I open my backpack and dig out my math notebook; it seems best to start with the worst of my assignments. “Well, I know it’s not most people’s idea of a good time. But it’s more entertaining when you’re around.”
“Everything is.” Lila tosses her hair like the especially vapid girls do when they’re trying to attract some guy’s attention.
Which reminds me.
“Are you ever going to tell me exactly what happened with Dylan?” It’s a non sequitur, but anything I can learn about him might help me later.
She frowns, chewing on her pencil so that she leaves neat rows of teeth marks in the yellow paint. By the look of the wood, this isn’t the first time. “That’s ancient history. Why?”
“He hassled me after work last night.” I figure it’s safe to tell her that much. “I was just wondering how bad is he really?”
How seriously should I take his threats?
“That asshole,” she snarls. “Did he scare you?”
“He tried to.”
“If he’s screwing with you, then I guess I owe you the full story. But I expect some Shane gossip afterward to wash the taste out of my mouth.”
“Deal.”
“Dylan and I got together freshman year. He wasn’t as bad then.” Here, her gaze softens, like she has some good memories. “He was … sweet. I know it’s hard to imagine now.”
I barely remember anyone but Ryan from that period. Back then I shadowed him so hard that it’s a wonder we didn’t fuse together. Eighth grade had been a battle of epic proportions and my freshman year I was struggling to find a balance. Mostly, I went to school, did my homework, and tried really hard to be perfect, so Aunt Gabby wouldn’t dump me back in state care. I’m still doing that, to be honest. Sometimes it’s hard to feel safe.
“He wasn’t on my radar,” I admit.
“Something happened between our freshman and sophomore years. I have no idea what … he wouldn’t say. But he changed. Suddenly he wanted to know where I was every minute. He tried to tell me who I could talk to, how I was allowed to dress…” Lila shakes her head and sighs.
Given what I know about Dylan’s relationship with his mom, I suspect this has something to do with her. “That’s bizarre.”
“Right? But it gets weirder.”
“I’m listening.”
“We’d been dating for nine months or so … and I wanted to sleep with him. I was stupid. I thought it might reassure him that I loved him.”
At this, my brows shoot up, because I thought they broke up because he told everyone they did it when they really didn’t. “Not what I was expecting.”
“I guess not. So one night, we had his place to ourselves. His mom was out with her flavor of the month. We started messing around, but when I touched him through his jeans, he pulled away and started crying.”
“Holy shit.”
“I hugged him and said it was no big deal. But I could tell something was bothering him, like, a lot. He basically kicked me out. And the next day, he was claiming we hooked up.”
Now I understand why Dylan hates Lila. She witnessed a weak moment, so he had to ruin her at school, so nobody would believe her if she told anyone the truth. In other words, he shot first. I’m willing to bet something happened that summer, end of innocence, or some shit like that. Too bad. I might have liked the sweet Dylan that Lila dated two years ago, but he’s gone and I’m left to square off against the asshole who’s taken his place.
“And he was mean about it,” I guess.
She nods without looking at me. “I never told anyone what really happened—like they’d believe me. In the official record, he gets to be a player who popped my cherry while I’m the slut who gave it up, then went batshit and broke up with him because I didn’t want everyone to know.”
“You loved him.”
“Yeah. Shows what poor judgment I have. Now you owe me something good. Spill.”
So I tell her about Shane and the Coffee Shop, how he seemed like he was singing just to me. Next I mention that he spent the night here, and by this point, she’s bouncing. “Christ, Sage. I never would’ve guessed. You look so innocent. But you’re sneaky!”
“Who’s sneaky?” my aunt asks, coming in the front door.