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After class, she joined the throng of kids in the hallway. On either side of her, lockers clanged open and shut; students were laughing, talking, shoving one another. Mia met her outside of her last-period class, and together they walked toward the flagpole.
Zach came up alongside Lexi and slung an arm around her as if it meant nothing, but at his touch, her whole body came alive. She was attuned to his smallest movement; the breath he took, the hair that fell across his eyes, the finger that stroked her upper arm.
She pulled away. It was meant to be a casual move, but she overdid it and stumbled into Mia.
“Hey,” Mia said, laughing. “You new to walking?”
Lexi looked at her best friend. “I need to talk to you. ” She didn’t dare look at Zach, but she felt his gaze on her, hot as a touch. “Privately. ”
“Me, too,” Zach said.
Mia shrugged. No hint of worry crossed her face. Why would it? She trusted these two more than anyone else in the world. Mia led the way to a grassy spot by the admin building, not far from the tree where she and Lexi had met on the first day of school. “Okay,” Mia said. “What’s up?”
Lexi couldn’t speak. She felt exposed suddenly, a liar. She would lose her best friend now. And maybe the boy she loved.
Zach reached out, took hold of Lexi’s hand. “We wanted to tell you we’re together. ”
“Uh. Duh. I can see that. ” Mia looked back at the row of buses. “Do you see Ty?”
“We’re together,” Zach said again.
Mia slowly turned, looked at them, frowning now. “Together? As in hooked up? You two?”
Lexi nodded.
The color drained from Mia’s face. “Since when?”
“She almost kissed me after the party at the Eisners’ cabin,” Zach said.
“That was weeks ago,” Mia said. “Lexi would have told me. Right, Lexster? You tell me everything. ”
“Everything but this,” Lexi admitted. “I didn’t think it would ever happen. I met Zach on the first day of high school—before I met you, even—and I thought … no, that isn’t what I want to say. I always liked him, that’s the point, but I never thought he’d like me back. I mean … he’s Zach and I’m … me. And I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you to think … I was one of those girls who’d use you to get to him. Like Haley. It isn’t like that. ”
“It isn’t?” Mia said, her mouth trembling. “Why isn’t it?”
“I love her, Me-my,” Zach said. “And we love you. ”
“L-love? So all this time, you’ve been sneaking around behind my back? I kept asking Zach what was wrong, and he said nothing. Neither of you said anything. Were you laughing at me the whole time?” Mia said, stricken.
“No,” Zach said. “Come on, you know us better than that. ”
“Do I? You’re both liars. ” Mia’s eyes filled with tears. She spun on her heels and ran for the row of school buses, climbing aboard just as the doors closed.
Lexi saw Mia on the bus, staring at them through the cloudy window, her pale face streaked with tears, her hand pressed to the glass.
Zach put his arm around her. “It’s okay, Lex. She’ll be okay with this. I promise. ”
“What if it isn’t?” Lexi whispered. “What if she never forgives me?”
* * *
For the next several hours, Lexi sat in her lonely bedroom, staring into a future without Mia’s friendship.
Yeah, she loved Zach. With all of her heart and soul, but she didn’t love Mia any less. It was a different emotion, rounder and softer and more comfortable; maybe it was more solid and reliable, too. All she knew was that she couldn’t trade one for the other. That would be like having to choose between air to breathe and water to drink. She needed both to survive.
She never should have kept this secret from her friend. She should have done the right thing from the beginning—if she had, none of this would be happening now. It was a truth she should have learned from her childhood. Always do the right thing from the start. Instead, she’d done the wrong thing and hurt her best friend’s feelings.
She knew what she had to do. She left her small, tidy bedroom and walked down the narrow hallway to the living room, where she found Eva sitting on the couch, watching TV.
“Can I go to Mia’s house?” Lexi said.
“At this hour? On a school night?”
“It’s important,” Lexi said. She didn’t know what she’d do if her aunt said no.
Eva looked at her. “This about that boy of yours?”
Lexi nodded.
“You going to do the right thing?”
Lexi nodded again, realizing with a jolt of shame that Eva had known what was going on all along. “I have to tell Mia the truth. ”
“The truth is always a good thing. ” Eva set down the remote. The pleats in her careworn face were emphasized by a smile. “You’re a good girl, Lexi. ”
Lexi hated how that made her feel. She hadn’t been a good girl lately. She swallowed hard, smiled one time, briefly, almost desperately, and then she left the house.
In almost no time, the county bus had dropped her off on Night Road. She walked the last few hundred yards to the Farraday house, which was blazing with lights on this dark autumn night. She picked her way through the carefully landscaped front yard and went up to the front door. She hesitated for a moment and then rang the bell.
Long minutes passed and finally Zach answered. “Lex,” he said, looking broken. “She won’t talk to me. ”
“Are your parents here?”
He shook his head. “She’s upstairs. ”
Lexi nodded and moved past him, going up the stairs. At Mia’s room, she didn’t even knock, just pushed the door open and went inside. Mia stood by the big oval mirror. Even in the shadowy light, Lexi could see how wounded Mia had been by them. “Mia,” Lexi said, moving forward. She felt Zach come up behind her.
“I trusted you,” Mia said, her mouth trembling.
Lexi would have preferred anger, screaming; anything would have been better than Mia’s quiet heartbreak. “Mia, you’re the best friend I’ve ever had. I love you like a sister, and I’m sorry if I hurt you. ”
“You did. You both did. ”
“I know. But I want you to know how much you matter to me. No one has ever mattered as much. You have to believe that. If you want me to break up with him, I will—”
“Don’t say that,” Zach said, stepping toward her.
Lexi ignored him. Her gaze stayed steady on Mia. “I’ll break up with him, I will. But I can’t stop loving him. I don’t know how. I should have told you that a long time ago. ”
Mia wiped her eyes. “There was always something weird about the way you looked at each other. I thought I was being oversensitive … because of Haley. ” She sighed heavily. “I know how I feel about Tyler. If it’s like that…”
“It is,” Lexi said solemnly.
“You promise you won’t dump me for him?” Mia said.
It was an easy promise to make. Lexi let go of Zach’s hand and moved toward Mia. “I promise. And I’ll never lie to you again. I swear it. ”
“And if he breaks your heart,” Mia said steadily, “you’ll still be my best friend? Because you’ll need me then. ”
“I’ll always need you,” Lexi said. “I’d die if I couldn’t come over here. Honestly. No matter what happens with Zach and me, you and I will always be bffs. ” She stepped closer. “Say you’re okay with this, Mia. Please. ”
Mia sniffed. Lexi wanted her friend to smile, but maybe that was asking too much. “I’m scared,” Mia said.
“I know,” Lexi said. “And it sounds crazy, but you can trust me. ”
“Us,” Zach added.
“I want you guys to be happy,” Mia finally said. “What kind of person would I be if I didn’t? I love both of you. ”
“And we love you,” Lexi said. It was true; she loved Mia through and through.
Her best friend was a lioness, as all of this proved. Mia had been hurt—two people she trusted had lied to her—and still she stood here, trying to smile, caring about their happiness.
“It’ll be the three of us for senior year,” Zach said, obviously relieved. “How cool will that be?”
“I wouldn’t throw a party just yet,” Mia said, looking at her brother. “We’re gonna have to tell Mom tomorrow. ”
“She won’t care, will she?” Lexi asked, frowning. “I mean, she likes me. ”
Mia finally smiled. “Are you kidding? Our mom cares about everything. ”
* * *
The next night, the Journey Through Senior Year meeting was held at 6:00 P. M. in the high school library. Most of the island parents showed up.
“We all know how special Pine Island is,” said police officer Roy Avery from his place at the head table. “I know a lot of this year’s seniors—my own youngest son graduated two years ago—and I’ve watched this class go from Little League to varsity. I’ve watched you protect them with car seats and helmets and airbags. Some of you might think that the biggest danger facing them now is that colleges will reject them, but there’s a new threat; one some of you know all too well, and some of you know not at all.
“Partying. Some of you think that the island keeps your kids safe, away from big-city dangers. But danger is here, too. It’s in every empty house and lonely stretch of beach. It’s in bottles of beer and rum. Starting about now every year, the senior class starts to feel both edgy and bulletproof. So keep an eye on your kids. Don’t let them outsmart you. Let them know how dangerous partying can be. ”
As the crowd began to ask questions, Jude looked out at the familiar faces.
She’d driven carpool with many of these women; together, over the years, they’d sat freezing at football games, decorated gymnasiums for dances, been classroom moms. They’d joined forces to raise their children in a safe community. Now there was a new enemy: drinking. She had no doubt that the mom patrol would join forces again and be on the lookout for potential trouble.
When Officer Avery returned to his seat, Jude stood up. “Thank you to Officer Avery for that important heads-up. And thank you to Ann Morford for her insight on the college application process. I’m sure we’ll all be knocking on your door with more question as the deadlines approach. Now, as the head of the parent group, I get to talk about the fun part. Graduation night. As most of you know, Pine Island works to keep drinking and driving out of the graduation equation. To that end, we plan a fun-filled night for the senior class. They leave right after the ceremonies and board a bus. They’ll get home at six A. M. the next morning. This year’s festivities look great…”
For the next few minutes, Jude laid out the plan she and her committee had come up with. Because it was Pine Island, and everyone had an opinion, she spent another ten minutes answering questions and then sent around a sign-up sheet for chaperone volunteers. After that, she joined her best friend, Molly, and they walked out of the gymnasium in a stream of parents. As always, Molly was dressed in an effortlessly chic style—low-rise jeans, a fitted men’s-style white shirt, and a necklace of hammered copper and turquoise. Her hair, cut short and dyed platinum this year, offset her dark eyes and ready smile. She and Jude had become friends more than a decade ago. Molly’s son, Bryson, was the same age as the twins, so Molly and Jude had found themselves together at one function after another—class functions, field trips, Chuck E. Cheese birthday parties. They’d been friends ever since; Jude didn’t think she would have made it through the tough middle school years without Molly and their Thursday margarita nights.