Next Summer

by Hailey Abbott

  “That’s your argument?” Tim shook his head. “Pathetic. Next thing, you’re going to trot out the absurd ‘Justin broke her heart’ defense.”

  Ella practically screamed at that. “Oh my God, you can’t even go there, he totally broke her heart and then sold her out—”

  “And I thought she cheated on the poor guy,” Tim interrupted.

  “But it’s all teenage drama,” Ella said. “Everyone knows they’re meant for each other. It doesn’t matter how many times she gets married, or how long he dates movie stars. It’s destiny.”

  The star-crossed love between Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears was a topic that had never interested Kelsi. Ella, meanwhile, talked like she was personally invested in the stars’ reunion. Kelsi had heard this rant from Ella so many times that she could probably recite it. She barely even heard the words anymore. But Tim, she noticed, seemed to be hanging on to every one.

  Gritting her teeth—again—Kelsi tried to focus on the road.

  After all, why should she care if Tim found Ella as delightful as every other guy in the entire world seemed to find her?

  He wasn’t her boyfriend. He was barely her friend. Why should she care what he did?

  She was still pondering that question a while later when they pulled into a rest stop in Massachusetts for food, gas, and a restroom break.

  “Want me to drive?” Ella asked. She was holding the big bottle of Classic Coke and family pack of Dentyne Ice she’d just purchased.

  “I’m fine,” Kelsi said crisply. She returned the nozzle to its place on the pump. Definitely with more aggression than the action warranted.

  “You’ve been driving all morning,” Ella said, slightly hesitant. “I can take over.”

  If Kelsi didn’t know better, she might have thought that Ella was actually trying to be helpful, even sensitive to someone else’s needs.

  Obviously, this was some sort of elaborate trick.

  “I said I was fine,” Kelsi snapped.

  She watched Ella blink, and then rock back on her heels a bit. Kelsi noticed that, under her tiny blue spaghetti-strap tank top, Ella wasn’t wearing a bra. Typical, Kelsi thought angrily. And all for Tim’s benefit, naturally.

  “Your friend is really cool,” Ella said in a voice Kelsi recognized as cautious.

  Good, she thought. You should be more careful.

  “He’s all right,” Kelsi told her. “For a frat boy moron.”

  And because her life was just that ridiculous, Tim was standing right behind her when she said that. Kelsi saw Ella’s mouth sort of drop open, but before she could react, she heard Tim’s amused chuckle.

  “Sad but true,” he told Ella, shaking his head. “It’s all keggers and football for me—I’m so ashamed.”

  Kelsi felt her face go red, but when she turned to look, Tim didn’t look ashamed at all. He looked smirky and entertained, the way he always did. Kelsi was the one who felt ashamed, but she told herself it was just anger, and crawled back behind the wheel.

  “Are you sure—” Ella began.

  “Ella, get in the car!” Kelsi barked at her, turning the key in the ignition. “The last time I let you drive me somewhere, you almost got arrested.”

  “It was a speeding ticket!” Ella protested, but she climbed into the backseat and slammed the door shut. “And that cop just had it in for me because, hello, we were so much cuter than she was.”

  “Yeah, and I’m sure she really enjoyed it when you pointed that out to her,” Kelsi said. “I promised Dad there would be no moving violations on this road trip, okay?”

  “I can’t believe she blames me for that,” Ella said, turning her attention back to Tim. She hardly looked hung over anymore, Kelsi noticed. The mere presence of a boy instantly reenergized her. It was infuriating.

  “She nearly had to spend the night in jail,” Kelsi chimed in bitterly. “Funny how that made it all just slightly less entertaining.”

  “She is such a freaking killjoy,” Ella told Tim in a slightly lowered voice, leaning over the seat a bit more. “Let me tell you what happened and you can decide. It’ll be like on American Idol.”

  “Excellent,” Tim said. “I’ve always wanted to be Simon Cowell. Can I tell you exactly what I think, no-holds-barred?”

  “Of course!” Ella said, with a giggle. “I’m not afraid of the truth.”

  Why can’t they just do each other and get it over with? Kelsi wondered furiously. Anyone watching this scene would have thought that Kelsi and Tim hardly knew each other, and Ella and Tim were the couple. Not that Kelsi cared about Tim. Or did she? It was her own fault for letting down her guard with him—which she would never have done if she hadn’t found out about Ella and Peter. It seemed all roads led back to how evil Ella was.

  But did Tim really have to be that into her?

  Kelsi just kept her eyes on the road and somehow restrained herself from murdering her sister and the irritating boy next to her.

  She couldn’t get to Amherst fast enough.

  23

  When Beth finally woke up, she thought she might have died.

  Then she remembered what had happened last night and she sort of wished she had died.

  She managed to disentangle herself from the stranglehold of her floral bedsheets, and looked around her bedroom in sleepy confusion. The room was hot, and light streamed in through the windows. The clock announced that it was already afternoon. And her cell phone showed that there were no missed calls.

  Somehow, that last part was the most ominous.

  It was as if George somehow knew. As if he had just known last evening, the way people in movies always seemed to bolt awake in the middle of the night with premonitions of plane crashes or assassinations.

  Beth stood in the shower for a long time, tilting her face directly into the water and hoping it might wash away all the things she felt. Not that her hangover was too terrible. That, at least, numbed some of the memory. But not all of it.

  She’d kissed Adam. So many times. And then she’d done more than that. In a small, dark clearing in the woods, they’d been all over each other. Adam had removed her shirt and bra, and Beth shivered in the shower, remembering how he’d stripped them from her in nearly one hasty, rough motion. They’d sunk to the ground together, kissing nonstop. His hands had been everywhere, stroking and caressing every inch of bare skin. It had felt so amazing. So exciting. Within minutes, he’d taken off his jeans. But when Beth slipped her hand under the waistband of his boxers, she realized the seriousness of what was happening. Kissing was one thing, but if she let this boil over, it would turn into something much more intense. And she couldn’t let that happen.

  I didn’t have sex with him, Beth reminded herself. I didn’t let it go too far.

  But they’d gone far enough.

  She closed her eyes.

  George.

  How could she have allowed this? What did this say about her relationship with George? How could she be so in love with George—and she did think she still loved him, even now—yet have kissed Adam the way she’d kissed him last night?

  Beth turned off the faucets and climbed out of the shower. Sooner or later, she had to face the day.

  After a defiantly big breakfast of bacon and eggs, she took a long run. When she got back, winded and sweaty, she wandered around the cottage and wondered what in the world to do with herself. Ella and Kelsi were probably already in Amherst, having fun with Jamie. George still hadn’t called, thankfully. Since he hadn’t gotten in touch with her, it probably meant he wasn’t coming up this weekend after all and wanted to avoid another fight over the phone. Which meant that she could have gone to Amherst. And if she’d known that in advance, there was a really big chance that instead of hanging around with Adam, she would have been too busy packing for the trip. Which meant she would never have fooled around with him. So really, it was George’s fault. If he wasn’t so flaky, none of this would have happened.

  She tried really hard to believe tha
t one, concentrating on it fiercely for a few minutes, but it wouldn’t take.

  Beth knew exactly whose fault it was.

  Me, myself, and I.

  A few minutes later, her phone rang.

  Adam.

  Beth looked at his name on her phone’s little screen and sighed, putting it aside without answering.

  It hadn’t really sunk in yet, she realized then. That of course he would call the next day. He thought things had changed between them now. Maybe he thought they were dating or something. Beth panicked a little bit.

  Who cares what Adam thinks, or what George thinks? Ella had counseled the night before, surprisingly wise. What do you think?

  In fact, Ella had been surprising all the way through. She’d really seemed to get Beth’s confusion and the depth of her anguish. Beth hadn’t expected that. She’d thought Ella would only care about whether or not Adam was a good hook up (which, oh God, he was). But instead, her cousin had seemed to absolutely understand why things had gotten so difficult and crazy for Beth. How Beth had felt like she couldn’t really help herself. And, true to her word, Ella hadn’t judged.

  Bethy, she’d said at one point, when Beth couldn’t speak through the sobs. The fact is, feelings are gonna be hurt here. You just have to figure out how you can make yourself happy, and you should be honest about it. That’s really what matters.

  Oddly, that was the most comforting thing she’d said. Be honest, Beth told herself now, when the phone rang yet again, and Adam’s number flashed across the screen.

  But, regardless, she couldn’t quite bring herself to answer the call.

  24

  By the time they reached Amherst, Kelsi wanted to kick Tim out of the car. While it was still moving, if possible.

  The asshole.

  It wasn’t just that he continued to engage Ella in conversation, so that Kelsi had to hear her treacherous little sister giggle and flirt and almost audibly bat her eyelashes. It was the way he did it. He seemed as if he was just as enchanted by every single inane thing that fell from Ella’s mouth as all the rest of the stupid boys out there.

  When she finally pulled onto the U Mass campus, Kelsi decided that she was thrilled that Tim was finally getting out of the car and—she could only hope—her life. He’d told her to trust him, and she’d known better, hadn’t she? Next time she planned to heed her gut instinct.

  Tim climbed out of the car and stretched, a move which showed off the swath of tan skin between the top of his jeans and the bottom his T-shirt. Kelsi tossed her door open and then stormed around to the trunk of the car. As she flung it open, she was glad that, for once, Ella seemed to be more interested in the state of her nails than in the nearest cute boy. The windows of the car were rolled down, but Ella didn’t seem to be paying attention to Kelsi or Tim.

  “Okay,” Tim said, coming around to haul his duffel bag from the trunk. He smiled at Kelsi like everything was great and he didn’t deserve to be drop-kicked with full Kill Bill force. “I guess I’ll—”

  “Go to hell?” Kelsi suggested nastily, cutting him off.

  He paused. “What?” he asked, obviously hoping he’d just misheard her.

  “Have a nice weekend,” Kelsi snapped. “And you can find yourself a new ride back up to Pebble Beach. I don’t think I could stomach five more minutes of you, much less five more hours.”

  “Wow.” Tim settled his bag over one shoulder. There was no sign of his smirk or his usual amusement. Instead, his eyes looked dim. “That’s pretty cold, Kelsi, even for you.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” she demanded.

  “It means that you think you’re entitled to say any rude thing that crosses your mind, and you expect me to keep laughing it off!” For the first time since she’d known him, Tim seemed dead serious. It sounded like that thought had been building up inside him, because his voice rose a little—but Kelsi was too mad to care.

  “Let me assure you, I don’t have any expectations as far as you’re concerned,” she shot back. Like she was the rude one! He was so clueless!

  “Yeah, you’ve made that pretty clear,” he said coolly. “I don’t know why I wasted my time.”

  His voice sounded weirdly bitter, which made Kelsi wish she hadn’t yelled at him—but only for a brief second. He’d been flirting with Ella right under her nose, she reminded herself, when he of all people knew how that would make her feel.

  “Whatever.” She glared at him, willing him to apologize. But he just looked back at her and said nothing. “I guess I’ll see you around.”

  “I wouldn’t count on it,” Tim replied. And then, just like that, he turned and walked away.

  Kelsi watched him go for a moment, then slammed the trunk closed with all her might—so hard she actually made her hand throb. When she climbed back into the car, Ella had crawled over into the front seat, and was sneaking looks Kelsi’s way while she finished filing her nails.

  “What?” Kelsi said aggressively.

  “What was that all about?” Ella asked, sounding amazed and confused at the same time. “Why were you so mad at him?”

  “Just shut up,” Kelsi spoke through her teeth. “Call Jamie and tell her we’re almost there.”

  “But—”

  “I’m serious!” Kelsi said. “I don’t want to hear another word about Tim from you, of all people!”

  Ella made a face, but she didn’t argue any further. She fished out her phone, and Kelsi had to restrain herself from snatching the thing out of her sister’s hand and seeing for herself if her ex was still busy texting sweet nothings Ella’s way.

  But she did nothing of the kind. She just gritted her teeth as her sister chattered away with Jamie, as if Ella hadn’t just spent the entire morning sucking up to yet another guy in Kelsi’s life. As if Tim wasn’t just one more heartless jock jerk.

  As if everything was just fine and dandy.

  25

  Ella had never been so excited to see her cousin Jamie in her life.

  Jamie was waiting for them on the steps in front of her dorm, her black hair piled high on her head in her trademark messy bun, her green eyes dancing when she spotted the car.

  “Finally!” she cried. “I can’t believe how much I missed you guys!”

  “We missed you, too!” Kelsi called, with a big smile and without the slightest indication that she’d completely lost her mind a short while before.

  Ella was confused by her sister. The fight with Tim had come out of nowhere. He was adorable, sweet, and, if Ella was still able to read guys right (despite the Jeremy debacle), he was totally into Kelsi. Shows what Kelsi knew. Now Ella was so relieved that Jamie was around. Ella knew that Kelsi was unlikely to get all psycho in front of sweet, soothing Jamie.

  Ella gave her cousin a huge hug and grinned at her. Everything about Jamie was just so…Jamie. The mess of freckles. The sloppy hair. The bohemian-chic look she was sporting. Ella felt a rush of love and kissed her cousin on the cheek.

  “We’ve been driving forever,” she cried. “Let’s start the party!”

  Can’t I just take a nap? Ella wondered several hours later, trudging up a hill with Jamie and Kelsi.

  Jamie was so excited about spending her summer in Amherst that she’d taken her cousins on a walking tour of the whole freaking town. Sure, Amherst was pretty. There was a big green square in the center, and the college sat up on top of a hill looking down on it all. It would make a lovely postcard, and Ella wished Jamie had just sent them one instead of making them ooh and aah over every square inch.

  Jamie checked her watch and gasped. “It’s late!” she said. “We’re supposed to meet some friends of mine back at the dorm.”

  “Sounds great,” Ella said excitedly. That sounded a whole lot more fun than anything else they’d done all day. Not that Ella didn’t enjoy hanging out with Jamie, of course. She just wasn’t one for extended walking tours. For one thing, she was wearing the wrong shoes. But what else was new?

  Ella just smiled ser
enely when Kelsi sent a suspicious look her way, like she knew exactly what Ella was thinking.

  Jamie led them back toward her dorm, pointing out various sights along the way. Ella tuned out and wondered what Jamie’s writer friends would be like. She had a pretty good idea that the level of hotness would be fairly low. After all, these people were, by choice, spending their summer trapped indoors, doing what Ella thought of as schoolwork. Who chose to go to summer school?

  They had to climb up five flights of stairs to get to Jamie’s tiny little room with its slanted ceiling and single window. Ella thought the place looked like a jail cell and, if this was what college was going to be like, she had some serious doubts. Maybe she’d just learn cosmetology. She definitely had enough self-taught beauty skills.