Seven Ways We Lie(28)

“Definitely not just you,” Juniper says, stirring her yogurt. Olivia and I exchange a worried glance. She looks even more exhausted than she did yesterday.

“Hey, Juni,” I say carefully. “You okay?”

“What? Yeah.” She looks up with a determined smile. “I was up until, like, three last night. Two essays due today, and . . . well, you know. Paganini calls.” She glances at Olivia. “By the way, did your unwanted attention blow over?”

The subject switch doesn’t escape me, but I’m curious. “Unwanted attention?”

“Bleh.” Olivia blows her hair out of her eyes. “Daniel.”

“Why’s his attention unwanted?”

Juni and Olivia swap a knowing look that makes me feel instantly excluded. “Sure you want to know?” Olivia says.

“Duh, nerd. Spill.”

“He sort of sent me a dick pic, and now things are awkward because, like . . . penises.”

I choke on my sandwich. “He what? When was this?”

“Monday.”

“How dare you conceal this incredibly important information?” I say in a voice laden with sarcasm. The joke lands—Olivia grins—but part of my heart has clenched up. It’s not that Dan Silverstein’s junk is in any way interesting, but Olivia told Juni already. So, what, because of our not-fight Monday, I’m not allowed to be in the know anymore? And with Juni’s excuses and deflections . . . is this the new normal, them keeping things from me?

“My deepest apologies,” Olivia says. She lifts her hands in praise to the heavens. “But at last, we greet the weekend! A joyous miracle! Time to sleep in. And marathon Parks and Rec. And rage with my favorite people.” She gives me and Juni a winning smile.

“Rage, right,” Juni says wryly. “You and your nonalcoholic self.”

“Hey, sassy, I can rage without dousing myself in Miller Lite.” Olivia slurps her Capri Sun. “So, what’s our move?”

“Hate to burst the raging bubble,” I say, “but nothing’s happening this weekend. Like, zero things. Dan’s sister is having a birthday party, but if he’s persona non grata now, I’m guessing that’s not your first choice.”

“Nothing at all?” Olivia visibly deflates, chewing her straw. “Damn. There’s this one super-handsome guy on baseball I was talking to last week. Thought maybe I could ‘run into him’ this weekend.”

“How about we hang out, the three of us?” Juniper suggests.

Olivia brightens. “Ooh, yes, excellent.”

“My afternoon’s open,” I say.

“I actually can’t do afternoon,” Olivia says. She tosses her hair, looking off into the middle distance. “I have a clandestine meeting with a gentleman.”

Sharp disapproval runs through me. God, how many guys is she juggling at one time? Hasn’t she ever heard of restraint?

I clasp my hands tight. Stop, Claire. She can go on dates. She can do what she wants. Who cares if she has eighty boys falling at her feet?

I take a deliberate bite of my apple as Juniper says, “Do tell.”

“Well, where do I begin?” Olivia says. “It’ll be an incredibly romantic rendezvous, where we will make a poster about Dante’s Inferno.” As she gives her eyelashes an exaggerated flutter, I let out a sigh, feeling like an *. It’s a class project, not a date. Of course. The day Olivia goes on a real date instead of just hooking up with guys at parties, the sun will probably explode.

“How about evening, then?” Juniper suggests. “We can just chill. Watch a movie.”

Here we go. I’m busy tomorrow night, and I already know what’s going to happen. My absence makes less of a difference than Olivia’s, so they’ll meet up Saturday night and have an amazing time without me and send me a bunch of Snapchats that’ll make me feel left out, and I won’t say anything, because if I do, I’ll come off needy.

“I can’t at night,” I say.

“Why not?”

“Grace’s birthday. We’re going out to eat.”

“How about after?” Olivia says. “We could do, like, nine thirty or ten.”

“My tournament’s this Sunday, remember? I have to get up early.”

“Excuses, excuses, Lombardi,” Olivia says. “I’m picking you up, and you can’t stop me.”

“I’m serious. I gotta get up at six.” I gulp some Gatorade. “I mean, you could pick me up if you roll my sleeping body into the back of Juni’s car.”

They laugh. It fades into expectant silence, and I realize they’re waiting for me to give them some sort of weird blessing to hang out without me. I don’t want to say the words, but they come out anyway. “Well, whatever. Don’t have too much fun without me.”

I swear, their eyes brighten. I look down at my lunch, nibbling on my nails. Juni and Olivia drop the topic soon, but my mind sticks on the little things from this week. Juniper’s silences. Dan’s secret advances. The thought of the pair of them without me. As for Saturday, I already get the sense I’m missing out.





“KAT?” DR. NORMAN SAYS.

My head jerks up, my eyes snapping open.

“Do you know the answer?” Norman asks, the first words in seventh period I’ve listened to. There’s no question on the whiteboard. Not that I’d be able to answer it—chemistry is my worst subject—but knowing the type of question would make a guess sound less stupid, at least.