Playing Perfect

04. Coupable

You were, Alice wanted to agree, but instead she said, "I miss you."

"I miss you too," he said, his voice low and gruff. He pulled her into a tight hug, resting his chin on her shoulder. "Will you forgive me?"

"Of course," Alice mumbled into his chest. She felt his body sag with relief.

Then, he said, "I forgive you too."

Alice pulled back to meet his eyes. He forgives me? She thought, bewildered. She felt anger and confusion flush through her and had to bite her tongue to stop herself from speaking.

Instead, she leaned forward and pressed a short peck to his lips.

"Can I drive you home?" Theo asked, a wide schoolboy smile on his face.

"Oh, Theo," Alice said, wriggling from his grip. "I'd love to, but I drove to school today."

His smile fell, and her heart panged with guilt, so she offered, "You can come over tonight, though."

"Really?" Theo asked, his excitement renewed.

"Sure." Alice grinned, then groaned. "Wait. No. I'm sorry. My parents are having guests over. I'll be expected to make an appearance."

"Can't you just blow them off?"

"No." Alice sighed. He pouted. He wouldn't understand what her responsibilities were like, so, she plastered a Travers smile onto her face and compromised. "But I'm sure I can slip away a little early. Pick me up at eight?"

He smirked at her, pressing a kiss to her lips. He pulled away too quickly and Alice had to refrain from pouting.

"I'll see you tonight," he said, then turned to slip into his car.

Alice smiled to herself, glad it was over and done with. She'd see him tonight. Her heart fluttered with excitement.

She spun to make her way to her own car, when she caught the eye of Finn Cauley across the parking lot.

He watched her carefully, his eyes narrowed and deeply unfeeling. With one swift motion, he flicked his cigarette to the ground and slipped into his car.

Alice's excitement disappeared, replaced immediately by paranoia and anxiety. Her fingers twitched, tempted to check her phone. Check if that look was paired with a text. She tried to shake it off but remained unsettled until she'd driven home and changed her clothes to prepare for her tennis lesson.

Theo will come over tonight, she reminded herself, but somehow it only made her feel worse.

***

The evening rolled around much too quickly. Alice had arrived home from fencing at five, and quickly hopped in the shower to prepare for dinner. Her parents had invited some guests over, though Alice hadn't been paying attention when her mother informed her.

She was much too absorbed in overthinking her mean texts and her fight with Theo, and her parents had dinners like this almost every night.

So, she went through her usual routine of picking out a simple evening dress, something that Theo would like, and modest heels to match, sensual yet sensible. She had no time to do her makeup, so she settled with curling her lashes and putting on some lip gloss. It was only a private dinner, after all.

She spent her remaining half hour trying to calm her nerves by writing out some algebraic equations and drawing matrices. She wished she could spend the rest of the night buried in her textbook, but when the clock struck six, she knew she had to leave the comforts of her room and pull on her smile.