LISA

The familiar voice of Jackson echoes through the narrow hallway: "Manoban!"

Fuck. I knew I wouldn't make it through this shit without seeing one of them. I came to campus to talk to my professors. I wanted to make sure my father could drop my last assignments off to them. Having friends, or parents, in high places really does help, and I'm given permission to miss the remainder of classes for this semester. I have been missing so many anyway, there won't be much of a difference.

Jakcson's blond hair is longer now, pushed up into some sort of messy spike in the front. "Hey, man, I get the feeling you were trying to avoid me just now," he says, looking me straight in the face.

"Perceptive, aren't you?" I shrug, no point in lying.

"I always hated your big words." He laughs.

I could have done without seeing him today, or ever again. It's nothing against him; I always sort of liked him more than any of my other friends, but I'm over this shit.

He takes my silence for another opening to speak. "I haven't seen you on campus in forever. Aren't you graduating soon?"

"Yeah. Middle of next month."

He follows next to me at a slow pace. "Ten is, too. You're going to walk, right?"

"Hell no." I laugh. "Did you really just ask me that?"

Jennie's scowl flashes in my head, and I bite down on my lip to keep a smile away. I know she wants me to walk at my graduation, but there's no way in hell I'm going to.

Maybe I should at least consider it?

"Okay . . ." he says. Then he points to my hand. "What's with the cast?"

I lift it a little and look at it. "Long story." One that I'm not going to tell you. See, Jennie, I have learned some self-control.

Even though I'm talking to you inside of my head and you're not even here.

Okay, so maybe I'm crazy still, but I'm being nice-ish to people . . . You would be proud.

Fuck, I've got it so bad.

Jackson shakes his head and holds the door open for me as we walk out of the administration building. "So, how are things?" he asks, always having been the most talkative of the bunch.

"Fine."

"How's she?"

My boots stop moving against the concrete sidewalk, and he takes a step back, holding his hands in the air in defense.

"I'm only asking as a friend. I haven't seen either of you, and you stopped taking our calls a while ago. Rosé's the only one that talks to Jennie."

Is he trying to piss me off? "Rosé doesn't talk to her," I snap, annoyed that I let Jackson and his mention of Rosé get under my skin so easily.

Jackson lifts his hand to his forehead, a nervous gesture. "I wasn't saying it like that, but she told us about her dad and she said she was at the funeral so . . ."

"So nothing. She's nothing to her. Move on." This conversation is going nowhere and I'm reminded why I don't waste my time hanging out with any of them anymore.

"All right." If I look over at him, I know he will be rolling his eyes. But then I'm surprised when he says with a hint of emotion, "I never did anything to you, you know." When I turn to him, sure enough his expression matches his voice.

"I'm not trying to be a dick," I tell him, feeling a tiny bit guilty. He's a nice guy, nicer than me and most of our friends. His friends, not mine anymore.

He looks a little past me. "Seems like it."

"Well, I'm not. I'm just over the bullshit. You know?" I face him. "I'm over all the shit. The parties, the drinking, the smoking, the hookups—I'm just over all of it. So I'm not trying to be an asshole toward you personally, but I'm just over all that shit."

Jackson pulls a cigarette from his pocket, and the only noise between us is the click of his lighter. It feels so long ago that I would walk around campus with him and the rest of our group. It feels so long ago that talking shit about people and nursing hangovers was my morning routine. It feels so long ago that my life revolved around anything other than her.

"I get what you're saying," he says after taking a drag. "I can't believe you're saying it, but I do get it, and I hope you know that I'm sorry for my part in the shit with Wendy and June. I knew they were up to something, but I had no clue what."

The last thing I want to think about is Wendy and June and the shit they pulled. "Yeah, well, we could go on and on about it, but the outcome would be the same. They won't ever be close enough to even dare to breathe the same air as Jennie."

"Wendy is gone, anyway."

"Gone where?"

"Louisiana."

Good. I want her as far away from Jennie as possible.

I hope Jennie texts me soon; she sort of agreed to today, and I'm holding her to that. If she doesn't soon, I'm sure I'll break down and text her first.

I'm trying to give her space, but our emoji conversation last night was the most fun I've had since . . . well, since I was inside her only hours before. I still can't believe what a lucky son of a bitch I am that she allowed me near her. I was a dick afterward, but that's beside the point.

"Bamban went with her," Jackson tells me.

The wind is picking up, and the entire campus just seems like a better fucking place now that I know Wendy has left the state.

"He's a dumb-ass," I say.

"No, he's not," Jackson says, defending his friend. "He really likes her. Well, loves her, I guess."

I snort. "Like I said, he's a dumb-ass."

"Maybe he knows her in a way that we don't."

His words make me laugh, a quiet and annoyed laugh. "What else is there to know? She's a crazy bitch." I can't believe he's actually defending

Wendy—well, Bambam, who is dating Wendy again, despite that she's a fucking psycho who tried to hurt Jennie.

"I don't know, man, but Bambam's my boy, so I don't judge him," Jackson says, then looks at me coolly. "Most people would probably say the same shit about you and Jennie."

"You better be comparing me and Wendy, not Jennie and Wendy."

"Obviously." He rolls his eyes and ashes his cigarette beside him. "You should come with me to the house. Just for old times' sake. There won't be a lot of people, just a few of us."

"June?" My phone vibrates in my pocket, and I pull it out to find Jennie's name on the screen.

"I don't know, but I can make sure he doesn't come around while you're there."

We are standing in the parking lot now. My car is only a few feet away, and his motorcycle is parked in the front row. I still can't believe he hasn't wrecked the damn thing. He dropped the piece of shit at least five times the day he got his permit for it, and I know his ass doesn't wear a helmet while speeding across town.

"I'm good. I have plans, anyway," I lie as I send back a hello to Jennie.

I'm hoping my plans could involve talking to Jennie for hours. I almost agreed to go by that damn frat house, but that my old "friends" still hang out with June reminds me exactly why I stopped hanging out with them to begin with.

"Are you sure? We could hang one last time before you graduate and knock your girl up. You know that's coming, right?" he teases. His tongue flashes in the sun, and I push his arm back.

"You got your tongue pierced?" I ask, absentmindedly running my finger over the small scar next to my eyebrow.

"Yeah, like a month ago. I still can't believe you took those rings out. And nice save on avoiding the second part of what I said." He laughs, and I try to remember what it was that he said.

Something about my girl . . . and pregnant.

"Oh, hell no. No one will be getting pregnant, asshole. Go to hell for even trying to curse me with that shit." I shove at his shoulder, and he laughs harder.

Marriage is one thing. Babies, a totally fucking other thing.

I glance down at my phone. As nice as it is to play catch-up with Jackson, I want to focus on Jennie and her messages, especially since she wrote something about going to the doctor. I type out a quick reply to her.

"There's Ten right there." Jackson pulls me from my phone, and I follow his eyes to Ten, walking toward us. "Shit," Jackson adds, and my eyes focus on the chick walking next to Ten. She looks familiar, but not quite . . .

Nancy. It's Nancy, but her hair is black now instead of pink. My luck today is remarkable, really.

"Well, that's my cue. I got shit to do," I say, attempting to avoid the potential disaster walking in my direction. Just as I turn to go, Nancy leans into Ten and he wraps his arm around her waist.

What the fuck? "Them?" I gape. "Those two? Fucking?"

I look at Jackson; the fucker doesn't even try to hide his amusement. "Yep. For a while now. They didn't tell anyone until about three weeks ago. I caught on early, though. I knew something was up when she stopped being such a bitch all the time."

Nancy flips her black hair and smiles at Ten. I don't even remember her smiling, ever. I can't stand her, but I don't hate her the way I used to.

She did help Jennie . . .

"Don't even think about leaving until you tell me why you've been avoiding us!" Ten's voice shoots across the lot.

"I had better shit to do!" I yell back, checking my phone again. I want to know why Jennie is at the doctor again. Her last text avoided the question, and I need to know. I'm sure she's okay, I'm just being a nosy asshole.

Nancy's lips curl into a smirk. "Better shit? Like fucking Jennie's brains out in Seattle?"

And just like old times I raise my middle finger at her. "Fuck off."

"Don't be such a pussy. We all know you two haven't stopped fucking since you met," she taunts me.

I look at Ten in that "get her to shut her mouth or I will" way, but he shrugs his shoulders.

"You two make a grand couple." I raise a brow at my old friend, and it's his turn to raise a finger to me.

"At least she's leaving you alone now, right?" Ten fires back, and I laugh. He's got a point there.

"Where is she anyway?" Nancy asks. "Not that I care; I don't like her."

"We know," Jackson says, and Nancy rolls her eyes.

"She doesn't like you either. No one does, actually," I remind her mockingly.

"Touché." She grins and leans into Ten' shoulder.

Jackson may have been right: she does seem less bitchy. A little.

"Well, nice to see you guys, really," I sarcastically remark and turn to walk away. "I have better shit to do, though, so have fun doing whatever you're doing. And, Ten, you really should keep fucking her. It seems to be doing the trick." I nod at them and climb into my car.

Just as I shut the door, I hear a mixture of "She's in a better mood" and

"Pussy-whipped" and "I'm happy for her."

The weirdest part was that the last one came from the Evil Bitch herself.