Broken Compass
“Yeah, yeah.” He leans in to study the Assassin’s Creed posters over my bed. “Nice posters.”
“Do you play?”
“Used to.”
“Wanna play?”
Not sure what made me ask. I don’t like Kash. Syd likes him, so I don’t like him. Simple as that.
What I don’t expect is for him to refuse.
And he does. “Nah. I’d kick your ass, and you’d hate me even more.”
“I don’t… I don’t hate you, man. Okay?”
“Save it. I don’t care if you do.”
“Because you’re leaving?”
He rocks back on the balls of his feet. Today he’s tucked his fringe behind one silver-studded ear, and he looks even younger than me. “That?
??s not what I meant. But yeah, I’m leaving.”
“When?”
“Soon.”
“Don’t you think you should let the landlord know before you hit the road?”
“You mean your dad?”
I swallow hard. “Never mind.”
He studies me with those colorless eyes.
Uninvited, he sits down on the bed, right where Syd sat an hour ago, where West sat a couple of hours ago. “What?”
I swallow again. “Hey, look. I know that being so ugly is a curse. I’m sorry Sydney isn’t into you and prefers my much more handsome self. But, man, you don’t have to leave because of that. There will be other girls.”
He snickers. It’s a shocked sound, like I totally caught him by surprise.
I mean, what? I’m a funny guy.
“You…” He waves a hand at me, guffawing quietly. “Dickhead.”
That makes me smile. I poke at his arm. “These tattoos are sick.”
“Zane Madden made them.” He wipes his mouth with the back of his hand, and his eyes are warm for the first time since he moved in. “He’s friend of a friend, back where I used to live.”
“All right. Cool. They’re cool.” Never heard the name before, cuz I’m not into ink. Wouldn’t have spent the money on it even if I were. I’m saving it for more important things. “So will you stay?”
He frowns, lets his hands hang between his knees. “It’s not that easy.”
“Tell me about it.” I lift my hand, rub the back of my neck.
He looks at me sideways, gaze lingering. I follow it to where my wrist is showing, a nice black and blue.
Shit.