The Original Crowd (A Whole New Crowd 0.50)

Kayden murmured a soft, “Hi.” Then she went back to looking everywhere else again.

Molly gave me another awkward grin, lifting one shoulder helplessly.

“You guys want to go and get something to eat?” I asked, being extremely nice—which was so not me, but I was trying here.

“Hey, bitch!” I turned around and saw Amber walking my way.

Wow. When I turned back around, I was amazed. The Invisibles had scrambled—literally. Even Molly seemed to vanish.

Well, shit, how many arguments was I going to get into today? Did Tray count as one?

“What?” I asked simply. I was getting tired of this.

“What the hell did you say to Mandy?” she demanded, literally seething.

“A whole lot of the same,” I murmured, looking for the Invisibles. They were really good at their name. I frowned, checking the other way.

“She’s crying hysterically in the girls’ locker room. Erin said it’s because of you.”

“Amber,” I started warily, “back off.”

“Or what?”

“Oh my God, how many times do we have to go over this? I don’t like you. I’m not ever going to like you, but I’m not scared of you either. Whatever you got, try it. Trust me…you’ll be fun to take on…and a piece of cake. Until you’ve got something new to say, just shut up. Please.”

“I cannot believe—”

“Mandy’s my sister. I love her. But when she asks for my opinion, I’m going to give it to her. And I’m not going to let her pull me into your twisted games. I have enough stuff of my own to worry about.”

Amber fell silent. Thank God. I really was thanking Him—because she turned and left. Finally.

I looked for the Invisibles again, and after checking out the parking lot I saw them. I couldn’t believe it. They were standing underneath a tree in the farthest corner where a picnic table was. Wow. Talk about—a hiding place if you ever wanted to hide from a mass murderer.

As I started over to them, I was also shocked to see Tray’s SUV still in the lot, but no Tray. Huh.

“Hey,” I called out and saw Molly turn around to me.

“Hi.” Her smile looked forced. Guess the whole two groups of friends meeting each other was stressful.

“You okay? You guys want to grab a bite to eat?” I asked, making sure my voice was casual. I had a feeling that if I used anything else, they’d scatter—again—like frightened deer.

“Uh—” Molly murmured, glancing between Angela and Kayden.

“I’ll go and grab my car and pull around. How about that?” I suggested, and then I took off before they could say

no. To my surprise, they were still there when I drove around. Molly took the front seat, and Angela and Kayden sat stiffly in the back. Kayden

looked a little more relaxed though, but not much. Molly was easily the most extroverted of them, and that was saying a lot.

“We’re going to the diner?” Molly squeaked, flushing when I pulled into the parking lot. It was packed, but it was the hang out.

“Yep,” I said, a bit more firmly. They couldn’t leave without me. I had the keys to the car.

A full minute later, they all climbed out, not a word spoke between the three of them. I led the way, figuring they’d have to stand in the doorway for a good five minutes. But I was surprised. The second we were led to a booth in the back, all three of them hurried around me and squished into it.

Sitting beside Molly—big surprise that Kayden and Angela sat together—I ordered a Diet Coke when the server came over. She gave us a startled look. Don’t ask me why—I had no idea.

“So,” I commented, staring at Angela and Kayden.