“Yeah. Leo Perez. Do you remember him? He went to school with us when we were younger.”
“Uh, yeah, I know him. Didn’t know he was playing, though.” And honestly kind of surprised Olivia never mentioned it.
“Yeah, he’s got a chance of finishing top three.”
I put my hand out and he shakes it. “Well, good luck. Hope you can pull it out.”
“Appreciate it,” he says.
I’m just about to walk away when I turn back to him. “Did you hear Judd’s in a band?” I ask, laughing because I can’t not laugh when I sayJuddandbandin the same sentence.
“Yeah, I saw on someone’s story the other night that he let loose on his drums! I would have loved to have seen that.”
We both laugh and head in separate directions.
When I’m back at Olivia’s, I start thinking about the whole L thing. So I text my phone.
ME:I ran into Locke at the course when I was leaving.
Olivia doesn’t answer right away, but it doesn’t take too long.
WES:Oh. Okay
ME:He said Leo Perez is killing it out there
Those three dots jump around a lot longer than they should and I can almost picture Olivia typing and deleting and typing again.
WES:I saw him like once yesterday. From a distance. I hear he’s doing pretty good but I don’t know
Yeah, she’s full of it. I’m thinking theLin Olivia’s phone may not stand forLockeafter all.
I’m driving like a madwoman. I’m sweating and on the verge oftears.
Coach made me stay late to make up the ten minutes from lunch and the fifteen minutes I was late the other morning.
I called Wes to tell him I would be getting back after four and I could hear the disappointment in his voice as he said it was okay—a very different tone than the teasing one earlier in the texts about Locke and Leo.
And it’s not okay. They’ve done everything I’ve asked of them and all Wes needed was for me to be on time today.
I screech up in front of my house and barely put the car in park before I’m jumping out. With my hand outstretched, I pass off Wes’s phone to him and take mine back.
“I’m so sorry,” I say.
He barely looks at me. “It’s fine. But I need to go.”
My face crumples and I lie down in the grass as his car races away. I can feel the tears leaking out of the corners of my eyes.
Picking up my phone, I send Sophie a quick text.
ME:It’s my fault he’s late. Coach made me stay late. I’m so sorry.
A quick scroll through my messages shows me Mia and Bailey are perturbed that I’m not answering them as to where I ran off to. My fingers hover over the screen as I try to decide how to reply. But I don’t. I can’t. I mean, what am I supposed to say that isn’t another lie?
It takes a while for Sophie to text me back, but when she does all I get is:ok
Ugh. Why am I screwing up every single thing?
“Are you dead?”
