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23

Brea

Ihad pushed Memphis Eve’s upcoming surprise visit of doom until after the flower picking. After navigating that land mine of a text message with my twin, I had puked up a green-and-brown edible terrarium then promptly eaten an entire bag of Goldfish crackers. It wasn’t as satisfying as Mark’s meal.

Or Mark.

“Gah, brain, we are not thinking about that kiss,” I muttered.

That night, I tried to sleep, but Mark had left me too hot and bothered, so instead I turned on all the lamps in my room, flooded it with light, and worked on Liz’s wedding gown. When my alarm finally went off, I had the skirt done and lined and was halfway through the lace edging. I yawned and stretched.

Brea:Ready to head to Harrogate?

Amy:I’m already here! I stayed over at my granddad’s! He’s really excited to have Liz see the flowers.

Ivy:Evan and I went yesterday because he wanted to look at theVanity Ragoffices out there.

Ivy:Are you ok on the train?

Thunder boomed outside. Rain pattered against the glass.

“Why does my life suck?” I complained as I packed away my sewing supplies.

Brea:Hey, do you think I could grab a ride with you guys? All my friends have ditched me smh.

Liz:Wes and I already left, but I’ll have Mark grab you!

Brea:No! I can take the train!

Liz:He’s on his way. You’re welcome.

Brea:Tell him not to come!

Liz:She likes a man with staying power. Noted!

Brea:I’m already at the train station, so tell him not to bother.

Lies, all of it. I hastily dressed, pulling on the first things I could grab. My father wrapped a large poncho around me as I raced through the apartment.

“I found it at a thrift shop.”

“It smells like sheep.”

My dad peered at me. “How would you know? You’ve never even seen a sheep!”

* * *

The first raindropswere starting to fall as I careened out the front door of the building. My plan was to book it to the train station as fast as possible. Pulling down my hood, I ran across the street then screamed when a car stopped an inch from me. The driver’s-side door swung open, and Mark jumped out.

“Brea, what the fuck!”

“You’re not supposed to be here!” I yelled. “And why is your car so quiet?”

“It’s electric.”

“This is not the same car you had yesterday,” I complained.

“I took my sports car to impress you,” Mark retorted.