Stay

“You came to America so your dad would get a contract from your brother. You’re finishing your senior year here to make Niko happy. You’re only holding out on being painted by Hope, and I never even support you in that. Though honestly, I don’t want to. And now you’re on the football team, and I don’t think you planned to be.” She tried to convey sincere apology, her chin resting against her knees. She didn’t want to be someone who shoved other people into the mold she thought they should be in.

“What have you seen me really do that I don’t want to do? Do I eat that horrible food?” Alexi rose straighter against his pillows.

“No, but you keep buying it.” Her tone expressed her bewilderment, and her lips twisted. Every day he brought a lunch tray to their table.

“Do I ride in your small car?”

“I like the limo better, too.” Who wouldn’t?

He rubbed his palms along the outside of her arms. “I don’t do things I don’t want to do.” Alexi felt warm and strong, comforting, and she could smell his skin. He wouldn’t wear cologne to bed, so it must be his shower gel. Mia breathed in, glad they had stopped at the kiosk that day. Thinking of the kiosk reminded her of her mistaken reasoning in comparing him to Kristnaldo. This made her think of their thinning lunch table crowd. He was right. He didn’t do things he didn’t want to do or talk to people he didn’t want to talk to. She sat back and met his eyes. “Oh.” Heat rose in her cheeks. How stupid. He didn’t join the football team because she wanted him to. He joined for his own reasons.

Tap, tap, tap.

She slid to the edge of the bed.

The maid, Joellen, entered carrying a stack of cleaning. Joellen’s eyes widened when she saw Alexi and Mia together. “Sorry.” She turned away.

Mia slipped off the bed. “It’s okay, I was just leaving. Night, Alexi, Night, Joellen.”

***

Mia pushed Alex

i’s hand off the plastic lunch table seat before sliding into her spot beside him.

“What if our rooms were off-limits to the servants unless we’re at school?”

Mia popped open her lunch bag and dumped the contents on the table, flipping things over and lining them up. “What if they were?”

“If I want a snack, I could ring for them. They could leave it on a table outside the rec room.”

Or he could hike down to the kitchen and get it himself. He’d starve at her house. Mia rolled her eyes. “They could.” She pointed at Willow’s table. “Willow’s having a Halloween party. Want to go?” She jiggled the edge of his lunch tray. “We talked about this. You’re not supposed to buy school lunches anymore.”

It was burger day. “They’re serving an American classic.” The meat had a gray tinge to it. Alexi shifted the top bun with caution. The orange square of cheese resting atop the patty didn’t seem to have any intention of melting. The edges of the orange square thinned out to a clear color, almost as if covered in plastic wrap. “I’ve never seen cheese like this.” He lifted the burger.

Mia grabbed his wrist. Her fingers couldn’t wrap all the way around. “Don’t. There are some things you can’t come back from, some memories you don’t want.” Mia didn’t touch any part of the burger as she had advised him.

“It doesn’t even have a smell. The whole cafeteria has a non-food smell today.” He set the burger carefully back on the tray and looked at her backpack expectantly.

Mia withdrew the second lunch he’d known she packed. “The Halloween party?” Mia prompted him, holding the sack out of reach.

Alexi nodded.

Mia handed him the sack that he could have taken if he had wanted to. “Ham and cheese.”

He arched his eyebrows.

“Smoked ham. Gouda. Dijon mustard. Spinach.”

“Thank you.” Alexi took things out of the bag with more care than she’d shown. “What will the Halloween party consist of?”

Lauren slid into her spot at their table. “Costumes, candy, pumpkins…the usual.”

Quinn joined them. He’d taken to joining them at lunch, and he stared. It was half flattering, half annoying. Alexi often commented on it, but Quinn was impervious to Alexi’s snubs. “Mia, do you have a date for Willow’s party?”

“She’s going with me,” Alexi said.

So sure of himself. Though she sort of had just asked him to go. She looked at Alexi pointedly. “I don’t know. Are you wearing a costume?”