Page 10 of The Rebel
In amongst that, Jazmyn piped up, “Are you all right, Vali?”
I nodded, swallowing hard, but not quite looking anyone in the eye. I’d acted like a brat but my stupid heart felt betrayed. I had to get over Scott, leave that silly crush behind, be thrilled for my friend. But it was easier said than done. Being human sucked—I wished I was a robot.
I tried to form a smile, but my lips twitched as my gaze took in Gabby’s rosy cheeks and bright eyes. Jazmyn was right—Gabby looked so happy, and Ishouldbe happy for her.
“I can take you home in my car,” Gabby offered, “It’s just over there.” She pointed across to the shiny red car, but before I could answer, Jade cut in.
“It’s okay, I’m taking Valencia home,” he said forcefully, leaving me a little stunned, Gabby, Jazmyn and Kelsey too, if their raised eyebrows and gaping mouths were anything to go by. Jade handed me a cup of hot chocolate and said, “You ready?”
I nodded, swept away by his assertiveness, his unexpected command of the situation, and maybe it was because he was a senior that no one dared to question him.
“I’ll call you,” Gabby said timidly, and all I could do was flash a smile and flutter my fingers in farewell as Jade said, “Let’s go.”
As we walked to his truck, I sipped my hot chocolate, the sweet liquid sliding down my throat, removing the metallic taste. Unlocking the door, Jade gestured for me to sit in the front passenger seat. He turned on the engine, and as the seat beneath me heated, I let out a tiny squeal. See, these were the joys of living in a cold climate—you appreciated little things like that. No one needed heated seats in Florida.
Jade laughed. “Thought you’d like that.”
“Is this new?” As I scanned over the dashboard, my heart beat ramped up as I caught sight of Scott leaning against Gabby’s car.
“Kind of,” Jade said, turning around to place the tray of cups in the back for the boys. “Got it last summer.”
I reached out and lowered the sun visor to restrict the stark reality right before my eyes. Lifting the cover on the mirror, I peered at my reflection, somewhat surprised to see that I actually looked okay. Considering the amount of blood that had flowed, Jade had done a good job of cleaning me up.
“You okay?” Jade asked, pulling his seat belt over him and clicking it.
“Uh huh.” I flipped the visor back and picked up my cup, taking a long sip. “Mmm, it’s good.”
“You always liked sprinkles,” he said.
His random statement made my mouth twist, wondering if my eardrums had been affected.
“Your tenth birthday? Remember your cake was covered in sprinkles?”
I frowned, vaguely recalling the two tier chocolate cake that was basically a sugar feast. How the heck could Jade remember that? I barely did. It was probably the least memorable of mybirthday cakes. My sneakers cake when I turned twelve and my makeup cake for my 14th had been way more impressive.
“I don’t know why you remember that,” I said.
“It was different from Paris’s usual tennis cakes,” Jade said with a laugh. “Remember the Wimbledon cake?”
“And the tennis ball one, and the racket,” I said with a roll of my eyes. Paris had no interests other than tennis. Unless you counted his cat.
“So, what’s been happening at Cov Prep?”
“Huh?” I blinked back at him blankly.
“I was away last semester,” Jade said, his voice lilting, like he thought it was something I should know.
“Oh, Mom said you were back from your trip. Where’d you go?”
“London.”
“London, England?”
“Yep.”
“Did you go to Wimbledon?” I asked. Wimbledon was a famous tennis tournament, one of the four Grand Slam events in the sport. Being the oldest tournament, established in 1877, it had a tradition of wearing all white clothing and was the most prestigious on the tennis calendar. Paris dreamed of winning the trophy one day and perhaps for a fleeting moment, I had too. It was played on grass, a surface he’d only played on a couple of times. Grass courts were few and far between in our area, but they suited Paris’s style of game, which was a big serve followed by coming to the net for a volley.
“No, it’s in July, isn’t it? I went over in September,” he said.
