Page 227 of Something Rad
A few awkwardly quiet seconds go by, and I see Alice slowly putting the puzzle pieces together in her mind. Then, gradually, a massivesmilespreads across her face.
“What do we have here?” she asks.
“Nothing,” I blurt, trying my best to seem casual.
“Nothing?” Alice repeats, her head tilting.
“Yep,” I answer immediately, crossing my arms.
“Right.” Her lips purse. “Andnothingwas going on in this bathroom for the last,” she pauses, glancing down at her watch, “nearly half an hour?”
My mouth opens and closes several times as I give a halfway attempt at nodding.
“Robbie?” Alice asks, turning to him.
I stiffen, my eyes snapping wide open.
“Yes?” Robbie responds.
“Was nothing going on in this bathroom?” Alice repeats.
He won’t say anything.
“Nothing happened in this bathroom.”
I let out a subtle sigh of relief, smiling tightly at Alice.
“Huh,” she huffs.
She still definitely looks suspicious, but I know we’re in the clear now. Robbie backed me up, so she won’t push it any further.
“But wait,” Robbie suddenly says, and my spine instantly steels. “When you say ‘in this bathroom’, does that also include in the shower? Because lots of things happened in there.”
I feel the blood drain from my face and I pivot on my heel to glare at him.
“Oh,really?” Alice asks brightly, clapping. She leans her head inside the doorframe, trying to get my attention. “Lotsof things, you say?”
“Well, six–” Robbie begins.
“Okay, that’s enough,” I say, holding up my hands between the two of them, red staining my cheeks. I shoot Robbie a pointed look before I give him my back and step closer to Alice, huddling in front of her and lowering my voice to a barely audible whisper. “It’s not what you think.”
“I have no idea what you mean,” she mouths back, fighting the grin on her face.
“It was just– It was nothing.”
“Are you trying to convince me or yourself?”
“I…” I press my lips together. “I just did what you told me. It was just one of those bad decisions you said I should make. While I still have the chance.”
Alice’s mouth twists to the side, her eyes narrowing on me thoughtfully. “Yeah, I’m not so sure.”
I open my mouth to argue, but Alice doesn’t give me the chance
“Will Robbie be taking you home now?” she asks, much louder than necessary.
I pinch my brows, just getting another smile from her in response. “Wha…I…I don’t…” I stammer.
“Yes.”
