Page 107 of Fraternizing with the Enemy
Who else is hoping they reconcile their differences asap?
Jade and Connor had broken up and gotten back together too many times to remember clearly, but this one was an absolute blank spot on my memory.
I scrolled through the comments, finding a lot of heartbroken emojis, but one stood out to me. Not the comment itself, but the username. It was mine.
MOBobcatBabe02:
I’d made hundreds of comments on Babble over the course of high school, so it wasn’t surprising that I didn’t remember some, but this one—why had I commented a giggling emoji? On a post announcing Jannor’s breakup, why would I have commented alaughingemoji? It seemed totally out of place.
I scrolled back up, finding a post from October 8th.
The Lovebirds Couldn’t Stay Away – Jannor spotted holding hands in the halls!
A short breakup. What would’ve happened?
Or was this one of those times they just “broke up” for the publicity?
To overshadow what happened at the game?
There was a knock at my door, and since it was half open already, Mom poked her head in. She was wearing her casual clothes, with her hair out of its normal bun, definitely moreMomthanPrincipal. “Can we have a chat?”
“Sure.” I closed my laptop lid and sat up. “Our day is tomorrow.”
“I know.” She pushed the door open all the way and ventured in further, coming to the edge of my bed. “I just want to talk to you.”
I patted my duvet.
Mom sat down on the edge of my bed, but didn’t face me. Something was clearly bothering her, and her being on edge made me nervous, but I forced myself to remain still. “You know I try to give you a lot of freedom,” she began. “As much as I can while still being an attentive parent.”
“Uh-huh.”
“When your dad moved, that was something I wanted to make sure I did right by you. That I wasn’t overbearing, but I was still the parent you needed me to be.”
“I’d say you’re doing a pretty good job.” Was that what she needed? A bit more reassurance? I reached for her shoulder. “Hey, a lot of parents wouldn’t have implemented a no-dating rule throughout high school, so you’ve definitely got that parenting thing down.”
Mom turned to look at me then, and while I’d meant to be supportive, her gaze was sharp on me. Sharp enough that I nearly snatched my hand back. “Where did you go last night after the game?”
“The jocks party at Ashton’s.”
Mom gave a slow, measured blink, as if giving me a chance to change my answer. “Jade called me last night,” she said. “Asked if you got home safe.”
My eyebrows immediately slammed together. “Jade calledyou?”
“She did. And before you come up with a lie, in case you forgot, we have that tracker app on our phones. I could see where you were.” Mom turned to face me more fully. “So now, you’re going to tell me exactly where that was, and why you lied about going?—”
“What did you tell Jade?” My world titled sharply, stomach rolling with it.No, no, no.“Did you tell her I wasn’t home? Did you tell her that you didn’t want me to come back? Did you say?—”
“I told her that you did get home safe, but you weren’t feeling well, so you turned in early.” Mom raised an eyebrow at me. “I was a teenage girl once, too. It was obvious she was trying to catch you in a lie. Now you’regoing to explain that lie to me, Madison Hannah Oliphant.”
Yikes. The middle name. If I weren’t so panicked at the idea of Jade finding out I’d lied, maybe Mom’s threatening tone would’ve scared me more. Maybe the situation itself might’ve scared me more. Instead, though, all I could think about was the fact that Jade had called Mom. She hadn’t called me, hadn’t texted. She doubted me enough that she actually called to fact check with Mom.
“I went to another bonfire,” I admitted finally. “After Ashton’s party.”
“Who with?”
“A boy,” I said, and then shook my head at the answer that didn’t do Logan justice. “My… boyfriend.”
“Boyfriend.” Mom repeated it slowly, like it was in a different language. Then came the sigh. “I thought we could trust each other, Madison. Why have you kept it from me?”
