“How about, ‘Hannah, you’re so much prettier than Charlotte, and soon Lucas is going to see that and dump her for you.’”
He laughed, then snapped his mouth shut. “Oh, you’re serious?”
I returned his under-the-table kick. “You’re so mean. Are you saying I’m ugly?”
His smile faded and he reached across the table and took my hand in his. “Of course not. You’re…you’re amazing. I just think…” He let his words fade.
I was trying not to get offended, but it was difficult. No matter what way you sliced it, he was telling me I wasn’t good enough for Lucas. “What? What do you think?” I asked, not doing a great job keeping the irritation from my voice.
He swallowed and squeezed my hand. “Lucas and Charlotte look pretty tight. That’s all.”
Oh. Right. I laid my head on the table and let the cool of the Formica surface seep into my cheek. I sighed as I watched Lucas kiss Charlotte. “Yeah. I know.”
Parker patted my head. “
Don’t stress. This is high school. People break up all the time.”
“You’re just saying that because you’re my best friend and you have to try to cheer me up.”
“Eat your bear claw, or I’m going to eat it for you.”
That snapped my head up. “Don’t you dare.” I licked it just in case he was serious.
He made a face. “All right. It’s yours.” He popped the last of his cinnamon roll in his mouth and went back to reading his stupid comic book.
“What’s so interesting in there, anyway?” I asked as my gaze involuntarily snapped back to Lucas. He was now leaning against the counter looking like a Greek god.
“The Green Star is amazing. That’s it.”
“Why is he green? Is he jealous or something?”
Parker snorted but then shook his head. “An alien bit him, which is what gave him his super-human powers.”
I took a bite of my pastry, reveling in the sweet flavor. “That’s dumb,” I said around my doughnut.
He made a face at me. “No dumber than a radioactive spider.”
He knew I liked all the Spider Man movies. “Spiders bite. That’s a well-known fact.”
“And aliens can’t bite?” He raised an eyebrow, challenging me.
“Fine. Aliens can bite. Aliens can do whatever you want them because they’re not real.” I snuck another look at Lucas but he’d gone back into the kitchen. Dang.
“Okay. I’ll give you that one.”
I leaned back in my chair and moaned. “What am I going to do? He doesn’t even know I exist.”
“Too bad for him,” Parker said under his breath.
I glared at him. “You’re no help.”
He raised his gaze to meet mine and stared at me for a moment. “Then let me help you. Forget about Lucas. He’s a tool. He wouldn’t treat you the way you should be treated.”
I huffed in exasperation. “Like I said. No. Help.” My gaze moved back to the register where Charlotte was standing. And then it hit me. This was a place of business. Duh. “Oh, my gosh. I can’t believe it. I’ve been so stupid.”
“Hmm?”
“I totally know what I need to do, now.”