The off-balance feeling that something was wrong spread through Keira. She shifted her weight from foot to foot, trying to get her equilibrium back. “I brought your homework.”
“Oh, my God. How can you think about homework right now?” Susan dragged her into the house and up the stairs. Keira could hear the TV in the living room, chattering in Korean.
“So, I take it this means you had fun with Smith?” Keira asked, dropping Susan’s assignments onto her dresser.
“Last night? He bought me a mocha and we ended up talking for almost two hours. Tommy never listened to me that much. Half the cheer squad was there and Smith didn’t even look at them.”
Keira tugged at the loop on the top of her backpack. “Wow. That’s—wow. I thought all you wanted was to make everyone forget about you and Tommy? Is that . . . ? I mean, are you . . . ? Is it more than that now?
“I don’t know. What do you think? He’s totally cute, right? In an edgy sort of way?”
The words crawled over Keira like fat spiders.
The TV in the living room got quieter. Susan rolled her eyes at her mom’s attempt to listen in to their conversation.
“My mom’s thrilled that I’m not dating Tommy anymore,” she said, loud enough for her mother to hear. “She said that I’ve finally got my priorities straight.” Susan slammed her bedroom door and lowered her voice.
“Speaking of Tommy, did you see him today? Did he seem upset?” Susan looked up at Keira so hopefully that Keira sagged with relief.
“He and Jeremy seemed pretty put out about last night,” she admitted. True, she hadn’t actually talked to Tommy, but he hadn’t exactly looked pleased about the whole thing.
Susan sighed. “Imagine how pissed he’ll be when he finds out that Smith is taking me to dinner tonight.”
“How will he find that out?” Keira asked.
“Because we’re going to The Blue Plate. Smith’s picking me up in a couple of hours. He wanted to spend the whole afternoon together, but I told him I had to come home so my mom would believe I’d been at school.”
“Wait—you’re going to dinner at the restaurant where Tommy works?” Keira looked at the spite that was stitched into Susan’s expression.
Susan snorted. “He’s off tonight. He’s always off on Thursdays. But trust me, everyone who works there will be running off to text him.”
“And your mom’s letting you go?”
“My mom’s letting me go to work, yeah.” Susan pursed her lips. “What? I don’t like lying to her, but I can’t just sit here and let Tommy ruin my life. Smith’s hot and he’s fun and he’s exactly what I need to keep the rest of my year from sucking.”
“I think you should be careful, that’s all. There are a billion guys you could use to prove that Tommy made a bad choice when he dumped you. Smith—you don’t know him at all, and neither do I. Walker doesn’t really trust him, and—”
Susan interrupted her. “You know, that’s interesting.” Her voice had a little set of teeth in it, pearly and sharp. “Because Smith doesn’t trust Walker. He thinks Walker’s in some kind of trouble, but he wouldn’t say what.” She looked pointedly at Keira. “And I don’t see why you’re getting so overprotective all of a sudden. I’m just playing with Smith. You’re the one who’s falling for someone.”
“Hey,” Keira started to protest, but Susan lifted a hand, cutting her off.
“I don’t want to fight with you. I’m just saying. You’re in uncharted territory, here. That’s the time to watch your step—when things are getting serious. My whole goal is basically to make out in public with a hot guy. Speaking of which,” Susan glanced at the clock. “I need to get in the shower if I’m going to be ready by the time I have to leave to meet Smith. Thanks for the homework. I’m only going to be able to pull this off if I keep my grades high enough to satisfy my mother.”
It was a little bit like a dismissal, but there was nothing to do except go. Keira left Susan to use up all the Kims’ hot water. Outside, she took a deep breath of the damp air. The car keys felt unusually heavy in her hand.
It was time to go to Take Note.
? ? ?
She opened the door so gently that the bells hanging from the handle barely chimed. As reverently as if she were entering a church, Keira stepped into Take Note. The paper and ink and dust smell of the store washed over her and her eyes closed as she breathed it in.
The smell reminded her of all the afternoons she’d spent there, poring over music, humming as her eyes skimmed the staffs. Immediately, she was calmer. Immediately, she was happier.
A voice slipped out of the back room, interrupting her reverie.
“It doesn’t matter! Mom wants to know what’s going on. I find things out when she tells me to, unless there’s some reason to avoid it. Can you think of a reason for me to avoid it, Walker?” There was a sneer in the question—an insinuation.
The accent was familiar, but the voice was a tenor to Walker’s baritone.