Page 131 of More To Us

I tell them about Kira's accident and her secret workouts and how she lied to me and made me part of her plan without even telling me, and how I'm worried I hurt her and how pissed I am about that. I leave out her lie about Amber. That'll come next.

"So she really thinks she can compete again?" Van asks. "Isn't she kind of old for that? Aren't most gymnasts like 15 or 16?"

"I don't know, but her age doesn't matter. After what she did to her leg, she'll never compete again, but she refuses to accept that."

"And you refuse to date her because she lied to you," Dylan says. "I get it, man. Honesty is everything. If you can't trust a girl, it'll never last."

"It wasn't just one lie. It was several."

"What else did she lie about?" Dylan asks, then takes a swig of his beer.

"She didn't tell me something. Something she should've told me as soon as she found out you and I are friends. And definitely after she heard your song."

"What does his song have to do with it?" Van asks.

I keep my eyes on Dylan. "Kira's roommate, and best friend, is Amber."

The room goes silent.

Van looks at me, then at Dylan, then back at me. "I don't get it. We already know her friend's name is Amber. You've talked about her."

"He means MY Amber," Dylan mutters, setting his beer bottle down on the table.

"No shit?" Van jumps to the edge of the couch, spilling some of his beer. "Her roommate is THE Amber? I thought she moved to New York."

"It was a lie," I say. "Amber told Dylan she was moving to New York because she didn't want him to try to go out with her."

"Why?" Dylan asks in a voice so low I could barely hear him. "Why wouldn't she want to go out with me? I thought we..." His voice trails off, his eyes glazed over.

"Van, can you give us a minute?" I say.

"But I want to hear this."

"Then Dylan can tell you later."

"Go," Dylan says to him.

Van huffs. "I thought we were friends."

"We are," I tell him. "But sometimes your comments aren't very helpful."

"Whatever," he says, taking his beer and going into the kitchen.

Van's a good friend but he's not the best person to have around in serious situations. He tends to make jokes to lighten the mood, but that's not always a good thing. Dylan is angry and hurt and probably confused right now as he tries to process this, and he doesn't need Van making stupid comments.

"So Kira just told you this?" Dylan asks. "Why now?"

"Kira didn't tell me. Amber did. Amber thought I already knew and when she found out I didn't, she'd already said too much. So she told me."

"And she said she never wanted to see me again?" He leans forward, resting his forearms on his knees as he stares at the floor. "So that night meant nothing to her. It was just a one-night stand. And she must've hated it if she made up some elaborate story to make sure she'd never have to talk to me again."

"No. Dylan, that's not it at all. It's the opposite. I know this sounds crazy and I still don't understand it, but Amber told me she didn't want to see you again because she didn't want to ruin the memory of that night. She didn't want to date you, then have it not work out, and have it change how she remembers that night. Like I said, I don't understand it. Those were her words, not mine."

He picks up his beer bottle and holds it but doesn't drink it. "What did she say about that night?"

"That it was the best night of her life."

He drops the beer bottle on the brown shag carpet and quickly picks it up. "She really said that?"

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