“Even if we don’t hang out with Cam, he’s still one of us; he has to know that,” Fletcher adds. “But we could hang out with him more like we used to. I don’t want him to think we don’t like him.”
“Two problems with that,” I begin, lifting my hand to list them off. “Maia and Ember. We can’t invite Cam to hang out at the diner because then he’ll see his ex-girlfriend, and if he comes over to the house, I give it ten minutes before he realizes you two are scr—dating.”
“You guys didn’t know Ember and I were together for weeks. I feel like we could act platonic for a couple of hours.”
“That’s what you think.” I smile as my phone buzzes in my locker and pick it up before checking the caller ID. “Hello?”
“Zeke?”
“A—” I pause, realizing the guys are watching. “H-hi, hey, what’s going on?”
Avalon’s never called me. The only way we interact, if we aren’t together, is over text. Usually, it’s wildly inappropriate or a booty call.
“I’m sorry; I know you have a game, and I wasn’t going to call, and I wasn’t even sure if it was over, but—” she sniffles. “I just, I didn’t know who to call, and you were the person I talked to last—”
“Are you okay?” I whisper, making sure the guys don’t see the concern on my face, but I know they can tell I’ve picked up my pace. “Are you crying?”
“I haven’t heard from her,” she continues. “Zeke, I’m worried. She didn’t come home last night, and I told myself it was nothing because she was with Jay and that maybe she stayed with him, but I still haven’t heard from her—”
“I’ll be right there, okay? I’m on my way.”
I hang up the phone, throwing it back in my locker, before pulling on my clothes.
“You’re not gonna shower?” Jaxon throws his towel over his shoulder
“No, I have somewhere I need to be.”
“Is your mom okay?” Declan takes a step toward me.
“She’s fine, yeah—”
“So, it’s a booty call?” Fletcher asks.
“No.” I rub the back of my neck. “Just a friend in need.”
Jaxon points to himself, then looks at the guys, almost like he’s counting them. “All your friends are in this room.”
I grab my phone and slam my locker shut. “I have more friends than just you guys, dipshit. I’ll see you guys later.”
The door’s open when I get to Avalon’s place, but she’s not in the living room when I arrive.
“Avalon?!” I yell, dropping my keys on the kitchen counter. The house is a mess, flipped upside down, almost like someone was looking for something. “Avalon, are you here?”
Her bedroom door swings open, and her eyes meet mine, stopping her in her tracks like she didn’t expect me to show up.
She wipes away the tears running down her cheeks, but the puffy, bloodshot eyes are still there, proving she’s been crying for hours.
“How’d you get here so fast?” she whispers. “You had a game and—”
“And I left the second you called. I was pretty much out the door anyway, and I came right here.”
“Even if you were in your car when I called, there’s no way you could’ve gotten here this fast.”
“I might’ve run a couple red lights or stop signs.” I shrug. “What’s going on?”
She lets out a shaky breath, then bites her lip, trying to prevent more tears.
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have called you.” She rocks back on her heels. “That’s not what this thing is, you know? You’re not my boyfriend; I shouldn’t be coming to you with these problems because you have enough going on, and it’s not fair for me to pile more shit on your plate and—” the tears begin to fall anyway, “and you had a game and the last thing you need is me calling you and taking away from your sleep and there’s another game tomorrow—”