Chapter 106
I opted out of staying at Lucy’s that night, even though it probably would’ve helped take my mind off of the craziness. Instead, I went home and stared at my homecoming dress, trying to decide whether or not I should even go. Thankfully, we had not seen Liam at the mall, but I knew he’d be sitting behind me in history class Monday morning, and with only four more days after that until the dance, I didn’t know if it was enough time to get over it.
Calling Cadence really wasn’t an option. She had enough going on right now. The last thing she needed was to hear my sorrows. I’d considered talking to my mom, but she had been so distracted since Cadence was shot and went off on her own, she probably wouldn’t even listen to me anyway. So… I called Elliott. I know it sounds dumb. Why would he want to hear about my problems with a boy in class? Unfortunately, he was really brief with his response, and when I hung up, I didn’t feel any better at all. I got the impression he had somewhere he had to be, and I supposed that made sense because vampires probably like to party on Saturday nights, too, right?
I decided to stay in my room and watch a movie on my laptop. Dad had invited me to watch The Blues Brothers with him, the old one, and even though he loved that movie and I’d watched it with him before, it wasn’t exactly my jam. Tonight, I needed something to make me feel a little bit more like this bit of drama with Liam wasn’t the end of the world, like it could be a whole lot worse. So, I watched The Fault in Our Stars, and by the time it was over, I was bawling like a baby again, not just for their tragic love but for my own as well. At this point in my life, I felt that everything was unfair, that no one would ever love me, my family didn’t mind keeping secrets from me, and I would always live in a web of lies.
And that’s when my bedroom window opened, basically scaring the pee out of me. Lucky for me I’d already closed my laptop and set it aside or I may have broken it.
“Sorry! So sorry!” Elliott said, and I remembered that night a few months ago, back when all of this had just started, when Aaron was saying the same thing to my sister.
“What the crap?” I asked.
“I didn’t mean to scare you. I thought… well I don’t know what I thought,” Elliott admitted. “I guess I thought you’d hear me.”
“Well, I didn’t.”
“Well, you did. Eventually.”
I wiped at my eyes with a ragged tissue. “Well at least I’m not crying anymore. Holy crap….”
He started laughing. “Sorry, Cass. You do look… pretty… pretty upset.”
“Thanks,” I said, gathering up the carnage of my tissue box and tossing it into the trashcan on the other side of my nightstand.
“You’re always beautiful, lil girl, but you look like you’ve been crying for a while. All of this over that stupid Liam?”
“Not all of it,” I replied, maybe more defensive than I needed to be. “I was watching The Fault in Our Stars.”
“Oh, that’ll do it.”
“Did you cry when you watched it?” I asked, sitting up and swinging my feet over the edge of the bed so I was sitting next to him.
“No, but most of the girls I know did,” he replied. “I haven’t cried about anything in… well, years.”
“That doesn’t surprise me,” I muttered.
“I almost did. When Cadence got shot,” he said, shaking his head. “But I had faith in Jamie.”
I nodded. “Too bad Augustus didn’t have Jamie around to save him.”
“No doubt.”
We were quiet for a few minutes before I turned to him and said, “So… you drove all the way here because I was upset about some stupid boy?”
“No,” he said adamantly. “I flew here because you were upset about some stupid boy.”
I couldn’t help but smile. “Really?”
“Sure,” he said with a shrug, like it was no big deal. “What was I gonna do? Just let you be miserable all by yourself instead of coming to tell you he’s just a stupid boy who doesn’t deserve you and you’re way too good for him anyway?”
Hearing him say that probably had me grinning like an idiot, but I didn’t care. “Thanks,” I said. “I know all that. It’s just hard. I mean, I’ve had a crush on him for a while now. And to think that he asked Lucy instead of me….”
“But she said no. I’m tellin’ you, lil girl, you’ve got some good friends in those two. Emma may be a little odd, but she’s a good kid, too.”
“I know.” I totally agreed. I considered using this as an opportunity to tell him that’s why I shouldn’t be locking them out of my life, but I skipped it. They already knew anyway, and we’d kept it from him for weeks. Why mess with success?
“So, you just need to scrape him off, Cass. You don’t need him. Anyone who would treat you with that amount of disrespect isn’t worth your time. If he’s not willing to take a bullet to the lungs for you, he’s not the kinda guy you need to keep around.”
I thought that was a pretty specific example and wondered what it was about but didn’t ask. Instead, I seriously considered what he was saying. How many times had I helped Liam with his homework under the pretense that he was interested in me? How many times had my mom gone out of her way to give him a ride home, even fixed us a snack, and this whole time he was just trying to get to me so he could get closer to Lucy. “You’re right,” I replied, nodding my head. “He’s a jerk face.”
“He’s more than that,” Elliott said. “Hey, I’ve met the kid. He’s dumb as a brick, thinks he’s pretty, and let’s face it, his jump shot couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn.”
By the time he finished, I was literally rolling on the bed with laughter, holding my side. Maybe it wasn’t that funny, but I needed a good laugh.
“You, on the other hand,” he said as I sat up again, regaining my composure. “You’re not only a knockout, lil girl, you’re kind, and smart, and funny. You’re a good friend and a great sister. You are all the things he doesn’t deserve. And if he’s too stupid to realize what he missed out on, then he gets exactly what he deserves, which is a big fat nothin’.”
It’d been a long time, longer than I could remember, actually, since someone other than my parents or Lucy or Emma had told me anything like that, and I never really believed them because I always felt like they were obligated to like me. I wrapped my arms around his shoulders. “Thank you,” I said quietly, not sure what else to say. He’d managed to make me feel a whole lot better, and the only magic he’d needed to do it were the powers that resided in his heart.
“It’s all true, Cass. I wouldn’t say it if it wasn’t.”
Sitting up, I looked at him. “What would you say if it wasn’t?” I asked, just out of curiosity.
“Uh,” he thought for a moment, “Wow, tough break kid. But, hey, you’re a person—a girl person—with hair and arms and stuff. You could totally find another person who breathes and can maybe do the Cha Cha and hang out with that other person… and be alive and stuff.”
“Oh, I see. That’s inspiring,” I said, trying not to laugh.
“Right? So… it’s a good thing I could think of actual good points about you to mention.”
“It’s kinda like that guy in my history class who got an award last year for ‘sitting in his chair most of the time.’”
“Yes, exactly. I think I know that guy.”
I couldn’t help but giggle. He probably did.
“Cass, I don’t have to stretch things to tell you that you’re a good kid because you are. Liam’s an idiot. You’re awesome. Go to that dance with your friends—take Milo or Wes—and party it up. Liam will take one look at you in that dress,” he gestured to my gown hanging on the back of my bedroom door, “and wish he’d never been born.”
“You think I should go anyway?” I asked, looking at the knee-length, lavender, full-skirted gown I’d picked out. It had straps and a cute sparkly trim around the top.
“Absolutely I think you should go anyway. I wish I could go be a chaperone just so I could see him pick his jaw up off the floor.”
“Can you?” I asked, grabbing his arm in excitement.
“I can’t,” he said, looking as disappointed as I felt. “We’ve got a lot going on. I didn’t even tell Aaron I was coming here, though I’m sure he knows I borrowed a pilot. And a plane.”
“You kind of need both of those things, I imagine.”
“Yeah, found that out the hard way.”
“Huh?” I asked, staring at him with wide eyes.
“Just kidding,” he assured me. “But seriously, lil girl. You’re going to that dance. You’re gonna take lots of pictures, dance with all the other boys—not Liam—and you’re going to have an amazing time.”
“I am?” I said, still not sure, but as I reflected on everything he said, I realized he was right. “I am.” I nodded my head confidently. “I am definitely going to that dance—without a stupid boy—and I am going to have the best time.”
“Yeah, you are!”
“And you didn’t even use any of your mojo to convince me of that, did you?” I hadn’t felt anything, but I wanted to make sure.
“Nah, didn’t need it,” he replied. He stood. “I’m sorry I can’t stay, but I have to get back for a hunt, and since the meeting starts in,” he looked at his watch, “thirty minutes, something tells me I’m gonna be late.”
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I hope I don’t get you in trouble.”
Shrugging, he took a step toward the window. “Wouldn’t be the first time the bossman yelled at me,” he replied. “Well worth it.”
I walked over to where he was standing. “Thank you,” I said, wrapping my arms around his waist and resting my head on his chest.
“You are more than welcome. I’ll be back in a week or two.” He gave me one last squeeze. “And by the way, Cass, don’t let any other guys up here, all right?”
“Of course not,” I replied, looking at him like he was crazy. “Milo and Wes don’t even come in here.”
“Good.” He nodded like he was my dad or something. “Take care, lil girl.”
He disappeared out the window before I could say anything else, and a few seconds later, I heard the sound of a motorcycle. I assumed he’d parked a few blocks away so that my parents wouldn’t hear anything.
I walked back to my bed and flopped backward onto my pillows. Maybe I wouldn’t be going to the dance with Liam, but I would have a good time. That was happening for sure, no matter what.
