The Exchange

Chapter 35

When Viktor and I got back up the stairs, Matt, Blaine, and Arti were all waiting for us in the living room.

"I got Blaine for you. You're welcome," Arti said.

"She told me to get in her car or she'd kill you, Amanda," Blaine said. "I mean, obviously I knew it was a lie, but it's just important to me that you know Arti's a fucking lunatic."

"Did she tell you that she was right?" I asked.

"Only the entire way here. I don't even know what she was talking about, honestly," Blaine said.

"Long story short, Lukas and Eleanor were talking about something when I walked into math today, and then Eleanor tried to be nice to me. It was incredibly unsettling."

"That sounds like a very short, pointless story."

I shot him a glare. "Yeah, because that was the simplified version. You have the attention span of a duckling."

"How the fuck do you know what a duckling's attention span is like? You don't."

I just couldn't win with this boy. But despite the fact that he was right about my lack of duckling expertise, I led the group into the dining room. Viktor's old mismatched chair was back where it belonged since my birthday present took its place. That shit cured my anxiety.

I placed a large piece of paper on the table and grabbed a box of the triplets' Crayola markers. On the top of the paper, I wrote Plan for World Domination in bright pink marker.

I gestured for the others to gather around me, and I gave them a smile. "So we all know that Lukas has to go. He's been coming after Viktor for the past few weeks especially, and no one messes with our cinnamon roll except for me."

"He doesn't like you very much either, Candy Cane," Viktor added.

I shrugged. "Maybe not, but I don't mind having enemies. You've been nothing but kind to him, and I'm mean to everyone. And recent evidence suggests that Eleanor's in on his plan too."

"What?" Viktor asked.

"Before you got to class eighth period, they were talking."

"That doesn't mean anything. She's a friendly girl."

"But has she been so friendly to us lately?" I turned to Arti.

Arti nodded. "That bitch needs her ass handed to her."

"Are you okay, Arti?" Viktor asked, and I let out a sigh. She was fine.

"I'm fucking fantastic. I was right, which is literally better than anything else in the entire world. Amanda and Blaine never trust me on this kind of shit," Arti said.

"I feel like you're more upset than you're acting," Viktor said.

I shook my head. "Nope, buddy. We don't do that here. In this establishment, we bottle that shit up."

But some of us, unfortunately, took that as an invitation to break our established rules.

Arti's face wrinkled, and she turned away from the group. "Why the fuck would I be okay? I was right, Viktor. A goddamn weirdo seems like a better person to hang around than me. That doesn't hurt at all."

I grimaced. "See? This is why we avoid this. She's an ugly crier."

"I'm still prettier than you, Amanda, so you should quit talking shit," Arti said and choked back a sob. "Your boyfriend liked me first."

I looked over at Blaine.

He held his hands up. "I'm not taking sides on this."

Then that was a vote for me in the official record.