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“Whatever works,” I responded, hooking my arm around his shoulders as we left the room and entered the main hallway of the student center.
I was serious about what I said. I loved him, and I wanted to ruin another girl’s life to save my own. It was an eat or be eaten world out here in Freeman, and I wasn’t going to come out on the bottom. Not like I did in high school.
At least now, I had a veteran bad boy on my side.
“You’re something, Kat. You know that?” Elliot said as we passed groups of students looking after us like we were some celebrity power couple. “You continue to surprise me.”
“Good,” I said. “Because you’ll have to brace yourself.”
“Ell?”
All of a sudden, Elliot stopped in his tracks, yanking me to a halt beside him. Confused I looked around, wondering if Vivian had decided to make a return.
“Fiona?” Elliot gasped, his arm dropping from my shoulders.
In another second, he was yards ahead of me, in another girl’s embrace. I couldn’t process what was happening—so I just stood there, blinking like an idiot, envy building up within me.
After what felt like an eternity, Elliot finally turned back around and called over to me. “Kat, this is Fiona,” he said, his hand still on the small of her back. “My old friend. She’s the one who did this bad boy.” He pointed to his dragon tattoo.
“Oh,” I said, making my way over to them. The girl was pretty—too pretty. If anything, her long, dark hair and piercing, gray-green eyes make it seem like they were siblings more than anything, but her alternative sense of style—nose piercings, full-sleeve tats and all—made it clear she had grown up anywhere but in Elliot’s household. She seemed older, as if she had recently graduated from college. “Nice to meet you.”
The girl ignored my formality, and turned to pinch Elliot’s cheeks.
“God, I’ve missed you, you little punk,” she said.
“What are you doing here?” he responded, blushing. “I mean, it’s been years.”
“Just wanted to see you,” she replied with a shrug. “When I heard my best friend was in a shitload of trouble, of course, I had to swing by. Someone told me I’d find you here. An NA meeting? Ell, I knew you’d follow in my footsteps.”
I watched their exchange for a few more minutes until it felt like my patience would burst in the form of swears.
“So, what are you doing here?” I blurted, without giving a fuck of how petty my voice sounded. “I mean, you aren’t going to school here, are you?”
Fiona paused her banter to look me up and down just like Vivian had done the first time I met her. Like she was sizing me up, seeing just how much I’d put up a fight, if I’d dare defend myself against someone as great as her.
And yet, she smiled, like she’d known me for years.
“I’m sorry,” she said, reaching out her hand to shake mine. “I haven’t seen this kid in forever,” she said, nodding to Elliot. “I’m a family friend. I’ve been travelling around for a bit. My folks said it’s time for me to get a real job or some shit, so I’m back here trying to get a tattoo apprenticeship with one of the local shops.” Her possessive air seemed to dissipate as she talked, as if realizing that I was one of the good ones. “So, you two are together? That’s cute,” she continued. “I’ve heard so much about you. Be good to him, okay?”
I pressed my lips into a grin, trying to mirror hers. I didn’t know what to say. It was hard to get a read on her—but something told me she was putting on a persona. It was obvious they had a long history together … and a positive one. A history that didn’t involve as much conflict. As much emotional abuse.
And I was envious of that.
“Hey, I’ll catch you later, Fiona,” Elliot finally said, stepping back to my side. “Let’s meet up tomorrow, maybe?”
“Yeah,” she said, already heading back toward the exit. She blew an air kiss over her shoulders before meeting my eyes for the first time. “Get a good night’s sleep, Ell. We have a lot of catching up to do.”
Elliot laughed nervously, and turned back to me as she went out of sight.
“Sorry,” he said, his lips still grinning wide. “Fiona’s, like, my closest friend. We haven’t seen each other in a while. She’ll be staying here for a while.”
“A while?” I said, hating how possessive I sounded. “Closest friend? How close is that?”
“Guess I’ll find out,” he replied. “Well, we dated for a few months over the summer. But it was nothing serious.” He took my hands in his. “This isn’t going to change anything between me and you. I promise.”
A few months?
Nothing serious?