Free Prince Charming by Sara Celi Page B

sounded and looked nonchalant. “Just that some friends wanted to watch a movie, and I didn’t care about it, so I came here.”
    “Do you come here a lot?”
    “Enough.”
    “Sometimes it’s nice to be alone,” she said, and then took a sip of her coffee. “And I know how you like that.”
    “Um. Do you like being alone?” My eyes floated to her mouth. God, she had one killer mouth. Even better were the words that came out of it.
    “Yeah. Of course I do.” She laughed. “Gives me a chance to think. It’s calming.”
    “Yeah it is.” I nodded, surprised by her once again. I thought I knew everything about her—what she looked like, her friends, the things she liked to do, and yet every time she opened her mouth, she said something at total odds with what I expected.
    “I was looking at books about politics,” I said after a moment, just talking to fill up the space. “But there was nothing—nothing worth buying, really.” Then I shrugged again. “I don’t know. I guess I’m distracted. Just thinking a lot.”
    “About what?”
    “Well,” I shrugged again. What the heck? Would it hurt to tell her about at least one of the things bothering me? “I had this weird meeting earlier this week with Mr. Henderson.”
    She rolled her makeup-heavy eyes. “Yeah. I think he’s making the rounds with the senior guys.”
    “Have you had your meeting yet with Mrs. Lawrence?”
    “No.” She snickered. “You mean Crazy Eyes?”
    A slow smile spread across my face. “Crazy Eyes?”
    Laine closed her eyes, and laughed louder. “I can’t . . . I can’t really look at her. Her pupils freak me out.”
    “I know. It’s like you can see the whole thing.” I shuddered. “It shouldn’t be that way. At all.”
    “Anyway.” She gestured to me with her hand, and then sipped her drink some more. “Tell me about this meeting.”
    “Okay.” I leaned in closer. “So, Mr. Henderson calls me in for this meeting, sits me down, and starts asking me all these questions about what I want to do with my life.”
    “Ugh, that’s what Mrs. Lawrence did with Jillian last week.”
    I grew bolder with my story. “Basically, he wants to know what I’m going to major in, and what I want. So, would you believe that he tells me I should go to Gateway Tech instead of going to UVA and ‘wasting my time,’ and that I should major in some science class?” I shook my head, and rolled my eyes. “Like, what the fuck is that about?”
    “You’re salutatorian.”
    “Well, I am right now.” I glanced around at the rest of the people in the coffee shop, as if I were afraid they would snatch it away from me.
    “There’s no way you shouldn’t go to Virginia.”
    “Thanks for the vote of confidence,” I said. “I’m glad to know at least one person believes in me.” As I spoke, my eyes drifted to her mouth again. She had such full, pouty lips, and I envied Evan so much because he got to kiss them whenever he wanted. I’d probably never get my chance.
    “Ugh, they are so stupid. Those counselors don’t know anything.” She paused. “We don’t have to have all the answers right now. It’s not like we have to write it down in blood.”
    “So,” I said, then leaned back in my chair and crossed my arms over my chest, “what are you majoring in next year?”
    “Fashion merchandising,” she said simply and evenly, as if she’d expected this very question from me. “That’s what I’ve decided.”
    “Fashion merchandising?” I almost choked on the words.
    “Yep.” She grinned. “I want to be a fashion designer.”
    “Does Xavier have a good program for that?”
    Shea laughed. “Even if it doesn’t, I can always change my mind. It’s college. That’s what college is about.”

Chapter Six
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    T UESDAY, FEBRUARY 26TH
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    I CAME HOME from an afternoon playing video games at Nathan’s house to an interesting scene.
    Blake and Bruce sat at the kitchen table,