Page 74 of We Shouldn't Be Together
Maybe because I’m afraid she’s with her friends. She told me they bully her. I can’t imagine the only people I hang out with making me feel like utter crap. If she’s with those girls, and she’s texting me, does that mean she’s trying to escape their wrath?
Or she’s with a guy? She could be on a date.
I tap the phone against my forehead. Why hasn’t she told me what she’s doing?
She wouldn’t text me if she were on a date. The guy wouldn’t stand for that. Not that I care if she is with a guy or not.
A lightbulb goes on.
Tabitha double messages. If I’m patient, she might tell me what she’s doing without prompting.
I stare at my phone screen, waiting in misery.
Over it, I swipe out of messages and back into podcasts. I have a playlist of episodes that mention our town. Victoria Falls gets brought up now and then because of the Ashworth family’s net worth. It’s probably a good thing I don’t know anyone from the family. I have a severe need to deep-dive into all the theories and discover what’s true or false.
When I’m fifteen minutes into an episode, it pauses when a text notification chimes. I tap my lamp back on and sit up, clutching my phone.
"Nope. She’s still on my case."
I reply with,"I take it you’re back home?"
Dang it. Why did I reply so fast?
"Yeah. Am I lame for coming home before midnight?"
I can’t help it. I have to ask."Who were you hanging with?"
"Just the girls. We watched a rom-com. Cammy chucked her popcorn at me."
"Why?"
"I was so stupid. I compared the leading man to her dad because he was starting over with a new family while trying to balance life with his old family."
"And she didn’t like that?"
"Evidently not,"Tabitha texts."My fault, though. I should know better than to bring up her dad. It just slipped out."
The fire that builds inside whenever someone rags on Jamie burns within me."It’s not your fault. She needs to check herself."
"It’s no biggy. It was only popcorn. Could’ve been worse."
"Have you dealt with worse?"
"It’s Cammy. But since her dad’s wedding, she’s been in overdrive."
"And that’s why you sicked her on Jamie?"
It takes a long time for her to reply, and my stomach knots.
Tabitha texts,"I’m sorry I did that."
And then she texts,"I hope you believe me."
I don’t know why, but…
"I do,"I reply.
"Thank you."
