Page 76 of Crew
"The fighting."
I couldn't answer that. I didn't want to. "Sorry you had to witness it."
"Jordan might mean well deep down, but it's way far down, like seven layers of Dante's Inferno down. All those layers are his asshole layers." She settled back, unwrapping the last half of her sandwich. "If I joined your crew, all I'd be doing is fighting with him. I get it."
I turned onto the road, leaving Manny's behind, and glanced sideways to Taz. I had a feeling her way of "getting it" and mine were total opposites.
I took Taz to a couple more crew businesses, but it wasn't until I was driving her back to her house that she mentioned a main sponsor.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"The big, big one." She was waving her hands in the air again. I could see from the corner of my eye. "You know, when you go to events and you see the main sponsor? Race's dad could do that one."
"Why didn't you mention it before?"
She shrugged. "Because it's not mine to fill. It's Ms. Bagirianni's job, but I just texted her and asked if she'd found someone yet. She said no. You want me to read it out loud?"
I felt the blood drain from my face. "No way. I don't want to hear, see, or know about any personal texts from The Badger. There should be a rule where teachers and staff can't leave the school. When you enter, you deal with them there and only there. It's too much, thinking of all of them having their own lives."
"Man." She whistled. "She really got under your skin, huh?"
I fixed her with a look. "If you think The Badger hasn't psychoanalyzed you, you're dumb. Trust me. She analyzes everybody."
"I'm not insecure about what she might think of me."
"Ask for her thoughts on your relationship with Cross."
Taz's smug smile vanished.
"See? Not so secure now, huh?"
"That was mean of you."
Maybe. Well, yes, it was. "Sometimes I'm not so nice."
I pulled up to the curb by their house and put the Jeep in park, letting the engine idle. I'd only be going in there if Cross was home, and I already knew he wasn't. He'd texted before saying they were at Jordan's.
Taz looked down at her lap, at her bag sitting there, and she sighed. "I know you're not normal. Your friends are your crew, and I get it. I mean, I think I do. Kind of. But that was a cheap shot you just took. My relationship with Cross is--"
"Where you're vulnerable?" I asked. "Guess what? My whole life is where I'm vulnerable."
She held my gaze, then let out another quiet breath. "You think I took a cheap shot at you?"
I remained like a statue. Taz knew my relationship with The Badger was a sore subject. She got her feelings hurt? Tough. Welcome to life.
She looked down at her bag again. "Maybe I did."
I knew she was jealous of my relationship with her brother. I was jealous of how normal her life was. She took a dig at me, and I punched her back. And now she was feeling bad? She'd go inside, sit, and get a home-cooked meal with both of her parents.
She'd get over it.
I cleared my throat. "Let's just talk tomorrow, okay?"
"Okay." She slid out of my vehicle, her hand up in a wave. "Thanks, Bren."
I nodded.
I meant to go watch the house, or maybe finish that fight with Jordan, but instead of turning left, I went right.
