I shifted my books to free my arm and ran my hand down her arm gently to get her attention. She startled and I smiled sympathetically at her weary expression.
“What happened? Did you do poorly on your last midterm?” I asked, searching her eyes for an answer.
“No,” she scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest. “Some of us have actual problems, Enoch.”
“Woah,” I chuckled, taking a step back from her hostility. “I’m not the enemy here. Just trying to help.”
“Like you would fucking understand,” she spat, looking away and clenching her jaw. “The only problem you have in your life is that you suck at math. You’ve got, like, the fucking perfect life and family. I don’t know why the fuck you’re so eager to leave them for the military. I’d be milking that shit for the rest of my life the way your parents treat you.”
I licked my lips, frowning as I tried to determine where the hell all of this was coming from. She was perfectly happy—well,as happy as I’d ever seen her—at lunch, so what had happened in the last three hours?
She moved to walk away but I grasped her arm. “Shiloh, stop.”
She looked up at me fiercely, like she was daring me to try and keep her here to finish our conversation. Maybe I was stupid and asking for an attack, but I wasn’t going to just let her push me away.
“I’m not going to feel bad for having a good life, Shiloh.” She scoffed and rolled her eyes, so I took a breath to control my tone and continued. “I know I’m lucky, and my parents worked their asses off to provide me with the life I do have. So, yeah, being shit at math is one of my biggest problems at the moment. Don’t discredit my problems just because yours are different from mine. This isn’t a pissing contest for who has the worst hand of cards, Shiloh.”
She let out a tense breath and closed her eyes.
“So if you’re serious about this friendship thing, you’ll realize that I’m just trying to help in whatever way I can. Maybe I won’t completely understand, but I can’t try unless you tell me what’s going on.”
She remained silent for a minute, and I watched as her hostility seemed to melt away, her body slouching and tense expression softening.
Shiloh looked up at me through her lashes. “You’re right,” she muttered, shifting her weight on her feet. “Sorry.”
I nodded and smiled softly. “Attagirl. Making real progress there in the apology department. Now, you gonna tell me what’s causing you to cuss out your locker?”
She chuckled under her breath and let out a heavy sigh. “It’s stupid.”
I quirked a brow, silently telling her to explain.
“I’m just having a bad day, and the library is closed because they’re setting up some fucking staff training event happening while students aren’t at school on Monday so I can’t go there to wait out the rain, which means I’ll be walking home in the pouring rain, and it’s fucking cold, and I don’t have a jacket.” She trailed off, her voice growing softer until it was barely a whisper. “And I’m tired. And I just wanna go to sleep.”
“Well, this isn’t gonna happen every time you share your problems,” I smiled, secretly excited to be spending some more time with her, “but I can actually solve just about all of those.”
“No, I can’t let you—”
I cut her off with a‘don’t even say it’look. She groaned and rolled her eyes.
“Fine, but I promise it’s just this one time. I won’t ask again. I know it’s last-minute. I can give you gas money—” she was rambling, and I had to put her out of her misery.
“Shiloh.” She stopped and looked at me like she was nervous. “I wouldn’t have offered if I didn’t want to give you a ride. I don’t mind. And you don’t need to give me any money for gas. It’s part of the friendship deal anyways, remember? Free car rides,” I trailed off with a chuckle, and she reluctantly nodded, motioning for us to get going.
We made it to the parking lot after stopping at my locker when she suddenly stopped walking.
“Shit, you have to take Jae home and…didn’t you say you were working today?” She looked over at me, and I rolled my eyes with a playful smile.
“Shiloh,” I said, throwing my arm over her shoulder and guiding us towards my car. “Quit trying to find excuses. I’ll take Jae home on my way to workafterwe drop you off.”
I could feel her shoulders tense, and I knew she was about to protest.
“Shut up,” I shook my head at her relentlessness. “Seriously. Just let me help.”
She growled and I pulled her closer with a chuckle.Why the hell does she always smell like cologne?
“Are you wearing your boyfriend’s clothes?” I asked before I could think to keep my mouth shut. I wanted to slap myself for asking that so abruptly, but she pulled away to look at me in disbelief.
“No, why?”
