A Whole New Crowd(37)

“Thought we were both *s.”
He shrugged. “Assholes can watch movies too.”
“Okay.” I laughed. “I’ll call you later.” Then I stopped thinking and took off for home. When I got there, I was relieved—the parents weren’t home yet. Hurrying, I swept inside and up to my room where I grabbed my robe before heading into the bathroom. I could hear Mandy in her room on the phone.
After my shower, I went downstairs, and caught Austin poking around in the fridge, his lanky form wearing basketball shorts and a Rawley jersey.
“Hey, kid,” I spoke up, reaching around him, grabbing a yogurt.
He raked his eyes over my form. “Showering doesn’t hide your recent lay.”
“Excuse me?” I muttered, startled. The kid was in eighth grade.
“Mom and Dad are going to know.”
“Hey.” I shot a leg out and blocked his exit from the kitchen. “What the hell’s your problem?”
“Nothing. I’m just telling you—you look like you got laid last night, and showering isn’t going to hide it.”
I tipped my head to the side. “You get laid last night?”
He snorted. “I’m fourteen. Mom and Dad would skin me alive.”
Would they? I still played with him, seeing how uncomfortable he was. “So what’s her name?”
Austin scowled at me, shoved my leg off the counter, and walked out of the room with a plate of pizza. I heard him mutter as he went, “I don’t have a girlfriend.” A second later the television was turned on at full volume.
“When did you leave last night?” Mandy asked, coming down the stairs.
“When you and Dylan decided to start a make-out session at the table.”
“Everyone saw you and Tray leave together. Seriously. Jennica and Devon showed up with Grant at the party. Jen still has it for Tray and I guess they showed up just when you guys were taking off. I loved it!” she chatted happily, grabbing a Pop-Tart.
“Except it has nothing to do with you, Jennica, or Devon.” I jumped on top of the counter, swinging my legs, watching Mandy rush back and forth in the kitchen. “What are you doing?”
“Trying to make some food for when Mom and Dad get home. They should be here any minute.”
“So, you and Dylan,” I started. I figured this was the perfect time. She couldn’t scream or run off. “What’s going on with that?”
She shrugged and, if possible, started to busy herself even more. “I don’t know. Nothing. He’s Samuel’s cousin, and he’s hardly ever here in Rawley.”
“Where are his parents?”
“They live in Europe. He usually lives with his sister. He goes to a private school and is on break for the month. He’s going back in a couple weeks.”
“And Devon? What do you think Devon thinks about Dylan?”
She stopped and fixed me with a dark look. “Why do you care?”
“I don’t.” I told her the truth. “I’m trying to figure out the dynamics because no one seems surprised that you and Dylan are all touchy-feely.”
“Oh.” She shrugged. “Dylan makes out with whatever girl is single when he comes. If I get back with Devon, Dylan will be macking on a different girl next time. He doesn’t care.”
We heard car doors shut at that moment and Mandy froze, staring out the window for a moment. She muttered, “Yeah, well, a lot of things are messed up.” Then the door to the kitchen opened, and she fixed a bright smile on her face. “Welcome back, Mom!”
Shelly came in first. Like Mandy, she was petite with blonde hair, and today she wore Capri pants and a white, light-weight sweater with a floral tank top underneath. She was a soccer mom. She had called herself that the first time I met her with a bright smile and a cute pixie-like face. She hugged Mandy, letting go of the luggage behind her. The two of them looked so much alike, they could’ve been twins.
I did not fit in with them.
That feeling doubled as Shelly ran a loving hand down Mandy’s hair, smoothing it out, hugging her tight one last time before letting go. “Oh, honey. I’ve missed you so much.”
Mandy pulled back, then burst into tears. “Devon and I broke up.”
“Oh my god. Oh no.” Shelly glanced at me, graced me with a kind smile. “Taryn. It’s so good to see you too.” She held a hand out for me to squeeze and as I did, she turned back to Mandy. “What happened, darling?”
The story was then unfolded. They turned to go upstairs as one unit. Shelly reached for her luggage and Mandy took the other carry-on that was on the floor beside it. I heard Mandy say as they went up the stairs, “He cheated on me, Mom.”