Life and Death: Twilight Reimagined (Twilight #5)(60)

Ms. Varner wasn’t in the room yet. What was with all the tardy teachers today? It was like nobody even cared if we were educated.

I sat next to Jeremy. He didn’t keep me waiting.

“Dang, son,” he said. “Who knew you had that kind of game?”

I rolled my eyes. “I have no game.”

“Please.” He punched my arm. “Edythe Cullen. C’mon. How did you swing that?”

“I didn’t do anything.”

“How long has this been happening? Is it some kind of secret? Like, she doesn’t want her family to know? Is that why you pretended you were going to the movie with us?”

“I wasn’t pretending anything. I had no idea she was in Port Angeles last night. She was the last person I expected to see.”

He seemed deflated by my obvious honesty.

“Have you ever been out with her before last night?”

“Never.”

“Huh. Just a total coincidence?”

“I guess.”

It was obvious when I was telling the truth—and obvious when I was evading it. The suspicious, knowing look came back to his face.

“Because, you know, it’s not a secret that you’ve been, like, obsessed with her since you got here.”

I winced. “It’s not?”

“So, I have to wonder how you turned that around. Do you have a genie in a lamp? Did you find some blackmail on her? Or did you trade your soul to the devil or something?”

“Whatever, man.”

“Exactly how much did you get in the bargain? Bet it was a pretty wild night, eh?”

I was starting to get pissed, but I knew he would twist whatever reaction I showed to make it seem like something else.

I answered calmly, “It was an early night. Home by eight.”

“Are you serious?”

“It was just dinner and a ride home, Jeremy.”

“What about this morning, though? You were still with her.”

“Still? No! What—you thought she was with me all night?”

“She wasn’t?”

“No.”

“But you were in her car—”

“She picked me up for school this morning.”

“Why?”

“I have no idea. She offered me a ride. I wasn’t going to say no.”

“And that’s it?”

I shrugged.

“Really? Please tell me you at least made out with her—anything.”

I scowled at him. “It’s not like that.”

He made a disgusted face. “That is, hands down, the most disappointing story I’ve ever heard in my entire life. I take back everything I said about your game. Obviously, it’s just some pity thing.”

“Yeah, probably.”

“Maybe I should try to look more pathetic. If that’s what Edythe is into.”

“Go for it.”

“It won’t take her long to get bored with you, I bet.”

My façade slipped for a second. He caught the change and grinned, a little smug.

“Yeah,” I said. “I’m sure you’re right.”

Ms. Varner showed up then, and the general chatter started to die down while she began writing equations across the board.

“You know what, though?” Jeremy said under his breath. “I think I’d rather be with a normal girl.”

I was already irritated. I didn’t like the way he talked about Edythe in general, and the way he said normal really bugged me. No, Edythe wasn’t normal, but that wasn’t because, like his tone seemed to imply, she was something… off or wrong. She was beyond normal, above it. Surpassing it by so much that normal and Edythe weren’t even on the same plane of existence.

“That’s probably for the best,” I muttered in a hard voice. “Keep your expectations low.”

He shot me a startled look, but I turned to face the teacher. I could feel him staring at me suspiciously again, until Ms. Varner noticed and called on him for an answer. He started flipping spastically through his book, trying to figure out what she’d asked him.

Jeremy walked ahead of me on the way to Spanish, but I didn’t care. I was still annoyed. He didn’t talk to me again until the end of class when I started shoving my books—a little too enthusiastically—into my backpack.

“You’re not sitting with us at lunch today, are you?”

His face was suspicious again, and more guarded now. Obviously, he’d thought I’d be eager to show off, to sell Edythe out to make myself look cooler. After all, Jeremy and I had been friends for a little while. Guys told each other this kind of stuff. It was probably part of the man code thing I’d invented. He’d assumed my loyalty would be with him… but now he knew he was wrong.

“Um, not sure,” I said. No point in being overconfident. I remembered too clearly what it felt like whenever she disappeared. I didn’t want to jinx myself.

He walked off without waiting for me, but then he did a little stutter step and paused on the threshold of the classroom.

“Seriously, what the hell,” Jeremy said loud enough that I could hear him—as did everyone else within a ten-foot radius.

He glanced back at me, shook his head, then stalked away.