Page 264 of Something Rad
“Hi, Sara,” Alice says, her voice sounding even less bright than it did when she greeted me.
“Hey, Al,” Cooper says quietly, picking at the paper edge of her punch cup.
Alice crosses her arms in front of her. “Your dress is pretty,” she tells Cooper, which makes her fidget with the skirt of the dress in question.
“Oh, thanks,” she murmurs. “So is yours.”
I look between the two girls, wondering what the hell I must have missed. Because their conversation right now sounds more like an awkward one between two girl cousins at a family reunion that secretly hate each other but are being forced to interact rather than a casual encounter between two best friends.
Silence stretches between the three of us for several seconds before Alice clears her throat, motioning behind her with her thumb. “Well, I better get back to Daniel. But it was good to see you. Both of you.”
“Yeah, sure,” Cooper nods, running a hand through her hair. “It was good to see you too.”
Alice offers one last small smile before she turns and heads back to where she came from. The moment she is out of earshot, I turn back to Cooper. When I find her, she is fully turned towards the snack table, not acting like anything out of the ordinary just occurred.
“I can’t decide what sounds more appetizing. A cocktail weiner or a meatball?”
“Cooper, what was that?” I ask.
She snorts. “A chance for you to make multiple weiner jokes. But now, it’s just a missed opportunity, I guess,” she says, popping a cocktail weiner into her mouth before taking another sip of her punch, strolling away from the table.
I follow after her, placing a hand on her shoulder to stop her.
“No, Cooper, I meant, what was that with Alice?”
“What do you mean?” she asks, playing with the puffy sleeve of her dress.
I cock my head at her, giving her a knowing look. “What’s going on between you two? Something is obviously wrong.”
“Nothing’s wrong,” Cooper insists. She lets out a sigh, looking down into her cup and tracing the outer edge of it with her finger. “We’re just…not exactly getting along the best right now.”
“You and Alice?” I question her, making sure I’m understanding correctly.
Cooper waves a hand at me. “It’s fine, really.”
She starts to walk away but I move around her, blocking her path. “Cooper, she’s your best friend. It’s not fine.”
She opens her mouth and then closes it, glancing away.
I reach for her hand. “Baby, what happened between you two?”
“It’s stupid,” she mutters.
“It’s not,” I assure her, squeezing her hand. “Just tell me.”
She blows out a breath, meeting my eyes. “She…thinks I’ve changed.”
My shoulders fall, my heart instantly sinking in my chest.
“Since when?” I ask her calmly.
Cooper rolls her eyes. “Since you and I got together. You know, officially. She thinks I’ve lost focus, that my priorities have changed. She…” she trails off, shaking her head and letting out a laugh.
“What?” I breathe.
She turns back to me, rolling her lips into her mouth. “She said something ridiculous about me putting out all my fires for one new flame. She thinks I’m throwing away my life for you or something. I mean, that’s crazy, isn’t it?”
“Yeah,” I nod, trying to swallow against the lump in my throat. “That would be crazy.”
