Page 10 of Enemy Crush
“It’ll be okay,” Naomi had comforted Celeste. “It’s sad for Quinn, but we can catch up on the weekends, right?”
“Of course,” I said. “I’ll come visit you guys in the weekends. Every weekend.”
Celeste had huffed and her tear stained face had softened but there had been no compassion to my new situation, all she could think was that I was abandoning her.
And it seemed she was still punishing me. I’d texted her last night, asking if they’d arrived at camp and her reply had been an emoji. Okay, I understood that. They were probably busy and tired from the drive and settling into their cabins, so I’d texted again first thing this morning:Hope it’s all good. Fill me in on the gossip!
Celeste’s reply had been somewhat short:No gossip, so weird without you.
But also understandable. Senior camp was hectic and I was surprised she had access to her phone. We’d chat later tonight.
By lunch break, I realized my tote bag, though stylish, was impractical for all the text books I’d be carrying around. Because by this stage, I’d decided that in order to avoid Miller, I’d make minimal visits to my locker and therefore have to cart my books around all day. I’d find a backpack in my closet at home.
I hadn’t intended to go to the cafeteria but Elise cornered me after class and I didn’t have the heart to play the mean girl role again. Hopefully I could sit at the table and be invisible. The cafeteria was bustling with kids and trays and scraping chairs and the nasty smell of fried food. It was probably a good thing I’d brought my lunch.
Sitting at a circular table near a large window, Elise introduced me to Sienna. Brayden arrived with a dish piled high with insipid looking pasta. There was no sign of Miller, a blessing.
“So, you’re new to Snow Ridge?” Sienna asked, a thin girl with a short bob cut that featured three shades of purple. I could sense her studying me intently, as if something about me bothered her.
“To Snow Ridge High,” I answered, hesitating before opening my lunch bag.
“Oh?” Sienna sounded genuinely interested.
“Yeah, Miller said you’re his neighbor.” Brayden delayed scooping his large forkful of sticky pasta into his mouth, volunteering the information like he’d been dying to spill the news.
My heartbeat escalated, wondering how much of a big mouth Miller Trask was, though sensing the time was as good as ever to tell Mom’s carefully crafted story. “Uh, um, yep. We live on the same street.”
But Brayden hadn’t finished. “Yeah, he said you used to go to Brizendine Prep. Right?”
“Oh. So why come to Snow Ridge High for senior year?” Sienna asked.
“Oh, um,” I said, unwrapping the plastic wrap from my squished salad sandwich and hoping I’d sound natural and unrehearsed with just the right amount of woe-is-me. “Well, my parents just broke up a few months ago and, yeah, my dad moved out, so, yeah, it’s just...hard.”
Elise nodded and patted my shoulder, offering more empathy than Celeste had. “Sorry, that sucks.”
“Yeah, it does,” I mumbled, lowering my head, but my words were heartfelt. Because regardless of our financial situation, everything about Mom and Dad’s separation sucked.
The table was silent, the only sound Brayden’s fork scraping up his food, giving me hope that they believed me.
“Ah, Quinn is trialing for the soccer team,” Elise said brightly, seeming to forget my earlier curtness.
“That’s great,” Sienna said at the same time that Brayden said, “Oh, awesome.”
I smiled and bit into my sandwich, the soft bread doughy in my mouth. I churned it around, scared I was going to gag on it.But I was kind of relieved. My story was out there and no one seemed to think it was too preposterous. Perhaps I really could blend in at Snow Ridge High without too much effort.
Chapter 4
MILLER
Istood in the doorway of the cafeteria, searching for Mason’s messy brown hair—he also needed a haircut. A wave of panic ran through me when he didn’t appear to be anywhere and I reached for my phone. Visions of him stuffed into a locker came to mind again. I scouted the room a second time, my eye catching Elise over by the window, reminding me that we were seniors now and got to sit at the good tables.
It wasn’t how I pictured the first day of school going. I should have been catching up with my friends and looking out for Mason but somehow Quinn Devereaux had been on my mind, infiltrated it. And now I was standing in the cafeteria doorway not wanting to enter because she was sitting next to Elise, who’d appeared to have taken her under her wing like a mother hen.
Certain that Mason wasn’t around, I went outside to the quad, an area with benches and picnic tables. The cliques quickly staked their claim on the tables in the cafeteria so when you didn’t need to buy your food, I’d told Mason that the quad was a good option. I sincerely hoped he’d followed my advice.
It was Katie’s blue ribbon that caught my eye and I relaxed to see Mason at the end of the table. This was a good thing. Perhaps they were kids from middle school, or Katie’s friends. Not wanting to be intrusive, I sat on a bench and brought out my sandwich, joined the next minute by Darwin.
“Hey, whatcha doing out here?” he asked, plonking himself down and forcing me to shift along.
