The Original Crowd (A Whole New Crowd 0.50)

“Look,” he sighed, running a hand over his buzz-cut, “Geeze told me what you’re up to. That why you’re here?”

“Yeah. I was looking for you.”

“Alright.” He nodded, glancing around. “I know what you’re going to ask and the answer is, of course, stupid. Just…get out of here. Brian’s already boiling over, he doesn’t need anything else to cause him to explode.”

“Thanks, Grayley, I miss you, for what it’s worth. I’ll need the blueprints to Pedlam High; I gotta get in there.”

“Yeah.” A rueful smile graced his features, his grey eyes solemn. “Now get out of here.”

“Okay.” I nodded, sitting back holding Grayley’s gaze as Tray pulled forward. When he was out of sight, I rolled the window back up and huddled against the door, my forehead pressed against the glass.

We drove in silence except when Tray’s phone would go off.

“Yeah,” I heard him say. Then a moment later, he responded, “Nah. Have fun. Grant knows the way back.”

His phone rang quite a few times and he had the same conversation.

Sighing, I turned over and murmured, “A lot of people want you to go back to the party, huh?”

He glanced sideways at me, but didn’t say anything.

Then he said quietly, “You get what you wanted back there?”

“Hmm…I guess. It’ll do.”

My phone rang, interrupting anything else he might’ve said. I realized, rolling my eyes at my own stupidity, that I was flustered. Flustered because of Tray. How old am I? Thirteen? I flipped my phone open without checking to see who it was first. “What?”

“Where are you?”

I realized two things at once. It was Brian and he was furious.

“I got a ride home.”

“With Evans?” he demanded harshly.

I looked at Tray—he’d heard. He could hear the entire conversation. Great.

“What of it?”

“God, you’re such a bitch!”

“I’m the bitch!? Me? I am? What about you, Brian? If anyone’s a bitch, it’s you. Going off on Gentley like that. What are you thinking?”

“Please. Gentley’s got nothing on me.”

“He’ll retaliate, Brian. What were you thinking?”

“And if he retaliates, trust me—he’ll be the one hurting, not me.”

“Oh my God, you’re delusional. This is how it’s always been, Bri. The two of you put me in the middle every time. Well, I’m out. Okay? I’m done.”

“The fucker was all over you. He was two inches from—”

“From hitting me, not raping me. I was handling him,” I hissed, fully aware that Tray had pulled over and was watching me, seemingly content to sit back and listen.

“You were handling him? You’re the one who’s delusional, Tar. He needs to know that you’re still my property. He fucks with me if he even goes near you.”

That was it. I hung up on him and looked at Tray. Coldly, I asked, “Wanna have some fun?”