Page 109 of Damaged Boys Don't Fall For Bubbly Girls

I ride to school and pull into a parking space. I spot Finn’s van only a few feet away. Looks like my friends have already arrived. Time to be mature and face the fact that Lexi has chosen Finn.

The guys and Lexi are at her locker, talking and laughing. Lexi’s back faces me, and Finn stands very close to her. Not closer than he did in the past, but it means something else now.

Theo sees me, waving me over and calling my name.

Lexi turns around. Our eyes meet for a few seconds before I pull away, smile at everyone, and slap hands with the guys.

“Kind of cutting it close,” Dean says. “Bell’s about to ring.”

I shrug. “Had a late morning.”

“Is something wrong?” Lexi asks.

“No, everything’s cool.”

The bell rings and we head to Aunt Ally’s class. She begins discussing the book we’re reading, then stops fifteen minutes later and tells us she’s giving us an assignment.

“Please pair up into teams of two.”

My eyes immediately dart to Lexi. In the past, we’d probably pair up. But not anymore.

Finn grins at her. “Partners?”

“Partners.”

I swallow the lump in my throat. But then I internally yell at myself. I have no claim on her. She’s free to pick whoever she wants.

How do I stop myself from being so selfish?

“Brock, partners?” Gael asks. He seems a bit surprised that Lexi and I aren’t together—the others also do—but he doesn’t say anything.

The assignment is to rewrite the ending of the book. Dad did this assignment, too, when he was my age. Apparently it’s whatgot him into writing. Aunt Ally was so excited about its success that she assigns this a few times a year.

Gael frowns. “This is all you, man. You’re the reader and your dad’s the writer.”

I wave my hand. “Aunt Ally won’t mark this. It’s just for fun, so it’s okay if it sucks.”

He lifts a brow. “I have the kid of a famous writer and you’re telling me you can’t rewrite the ending?”

I shrug. “Guess my dad’s genes weren’t passed down to me. But let’s try. You read the book, right?”

“Yeah, but, like, I don’t remember details.”

“That’s fine. I’ll summarize it for you.” After I do that, Gael and I read the last chapter in order to write a new ending. As I read, my gaze shoots to Lexi and Finn. Their heads are bent together as they work on the assignment. And they’re laughing.

Call me crazy, but it doesn’t sound like she’s laughing with him the way she laughs with me.

Man, what’s wrong with me?

“I don’t get it,” Gael pulls me from my thoughts. “The story ends. So why should we write a new ending?”

“Because everyone gets sick and dies?”

“Oh, I guess. So instead of everyone dying…they live?”

“Let’s make it more exciting than that. Give them some obstacles they need to overcome.”

As we work, I peer at my aunt. She’s sitting at her desk, engrossed in a book. Mom and Dad told me she’d give them assignments during class just as an excuse to read. I laugh. She’s totally doing that now.