One-Eighty (Westover Prep 1)

“I’m sorry you were hurting more than I ever knew. I would’ve killed him long ago had I known you were doing that crap.”

“I hid it from everyone, and he wasn’t even supposed to see that day. I didn’t think he’d pull the covers back that far.”

“Well, from what I know about teenage boys, they want to see the entire package.”

“What?” I chuckle. “What do you know about teenage boys?”

She makes a weird noise in the back of her throat but doesn’t answer my question. “And we’ll go back to that once this issue is settled as well.”

She remains silent, and all it does is double my suspicions about what my dear friend has been doing while on her grandmother’s farm this summer.

“What should I do?”

“Go talk to him,” she answers without pause.

“It’s not that simple.”

“It is that simple, Piper. Go talk to the boy that went from monster to lover.”

“He’s ignoring me.”

“And that is easy to do on the phone, but not when you’re right in his face.”

“And what if he tells me to leave and that he hates me?”

“I don’t think that’s going to happen, but if it does, then you’ll finally know, and we can work on ruining his life senior year.”

I grin, knowing she’s full of it. We’re not mean people, and we’re already at the bottom of the social hierarchy at Westover Prep, and since this isn’t some stupid romantic drama that would never work out in our favor.

“And say what?”

“Tell him that you love him.”

“I don—”

“Un-uh,” she huffs. “Don’t start lying now. Be honest with yourself and be honest with him.”

“I’m shaking,” I confess.

“What are you afraid of?” Softness fills her tone while I take a second to actually ask myself that very question.

“Everything,” I tell her. “I’m scared he’ll ask me to leave. Afraid he’s going to tell me none of it was real. Terrified that I’ve given him my heart and he’s just going to walk all over it like he’s done to me for as long as I can remember.”

“And you may go over there, and he’ll wrap his arms around you and tell you what you overheard when he was talking to his sister. You won’t know until you speak with him. Not knowing is going to tear you up more than anything else. You know that as much as I do.”

“You’re right.”

She laughs. “Piper, we’ve been friends for how long? You know I’m always right. Now go over and talk to your boy toy. Keep in mind that a warm bath will help your bits if you get too sore.”

“Too sore?” My eyes widen when I realize what she’s talking about. “Oh, God!”

She laughs, and for the first time since I woke up in the hospital, I feel a little of the weight lift off my chest.

“Just go talk to him.”

“Simple,” Frankie assures me.

“When do you get home? I miss you like crazy.”

“Still another two weeks,” she says with a sigh. “I’m ready to be there now.”

“Okay, then tell me about Zeke.” She doesn’t say anything, and I have to pull the phone from my ear to make sure the call didn’t drop.

“I’m not talking about him. The boy drives me crazy. He wants to pretend like he’s a man, but then when he’s…” she draws in a long breath. “Go talk to Dalton, Piper. Call me later this evening and let me know how it went.”

“Maybe sooner than that,” I grumble.

If he tells me to kick bricks, I may be sobbing on another phone call with her here shortly.

“It’s all going to work out,” she assures me. “Trust me. I have a gut feeling about this. He didn’t shun you in front of the people at the snow cone stand, and he’s probably over there wallowing in his misery and kicking himself for all of the horrific things he’s done. And let me just say that you need to make that boy work for you, more than you have already.”

“Kind of hard to make that happen when I’m going over there to beg him to not break up with me.”

“Stop,” she snaps. “That’s not what’s going to happen. You’re going to go over there and remind him why you were worth fighting for to begin with. So, go brush your teeth and hair and make up with your boyfriend.”Chapter 39DaltonI know Piper got home yesterday. By dinnertime, both of her parents’ cars were in the drive. When she was in the hospital, one or both of them were gone at all times.

My skin has been prickly and itching just knowing she’s so close, but I’ve managed to maintain my resolve.

The conversation with Peyton yesterday plays over and over in my head, but I know it’s just my selfishness trying to convince me that I can have her. Keeping a girl like Piper Schofield is impossible, especially for me, no matter how much my brain tries to convince me otherwise.