I really wish ghosts could use cell phones. I'd given my number to Sam's mom, but she hadn't offered hers in return, so I had no information. He was scheduled for a ten a.m. surgery and I'd done little more than stare at my own cell since around eleven, mentally urging it to notify me of a text for the last hour to no avail. It remained stubbornly blank, no matter how many times I powered it down and on again.
"Miss Davis?"
I glanced up in the loaded silence that followed the question, noting everyone in the class was staring at me. Crap. "I'm sorry, Mr. Cole. What was the question?"
"Perhaps if you weren't so busy checking your phone you could tell us what the Supreme Court decided in the Hazelwood case."
I lifted my chin as the snickers began. "I apologize. I was checking for news about my friend, Sam Baylor. He's in surgery right now and I'm worried about him." I cleared my throat and glanced down at my notes. "The Supreme Court decided that public school newspapers have a lower of First Amendment protection than other student expression."
"Thank you, Miss Davis. I hope your friend is okay, but you need to put away your cell phone during my class."
A few more snickers followed Mr. Cole's statement—it wasn't often a straight-A student like me was so publicly admonished by a teacher—but I'd gotten off easy. Mr. Cole was notorious for confiscating student's phones and making parents come pick them up. I slipped it into my backpack and wished I had an Apple watch so I could check my texts inconspicuously.
Government class lasted forever. I was out of my seat seconds before the bell rang, earning a frown from Mr. Cole, and headed down the hallway toward the cafeteria when I heard my name.
"Jonathon." He was leaning against the wall, blending in with a small group, looking for all the world like he was part of it. The others turned to stare at me when I said his name.
"Um, there's no Jonathon here." The speaker was a girl I'd never spoken to before. She looked young—maybe a freshman.
I smiled tightly as Jonathon laughed hysterically. "Sorry. My bad." I spun on my heel and walked away.
"Oh, don't be mad, Kylie. I have to have some fun." He fell into step beside me.
"Whatever," I muttered. I had bigger things on my mind than his entertainment.
"I see your little watchdog's not around today. What gives?"
"I sent him to be with Sam at the hospital." I checked my text messages as I walked. Nothing so far.
"It's really great he has you around to tell him what to do."
I stopped and glared at him. "Don't be such a dick, Jonathon." Worry over Sam was making me extra bitchy.
He simply smirked. "But I'm so good at it."
"Did you have a reason for torturing me today? I'm too busy to deal with your drama."
"God, cranky much? As it happens, I have an excellent reason for stopping you, but if you don't care about your little friend sobbing her eyes out—"
"Who are you talking about? Where?"
"That mousy little girl—Mandy, I think. She's in the old bathroom in D Hall. She seems to be pretty pissed at you, though, so I don't know if you should talk to her right now."
I sighed. "Oh, great. And it's Andi." I remembered her reaction when she saw Sam and I together at the party. I'd meant to call her the next day, but the accident had completely wiped it out of my mind. "I'd better see what I can do."
"Good luck. When I found her, she was screaming about how much she hates you."
"Seriously? That seems a bit harsh for a crush. It's not like I stole him from her or anything. We went to a party together; that's all." But guilt swamped me nonetheless; I'd been ignoring Andi since I returned from my grandparent's farm at the end of the summer. I felt bad about it, but I had enough on my mind trying to keep Drew's continued presence in my life a secret.
Jonathon held his palms in front of him and backed away. "I don't do chick drama. You're on your own."
I rolled my eyes and pushed past him, cringing as my shoulder brushed through his arm, as I slipped through the hoards of hungry students headed to the cafeteria. D Hall was at the farthest end of the old building. The school district had recently completed a brand-new science and math complex, but humanities classes were still relegated to the circa-1960 red brick building, complete with anemic heat and air conditioning. The bathroom was at the far end of the hall, past several unused classrooms, and was therefore hardly ever occupied. I leaned my ear against the door, but could hear nothing through the heavy metal. Maybe she already left and I won't have to deal with this. I pushed the door open slowly, my ears trained for any hint of her presence. There it was: a soft sniffle. Damn.
"Andi?" I got no response, so I slipped inside and tiptoed around the corner. She was on the filthy floor under the hand dryer, her knees tucked against her chest, her face pressed into her folded arms. Lank, greasy brown hair fell to her mid-shins and her short nails were ragged with barely visible remnants of blue polish. "Hey, what's wrong?"
She raised her tear-streaked face and I caught my breath at the furious expression in her eyes. "How did you know where I was?" She spit the words at me, her red eyes narrowed in suspicion.
I folded my arms and leaned against the sink. No way was I going to sit on that disgusting floor. "I heard a couple people talking about it in the hall on my way to lunch." I shrugged, trying to sound nonchalant.
She huffed out a mirthless laugh and lowered her head again. "Go away, Kylie. You're the last person I want to talk to right now."
I swallowed hard and tried to think. Andi and I never fought, so I wasn't sure how to proceed. "You're my best friend. I can't go away. What's wrong?" I swallowed again and decided to press on. "Is this about Sam?" I blurted the words at her.
She raised her head, eyes narrowed still. "Sam?"
I unfolded my arms and sighed. She was obviously going to make this as difficult as possible. "Listen, I know how you feel about him and I know you weren't thrilled about me going to the party with him, but it's not what you think." I shoved aside the guilt at this lie; it might not be exactly what she thought, but it was definitely something. I wasn't ready to think about that yet, though.
Something flashed in her eyes, but it was gone in a second, leaving me to doubt what I'd seen. For a moment, I thought I'd seen pure hatred, but that was ridiculous. Her lip curled in a sneer. "Oh, yeah? And what—exactly—do I think it is?"
She was going to make me say it. "Sam and I are friends, Andi. That's all. He was Drew's best friend. We both loved Drew." I hastily wiped at my eyes. The tear trying to escape was more anger than sorrow and I refused to let her see she'd gotten to me. "I feel like Sam's the only one who really understands right now."
"Well, that's just great. Really." Sarcasm dripped from her voice as she stood and brushed off her jeans. "I'm so happy for you. Don't let me get in your way."
"Hey! I didn't steal him from you or anything! If you want him, make a move! He has no idea you like him and he's way too shy to ever ask you out." But I heard the lie in my own words even as they escaped my mouth. Sam might be quiet, but he wasn't shy; if he wanted to ask a girl out, he'd do it. I knew in my heart of hearts that Andi wasn't even on his radar.
"Whatever. I don't have time for this. A true friend wouldn't go out with a guy she knew her best friend wanted to be with. We're done, Kylie. I'm so over Sam. And you." She pushed past me and wrenched open the heavy bathroom door, turning to me at the last minute. "Everything is so easy for you." She left me standing in the middle of the dingy restroom.
Seriously? Did my best friend just walk away from me and our friendship? Over a guy? A guy she barely spoke to? I realized she'd never even asked about how Sam was doing. He was in a serious accident a few days before, still in the hospital, and she doesn't even bother to ask about his health? WTF? And what was up with her last comment? Everything is so easy for you. What the hell? Ugh! Fine! Who needed her anyway? I'd never realized how completely selfish she was, but this little episode made it crystal clear! I grabbed the handle of the door and slammed it open. Screw this! Sam was in the hospital and that's where I needed to be. My parents would undoubtedly receive a robo-call about my absence from my afternoon classes, but Drew had always told me a little occasional ditching was good for you. Besides, I could probably get home before them and erase it from the answering machine.