All the Lies We Tell

7. Liam W.

My phone dings and a text flashes on the screen: Have a great first day!

I smile slightly as I text back: Thanks V, you too. See you Thursday?

She sends a thumbs up.

Another text comes in, this one from Becca.

OMG you're a senior! Happy first day of the last day of being a kid, xoxo

Miss you, I respond with a cry face, and she blasts my phone with crying emojis and hearts. 

Going to school without Becca, Tyson, or Cage is weird, but I try not to think of the latter as I climb into my car and beep very loudly. A disheveled Seth runs out of the house with his hair sticking up in all directions as if he just woke up. 

I shake my head at him.

"Shut up," he smiles sheepishly as he gets into his Jeep.

"Shouldn't have been up all night on your phone, dumbass," I shout at him as I drive off.

I look back in the rearview as he flips me off.

Seth and Becca spend every night talking on the phone. Last night he was laughing so loud, I heard it from the poolhouse. I want to ask him about Becca, but I haven't found the right way to discuss it without sounding pissed about it. I'm not pissed, not at all. If something is going on between them, then Becca comes out a winner. I worry more about Seth, knowing how Becca can get with those she dates. Cage was perfect for her; cocky, arrogant, willing to deal with her drama and throw it back in her face. Seth isn't like that.

Then I wonder how Cage is with Avery, and a pang of jealousy hits me, sharp and bitter. I grip the steering wheel tighter, the thought of him with her making me want to crash my car into a tree. Instead, I take a deep breath and drive through her apartment complex, the familiar path calming my nerves. I park in the front, right by Parker waiting for me. He stands there, his school bag slung over one shoulder. He throws it on the floor of the passenger seat as he climbs in.

"Fresh meat!" I exclaim as he sits down. He glares at me, his eyes narrowing, then buckles himself in as I drive off. "Are you excited for your first day?"

"You're kidding, right? You do realize I tried to die because of those people?"

Holy shit. 

I look at Parker and he smiles.

"Got you to shut up, didn't I?"

"That was intense," I say, and Parker shrugs.

"I have to joke about it, or else it feels like too much pressure to be better."

"Ok buddy, I get it." I pause, then say, "Don't kill yourself over it, alright?"

Parker laughs.

When we arrive at MHS, I drive ahead of several cars, weaving through the early morning traffic to park in the Senior lot. Spots are already taken, many of which by my former football teammates. Coach expressed his disappointment that I backed out this season, his voice heavy with disappointment when he asked me to rethink it. But my shoulder isn't the same as it was before. I'm not the same. In fact, nothing feels the same anymore. 

Theme of my life right now. 

I park next to a familiar red convertible Mercedes. Jasmine emerges from the driver's seat, her face lighting up with a radiant smile.

"Liam! I tried to call you all summer!"

"Sorry," I mutter, shutting my door as Parker climbs out the other side. "It's been crazy busy."