Tone Deaf

Chapter Seven

I'm alive.

xoxo,

Q.

Devon:

"I'm sorry, what did you just say?"

If Hazel's eyebrows go any higher, they're in danger of disappearing into her light brown hair.

"I said, he's actually kind of cool." I mumble, as unintelligibly as I possibly can, but Hazel still hears me. A small grin crosses her face, her pink lips turning up at the edges, mischievously.

"Hah!" she says, loudly, and then leans her head back and cackles. "You were wrong! You were wrong and I was right!"

I roll my eyes, but can't help it when a smile appears on my face.

"You are such a nerd, Hazel O'Dell, I swear to god." I say, shaking my head incredulously. She just grins wider.

"Yes, I am, and you love it." She responds proudly, and I'm beginning to think I'm off the hook about Kyle, but then she narrows her eyes at me and says, pointedly, "But stop trying to change the subject."

I groan. "Hazel, I don't know. I mean, he was acting like a total prick at first, you know, implying that I had everything handed to me on a silver platter, but then he was..."

"Was what?" Hazel pushes.

I shrug. "I don't know. Apologetic? He said he was sorry, at least. And it felt genuine. Hell, I didn't think there was anything genuine about him at first."

"Mhm-hmm, see I told you, first impressions can be wrong." She sings, in a superior, I-told-you-so kind of tone.

I scowl at her. "Yeah, yeah, I get it, I might have misjudged him. Maybe. A little. You don't have to rub it in."

"But that's my favorite part!" Hazel whines, and I unwillingly laugh out loud. We grin at each other and Hazel grabs her water bottle to take a drink, while I reach over and grab some more pretzels.

"My sister still thinks we're banging, by the way." I say, casually, as I toss a pretzel in my mouth. Hazel chokes on the water she's drinking. I wait patiently as she coughs enough to make her face go red and then regains the ability to breathe.

"What?" she gasps out.

"Don't worry, I told her we weren't." I assure her.

"Jesus, Devon. Trashy tabloids and your crazy fans are one thing, but your sister..."

"Hey!" I warn her. "Don't call them crazy."

Hazel makes an apologetic face. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. But you're not the one getting death threats."

I sigh. "I really am sorry about that, Hazel."

She smiles it off. "It's okay, really. Some of them are fun to read. Very creative. Real ingenuity."

The grin finds its way back onto my face and I roll my eyes at her, elbowing her in the ribs playfully.

"Nerd." I say.

"Teenager." She retorts.

Kyle:

Tay and I haven't really talked since our argument over the phone, which is kind of ridiculous. I mean, Tay and I barely ever fight as it is, and when we do, it lasts maybe five minutes before we move on and act like it never happened. The big fights are reserved for the important stuff.