Page 31 of Beg, Borrow, or Steal

I don’t say anything as Emily silently replaces her phone in her back pocket and takes a few seconds, just staring out at nothing.Her shoulders rise and fall rapidly like she’s trying not to cry, and then she takes one final large breath and turns as she lets it out. A fake smile put right back in place.

“Was that Maddie?” I ask even though I already know the answer.

“Sure was,” she says in a chipper tone that grates on me.

“Is she on her way?”

Emily blinks several times—obviously trying to keep tears from building. “She had an important opportunity come up in New York and can’t make it home after all.” She bends to pick up each of her packages, and when I start to help she snaps at me. “I’ve got them.”

“Emily…are you okay? I know you were excited—”

“Stop,” she barks. “You don’t know me. I am perfectly fine. Everything is justfine.”

Emily walks away and I don’t try to stop her. In the past, I would use this encounter as another reason to keep hating her. To feed this animosity with unrelenting energy. We’ve had more than ten years of this cycle—so of course it’s easy to slip right back into. But the smile she gave me in the truck surfaces in my mind again, and suddenly, chasing this old feud doesn’t seem nearly as appealing as chasing that smile.

10 years ago

FROM: Jack Bennett

TO: Emily Walker

DATE: Tue, Dec 9 9:45 PM

SUBJECT: Library

Did you two just break up?

FROM: Emily Walker

TO: Jack Bennett

DATE: Tue, Dec 9 9:47 PM

SUBJECT: Library

What? No. He just left to go to bed.

Why the hell are you still here? Don’t you need to go home and polish your horns before a fresh day of terrorizing tomorrow?

FROM: Jack Bennett

TO: Emily Walker

DATE: Tue, Dec 9 9:49 PM

SUBJECT: Library

I just couldn’t think of another reason why he’d leave you alone in the library fifteen minutes before closing late at night if not because you broke up. But I guess it’s just because he’s an idiot.

I’m still here because I’m studying for the same test as you—the one I plan to score higher on than you.

(My hornsarelooking dull. What polish do you usually use for yours?)

FROM: Emily Walker

TO: Jack Bennett

DATE: Tue, Dec 9 9:58 PM

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