’s universe it makes perfect sense.”
“Exactly,” Jane said.
Lisa backed up a step. “So what you’re saying is the universe revolves around Jane.”
Shit. “No.”
At the same time, Nathan said, “Yes.”
Jane beamed at Nathan. “If that’s true then shouldn’t you agree to help me?”
“I walked rig
ht into that one, didn’t I?” Nathan said. “Come on. You can tell me what you want to do and I’ll pretend it’s a great idea.”
“Thank you.” Jane bounced and then grinned at me. “See you guys later.”
“See you,” I said.
Once they were far enough away that they couldn’t hear us, I turned to Lisa. “So, that was kind of funny.”
“Not the word I’d use to describe it,” she said.
“Oh come on, you can’t be mad that she asked me to help her plan a party for my sister.”
“Do you remember when we were walking down the hall holding hands, you were all happy about maybe being my boyfriend and then you spotted her and dropped my hand like it was covered in slime?”
“Okay…maybe that’s how it felt but that’s not how I meant it. I could tell she needed me.”
“You practically glowed when she said that crap about knowing she could count on you.”
“What’s wrong with that? I’m happy she thinks I’m a dependable guy.”
“Because that makes you seem more datable?” Lisa arched an eyebrow at me.
“No.” How do I reel this situation back in?
“You know what? Maybe your universe does still revolve around her.”
“No, it doesn’t. Understanding her quirky logic doesn’t mean I want to be with her.”
“Please,” Lisa said. “If she’d come to tell you that she’d broken things off with Nathan, you would have welcomed her with open arms.”
“I appreciate the jealousy, but you don’t have anything to worry about.” How could she not understand?
“Jealous? You think I’m jealous?” Lisa grabbed my arm and dragged me toward a less crowded area of the hall. “I’m angry, you idiot. I’m angry because you lied. You said you wanted me. The only reason you want me is because she isn’t available. I deserve better than that. I deserve someone who picks me as their first choice.”
The bell sounded for homeroom and Lisa walked away muttering to herself. I stood there, trying to figure out how my life had gone to hell in the last fifteen minutes. Was I never supposed to talk to Jane again? That seemed unrealistic. She was my sister’s best friend. She was around all the time.