Dear Love, I Hate You (Easton High)

As crazy as it may sound, I don’t think he’s bluffing.

He’d actually do it.

“Thanks.” I crack a shy smile and use the truck’s step to climb into his passenger seat.

“Where to?” He pumps the gas as soon as I’ve buckled up.

I give him my address, and he nods, knowing what part of town I’m referring to. We drive in silence for over ten minutes. The memory of Dia saying Xavier had gone out to get booze crosses my mind halfway to my house, and I search the car for evidence.

Nothing in the front.

Nothing in the back.

Maybe it’s in the trunk?

Might as well make conversation.

“Didn’t you go buy booze?” I ask.

“Nah.” He shrugs. “I just said that to get out of there. I needed a break.”

The fact that he’d prefer sitting in his car by himself than partying with his friends makes me think he didn’t read the jock manual correctly.

“What about you? What’s your excuse for leaving so early?”

“More like what’s my excuse for coming at all,” I mutter.

He nods in understanding. “Not your scene, huh?”

“What are you talking about? I throw ragers like these every weekend,” I joke, and his lips tip into a smile.

“And you never invited me?” He gasps.

I swallow a chuckle.

“I would, but I’m scared you’d just end up hiding in your car the whole time.”

He laughs.

It’s just a laugh. Like so many other laughs. I’ve heard guys laugh a million times before. But his laugh feels warm. Like a soft blanket. It resonates through my body, fuels that thing in my chest, gives it an extra beat. A squeeze. I may dislike a few things about Xavier Emery…

But I love his laugh.

If there was a laugh competition, he’d win.

Okay, moving on from the laugh thing, it’s getting weird.

“Why’d you hide?” I don’t expect him to confide in me but push my luck anyway. “I thought parties were supposed to be a jock’s happy place.”

“Is that really what you think?” he mocks. “That every jock on earth just loves getting wasted? Like we’re the same person copied and pasted or something?”

“No, of course not,” I backtrack. “It’s just… have you met your fri

ends?”

He grins, getting my point.

“Yeah, well, they’re all talk. Between you and me, Finn only showed up tonight because he was hoping to see Dia, and Theo just threw the stupid thing because Finn asked him to.”