Page 55 of Revelation (Private 8)

---

89

earth this particular guy would want to talk to, but my adrenaline rush got the better of me.

"James! Hey, James. Wait up!" I called.

The tall, gawky senior turned and looked at me, squinting in the dark. The moment he saw it was

me jogging toward him, his jaw clenched. Luckily, however, he didn't sprint off into the night.

"Hey," I said, pausing in front of him. "Do you... remember me?" I asked, hoping he somehow

didn't. The wind tossed my hair in front of my face and I pulled it away, draping it over my right

shoulder.

"The executor of the most embarrassing moment of my life? Sure. How could I forget you?" James

replied, shoving his hands into the pockets of his long winter coat.

I looked at the ground, ashamed. Last year Noelle had forced me to break up with James on Kiran's

behalf right in the middle of the cafeteria. The whole scene had been so awful I was surprised he

hadn't pepper-sprayed me yet.

"Yeah, I'm really so sorry about that," I said quickly. "I just have one question for you and then I

swear I'm out of here."

James said nothing. He simply stood there, waiting. Something about his steely-eyed gaze made

me nervous. Like he was ju

dging me. Which, of course, he had every right to do considering what I

had done to him.

"I'm looking for Marc Alberro. Do you know if he's in Drake right now?"

James tipped his head back and laughed, exhaling a cloud of steam

90

into the night air. "Why are you looking for Fourteen-in-Fourteen Flower Boy?"

"Wait. Fourteen-in-Fourteen Flower Boy? That's what we called Trey after he sent Cheyenne

fourteen vases of fourteen roses last Valentine's Day," I said, suddenly remembering how

Cheyenne's room had smelled like a rose garden for days. "How did you know that? And what

does it have to do with Marc?"

James just stared at me. "You didn't know? Trey didn't send her those flowers--Marc did. I figured

from the video that all you Billings Girls probably called him Fourteen-in-Fourteen."

Fourteen-in-Fourteen Flower Boy was Marc Alberro? No. Freaking. Way.

---