“I caught the mayor in between his meetings, and he thought it was a great idea. Said it could create more revenue for the entire town, not just the beautification fund. The observatory, the cafe, and the convenience store. He printed and signed the permit right then and there.”
“That’s amazing!”
“And just in time too. Maintenance day is coming up on Thursday.”
“I can’t believe we pulled this off.” I am so torn by the news. Willow offered me a place to stay in her guesthouse in LA, where I can go to school, get back in the social scene, and maybe find a way to hire Kiki back without having to pay a retainer fee. Now that Willow is an up-and-coming star, if I’m in her orbit, I can resume my life as a socialite. I don’t need the Blaire Fair anymore. Still, it doesn’t diminish the pride I feel over seeing my idea come to life.
“It’s all because of your idea.” Callie’s face lights up so much that her pale cheeks are almost glowing. She looks angelic. Combining that with her innocence, I start to feel guilty. Or, in any case, I feel like I owe it to her to tell her the truth.
“So, Callie, I just wanted to say something. About Gavin.”
Her face lights up even brighter at the mention of his name. All the more reason she deserves to know. So I tell her about Sonya. How Gavin is technically still dating her. The apartment they share. I even show her a picture of them together.
—
As soon as Gavin gets home after his shift ends, he’s in my face before the door closes behind him.
“What did you say to Callie?” His face is red and puffy, and his eyes are bloodshot too.
I thought news in this town moved slowly, but apparently not all news.
“She had a right to know,” I say, surprised by his anger. It seems short-sighted, but I was so upset with Gavin when I told Callie about Sonya, I wasn’t thinking about how he’d react.
“I should have been the one to tell her, not you. Now it looks like I was hiding something from her. That I was some kind of two-faced fraud who was too much of a coward to be up-front.”
“Wouldn’t have been the first time.”
His head jerks back. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“What’s this?” Mom opens the door to her room to join us.
“What’s all the yelling about?” Dad follows behind her.
“It means that you’ve been secretive about a lot of things.” I narrow my eyes at Gavin.
“You wouldn’t dare,” he warns me.
The thing about dares is that I’ve never been known to back down from one. Gavin would have known that about me if he’d actually taken the time to know me. If I were a more loyal sister, I might have felt inclined to continue covering for Gavin. Then again, why should I when he’s never been loyal to me? So I tell Mom and Dad everything. About USC, about Callie. I even tell them about Gavin’s culinary pursuits. By the time I’m finished, they appear to be more devastated than when Mr.Ahn told us we lost everything.
“What about college and Sonya?” As usual, Dad fixates on the things that matter to him. “How will you be successful without those things?”
Blood boils in my veins. “Are you serious right now?” Not only is Dad not focusing on the bigger issue of Gavin’s deceit, but I take particular offense to his bold claim. “There isn’t just one way to be successful, and if you could open your narrow mind just a tiny bit, you’d see that I’m proof of it. I mean, the only reason why we’re able to afford these secondhand, weatherworn, off-the-rack things is because ofmysuccess.”
Mom and Dad wince with the familiar repulsed expression. It sends me over the edge.
“Is my influencer lifestyle so beneath you that it’s impossible to acknowledge what it’s done for us? If it weren’t for my party money, we’d be even worse off.”
“Elena,” Mom says, “we’re not ashamed of you. We’re ashamed of ourselves.” She looks to Dad, who confirms it. “We’re supposed to be taking care of you, not the other way around. You’re still in high school, and Gavin is in college.” When a pained expression crosses her face, I feel instant remorse over my misunderstanding. That is,until Mom continues. “And this is how you treat us? Gavin, how could you be so dishonest?” Then she turns to me. “How could you keep this from us?”
“That’s rich coming from you, Mom,” I say, the fire in my pit reigniting. If I’m going to be accused of having shortcomings, then everyone else is fair game. “When was the last time you were honest with Dad about what you wanted?” I turn to Gavin. “Or told Dad how you felt about his toxic masculinity?” As soon as the words leave my mouth, I regret them. But it’s too late. Like regular diarrhea, the verbal kind can’t go back in once it’s out.
Mom and Gavin are too concerned with Dad’s reaction to be mad at me for airing their grievances along with mine.
The color drains from Dad’s face. Too stunned to hold himself up, he slumps down onto a kitchen chair.
“Is that how you think of me?” He glances up at Mom. Then, a second later, he turns to Gavin. “Is that why you couldn’t tell me the truth?”
Gavin lets out a frustrated sigh and takes a seat facing Dad across the kitchen table. “Elena’s right,” Gavin says, but his hardened face tells me he’s merely stating a fact. “It’s like you have so many good qualities, Dad, and you’ve been able to accomplish so much. But because that strategy worked for you, you think success looks the same for everyone.”
