Page 47 of Every Broken Thing

Right.

Except Ben had never once shown an ounce of bigotry. And between the two of us,hewas the one always touching me.

“Silas, are we going?” Jordan roused me from my thoughts, and I unlocked my truck and climbed inside.

As I pulled out of the parking lot, Jordan cranked down his window and pulled a pre-rolled joint from his coat pocket.

“Dude!” I snapped my fingers at him. “Uh-uh. If my Dad smells that, I’m dead.”

He gestured to the window. “I’ll blow the smoke outside.”

“No.”

“I’ll let you take a hit,” he sang, and I laughed.

“Tempting, but no.”

With a grumble, he put the joint away and pulled out his phone. “So you and Ben, huh?” he asked as he typed away on his screen.

“The fuck?” The truck swerved, and I straightened out as Jordan grabbed at the Oh Shit handle. “No. Not me and Ben.”

“Seriously?”

I gaped at him.

He shook his head. “Why? He’s super into you.”

A rather manic laugh scraped my throat. “Are you high?”

“I wanted to be!” he said pointing at his coat pocket. “Are you? Because you’d have to be stoned or stupid not to see it. And last time I checked, you’re not stupid.”

“He’s straight,” I said.

“How do you know?”

“Because I just do.” I scowled, sending him a scathing glare as I idled at a red light. “And why is it any of your business?”

“Okay. Whatever, man. I’m just saying, the way he looks at you…” His hands pantomimed vaguely. “I don’t think straight guys look at other guys like that.”

“He doesn’t look at me like anything,” I said, refusing to let hope take root.

Jordan’s gaze weighed heavily on my profile as I drove, but he was smart enough to drop the subject with a doubtful, “Sure.”

The rest of the drive passed in silence as I ignored the dangerous want digging its claws into my chest. Ben was my friend, and even if he wasn’t straight—which he was, because he would’ve told me if he wasn’t—why would he ever like me? I was nobody.

The after party at the drive-in was a little awkward as the two groups, that wouldn’t normally coexist, merged. Ronnie and Jordan got on immediately, but Esther stayed glued to Ronnie’s side, not really entering into conversation unless it was to speak quietly with Ben. Harris and Kim were trapped in a tense debate about abortion, and Caroline paid more attention to her phone than to us.

I’d left the spot between me and Kim open for Ben, but when he’d arrived, he’d bypassed it for the seat across from me beside Esther. The seating arrangement shouldn’t have mattered, but the snub, unintentional or not, hurt. Which was so stupid. It was a free country, and he could sit wherever he wanted.

Apparently, that logic didn’t stop me from glaring at the empty seat beside me like I expected the wood to warp under the heat.

This was all Jordan’s fault, I eventually decided, and I started glaring at him instead. He didn’t notice.

“So, who’s going Black Friday shopping?” Caroline asked as she finally tucked her phone away.

“We’re going to the mall at midnight.” Ronnie nudged Esther. “I still don’t know how I’m the only one out of the three of us excited about this.”

“Probably because that sounds like a nightmare,” I offered, and Ben snorted into his hot-fudge shake.

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