"What are you making her?" Now my pulse is going wild. No matter what it is, Sara will freak. She loves getting surprises. She'll really think it's cool, getting something from one of my friends. Whoa. Friend? Yeah, I might have just met her, but I consider her a friend.
Kira shrugs. "It's a secret. Girl thing. Yay or nay on the 'h'?"
It takes me a minute to reply. Who is this girl? She's known my sister for five seconds and she made her something? It's cool. It's no 'h'. You know she'll show me, though. Twig wouldn't keep a secret from me." So there.
Kira gives me another shrug. "We'll see. Us girls have to stick together, you know. Thanks." She turns to leave, but Mel's voice stops her.
"You're in my history class, right? I'm Melanie. Carter's girlfriend."
Kira holds out her hand and Mel shakes it loosely. "Kira. I work for Carter's mom. You guys are cute." She points back and forth between us. "You look cute together."
This is awkward as hell. Plus, what's that? I work for Carter's mom? She knew me first.
"Thanks." Mel grabs my hand. Five minutes ago she was pulling away from me, and now she's getting all possessive.
When Mel doesn't say anything else, Kira smiles like she realizes she's being dismissed and walks away. Today she's wearing a tank top with a sweater over it and a pair of tight blue jeans. It's the kind of outfit Mel would wear, except probably doesn't come from the same stores.
"She's the girl you're going to be with tonight?" Mel's voice is harsh which, honestly, kind of pisses me off.
"Yeah? So?"
"Why did your mom suddenly decide to hire someone?"
"Because she needs the help? Should I have had her ask your permission before she hired someone? You were the one who wanted me to spend less time at the shop, so isn't this a good thing?" I'm starting to sweat a little, tired of going rounds with her.
"Whatever, Carter. It just would have been nice if you told me."
"Umm, told you what?" I'm thinking it would have been nice if she told me she was a nutcase.
"That you were going to be with someone hot and not someone old, which is what I assumed."
Ah, so that's what this is about. Mel always gets harsher when she's jealous, which I used to kind of like...but now? Not so much.
Willing to do anything to end this conversation and have five freaking minutes of peace, I don't say what I'm really thinking. What comes out instead is, "You're hot, Mel. Come on. She works for my mom. It's not a big deal. I invited you to come. It's not like I'm trying to hide anything."
Her frown flips up into a smile. "Thanks, baby."
Crisis averted! Even more so when the bell rings. We say our goodbyes, Trina and Mel going one way, and Travis and I another. Once they're out of ear shot, I groan. What the hell has happened to my life lately? My calm place has suddenly grown two heads and an extra set of claws and I'm not in the mood to deal with it.
"Why is she freaking out? Next time I say we get pissed when they go to Sam's. She has a brother. Same thing. " Travis shrugs when he says this, but I stop walking.
"They went to Sam's last night?" Devin's sister? She ditched me to go to Devin's house?
"Umm, yeah. Is that bad?"
My heart pounds, muscles tightening. She was flirting with him, went to his house without telling me, and then she freaks out because Mom hired Kira?
"Nothing. I just..." Is she cheating on me? Does she like him? Am I freaking out over nothing? Wait. Do I care? I don't know. I should know that much, right?
"I'm thinking of breaking up with Trina." Travis starts walking again. His words make me forget everything else. It's always been the four of us. We hang out and have fun together. "What? Why?"
He looks at me like it's the stupidest question in the world. "Have you been paying attention? It's just not the same. Plus, it happens, ya know? You think people are going to stay together forever, but they don't. Why prolong it?"
Travis's voice sounds strange. And I don't know about the forever part, but I at least figured we'd stay together through high school. "Huh? You've never said that before."
"It's just... My..." He shakes his head like he just changed his mind about something. "This is our last year in high school. Do we really want to spend it getting bitched at for everything? I mean, it'd be different if I, like...but it's not like that. I just want to have fun, ya know?"
I have no idea what he's not telling me, but I totally get what he is saying. It's not like I thought we'd be one of those go-off-to-college-together couples. Or that we'd get married one day. Have the 2.2 kids or however the saying goes. Don't ask me how you can have .2 kids, but whatever.
Still, we have fun. At least, we used to. When I pictured my senior year, I pictured the four of us. We've been a constant for a year now.
"I'm not saying you should do the same," he says. "But I just wanted you to know. Didn't want it to come out of nowhere."
This shouldn't come from nowhere, because we've both been fighting with the girls a lot recently, but it does. It does because as weak as it makes me sound, even though I'm jealous as hell he's going to do this, I don't know if I can do the same. Mel will freak and as hard as she is to handle lately, I can only imagine how much hell it would be to deal with a broken-up-with Melanie. All I want is one piece of my life that has no drama and I can’t even get that.
Before I can reply, the second bell rings, making us late for English. We make a run for it, my mind tangled with thoughts of Mel, Mom, English, and Kira.
Chapter Five
Practice is ruined by Mrs. Z's voice in my head; every play I want to call out is overpowered by her lecture because I didn't turn in anymore late assignments. Unfortunately, she's not the only person copping a squat in my head. I have Mom on one shoulder, needing my help at the store. Getting upset when I question her about her douchebag dad. Even if she weren't whispering in my ear, I'd be worried about her. It's never a good day when she has to go see him, but knowing Sara will be home takes some of the worry away.
The crappy part is, it doesn't stop there. Mel's sitting on the other shoulder, alternating between being the calm Mel who helps make me forget, and then images of her with Devin keep popping up behind my eyes. The fact is, I realize I'd be pissed, but I wouldn't be hurt. I'd almost be relieved. It'd be one less direction to be pulled. One less person who wants something out of me.
Right now, I could do with a little less "Carter, I need you to" and a little more, "Carter, do what you need to do." Hell, maybe even a little, "Carter, do you need help?"
By the time I rush to the shop after practice, I'm in an even worse mood. Yanking my backpack out of the truck, I slam the door and head inside. There are a couple customers, but Mom's still here so I sit at the little round table by the front counter, where Sara does her coloring and Mom eats her meals. It's kind of hidden because it's shorter than the counter the register sits on and it's on the opposite side as the door.