by Sarah Mello
“And what if JC is lying?” Winston took a bite of the panini and glanced toward the corner of the room. “I mean, just look at her. Does Piper look like the type of girl who’d have access to an answer key?”
“Yes,” Buckets replied.
“Or have a reason to frame her boyfriend?” Casey added.
We watched as Piper lost herself in her books.
“I guess not,” I whispered.
Kyle shrugged. “Maybe we should just call it quits.”
“Okay.” I shook my head. “Let’s just go.”
We all walked toward the exit, but as I approached the middle of the room, I slowed my pace. “I’ll catch up with you guys in a minute!” I waited for the group to pour out onto the sidewalk before walking back to the counter.
“Hey, Ashley!” I grabbed the barista’s attention.
She brushed her damp hands over her apron and walked toward me. “What’s up?”
“Do you know who this little boy is?” I pointed behind me toward the wall.
“Mmm.” She pressed her lips together. “No idea.”
“Well, do you know who owns this place?” I asked.
Ashley grabbed a damp towel and wiped the countertop. “Ed and Dorie Williams.”
My eyes paced across the wall behind her. “Never heard of them.”
“They’re pretty cool.” Ashley slung the rag over her shoulder. “For seventy-five-year-old retirees who know nothing about coffee. I do most of the grunt work here . . . and all of the decorating.”
“Why did they name the shop Geraldine’s?” I asked.
“Family name,” she said. “I believe Geraldine was Dorie’s mom.”
I glanced back at the photo. “So this must be little Ed.”
“Doesn’t really look like him.” Ashley scrunched her nose. “But how can you tell?” She put her hand on her hip. “Why do you ask?”
“You look tired.” Winston approached me as I walked through the school parking lot the following Monday morning.
“Jesus!” I jumped. “Don’t creep up on me like that.”
He stepped back, holding his hands up defensively. “Whoa!”
“Sorry,” I said, the bags under my eyes weighing me down. “I was up all night sorting through my notes from my interview with Ron.”
“Was Jacob there?” he asked.
“He was.”
“Did you two—”
“We did not,” I snapped before Winston could continue.
“Damn.” Winston scowled back at me.
“Speaking of Jacob.” I looked around the parking lot. “He told me he saw Norah at Dustin Coleman’s summer party.”
“So?”
“But I have since confirmed that Norah wasn’t there.”
“Well, slap an orange turtleneck on and call you Velma!”
I stopped in my tracks. “Are you okay?”
“Are you?!” he retorted. “Would you stop trying to play detective? You’re going to burn out.”
“But why would Jacob lie?”
“Did you ask him?”
“Yes,” I replied. “And he brushed it off.”
“There you go,” he said. “Maybe it was a misunderstanding.”
I shrugged. “Maybe.”
Winston cracked his knuckles. “So what’s the new plan since we found nothing at Geraldine’s? Except my lovely new red pen, of course.”
“Why do I always have to come up with the plan? It’s not exactly my forte.”
“That’s true,” he replied. “Remember when you planned my birthday party last year? You forgot to mention it was a costume party on the invitation. The only one who showed up in costume was the birthday boy.” Winston shook his head.
“You looked adorable.”
“No, Sonny. The man in the yellow hat doesn’t work without the monkey. I looked like an idiot.”
My tired eyes attempted to roll. “An adorable idiot.”
“Guys!” Casey suddenly appeared on the other side of me. She was out of breath, and her eyes were as wide as the parking lot. “Did you get my text?”
I reached for my phone.
Just then, Kyle zoomed past us, walking full speed ahead. We all followed, trailing quite a bit behind him.
“What’s going on?” I asked, weaving through the crowd of students.
“Something tells me you’re about to find out,” Casey replied.
Kyle jolted toward the front of the school and approached Norah and Ari. “What is this?” He tossed his phone into Ari’s hands.
She looked bewildered by his approach.
“Something tells me if she were to keep scrolling down in those threads, she’d find things that wouldn’t paint you in such a good light,” said Norah as she glanced back and forth between Casey and Kyle. “You sure you want to play this game?”
“Save it, Norah!” Kyle held his hand up. “That’s clearly Ari and Cliff!”
Ari watched the video. Her pale face made her wardrobe look even darker than normal.
“And how could you possibly tell that?” Norah asked. “She’s wearing a baggy jacket, a hat, and her back is turned to the stupid rat of a cameraman who filmed this. It’s blurry at best. This doesn’t prove a thing.”
“Ari’s jacket,” Kyle said. “The one I bought her for her birthday last year.”
“So what? Anyone could have borrowed it.”
“What’s next, Norah? You’re a good person?”
“Only on Mondays.” The sparkle in her eyes was haunting.
Ari grabbed Kyle’s arm. “This isn’t me, Kyle. I swear.”
Casey took a couple steps back and stood behind me.
“Then who is it?” he asked, swaying side to side.
I put my hand on Kyle’s shoulder. “Maybe we should leave.”
“What’s going on?” Cliff approached the circle; he was wearing a Westcott hoodie, and his blond hair was swept perfectly to one side of his head—his usual look.
I gawked at his arrogance.
“What the hell were you thinking?” Kyle asked, walking toward Cliff.
“Whoa, take it easy, Ky. What’s your problem?”
Kyle grabbed his cell phone from Ari and handed it to Cliff.
Cliff watched for a minute, his eyes pacing across the screen. He glanced at Ari, then back at the phone. “Oh,” he said. “I’ve already seen it.”
“You kissed Ari?” Kyle asked.
“Hold on—Ari? That isn’t Ari, dude.” Cliff handed Kyle his cell phone. His lackadaisical attitude was convincing.
“Then who is it?” Kyle asked.
Cliff looked around the group as we all waited for his answer.
Just then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw Piper standing near the brick railing. She stood some feet back, just close enough for me to notice her presence, but far enough away to remain discreet. She was hiding behind her stack of books and cream sweater, but I could tell she was eavesdropping. I slowly held up my hand and waved. We made brief eye contact—just long enough for her to feel uncomfortable. She then put her head down toward her pearls and quickly walked up the steps to the front of the school—tossing her coffee cup into the trash can before walking inside.
“It was Lana,” Cliff replied.
At the mention of Lana, I jerked my head back toward the group.
“Lana? You expect us to believe that, Cliff?” Casey asked.
“I don’t care what you believe, Langdon,” Cliff retorted. “Don’t you have a floor to mop?”
With narrowed eyes, Kyle stepped forward. “Are you serious?”
Winston pulled out his napkin and new red ink pen. “Bullying . . . the . . . poor,” he said, scribbling on the napkin with jerky strokes.
“Would you give me that?” I whispered, snatching the napkin from his hand.
“Tell them, Sonny,” Cliff demanded. “Tell them your sister was home that weekend, and she came to my cookout.”
I stared into his somber blue eyes as he rocked back a
nd forth on the balls of his feet.
“And because they were both into all that fashion shit, they could have had the same jacket, right?” Cliff asked, desperately attempting to suck an admission from my soul with his intimidating eyes. “Tell them, Sonny. Tell Kyle.”
Suddenly, my mind once again flashed back to the conversation I had with Lana.
“I—” I began.
Cliff exhaled. “Jesus, Sonny! Just tell him!”
“I guess . . .”
Kyle’s eyes narrowed. “You guess?”
“She went!” I blurted out. “Lana was home that weekend, and she went to the cookout. I remember now.” I nodded. “I think she came home wearing that jacket.”
Cliff rocked back on his heels and smiled the tiniest of smiles. He grabbed Kyle’s shoulders and shook him. “Dude, I told you. I wouldn’t do that to you. It’s just a stupid rumor.”
Kyle looked at Cliff, studying his eyes. Eventually they exchanged a fist bump, so maybe that meant he believed Cliff. Or rather, had to.
“Now, can we all move on with our day?” Cliff asked, eyeing everyone as he walked toward the school. Kyle followed after him, giving Ari one last look of disappointment.
Winston grabbed my arm, holding me back so we’d be out of earshot of everyone. “Why the hell did you lie for Cliff?”
“I didn’t lie for Cliff. I lied for Kyle.”
“Kyle deserves to know the truth, Sonny,” Casey said.
“Look, I may have lied about Lana being home, but the video is blurry. That could be anyone,” I replied.
“In Ari’s jacket?” Winston asked, raising his eyebrows.
“Everyone knows that’s Ari,” Casey said.
“Well, Kyle’s going to have to figure that out himself,” I replied, knowing that day may never come.
Winston’s eyes skimmed the parking lot full of students. “So, who do you think leaked this one?”
“Why would anyone leak a video after the SCC was changed? Even I’m retiring,” Buckets said. “Eventually.”
“What about Guy?” Winston asked. “Didn’t you tell me Cliff was really rude to him on the football field?”
I shook my head. “I don’t think it was him,” I said. “I think it was someone who thinks they’re a little more invincible than the rest of us.”
Buckets crossed his arms. “I’m listening.”
“What if Piper did this?” I asked.
“Piper? Why would she leak that video?” Casey asked, balancing a stack of books against her hip.
“Because she knows I’m looking into things,” I said. “And she doesn’t want me to. She knows I met with JC, and she saw us at Geraldine’s. She must have seen me talking to Cliff. Maybe she thought I was dragging him into this.”
“Wait a minute,” Buckets interjected. “That would make sense. If Piper thought we were on to her, and that we planned on exposing her, her perfect reputation would go to shit when everyone found out that she framed JC.”
“And we all know Piper would do anything not to go under,” I said. “Even if that meant throwing someone else under the bus to cause a distraction.”
“She did come to Sonny’s house just to tell her not to get involved,” Winston added, tossing his red checkered scarf over his shoulder.
“You really think Piper leaked this video?” Casey asked.
“Think about it. . . . Two days after she saw me talking to Cliff—a video of him was leaked. She’s clearly trying to throw us off.”
“You think Piper was there the night of Cliff’s cookout?” Casey questioned. “And randomly recorded them?”
“Possibly to have something against Cliff, should she ever need it,” Buckets offered.
“I don’t know,” I replied. “But I plan to find out.”
Winston looked around the parking lot. “Well, who could tell us if Piper was at the party?”
Approaching Cliff wasn’t for the lighthearted—especially when there was leaked unflattering footage of him flying around Westcott. I stood next to him, waiting patiently for him to acknowledge me.
“Yesterday’s morning scuffle wasn’t eventful enough for you, Carter? Back for round two?” Cliff stood at his locker, packing up his book bag.
“I need your help,” I said.
“First you shove me, then you need me? You sound like your sister.”
I moved my legs into a wide stance. “Look, are you going to help me or not?”
“What do you want?” he asked.
“I want you to tell me how well you know Piper Clemmons.”
“The violin girl?” Cliff asked. “I know that she’s Principal Clemmons’s daughter.”
“I think she went to your cookout over the summer.”
“So what? Everyone does—although I didn’t see you there.” Cliff turned his head to the side, nodding in the direction of his friends.
“I must have been super busy.”
“You know, I don’t remember Lana ever being this sarcastic.”
“I’m not Lana,” I said.
“That’s too bad. If she hadn’t fooled around with a teacher, I’d almost admit to missing her.”
“Yeah, it’s not obvious at all that you miss her,” I replied.
“How I feel about your sister is not really your concern, kid,” said Cliff.
I stepped forward, lowering my voice. “You’re welcome by the way. Lana wasn’t home that weekend, and you and I both know that. Besides, even if she was, she wouldn’t be caught dead kissing you at your cookout.”
Cliff’s ego came out to play. “You sure about that?”
“I’m pretty positive.”
“Look, I didn’t invite Piper to the cookout if that’s what you’re asking. Maybe she got wind of it through the country club and decided to stop by. Who cares?” Cliff shrugged his shoulders.
“I think she’s the one who leaked the video,” I said.
He moved his head to the left. “Of Lana?”
“No,” I replied. “Of you.”
Cliff stared at me with a straight face.
“You know, the one of you and ‘Lana’ kissing under the pool cabana.” I waved my hand in little circles.
“Yeah, I saw the video,” Cliff said. “But why would she leak it? What does that girl have against me?”
“It’s complicated,” I replied.
His eyes narrowed. “Look, just drop it, okay? I don’t care who leaked the video, and I really don’t care why.”
“Do you care that people still believe it’s you and Ari? Do you care that Kyle himself still might believe that?” I asked.
“Do you think I’m a virgin to these types of things? Cobalts try to tarnish my name out of spite all the time. It’s not the first video, and it likely won’t be the last.”
“Piper Clemmons isn’t a Cobalt. She’s a Violet.”
“I don’t care if she’s a periwinkle.” Cliff slammed his locker. “That video is yesterday’s news. It wasn’t Ari. It was Lana. I didn’t betray Kyle. All is well in the world. Why does it seem like you always want to mess with the natural order of things and ruin that for everyone?”
I paused, and then redirected my focus. “What about what you told Lana? About the summer before sophomore year? If that’s true, then this video would make sense.”
Cliff smiled a little, his eyes wandering around the hallway. “This conversation is done,” he said. “Don’t bring that up again.”
“You can’t possibly believe that everyone is going to let this go?” I asked.
“No. But I do believe you will.”
“And why’s that?”
“Let’s just say if you don’t, I’ll make sure I pay a visit to my old pal Principal Winchester. He’d probably love to know that you’re terrorizing the student body with your detective shit. And I’m sure he’d really like to know that the assistant principal’s daughter is top on the list.” Cliff’s eyes narrowed in on me. “Drop it.”
“What, you’re gonna rat on me no
w?” I asked.
Cliff smirked, walking backward down the hall. “Everyone thinks I’m a rat anyways, right?” he shouted.
I watched as Cliff turned around and greeted some of his fellow letterman jacket–wearing friends.
Just then, a gust of cold wind blew by the back of my neck. “Can we talk?” Jacob asked.
I swiftly turned around; my flushed face met his.
“Everything okay?” Jacob asked, his eyes expressing confusion.
I nodded, though I wanted to say no. “What do you need to talk about?”
“I went to basketball tryouts yesterday . . . and Dean gave me quite the welcome.”
I turned my head to the side. “What do you mean?”
“I can’t explain it. He was just . . . giving me the eye.”
“Okay.” I shrugged.
Jacob’s tone became more serious than usual. “It’s a look I’ve given out quite a few times before. He didn’t want me to be there, and it had nothing to do with basketball. Do the two of you have something going on?”
“Why would you think that?” I asked.
“Because he sees that you and I have been hanging out. And if he likes you, it would explain why he was mean mugging me from across the gym.”
“Or maybe he caught wind that you like his actual girlfriend,” I said.
Jacob shook his head. “No. I don’t think so. I think it’s more than that. He was giving me the eye in science class every time I turned around to talk to you.”
I exhaled slightly.
“Sonny?” He leaned forward. “Do you have something going on with Dean?”
I wanted to skip the years of history telling. I wanted to tell Jacob no, but something told me he wouldn’t believe me. And even though I wanted him to, something told me he wasn’t going to stop asking. I figured now was as good a time as any to fill him in.
“Meet me at the club after school.”
“You mean to tell me that Norah’s boyfriend is your ex-boyfriend?” Jacob tugged at his earlobe and gave me a sideways glance.
“That is what I’m telling you,” I replied.
He sat back in the booth and smiled. “That’s why he was sizing me up. He’s jealous.”
“Of you?” I asked.
“Of us,” he replied. “He probably thinks we have a thing.”
