Page 41 of More Than Chemical
“He’s here,” Sandra whispered loudly to me. “Did you see him?”
I wanted to cover my ears. They were ringing.
I think the entire table stared him down as he walked past. Probably with different levels of loathing.
I was sure that Sandra hoped for a dramatic confrontation. Something she could talk about for the rest of the day.
I stayed focused on my breakfast as well as I could. But nonstop dinging was sounding in my pocket.
“Ade, is that your phone?” Priya asked.
I shrugged. My mom only emailed me; I wasn’t speaking to my dad, and only on rare occasions with my brother. The only people I texted on a regular basis were sitting right here. So I knew that it was Dallas, but I wasn’t going to take out my phone and see what he’d written.
That was what he wanted, and I wouldn’t do it. I needed an addendum to my first ground rule: ignoring me when he saw me included texting.
Of course, he didn’t seem like the kind of guy who did what he was told.
Fifteen
The Shirt of True Reckoning
Priya and I walked into our room, and the door shut automatically behind us. I needed privacy to read Dallas’s texts, so I went straight to my closet.
“Are you good?” Priya asked.
I turned around and frowned. “Sure, why wouldn’t I be?”
“Because of Sandra.”
“What about her?”
“When she mentioned the girl in the hoodie, I wanted to staple her mouth shut. That’s the last thing you needed to hear.”
I shrugged, debating whether now was the time to tell Priya that the hoodie girl was me.
“Just so you know, Texas is a jerk.” She put her hands on her hips. “I also think he sucks big-time.”
I grimaced. It bothered me, her not understanding what was going on and coming to conclusions. The energy required to stay silent about it was exhausting. Like every time someone said something mean about him, I had to partake in an epic battle against myself to keep from screaming.
So I turned, dug through my closet, and pulled out his sweatshirt. No time like the present. I put it on and lifted the hood over my head. His smell was all around me.
I turned around.
Priya ran her fingers through her hair. “What are you doing?”
I stared harder at her, not saying a word.
She continued gazing at me, then her eyes widened, and she put a hand to her mouth. “Omigod, Ade. You’re the girl in the hoodie.”
I took it off even though I’d have preferred to keep it on. His scent was intoxicating. I tossed it back into my closet. “Don’t tell anyone, and for sure not Emma, Jay, or Luke.”
“But you said you slept in the lounge last night.”
“I lied.”
“Omigod.” She fell back onto her bed, placing a hand on her chest. “The girl in the hoodie. It’s like the title of a movie.” She rolled onto her side. “You know I won’t be able to keep this to myself.”
“Don’t you eventhinkabout it.”
