“You’re going to do that thing where you twist my arm so the skin is red.”
“Babe!”
“Please don’t make me get my hand stuck in the vending machine like when you tried to get that NutRageous bar.”
“This is outrageous.Do you get that?If Scipio were here, he’d be barking at you.”Jem tried to stop there, but he felt forced to add, “And Ipaidfor that NutRageous bar.It wasmine.”He blew out a breath.“Never mind, I’ll do it myself.”
As usual,thatworked.
“No,” Tean said.“I’ll do it.Do what?”
Jem grabbed his hand and used it to push the dispenser on the ice machine.
The machine rumbled.Rattled.Shook.
And then it started shooting ice all over the floor.
Tean did a lot of squawking—stuff like “Jem!”and “Stop!”and “The ice!”
He also twisted, wriggled, and generally tried to get away.
When there was enough ice on the floor, Jem let him go.
“There’s ice everywhere,” Tean said.
“Yep.And that’s what you’re going to tell the nice housekeeping lady so that she’ll come clean it up.”
Tean was rubbing his hand like Jem had somehow hurt him, and he was frowning at the ice.“Couldn’t we have lied?”
“I thought you said no more lies.”
“A white lie.It’s better than making a mess.”
“Actually, this time, it’s not, because I want her to be busy cleaning this up.”
Tean thought about this for a moment.“Why couldn’tyouhave pressed the dispenser button?”
“Because, babe, you’re a terrible liar.And this way, you’ll look super guilty when you tell her how you got ice all over the floor.”
“But I didn’t— But you— Jem!”
“Try sounding outraged like that.It makes you sound even guiltier.”
For a moment, the only expression in Tean’s facewasoutrage.Then, with something that was almost pettiness, he said, “I’m going to tell her I saw a man do it.A blond man.In a sweatshirt.”
“Sounds good, babe.Lay on the details like that.Get super specific.It sends the bullshit meter straight into the red.”
“But youdiddo it!”
“Clock’s ticking, sweetheart.”
Tean swayed, obviously caught between continuing the argument and behaving like an adult.Then he pushed out of the alcove, the door swinging shut behind him.
Jem followed.
He waited at the bend in the hallway.Tean’s voice carried—aggrieved and, yes, definitely guilty—even though Jem couldn’t make out the individual words.Then footsteps muffled by the carpet began to move toward him.
Deep breath.
