But they all seemed to know me, judging from their glares or grins.
I saw Tray standing at his open locker, grinning at something Justin Travers and three other guys were telling him.
There they were: the gods of the gods—the popular guys—the ones that every girl had their first crush on—the ones you’d remember after you were married and returned to your hometown…and they’d still give you the butterflies when you saw ‘em in a gas station, filling up their newest car with their little kiddies in the back.
Devon, Bryce, and Grant were lounging against a locker a few down from Tray’s, but they were listening in on whatever Travers was saying. The other guys—they were the basketball players that had helped vandalize Pedlam—were on the opposite side of the hall, also listening to Travers.
I hesitated, suddenly unsure what to do. I mean, Tray always found me. I’d never singled him out, but he probably needed his keys. For some reason, I was hesitant to approach.
“If you don’t move, you’re going to get trampled,” came a voice from behind me.
I turned and saw a girl with sleek black hair and green eyes, regarding me in annoyance. She was dressed how I used to dress. In fact, her tank top looked like… “You get that from Petros?” I asked, nodding at her top.
Surprised, she replied, “Yeah, you shop there?”
“I used to,” I murmured. “I went to Pedlam for a few years.”
“Me too,” she commented, looking unsure. “I moved here three years ago, but my cousins still go there, so I visit and shop a lot out there.”
“Senior?” I asked. We were in the senior hallway, after all. Tray was a god, which was the only reason he was allowed a locker in the senior hallway.
“Yeah, you’re not?”
“Junior. You must’ve moved when I was just starting high school at Pedlam.”
“Who were your friends?” she asked, now more interested.
“Brian Lanser. Grayley. Trent Gardner. Liza. Kerri. Geezer.”
“Oh,” she laughed, “we were in totally different crowds.”
“Gentley,” I pinpointed.
“Yeah,” she chuckled, “take it you’re not a fan.”
“Gentley and I hate each other,” I said matter-of-factly. “Still.”
“Oh!” Understanding dawned in her eyes. “You’re Taryn Matthews.”
“You’ve heard of me?”
“Oh, honey, everyone in Pedlam and Rawley has heard about you.” She laughed. “My name’s Crystal Fairs.”
“Taryn Matthews,” I greeted formally.
We didn’t shake on it.
She gestured over my shoulder. “So that’s why you’re down in Senior Haven. You’re Tray Evan’s latest girl. Gotta say—he’s more of a Gentley than a Brian Lanser, from what I hear about Brian Lanser.”
He was not a Gentley. But he wasn’t a Brian Lanser either…and she’d just called me his latest girl. Tray Evan’s latest girl.
I was a bit uncomfortable with that. Whatever.
“Man, a lot of girls hate you, you know,” she mused, grinning at me. “Including me, you should know that.” There wasn’t much heat behind that statement though.
“Trust me, I’m used to the feeling,” I murmured half-heartedly, glancing over to Tray’s locker again. He was still talking with the same guys and none of them looked like they were about to move anytime soon.
“Yeah, well, you oughtta head out of here. Casners’ going to be coming back from her weekly meeting with our esteemed principal. She’s not going to be happy seeing you in her territory.”