Fate's Return (Twisted Fate, Book 2)

Chapter Eight

On Monday morning, Suzie waited in her driveway for me to pick her up, looking great as usual. Summer was her favourite time of the year, if only because she could wear her barely-there shirts and too-short skirts, and not have to cover any of her assets. In a black halter, a white pleated skirt, and gladiator-style sandals on her feet, today was tame. But the way she wore it made all the boys want her and the girls hate her, all so that Deryk continued to appreciate her.

Just another Monday.

She opened the door, throwing her bag to the floor before turning to get in backwards, flattening her skirt with her hands to avoid wrinkles. Shifting, she got comfortable and closed the door, turning to face me while reaching for her seatbelt.

I pointed my finger in her face before the fish lips she'd formed could make sucking noises. "One more kissing sound and I'll drive to the desert just so that I can leave you there. Then you can really get a tan."

"I didn't say anything!"

"Yet." I repositioned my hand on the steering wheel and reached for the gearshift, darting my eyes at her before reversing. "You didn't say anything yet."

"But—"

"Meh." I put my palm in her face, pressing the brake to pause at the bottom of the driveway. "I don't like Gabe, okay?" I shifted back into drive to gun our way down the street. "Do not say another word about him and me, or us—because there is no 'us.'" I let go of the steering wheel to make finger quotes and then grabbed hold again just as it began to veer to the left, all the while glaring at her out of the corner of my eyes. "Got it?"

"I just think—"

"Stop."

"Fine!" She slumped in her seat.

"Fine." I clenched the steering wheel. "Do you want to stop for coffee?"

She shook her head and turned her back to me to stare out the window. It was only ten blocks to Royal Academy from her house, so close I barely noticed the drive anymore. But with Suzie sulking, it felt like ten hours, and if I didn't fix it, the entire day would be as long as ten years.

"Why are you mad?" Silence. "Suzie?" Raising my hand, I reached over and snapped my fingers beside her ear. "Hel-lo?"

Turning her head to the left, she looked at me over her shoulder and asked, "I'm sorry, can I talk now?"

"If you can stop talking about Gabe," I said, just as sarcastic. "There are other things besides boys to talk about."

"How would you know?"

"Seriously? I missed one party!"

"You're too closed off," she said, and went back to focusing out the passenger window.

"What is that supposed mean?" I rolled my eyes and navigated into an empty parking stall in the front of school, one of the spots reserved for seniors. "It doesn't make sense."

"Yes, it does," she said, turning to face me so she could glare. "You come out because you feel obligated or to make me shut up about it, not because you want to have fun. When David died, I told you that you'd have to come out at least a dozen times before you had a good time, and you were a solid six on the happy meter."

"Suzie—"

She raised her hand in the air. "Tell me you are happier than a six and I'll drop it."

I stared out the windshield to the woods on the right side of Royal Academy. The trees stretched along both sides, closing at the end of the field, and separated our school from Elixir High School where less privileged students were enrolled. Without my scholarship, it was where I'd have had to enrol if I wanted to keep my car. As it was, I was the only one of our friends who had a job. Gabe worked with me, but he didn't count. We didn't socialize at school and his parents owned the arcade. Raffy... Well, he was a moron, and Gabe and Mike's cousin, which meant it was more like a family gathering than work every time that he was scheduled.