Page 27 of Close to Falling

“Hey,” Frankie cuts in. “Don’t talk to B like that, and no cussing at my damn table.”

We all look at him, and Landon says, “Sorry, Frankie.”

“I care because I know how you are, and I don’t want Cali to be misled,” I continue, noticing he didn’t apologize to me.

“What do you mean by that, Maddie?”

“You know what I mean. One minute you’re with this chick, and the next you’re with someone else.”

“What do you meanwith?” Frankie asks, narrowing his eyes at Landon.

“Like going out,” I say, but that’s not what I mean at all. It satisfies Frankie, though, and he takes another bite of spaghetti.

“Maddie, mind your own business, okay?” Landon says in his serious tone.

“Fine. I will,” I say, looking down at my food. Landon and I hardly ever fight, but I don’t want Cali to be another notch on his bedpost, even though I think he really does like her. Still, she’s my best friend, and he’s my brother. Like I can judge, though. I pick up my fork and twirl it around my food. I’ve got to get my own news out, so I take a breath. “I’m going to prom, too,” I add, not looking up at any of them.

“What?” River and Frankie say in unison. I glance up and see narrowed green eyes and uplifted brown ones. One is surprise; the other is something else entirely.

I clear my throat. “Um, yeah, Mikey asked me to go, and my mom was so deadpan on me going to prom when I was nine, so I feel like I can’t miss it, you know?”

“Who is this Mikey kid? River? Landon?” Frankie asks, looking between the two.

“Some punk kid from school,” my boy says, still looking at me with icy eyes.

“Landon, what do you think of him?” Frankie asks him.

Landon shrugs. “He’s cool, I guess.” Because he really doesn’t care, but the boy sitting beside me does, and I can feel the anger rolling off him in thick waves. I chew on my bottom lip and pick up my drink. Taking a sip, I look over my glass at Frankie when he speaks.

“Well, I need to meet the kid, I guess.”

Fuck.

***

“That didn’t go as bad as you thought,” Ellie says, crossing her legs.

“Oh, it gets worse,” I reply, standing and tossing my cup into the trash.

***

“What the fuck are you playing at, B?” River asks in a whispered harsh tone after he walks into my room and shuts the door. His hair is a mess, and he runs his hand through it, showing me why.

“River, please, don’t think more into this. I’m just going to prom.”

“Yeah, with a boy who wants to fuck you.”

“Well, at least someone does.” I shrug. A hard look and a ticking jaw, River leans back against the door and crosses his arms.

“Is that what you want?” he asks me.

“With you. Yeah,” I say. He pushes away from the door and walks over to me.

“Don’t go to prom with him.” He climbs on top of the bed.

“River, what if Landon knocks?”

“Fuck him,” he says, but it’s not convincing. He runs his hand up my leg. “Is that your problem? You want me to sleep with you?” His tone deepens, and his eyes become dreamier.

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