I glared at her. “You’re never too old for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.” I finished fixing our lunch and then sat beside her.
“So, you never did tell me what happened to this Antonio guy. Did he cheat or something?” She asked quietly.
I almost choked on my food. “No. It wasn’t like that. It’s kinda complicated.”
From the corner of my eye I saw her roll her eyes at me. “I think I’m smart enough to follow the story.”
I sighed. “At least wait until we go back to my room. I’ll tell you everything then.”
Satisfied with my response, she turned to finish eating. Five minutes later, she got up to put her plate in the sink and then stood across from me impatiently. I’d barely put my last bite in my mouth before she snatched mine too. She dragged me upstairs by my hand. When we reached my room she shut and locked the door.
“Everything,” she stated flatly as she turned to look at me.
I laughed to myself as I got comfortable on the bed. She stared intently as she joined me.
“Well, I met AJ and that’s when things started coming unraveled with Antonio.”
A smile crossed her face. “Oh, so you’re the cheater.”
I frowned. “It wasn’t like that.” After thinking about it for a second I amended my statement. “Well, maybe it was a little like that, but I never meant for it to happen that way. Anyway, Antonio and I were able to salvage our friendship and now everything is perfect.” As I said the word ‘perfect’ I was immediately reminded that the kiss Antonio and I shared was the only blemish in the situation.
Angel stared at me for a few seconds. “You’re holding back on me. There has to be more to this story. Nothing that you just said was ‘complicated’ which means that you’re not telling me something.”
I looked down at my hands for a moment. “Antonio and I kissed about a month ago and AJ doesn’t know. I feel so guilty about it, but it was just the one time.” I took another deep breath before continuing. “Then there’s this chick who’s……a little obsessed with AJ and she’s been causing a few problems. None of my friends are really speaking to me. Not even Leslie. And then there’s the issue with Daddy meeting AJ for the first time tomorrow.”
“Ok. Let’s start with the kiss. Did you kiss him or did he kiss you, because that makes a difference.”
“He kissed me…….but I didn’t stop him.” I replied.
“Still he initiated. If it ever comes up, just put the whole thing on him and deny ever being a willing participant. That was simple. So, moving on to your friends. I don’t get why they cut you off. Are they just die-hard Antonio fans or what’s the deal?”
I laughed. “I think it’s a combination of things. They were worried about me getting hurt when Antonio and I hooked up because he’d been with a lot of girls. They thought that he was going to do me the same way. But they got to know him and became friends with him too. They also don’t really seem to care for AJ and that pushed them away from me too. Not to mention the fact that I hurt Antonio,” I explained.
“Whatever. They’re still supposed to be your girls. I say you’re better off without them if there’s no loyalty. That’s two of your problems that I‘ve solved in less than ten minutes. You definitely needed me here. So, what’s this about this stalker chick?” Angel asked.
I rolled my eyes as I was reminded of Leila. “She’s crazy. She lost her mom and AJ was supportive and they ended up in a relationship. He broke up with her and she wasn’t having it. So, long story short, she hates me, I hate her.”
“Has she tried to fight you or something?” Angel asked with a tone of hostility.
I thought of everything Leila had done and I struggled with whether I should reveal it all to Angel. “I think she’s been following us; she put pictures of them doing it in my locker and I think she slashed my tires.”
Angel was silent for a moment. “Please tell me why you haven’t beat this girl’s…..”