Page 12 of Just Say When

“What did you write about?” Essie asked, falling into step with me as we exited the classroom.

“My cellphone, of course. It’s the most useful thing I own. Did anyonenotsay they would save their cellphone?”

She looked up at me. As ever, it was a sucker punch. Cornflower blue eyes and that cherry red lipstick she always wore. Looking at her face was like looking directly at the sun. It burned. The shape of that red mouth was branded onto the back of my eyelids even after I looked away.

“I didn’t,” she said.

We paused at her locker to deposit our books. She grabbed her brown bag lunch, which I knew would contain a baloney sandwich and an apple, like always. Essie hated baloney, but it was cheap, so that’s what they got. She usually ended up giving her sandwich to Jack, whose stomach was a bottomless pit. It all worked out, since my lunch was always more than I needed and I could share with her.

“What did you save?” I asked.

“The matchbooks. From my dad.”

She didn’t have to explain. Essie’s dad was some rich kid who knocked up Cat Price when he was in Aspen Springs during a family vacation. They had both been sixteen, so maybe I couldn’t blame him for being a little shit back then and running away from his responsibilities. But instead of growing the fuck up, he had become an even bigger shit. He dropped in every year or so and brought Essie and Jack a matchbook—a souvenir from his travels that he seemed to think made him more interesting than anyone else in the room.

He was a dick.

And Essie knew that. She’d said it herself multiple times. But still, that was the thing she’d save. I couldn’t make sense of that.

I shook my head. “The house is on fire and you’re running around with matches? Smart.”

“It’shypothetical.” She rolled her eyes. “It’s not about proving how smart you are. It’s about who you are deep down. What is the most important thing in the world to you, the one thing you would risk your life for?”

I pulled my phone from my pocket and caressed it lovingly. “Shhh, baby. Don’t listen to her. You’re the love of my life. Smartandbeautiful.”

Essie smirked and slapped her locker shut with a loud bang. “That’s where you stash your porn, isn’t it.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” I deadpanned. “That’s what my laptop is for.”

She punched me lightly in the ribs and I laughed. Essie’s affection was always a little violent. I didn’t mind it.

Her quick pace slowed as we approached the cafeteria. Her gaze darted left and then right and I knew—I fuckingknew—she was looking for teachers. Essie hated school. For one thing, it was inside. For another, there were no horses. If Jack were here with us, she wouldn’t even try to escape. But it was Tuesday, and Jack had JROTC on Tuesdays. Which meant that the only thing standing between Essie and freedom was me, which was pretty much the same thing as nothing at all.

She knew I was a sucker.

“Let’s ditch.” She tugged my elbow.

I stood stock still, putting up a fight as if we didn’t both already know how this would end. “I promised your brother.”

Her eyes narrowed. “You promised Jack what?”

“I promised him I’d make sure you got to all your classes.”

“Well, that was dumb, Brax. Because it wasn’t your promise to make. You’re not the boss of me.” That was unfortunately true. “And also because you shouldn’t make promises you know you won’t keep.”

“I’m keeping my promise right now,” I protested, hoping that she wouldn’t make a liar out of me. That for once in her life, she’d cave first.

Instead, she leaned into my side, rubbing her temple against my shoulder like a cat. “But it’s never just the two of us. You’remybest friend, too, right? Not just Jack’s?”

Jesus fucking Christ, this girl. I never stood a chance.

“Of course I’m your friend?—”

“Best friend,” she insisted.

“Best friend,” I grunted. I felt some kind of way about that, but I wasn’t going to examine it. This was how it had to be. We were friends. Best friends. Like I was with Jack. Even if it felt a little different when we were all hanging out at the lake, with her in a bikini.

I looked down at her and found her staring back atme with pleading blue eyes from underneath that dark fringe of lashes. Fuck.

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