The only consolation I have is that I enjoy Maxx’s company. He’s fun and outgoing and cheerful when he isn’t trying to be an alpha dick.
Thursday morning, Maxx takes me to school and drops me off in the same spot where Chas and I were ambushed on Tuesday. Today, one of the school’s security guards is waiting there, arms crossed over his beefy chest.
“What’s all this?” I whisper as Chasm and I slip in the side door, and I notice that several teachers are standing just outside their classrooms, watching us all.
“The car vandalism mixed with Tuesday’s incident freaked out the administration, so …” He gestures around randomly and then shrugs. “We’ve got security detail for the rest of the week apparently. Doubt they’ll even extend this shit through finals week; all it takes is one brat bitching to their parents and voila, disorder is restored.”
Chasm curls his lip at some of the girls as we pass by, flipping them off. One of them—actually, the brunette from the other day—starts toward him only to be pulled back by her friends.
I, for one, am so relieved that school is almost over that I could cry.
Also, I think I’ll avoid pool parties, lake gatherings, remote trails, shopping malls, drive-ins, or anywhere else I might see my classmates over the summer. Best to just to stay away from them at this point.
Chas escorts me to class and then pauses beside me in a way I might describe as awkward if he were any other human besides Kwang-seon McKenna. The guy never gets awkward or nervous. It just isn’t in his blood.
“Hey, uh,” he starts, running his tongue along his lower lip and then playfully flicking at one of his lip studs. “I know this is sort of … well, it’s fucked-up as all get out. But … you want to go to prom with me maybe? Or we could just not go at all. If Parrish isn’t back …” Chasm trails off and exhales as my heart pounds like crazy in my chest. I’ve waited for a moment like this for a long time. It’s a milestone, right, to be asked to prom. I’m only a sophomore anyway, and I’m getting invited to junior prom. Old Dakota would’ve been so excited that she would’ve texted Sally and Nevaeh right away, and the three of us would’ve celebrated together.
Now, things are different. I’m just as thrilled, but in a different way.
I reach out and snatch Chas’ tie from his pocket before he gets another dress code violation. He has like thirteen of them, but Whitehall’s punishment for that sort of thing suits him: every five violations, you write an essay on a random subject assigned by the teacher who most recently caught you. Chasm enjoys writing essays, so he doesn’t give a shit.
I put his tie on for him anyway.
“I’d love to go to prom with you—either way.” The words kill me, scraping past my tongue. It feels like a huge slap in the face to Parrish, but I also don’t want to see Chasm miss his junior prom. Parrish wouldn’t want that and neither do I. “But we’ll have him back by then. I can sense it.”
I finish fixing his tie, and he gives me this slow, easy, cocky little smile.
I shiver all over, and then flush white-hot as he leans down and sucks my lower lip between his teeth.
“Mr. McKenna,” Ms. Miyamoto warns as she walks past. She says something else to him in Japanese, but it’s too fast and too complicated for me to follow.
“She says, this is a school, not lovers’ lane,” he tells me with a grin, reaching out to brush his hand over my hair.
“Have I ever mentioned how sexy I find it that you’re fluent in three languages?”
Chasm lifts his eyes to the ceiling in mock thought.
“Nah, I don’t think so.” He drops that heated gaze of his back to my face, and I shiver again. “You better mention it a few more times to make sure I’ve got the idea.”
“Get out of here,” I snort, shoving at him. He laughs as he takes off, giving a little wave over his shoulder. I watch him go, satisfied that, at least for now, he’s safe with the teachers crawling the halls. Doesn’t stop everyone from staring at me when I walk into the classroom, but that’s okay.
Just six more days of school after this, and we get a break.
Six more days.
What could possibly go wrong in that length of time?
Clue: fucking everything.
Maxx picks me up after school since Chasm’s dad wants him home again, and the two of us spend hours going over every detail we have, everything we know. But I’m convinced at this point that we’re missing something. We haven’t been given the last piece of information needed to solve this puzzle.
