Page 13 of The Love You Fight For
We fall back into silence for a few moments, just the sounds of our breathing and the distant hum of music filtering from the art studio in the next room. I could easily fall asleep. I always sleep soundly here. Being in a little Lennon-made cocoon is my happy place. It’s like the only time my body can fully relax.
“So where was what’s-her-face tonight?” I ask randomly, breaking through the quiet. “Sarah? Serena? Siobhan?”
I try to sound casual, only mildly curious, but I’m sure I fail. Mercifully, Lennon doesn’t call me out on it. Instead, she releases my hand and rolls onto her stomach, propping her body up on her arm and resting her chin on her palm. She narrows her eyes at me.
“I’m not supposed to bring her up,” she says slowly, and my head jerks back.
“What? Why?”
“Casper asked me not to.” Lennon gives me a little one-shoulder shrug. “But since we’re here now and technicallyyoubrought her up, not me...Sable and Casper broke up.”
My jaw drops. Not many things can shock me. But this? This shocks me.
“Damn.” I let my eyes drift from Lennon’s and stare blankly at the light switch on the wall. Chris and Sable were together for about a year. I was prepared for news of an engagement, not a breakup. “I thought they were going to get married.”
“I did, too. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I never liked them together, but I thought Sable wasitfor him.”
I nod because I thought the exact same thing.
“I’m not exactly sure what happened,” she continues. “Macon hasn’t said much. You know how those two are. Casper just called him up the other day and the next thing I knew, Macon was filling up a gas can to go burn a box of Sable’s stuff at the fairgrounds.”
“Wow.” That’s all I can say.Wow.
“Hedidpropose.” Lennon’s words are said softly, like she knows the information is delicate, and this time I don’t hide the way I wince. “She said no. And now it’s over.”
I swallow a few times and let it all set in. I try to sift through my emotions, to decide how the news makes me feel, and I don’t like what I find.
“How is he?” I ask, and Lennon gives me another small shrug in my periphery.
“As fine as can be expected, I guess. He’s been boxing with Macon at the rec center a lot more, but other than that, he seems fine. He seems normal.”
When I don’t respond right away, the weight of Lennon’s attention grows heavier. Her eyes stay on me until I can’t ignore them anymore. Until the only thing I can do is tear my gaze away from the light switch and meet hers.
“What happened with you two?” she asks like I knew she would. “You seemed close for a while. Why’d it change?”
I blow a harsh breath through my nose, then push myself up soI’m sitting cross-legged on the bedspread. I twirl the ring on my middle finger so I don’t have to focus on Lennon’s face.
“We were hanging out for a bit. Then we weren’t. That’s all.”
“Did you ever...”
She waggles her brows, and I huff a laugh with a shake of my head.
“No, definitely not. It never got that far.”
“How fardidit get?” she asks on a gasp, a grin spreading wide across her face, and suddenly, we’re just two girls at a sleepover swapping hookup stories about our crushes.
Not that I have a crush on Chris Casper. But if I did, this is probably what it would feel like.
I roll my eyes, but I don’t fight my smile. I should have told her as soon as it started, but she had just gotten back with Macon, and after all the bullshit they’d been through, I didn’t want anything to interrupt it.
And then after...
Well, I guess after, I just didn’t feel like sharing anymore.
“Not far. Very PG-13.”
Lennon frowns like she was expecting something juicier, and I scoff playfully.
