"Yeah. I don't know why she's calling me. We're not really friends."
"Answer it."
I put the phone to my ear. "Hey, Alyssa."
"Hey. I was just calling to see if you want to go to the game with me on Friday. Peyton isn't going and I haven't been feeling well so I'm going to sit in the bleachers. I could come pick you up."
"I'm probably not going to go. With all this stuff happening with Braden, I should probably stay home."
"What happened with Braden?"
She doesn't know? I might as well tell her.
"The police arrested him."
She gasps. "For what?"
"Andrea's death. They came to the house and took him away."
"Why? Because of the new evidence everyone keeps talking about?"
"No, they found something else." I look at Jackson, who's shaking his head. "I can't talk about it."
“Sorry, I didn’t know.”
"Don't worry about it. Everything's just really crazy right now. I don't think it'd be a good idea for me to go to the game."
"Is his dad trying to get him out? He's going to post bail, right?"
"He will, but it might take a few days. He won't be playing on Friday."
"The guys are gonna freak when they find out about this."
"They might already know. The coach probably told them."
"I should go. Kade's coming over in a few minutes. You'll be at school tomorrow, right?"
"Yeah. See you tomorrow."
"Why was she calling?" Jackson asks as I set my phone down.
"She wants me to sit with her at the game on Friday. She isn't feeling well so she's not going to cheer."
"It's only Wednesday. How does she know she won't feel better by Friday?"
"I don't know. Peyton's not cheering either. She's not going to the game. She's probably going out with her elderly boyfriend."
Jackson sighs. "She's still dating old guys? How old is this one?"
"I don't know. She didn't say. Probably not elderly. I was exaggerating. He's some guy who works with her dad."
"She needs to stop doing that shit. Those guys are just using her for sex."
"And she's using them for money and gifts."
"She doesn't need that stuff. Her parents are loaded."
"Sounds like they're not anymore. She made a comment about them not having money."
