“Uh, no. It’s a freshman and a girl,” I said.
Ethan grunted. “Why are you always helping her out, anyway? It’s not like you get anything out of it. Plus, she punished you. Shouldn’t you hate her and be retaliating or something?”
“No,” I said, not meeting his eye. “I help because she asked, and I don’t want her to be mad at me.”
“It’s Mrs. Parks. She’s always mad at everyone. It’s her job.”
Not me, I wanted to say.
“You don’t always have to do what makes everyone else happy, you know. Sometimes you can say no. Do what you want.”
I kept my head down, intently staring at my chips.
“Mia,” Ethan said, “look at me.”
“What?” I shrugged, trying to look innocent. “Listen, I don’t need one of your lectures, okay? It’s fine. I’m fine. It gets me out of the house, anyway.”
Ethan sighed, grumbling something under his breath about being a people pleaser that I chose to ignore. So what if I wanted people to like me. Was that such a crime?
I glanced at my watch and moaned. It was almost noon, which meant I’d soon have to leave for The Bean to set up the Angel Tree. Every time I thought about having to spend time with Carson again one-on-one, my stomach twisted. But I wasn’t nervous. I was anxious. Big difference.
“I can’t believe Carson and I survived our lab on Thursday without killing each other. You know, there was even a moment there where I thought we were getting along, which reminds me,” I rolled from my back onto my stomach and narrowed my eyes at him. “Why didn’t you tell me he was going to Duke? You know that’s my number one.”
Ethan sunk down beside me on the floor, propping himself up against the footboard of his bed. “I was going to tell you at dinner Wednesday night when we were loading the dishwasher, and then I thought, why ruin it for you? You need to go where you want, without anything or anyone influencing you. That, and I didn’t want to be the bearer of bad news.” He laughed.
I screwed up my face. I guess he had a point. “You’re forgiven, even though you have a hot date to the dance, and I do not.”
“You’re going to the dance. Someone will ask you. You have two weeks yet.”
I raised a brow. Wow. Two whole weeks. “Even after choking a guy out in front of my entire gym class? Yeah, I’m sure all the guys are just dying to ask me out. In fact, they’re probably fighting over me now, which is why no one’s asked yet.” I rolled my eyes. “Friday at lunch, I saw Tasha and Olivia huddled together with a couple other MG’s, miming strangling themselves at the lunch table. And their eyes definitely met mine afterward. None of the boys in my class are going to want to touch me with a ten-foot pole.”
Ethan pursed his lips, then shrugged. “You have a point.”
I threw a chip at him, but he darted forward and caught it in his mouth.
“Impressive. I can’t even be mad now.” I laughed.
“Sorry I can’t go to the dance with you,” he said, and I shrugged.
“It’s not your fault you have a girl you like who actually likes you back.” At his glare, I corrected. “Okay, I know. I don’t even like anyone, and it’s not like I’m really trying, but still…”
“Why don’t you like anyone?”
I took a sip of my soda to buy me time. “Do I have to?”
“It’s just, you haven’t been interested in anyone since sophomore year. What’s up with that?”
“I don’t know. I guess. . .” I set the chips in my hand back in the bowl and wiped my hands on a napkin, sitting up. “Things are so serious at home that it hasn’t been my focus.”
“But going out, dating, it would be good for you, a distraction.”
“I’m not arguing. But I’ve been busting my butt to smash the SAT’s and get good grades so that I get into the college of my choice. Most of my energy is going into that. There’s not much left to spare. That, and I guess no one has caught my eye.”
“No one?”
I frowned. “What’s with all the questions? You and I never talk about my love life or lack thereof. You always tell me you want no part of it. That it’s gross.”
Ethan crammed a potato chip in his mouth. “No reason.”