“Mom and Dad left. We had a huge fight.”
Yeah, that’s what I figured.
“They said I can’t Rush if I don’t get my GPA up.” She slams a defenseless pen against the wardrobe door. “Like I need this right now! They’re acting like I’m flunking out or something.” Frowning, she scoops up the shattered pieces of the pen barrel, shrugs, then tosses them in the trash. “If a 3.2 is good enough for the Panhellenic Council, you’d think it would be good enough for Dad, but no! To him, a B might as well be an F!”
“That sucks.” I swipe the binder clip missile off the floor and hand it to her.
“Whatever.” She drops into her desk chair with a huff. “I’m not gonna stay in every night and ‘buckle down,’ like Dad says. I didn’t come to college to do nothing but study.”
Honestly, if Liv gave her coursework even fifty percent of her time, she’d have that 4.0. She’s one of the smartest people I know, she just refuses to act like it.
“But I bet you could pull off a 3.4,” I say.
“Yeah, maybe,” she sighs. “If I can ace my finals.”
“You can do it.”
She rests her head on her hand and manages a beleaguered smile. “So how was dinner?”
“Mom was in rare form.”
“Even for her?”
“Even for her.” I kick off my shoes and flop onto my bed. “At least your parents want you to do well. Mom couldn’t care less about my grades. She thinks I can just marry Zander and be a lady of leisure.”
“Oh no?—”
“Yeah, she’s pushing the old M.R.S. degree.”
Liv rolls her eyes. “She needs to stop watchingBridgerton.”
I let out a giggle. “At least Zander didn’t catch on.”
“God, let’s hope not. Ugh. How annoying.” She kicks off her shoes and reaches for her slippers. “I mean sure, maybe you and Zander will get married, but that doesn’t mean you don’t want to have a career and all that.”
Yeah, and it’s the “all that” that I’m hung up on. I want more than a career. I want…what?
Well, who knows? But I hope I’ll recognize it when I find it.
Because the next day is unseasonably warm, I propose a family walk around campus and lunch at the student center food court. My parents are leaving early this afternoon with plans to visit Jamie on their way home, so a mini-tour is a perfect way for the three of us to kill an hour or two. And minimize the opportunity for intense conversation.
As always, Mom looks lovely. She wears a wool blazer and a floral scarf that accents her blue eyes. “A walk was a nice idea,” she says blandly as we stroll between the dorms toward the quad. “I like soaking up the atmosphere.”
Brownhill isn’t the sort of atmosphere I’d associate with Mom. It’s more Hogwarts than White House—wild, rustic, and old. I love everything about it. My parents, on the other hand, have never shown much interest. I ditch the idea of taking them on a tour of the library or the historic chapel. Nor do I suggest showing them Tayler Hall, where I have most of my classes.
No, Mom’s idea of “soaking up the atmosphere” is admiring the fashion sense of the students walking by. “Oh, look, Betts. Did you see her sweater? That would look so pretty on you.” “I do love those boots.” “Now, why is that young man wearing flip-flops?! He’ll catch his death…”
We’ve almost made it to the student center when I hear her tsk. “She could be so pretty. I’ll never understand why some girls do that to themselves.”
I follow her line of sight and see…oh no. Avery. She’s walking toward us, eyes cast down at her phone. But the moment she looks up, she notices me.
“Betts! Hey. Just the person I wanted to see.” She drops herphone into her crocheted, cross-body bag and comes right up to me. She’s wearing a Sailor Moon t-shirt over a short black skirt and her lipstick is dried-blood red.
I’m frozen, a smile plastered across my face. Frankly, after the week I’ve had, Avery is a refreshing sight. But to run into her when I’m with my parents?
Somehow, I remember my manners, and like a well-trained automaton, I introduce everyone. In response to Avery’s bold, friendly “Hello,” Dad nods and Mom manages a grimace of a smile. At least they’re too well-bred to be outright rude.
Unbothered, Avery turns back to me. “I’ve got a good book for you. Very beginner-friendly. Why don’t we meet up this week?”
