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Chapter Thirty

Maya

January 2012

I ran through the dark wintry campus. it was hard to focus on anything but the secret I shared with Nate, and on the evening of Winter Formal, I’d been so distracted I’d completely forgotten to turn in a problem set, which was a large percentage of our grade.

Rushing through the halls, I arrived at Professor DuPont’s office out of breath, problem set in hand, and what I saw past the open door made me stop. To my surprise, Lila was leaning over his shoulder, pointing to an open book on his desk. Her mouth was so close to his neck, he must have felt her breath on his skin. Our eyes met, and something flashed across hers, though she didn’t back away, and instead held my gaze like a deer caught in headlights.

“Oh, sorry. I can come back.” Sensing I was interrupting an intimate moment, I looked away, embarrassed.

“No, it’s okay,” Lila said. “I was just leaving.”

She gathered her things and, on her way out the door, her arm brushed against mine. She paused, and when our eyes met, hers were filled with warning. She looked for a moment as if she was going to say something, but she averted her eyes and continued out the door.

I frowned, my heart beating faster as anxiety rose within me. I remembered the times I’d seen them together before. But this felt different. This time he hadn’t been watching her with admiration, but with something darker, like he wanted to possess her. I thought of what she’d whispered in my ear in the library: Be careful. Of what? Of him?

When I looked back at him, he was watching me with concern. Handing him my problem set, I avoided his eyes, trying to hide my unease.

“Maya.” Professor DuPont’s voice was more stern than usual. “I’m concerned about your performance the last few weeks.”

I swallowed. It was true, I’d been distracted and let my grades slip. “I don’t know what happened…” Nate. Nate happened.

Professor DuPont drew out a piece of paper on his desk—the test I’d taken last week—so I could see it marked up in red. “I’ll let you redo this one. But next time, I’m marking you down.”

I mumbled some incoherent response and was on my way out the door when he said, without looking up, “And…this isn’t my place to say, but I’d like you to be cautious around Nathaniel Banks.” My skin prickled. How did he know about Nate? “You’ve been a straight-A student until now. It would be a shame if he were the reason you failed my class.”