Page 54 of The Fallacy of True Love
“I have plans,” I said, closing my laptop. “And I’m still on Christmas break.”
“You can do advance reading to prepare for next semester. Can’t be too complacent.”
I rapped the stack of books beside my laptop. “I already am doing my readings.”
“Juan, let him enjoy his vacation.” Mama looked at me. “Are you seeing Dani?”
My stomach dropped. “No, Miggy.” I should tell her what happened, but not with Papa there. I could already imagine what he’d say—something along the lines of “now you can focus on school”—and I didn’t need to hear it. “We’re having lunch, then I’ll go straight to work.”
“Oh.” A crease remained between Mama’s brows, as though she sensed something was wrong.
“You’ll study tonight?” The way Papa spoke, it wasn’t so much a question as it was a demand—a prerequisite to me going out.
I stood up so I didn’t feel completely beneath him. “Yes.”
“Take the car,” Mama told me. “There are people at the gate again.”
Since we didn’t live in a private subdivision, strangers could show up outside our house at any time. Jason had beefed up the security system he’d initially installed and added an electric fence as an extra precaution.
After promising my dad I’d go straight home after my shift, I headed out. Kuya Lito, the bodyguard Jason had hired, opened the gate for me. As he did, strangers gathered behind our car, aiming their phones at me—this mediocre student who happened to be the brother of the future Mrs. Tala Meyer. I felt like a fraud.
More than that, I felt like a failure.
What a way to start the New Year.
“Look who’s a local celebrity,” Miggy said, slapping my back.
In response, I tapped my fist to his bicep. “Don’t start.”
He chuckled and slung his arm around my shoulders. “You have your own fans now, you know.”
A shudder passed through me. “Please, God, no.”
So far, my shifts at Kada Kape had gone smoothly—a perk of me working at a smaller coffee shop instead of a popular chain. I dreaded returning to school because there were basketball fans in our class, but hopefully, the buzz would die down by then and people would have some new bit of gossip to talk about.
“I’m kidding. Maybe.”
We ordered our food and chose a table near the back of the eatery. Miggy’s face was expectant as he said, “So.”
“Dani and I broke up.” Bit by bit, the words came out easier. My stomach didn’t threaten to hurl—not like it did that first time I said them to a prickly girl in Juana.
Miggy winced but nodded, confirming my hunch that he’d already guessed. “I knew something was up when you disappeared after Christmas. Then she didn’t reply to our greetings on New Year.”
“We didn’t officially break up until the second, but yeah.” Tugging down the brim of my cap, I slumped in my seat.
“Shit. I didn’t want to believe it cause you two have always been solid. Was it about her working and you being in school?”
“No.”
“Was there someone else?”
I thought I knew exactly what I’d tell him, but I hesitated before answering. “I don’t want to mess with the way you see her.”
“Fuck that, Lonzo. Dani’s my friend, yeah, but that’s because of you. You’re my bro.”
Miggy didn’t transfer into Dani’s and my class until we were in our sophomore year, but I met him before then during a round of pickup basketball. Even though he’d always been a fan of Jason’s team, he never tried to use me to get to Jason or sell me out in exchange for money or popularity. I trusted him implicitly, so I told him the truth about Dani cheating.
And then I told him about Cam.
