Page 37 of As the Rain Falls
Kayla continues, sounding wiser beyond her years.
“Sitting around, waiting for something to happen, won’t do it.”
“Oh, but what should we do?” I wonder. “It’s not like we haven’t tried making more friends and going to parties before.”
Kayla wets her full lips, the bottom one a slightly lighter color than the top. Her eyes are downcast, her face pensive.
“We need to dig deeper,” she decides. “Think about who we are and what we want, and all that.”
Her words make me pause. “That’s kind of really stupid. You know who you are, Kayla.”
She puts the apple down, setting it aside like she no longer feels any appetite. “It’s not stupid. I mean, sure, I do know who I am already, but I don’t know. What if I’m wrong?”
I frown. “Wrong about what?”
“I…” Kayla trails off. She crosses her arms over her chest protectively, sounding too upset. “I don’t know, Cassie.”
“Something is bothering you, isn’t it?” I lower my voice, overly aware that there are people all around us. “Is this why you called me last night to complain about Olivia?”
Olivia is Kayla’s older sister.
They’re inseparable.
“No, no.” My friend denies, pressing her lips together. A moment later, she adds, sounding totally suspicious, “Olivia has nothing to do with this.”
I think about it, trying to decide if I should press on theOliviapart of the question or just move on.
“Well, I know you weren’t freaking out over my grades for no reason. What’s the issue?”
“Nothing. I do care about your grades,” Kayla explains, leaning closer to me before looking around us. “You are very important to me. I want you to succeed.”
“Sure, whatever. You are important to me too. That’s not what I’m asking, though,” I speak in a rush, crossing my arms over my chest. “Listen, just tell me what’s up already, or I’ll start to think about the worst.”
“You know how…” she stops and grimaces like someone who just took a bite out of sour candy. “Oh, God. I can’t. It’s too embarrassing, Cassie. I’m not ready to talk about it yet. I’m sorry, I just can’t.”
“Embarrassing?” I pause, finding it strange. Kayla and I are so far past the point of getting embarrassed in our friendship. It’s totally not what we’re all about. “What the heck?”
Her shy gaze travels from me towards the neighboring tables around us, stopping when she hears what I recognize as Alice Chartrand’s obnoxious loud giggling. Sainte Madeleine’s current official mean girl apparently knows how to take some time off her agenda of mischief to laugh with her friends.
Kayla’s eyes narrow at first, which I consider to be a normal reaction. They do not get along, like at all. But then, the black-haired girl laughs again, throwing her head back, and everything changes. I take notice of how my friend’s gaze softens around the edges, even if it’s only a little bit.
It’s not a look I get to see very often.
Nobody gets under her skin quite like Alice Chartrand does.
“Oh!” I gasp. “Is this about Ali?”
“Shh!” Kayla averts her gaze. “God, why are we talking about her all of a sudden?”
“Because you were…” I trail off quickly, taking it as a sign to back off. “It was really just a question.”
Totally suspicious behavior, but okay.
“I know that!” Kayla follows up. “And I will, okay? I will tell you about my little problem as soon as I have it all figured out. Just… Not now. I really can’t.”
“Okay, I won’t press.” I fix a loose strand of hair behind my ear, and go back to a safer topic of conversation. “What do you think I should do about Beckett? I can’t afford to be delusional, right? He won’t ever look at me like that.”
Kayla’s shoulders relax, dropping back to their normal height. Finally, she concedes, “Yeah, maybe you’re right.”
