A few days pass without a word about Edge and me hooking up. It’s weird, like everyone suddenly found something new totalk about, and just like that, our imagined fuck session is old news.
Edge ignores me the entire week and barely even looks in my direction. Since the rumors stopped, I haven’t initiated any conversation either. I don’t think it’s as easy to think I’ve become old news, and he’s given up on trying to make me another scratch on his scorecard. At this point, it doesn’t matter who started the rumor. But I can only assume he was the one to put it to rest. I still don’t know what his game is—if he even has one. It’s been almost two weeks since I started at Monarch, and I’ve let things stagnate long enough. It’s time to act. I thought about following them after our last class, but things could escalate to dangerous levels if they catch me.
Eden plops down next to me under our tree. There are no words for her hair. It’s an out-of-control, frizzy mess. It looks like someone got hold of a fine comb and a can of hairspray.
Trying to keep my eyes from falling out of my head, I take out my turkey wrap. “What happened? Did you blow yourself up in a science experiment or something?”
“No. I was trying to get pics for the website from the rooftop.”
I look at her like she’s lost her damn mind. “Why the roof?”
“I was trying to get different angles of the school and the football field. The dancers were practicing, and I thought I’d try something new.”
“And that explains your hair how?”
She blows out a puff of air, sending chin-length blue tendrils flying upward, only to land back across her eye. “The AC kicked on, and the giant-ass fan was behind me.” She points to her hair. “Result.”
With my wrap gripped in my hand, I fall to my side, laughing.
“Stop laughing,” she gripes as she starts laughing, too.
Both of us are rolling with belly laughs when Bryce comes up.
“What did I miss? What the fuck happened to you, girl? It looks like you got attacked by an angry mob or a flock of birds.” He kneels next to Eden. From his backpack, he tosses his squished brown lunch bag next to him, then takes out a comb. He gestures for her to sit in front of him. She does. “If this doesn’t work, we’re going to have to shave it.” Being the best friend he is, he proceeds to brush out the whirlwind of her tangles.
“Thanks.” She glides her hand over her untangled hair.
“You know, Bryce, you could have left it like that. Could be a new style for the psychos at this school,” I suggest.
Eden throws a carrot at me. “Hey!”
I catch the veggie stick in mid-air and take a bite off the end of it. “You could have dipped it in hummus first.”
It’s nice to have friends to laugh with. I’ve been so caught up with other shit that I forgot how to enjoy other things, normal things.
It’s almost time for our next class when Bryce finishes combing Eden’s hair into her usual smooth bob.
Eden and I head for the north wing of campus when Josh strolls up next to us.
“Hey, Kinsley, you got a second?”
Eden eyes me, and I motion for her to go on without me. “I’ll see you in class.”
“I wanted to ask you something. I know our last— Well, the last time we made plans to meet at the party, it didn’t go so great. I wanted to make it up to you.”
I can already feel the rejection forming on my tongue, but I let him continue. “It was fine,” I assure him, hopefully derailing him from asking me out again. “Honestly, I’m not much of a partier anyway.”
“You could have fooled me the way you can down tequila like that.”
I chuckle. Yeah, but adrenaline had a way of drowning the alcohol. As did certain people.
He shifts from his left to his right foot. Then he adjusts the stack of books in the crook of his arm. My phone dings with a text. Glancing at it, I notice I only have a minute before class starts. With such a short amount of time, whatever proposal he planned will need to be postponed.
It’s not. And he carries on as if he didn’t hear anything. “Anyway, I wanted to know if you want to go to the Halloween party with me.”
Not wanting to give him an answer, I use the time as an excuse to duck out of it. “I’ve got to get to class. I’ll let you know. I’m not sure what I’m doing yet.”
“Okay… sure.” He backs away, running his free hand through his hair, looking much younger than he is and very vulnerable.
