Page 125 of Sincerely, Your Enemy

Lacey

About what?

I keep my gaze fixated on my phone, waiting for a response. Thankfully, he sees the message right away. The three moving dots pop up on my screen, making the wait that much more nerve-racking.

I see him type out a message and then erase it over three times.What the hell is he going to say?

His answer comes through a few minutes later, the words staring back at me throwing me for a loop.

Aaron

You need to be careful with TJ.

To saythe rest of the day elapses at a painfully slow pace would be the understatement of the century.

Aaron’s text didn’t only ruin my day, it ruined my time with my stepdad, and that’s what bothers me the most.

Okay, maybe it didn’t completelyruinmy time with Daniel, but the thought lingered in the back of my mind throughout the entire day. Especially since he didn’t text me back after I asked him to elaborate on his last message.

I’m glad Daniel and I got to spend the afternoon together. We laughed, looked at photo albums from my childhood, and listened to Oli and Sierra playfully roast the hideous outfits my mom put on me, and then we cooked a nice dinner while updating each other on our lives—I even told him I’d met someone, although I didn’t go into too much detail.

I just wish I hadn’t had this annoying pit in my stomach the entire time.

What did Aaron mean? Why would I need to be careful about TJ?

Could it have something to do with that time I saw them arguing at a party? I’ve been driving myself insane trying to make sense of it.

I get in my car fifteen minutes after my shift at the café ended. I promised Dia I’d drop by her and Finn’s place to get ready together before the party, and I packed a bag with my bathing suit and a pair of jean shorts. I didn’t have time to shop, but Dia said she found a few hideous Hawaiian shirts at a thrift store by her place and that I could borrow one.

My stomach twists into a knot, which grows tighter and tighter the more miles I cover. It’s as though I’m trying to mentally prepare for whatever is waiting for me once I get to that party.

I pull into one of the visitor parking spots next to Dia’s apartment complex a few minutes later. I inhale and exhale a deep breath, squeezing my eyes shut and focusing on quieting my inner turmoil.

That’s when my phone pings with a text.

From Aaron.

I’m hesitant to check it at first, but my curiosity eventually overpowers my fears.

Lacey

What are you talking about?

Aaron

There’s something you should know.

TJ

One thingI hate about having a girlfriend?

Having to learn to cope with missing someone basically every hour of every day.

I saw Lacey just yesterday. We spent the entire evening together. So why does it feel like it’s been fucking ages since I got to hold her?

She texted me that she was stopping by Dia’s place before the party, but that was three hours ago. Three whole hours, and she still isn’t here. I’d ask her what’s taking so long, but I’d like to still havesomesemblance of dignity by the end of the night.

It already took every drop of courage in my system to tell her how I felt at the lake house. Might as well have stripped butt naked and ran around campus with the word “whipped” stamped across my forehead. I hate how vulnerable this girl makes me and the fact that I’ve been staring at the door all night, waiting for her to walk in.

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