by K. R. Grace
“Some people have a lot of hate in their hearts. It makes them say nasty things to people.” I did my best to explain it to her.
“Daddy must have lots of hate in his heart. He said bad things to Mommy this morning.”
Everything around me went suddenly cold as I looked down at her innocent face. I expected to see worry and fear in her eyes, but all that was there was indifference. A horrible thought crossed my mind. Did she even know her dad?
“Not necessarily. When grownups fight, they sometimes yell and scream and say things they don’t mean. It’s not hatred. They just don’t know how to express themselves otherwise.”
She mulled over my words as she looked up at the sky. Then, as if she’d made her mind up about something, she nodded her head and looked at me. “Can we get ice cream now?”
“Ice cream sounds wonderful right about now.” I sighed with relief that the crisis was diverted for at least a little while.
“Did someone say ice cream?” Cam asked as he rejoined us, taking Winter’s hand in his and draping his arm across my shoulders.
Winter nodded but didn’t say anything as she led the way to the ice cream stand. Cam refused to make eye contact with me, but I saw that his clenched jaw was working overtime. Part of me wanted to ask what had been said after I left, but the louder part of me screamed to keep my innocence in the event I was asked to testify in Cam’s trial for killing Evan.
When we returned to Cam’s house, it was to find Trigg’s car gone. Momma Noel’s eyes were watery and her nose was red—signs she’d been crying for a while. She wrapped me in a fierce hug before bustling into the kitchen to start dinner.
“I hate to ditch, but I still have some government reading to do,” I said to Cam.
He turned and leaned against the wall near the front door. “Don’t make plans for Friday night.”
The strangest thing happened when our eyes met. My heart skipped a beat. I frowned. What was that about?
“Already know what movies you wanna watch?” I asked, trying to hold on to some normalcy. Why had my hands gone clammy? Why were birds flapping around in my stomach all of a sudden?
“No, I’ve got a blind date set up for you.” I refused to assess the feeling of disappointment that washed over me.
“Oh, when did you have time to set me up with someone? We just discussed this at breakfast…today.”
“It’ll pull through,” he said confidently before pushing himself off the wall and pulling me into a hug. “Thanks for tagging along today.” He breathed in deeply, and I suddenly felt like a stranger in his arms. What was happening to me?
Needing air and distance, I broke away and grabbed the door handles. “You’re welcome. Thanks for letting me join y’all. I love Winter. See you at school tomorrow.” And then I was gone.
I must’ve lost a screw somewhere at the zoo, because I wasn’t thinking or acting normally. Either that or an alien had invaded my body and he or she had a thing for Cam, because I, Macey Greere, should not and could not have those types of feelings toward my best friend.
I woke up in the middle of the night with the urgent need to upend the contents of my stomach. After four trips to the bathroom and waking up the whole house with my gag-inducing wrenching, Mom declared me sick.
“That’s it, you’re not going to school. You’ve obviously got a bug, and that doesn’t need to be shared with your classmates.”
I wanted to protest, but judging by how badly I felt, I knew I would just be sent home if I tried to go.
My stomach allowed me to sleep from five in the morning until about ten when it was ready for a new round of “What’s in Macey Greere’s stomach?” The answer: nothing. I rested my cheek on the cool tile floor and prayed for a painless death.
I must’ve dozed off, because when I opened my eyes again, I had my purple, fuzzy blanket draped over me. Mom. A glance at the mirror told me I should’ve avoided the act all together. My face was lined from the groves of the tile and had the sexy sheen of pea soup, my eyes were red and puffy as if I’d spent the entire night crying, and there was vomit residue dried in the corners of my mouth. Gross.
Brushing my teeth ended as soon as I stuck my toothbrush into my mouth and sent my gag reflex into overdrive, but washing my face with a warm washcloth seemed to do the trick in making me feel somewhat human. I crawled back into bed and slipped back into sleep.
“You really shouldn’t be in here, sweetie. You’ll catch what she has.” Mom’s voice pulled me out of my sleep.
“If she got it yesterday while we were at the zoo, then it means I’m probably next.”
Cam.
To my relief, those thrashing birds weren’t there, and I decided it was probably the bug warning me of what was to come.
Thank God.
I opened my eyes to find him smiling down at me.
“Hey, Mace. I brought you some soup.” He held up a rolled up paper bag as proof.
While the smell of chicken broth made my mouth water, my stomach twisted in protest.
“Thanks,” I mumbled before smacking my lips to fight back the excessive amounts of saliva that were flooding my mouth.
I realized it was a losing battle and dove for the bathroom. Again, nothing came up, but my body wrung me for what little drops of acid it could find.
Shoot. Me. Now.
I rinsed my mouth out with spearmint mouthwash and shuffled back into the bedroom. Mom and the bag of soup were gone, but Cam held out a glass of water to me.
“Drink. Doctor’s orders.”
While I didn’t think I’d be able to keep it down, I took the glass from him and gingerly drank a few sips before crawling back under the covers.
“I brought your homework assignments,” he said as he bent over to retrieve a black folder from his backpack and handed it to me.
“Thanks,” I smiled weakly. “How was school?”
“Boring. The usual. Teagan has a new self-brushing toothbrush he’s testing out…and the stitches to tell me I don’t need to sign up for that one.” Cam shook his head with a chuckle. “Morgan has switched to purple, Reese sat with Daxter Wiles at lunch, Bruce is designing the tattoo he wants to get for his eighteenth birthday, and Wen told a dirty joke that had us all laughing our asses off.”
“Seriously? Wen spoke?” I croaked, my vocal chords completely shot.
He laughed. “Nah, I’m just messing with you, but I did secure that date for Friday. If you feel better by then, that is.”
My jaw dropped. “You really got someone to agree to a blind date with me?”
His nose wrinkled as he gave me a look that said he thought I’d lost my marbles. “Of course. You’re hot. What guy wouldn’t want to date you?”
“I’m not hot.” I rolled my eyes.
He reached over and pressed the back of his hand to my forehead. “Yeah, you’re definitely hot.”
I attempted to shove him away but ended up knocking myself off balance. Rather than fighting it, I went with it, and crashed onto the pillows.
“Was that the best you’ve got?” He chuckled as he rubbed my back.
I made a half grunt, half moan sound and cracked one eye open to look up at him. “Thank you for bringing my homework.”
He reached over and brushed a strand of hair out of my face. “Anything for you, pretty girl.”
Then he leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on my forehead. “Get some rest. I’ll see you tomorrow whether or not you come to school.”
And he kept his word. As it turned out, a touch-and-go ride to the doctor’s office determined I had the flu that was going around. I got my flu shot every year, had it marked on the calendar and everything, and I still go it. Just my luck.
To make matters worse, every day Cam stopped by the house to give me notes from our friends and my homework assignments, looking like the image of perfect health. It was so not fair! He should have been stuck in bed, existing on a diet of yogurt, saltines, and ginger ale.
I spent my days s
hivering and aching all over, watching sucky daytime TV, and sleeping.
Miracle of all miracles, though, I woke up Friday morning feeling close to my normal self.
CAM: How r u feelin 2day?
Oh yeah, and Cam texted me every morning to check on my progress. I thought it was sweet, even though he probably was just wondering when I was going to come back so I could break off whatever new fling he’d picked up in my absence.
ME: Human :-)
CAM: Progress!
ME: Still staying home tho. Don’t wanna jinx it
CAM: Makes sense. Still on for 2night?
I chewed on my bottom lip as I mulled over my options. What if I crashed in the middle of the date and suddenly felt like crap again? What if I’m not really better and end up barfing all over the guy? I grabbed my pillow and covered it over my face to muffle my frustrated groan.
No, Cam set the thing up, and I was feeling much better. To not go would tell Cam I didn’t trust his judgment. Yes, I had my reservations about the type of guy he’d picked out, but Cam was the only person who knew me better than I knew myself. That had to count for something.
ME: Yep
He sent me the thumbs-up emoji, and I tossed my phone onto the bed. No going back. I was going on my first blind date set up by my male best friend. Sounded like a recipe for disaster.
Cam gave specific instructions that I was to drive myself to the meeting place and call him when I got there. He also warned me to never leave my drink unattended, to decline any invitation to get in a car with him, and to keep my phone in my lap in case I needed to send out an SOS. I couldn’t help but wonder what the guy I was meeting was told by his friends. Did he have to take all the same necessary safety measures us girls had to do? Doubtful.
I pulled Oscar into the parking lot of The Flying Biscuit, an eclectic restaurant that served soul food with biscuits being the star of the show. I’d only eaten there once before, but the chicken potpie I’d had was the best I’d ever eaten. After putting Oscar in park, I picked up my phone and shot Cam a quick text letting him know I made it. I was afraid if I called him, I’d talk myself out of going through with the date.
CAM: Have fun!
I flipped down my visor to make sure my pink lipstick hadn’t bled onto my chin or stuck to my teeth and that my hair still held the big curls I’d made it conform to. So far so good.
“You got this. Go in there and knock his socks off.”
I took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, all the while clinging to the door handle. With a silent prayer, I flung the door open and climbed out of the car. My stomach twisted into painful knots, my heart was beating so fast it felt like I was having palpitations, and I feared I was about to hurl all over myself.
My hand shook as I reached to open the door to the restaurant. The soothing smells of fresh baked bread and beef stew welcomed me as I stepped inside, and for the first time in days, I was hungry. Cam had said the guy would be wearing a red and black button-up shirt and a gray knit cap. So, I scanned the room looking for a guy my age who matched that description.
My eyes skipped over him at first glance but then skittered back. He sat at the table in the back right corner of the room near a giant mural of a male and female biscuit dancing under the stars. He gave a slight wave as he stood to motion to the chair across from him.
“Cam? What are you doing here?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” His eyebrow quirked as he waited for me to take my seat. I stood frozen, clinging to the back of the chair for support.
“Did my date cancel?”
“Nope.”
“So…you’re my date?”
“Yes, now can we sit before everyone starts staring at the two odd teenagers in the corner of the room?”
I plopped down into my seat, and he did the same.
“I’m so confused. It was you the whole time?”
“Yep.”
“Why?”
Somewhere hidden in a cave deep in mountain in Montana was a record of every horrible blind date to ever happen, and I was ensuring that mine made that vault by not going along with it. I got it, but I didn’t get the “why.” Why did he do it?
He reached over and took my hand into his. “I wanted to be your first blind date.”
“Why?” He’d reduced me to a three-year-old going through the “why” phase.
I watched in confusion as he shifted in his seat and cleared his throat several times. Was he nervous? About talking to me? “Because I love you, Mace.”
Oh. My. God.
My body went numb as I stared at my best friend. The dim lighting played across his auburn hair sticking out from under the knit cap, making the dark red hues shine. His cocky grin was gone, and his normally clear blue eyes looked at me with uncertainty. I followed the strong line of his jaw up to his ear, down his neck, and to the place where neck curved into shoulder. I watched as his Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed hard, but my perusing didn’t stop there. I scanned over his lean muscles, took in the way the shirt hinted at the strength underneath it, and really noticed for the first time just how muscular his arms were. The arms of a guitar player.
The same guitar player who groped a girl on stage and made love to a mic stand. The same guitar player who made it to second base on the hood of a car in the school parking lot. The same guitar player who had me do his breakups because he didn’t have the marbles to do it himself.
If I was honest with myself, there was a part of me, a very small part, that hoped he meant he loved me in a romantic way, but I knew better. This was all some sick joke. A way to sabotage what I’d been working so hard for just to ensure he won, and I lost in the end.
“I’ve gotta go.” I shoved away from the table.
“Macey! Wait!” He called out, but I didn’t stop. I dodged several restaurant patrons before bursting out into the cool night air and lunging for the car door. As I peeled out of the parking lot, I spotted Cam standing outside the restaurant, his hands stuffed in the front pockets of his jeans as he watched me drive away.
Hot tears coursed down my face as I fled away from the most embarrassing thing that had ever happened to me. For my own best friend to go on a pity date with me… I swiped angrily at my tears as I struggled to keep my eyes and mind on the road.
Eleven
9. Dating Your Best Friend’s Brother = Forever Love
My phone buzzed for the umpteenth time in three days. Cam wasn’t giving up, but he’d have to, because I wanted nothing to do with him. Absolutely nothing.
My first day back to school after being out for a week was miserable. It was monsooning outside, and I’d had to park way in the back lot that always flooded every time it rained, which meant by the time I made it inside the school building, I was soaked from my knees down.
Rather than eating lunch with the gang, I ate in the sanctuary of the yearbook room. During government and Spanish II, I switched seats with people so that I was nowhere near Cam. By the end of the day, the rumor was we’d broken up because I caught him cheating on me with a girl from another school. If it meant finally convincing the school Cam and I weren’t a couple, I’d take it.
The only shining light in it all was the fading bruises around Kenton’s eyes and the look of fear he gave Cam when they passed in the hallway. Something told me Cam had something to do with that and how silent everyone was being about the rumors. But that didn’t change the fact that I was still mad at him.
I’d successfully avoided everyone until the final bell rang, and I made my way out to my car to pick Clay up from school. Morgan and Reese cut me off at the pass, and I found myself trapped between a beat-up blue truck and a newer silver Mustang. They shared equal expressions of determination with their arms crossed over their chests and their hips cocked, as if waiting for me to make the first move.
“Um, hey?” I asked, “Why the serious faces?”
Reese was the first to crack. “We’re staging an intervention.”
Then
Morgan chimed in. “Yeah, a guy intervention.”
I shifted my weight and bit my cheek to keep from laughing. The idea that I needed to be weaned off guys was laughable. In fact, I would be perfectly content being the old spinster with ten dogs.
“Okay.” I shrugged. “Works for me.”
“Hear us out before you agree to our terms. We want you to stop this nonsense and focus all your concentration on getting one guy. You hop too much, sweetie, and it’s giving you a bad reputation.” Reese did that pursed-lip, head-tilt thing she did that said, “Bless your heart” as she reached over to give my arm a reassuring squeeze.
“Wait, y’all are just trying to keep me from dating multiple men? Why not stop dating altogether? Sure would save a lot of time and energy.”
“Because you are so girlfriend material. You’ve just been going about it all wrong. You need to channel your Riza and find that guy who gets you and your complexities,” Morgan explained.
For once, I don’t get the anime reference. “Who’s Riza?”
“From Lovely Complex. The cutest love story ever.” She shook her head and gave me a look that said I should’ve already known that.
“What Morgan is trying to say,” Reese interjected, “is that you need to look for that one guy who makes your knees weak, your heart skip a beat, and your stomach do somersaults every time you see him.”
I looked from one to the other and then focused on my fingernails. “I’ve decided to give up dating.”
“What?” Reese squealed and shook my shoulder. “Are you crazy?”
Thinking about what happened with Cam on Friday night made me answer, “Yes, which is why I need to do the right thing and take myself off the market.”
“That’s not what I meant and you know it. Why would you wanna quit now?” Reese crossed her arms and stared me down.
Breathing became difficult as I struggled to keep my emotions at bay. They didn’t need to know what happened. It was for the best.
“I have my reasons.” I sniffed.
