Friendship for Dummies

Chapter Sixteen

            His face is just inches away from mine; from here, I can see every little detail. The way some strands of hair have fallen messily from its style, how his usually chocolate brown eyes seem to have darkened underneath their glaze of anger. I swallow as anxiety washes over me.

            “How did you get in here?” I manage to squeak out, keen to steer the conversation away from the thing that may just get me killed.

            A flat look is sent in my direction. “Your mom let me in. You were the one who came up with the genius idea of acting like we’re friends, remember? Which is more trouble than it’s worth.” He shakes his head, his eyes then snapping back to me as if suddenly remembering what he’s here for. And that’s being incredibly angry at me. “That’s not the point, anyway. The point is you don’t listen to a word I say.”

            “I… I don’t know what you mean.”

            I really need to work on my lying skills.

            “Yes, you do,” he says, his tone adamant. “And it’s a complete waste of time lying about it, so don’t even bother.”

            “Um…”

            “Let me refresh your memory. The morning after the party, hmm?” His tone is taunting, consisting of nothing much more than sarcasm. “When you woke up in my bed after I’d actually done you a favor and let you crash at my house because you were so drunk? Ring any bells?”

            It rings a lot of bells. So much so, I’ve barely thought of anything else since that morning. Especially when I had seen such a different side to Connor’s personality that usually remains well hidden.

            “Oh… yeah…”

            “Oh, good. So you’re not a complete imbecile then,” he responds spitefully.

            “I haven’t done anything…”

            Once again, my lie is as transparent as a glass window. We both know the truth, as is evident by the look of fury in Connor’s eyes as he glares at me.

            “I told you not to mention it to anyone. I told you that I didn’t want people talking about the fact that I’d helped you. But, oh wait! You completely ignored me and blabbed, just so you could have something to gossip about with your pathetic little friends.”

            Fueled by the anger induced by his harsh words, I find the courage to snap back. “I didn’t do it on purpose; it just slipped out. You think I would do something like this for the gossip? Believe me, I don’t enjoy being the talk of the school, especially for something like this. And if you think that… well, then you obviously don’t know me at all.”

            “No. I don’t,” Connor retorts. “Neither do I really want to.”

            Can he be any ruder?

            “Well, I’m not exactly your biggest fan either.”

            “You think you’re so smart, don’t you?” he says, his voice going up dramatically in volume. “Well, guess what? You’re not. I bet you don’t even realize how much shit you’ve got me in. I’ve got Charlotte on my back, demanding to know why you spent the night. And what am I supposed to say to her? Do you think she’s one to let this go easy?”

            Every word out of Connor’s mouth is tinged with venom, and each just infuriates me that little bit more. “Look, I don’t care about your little girlfriend troubles. It’s not my problem that you decided to date a possessive evil bitch.”