Free Hallie Hath No Fury . . . by Katie Finn Page B

the doorway and looked back at me, concern furrowing her brow. “Hallie, do you know what’s happening with your brother?”
    I looked back down at my water bottle, wiping away the condensation from the side. “What do you mean?”
    â€œI don’t know,” my mother said as she glanced upward to the second floor, where all our bedrooms were. “He practically ran up to his room—it looked like something was really bothering him, but he wouldn’t tell me what.…”
    I bit my lip. I knew exactly what was bothering my brother—finding out that “Sophie” was actually Hallie. I’d been waiting for Gemma to come clean all summer, but true to form, she’d just lied and lied. I had to admit that it had been fun to watch herself get tangled up, tripping over her stories and trying to keep things straight. But at some point, I’d decided enough was enough, and had sent my brother her Friendverse profile page—the one that, as one of her friends, I still had access to. The last thing I had wanted was for Josh to get hurt, and I tried to tell myself that I’d done what I could to stop it. I’d told Josh not to date Gemma, I’d told Gemma, with increasing directness, not to date Josh, and they’d gone ahead anyway. But I still could feel guilt gnawing at me. In war, there are casualties . I could practically still see this written in my old notebook, but I had never thought that my brother would be one of them.
    â€œI don’t know,” I said to my mother finally, when I realized she was still waiting for my answer. “I’ll try and talk to him tomorrow.”
    â€œGood,” my mom said. She placed her glasses back down on her nose. “See you in the morning, sweetheart.”
    â€œNight, Mom,” I called after her as she headed out of the room. When I was sure she was gone, I let my shoulders slump and rubbed a hand across my eyes. I tried to get back to the feeling I’d had on the beach with Gemma, when I’d pulled off my plan. I wanted to get that feeling of victory back, instead of this vague, nagging worry and guilt about Josh. Because I’d won. And I needed to remember that.
    â€œHey, you.” I looked up and saw Teddy standing across from me, still wearing his outfit from the party, but barefoot. I felt something in me melt when I looked at him, and I realized that I had won, after all. I had Teddy. And it made everything else worth it.
    â€œHey,” I said as I smiled at him. I walked around the counter and stretched up to give him a quick kiss. I leaned back at looked at him. “Want to catch the end of the fireworks?”
    He nodded, but I could tell there was something on his mind as we walked out to the deck that looked out on the water. “So, um,” he said as he held the door open for me. “You knew Gemma?”
    â€œSure,” I said with a shrug, trying to keep my voice light, like this was just no big deal. “I mean, a little. We hung out here the summer we were twelve. How do you know her?”
    â€œThat’s, uh,” Teddy said, sticking his hands in his pockets, then taking them out again. “My ex-girlfriend. You know, the one I was dating when we…”
    I widened my eyes. “ That Gemma?” I asked, hoping my “stunned” voice was believable. “Really?” Teddy nodded, and I shook my head. “Wow. Small world, huh?” I turned to face the water, hoping that this subject could now be closed, and we wouldn’t have to mention Gemma Tucker ever again. Teddy must have felt the same way, because he didn’t try to continue the conversation, and as the silence stretched on, I could feel him relax beside me.
    He slid an arm around my shoulders, and I leaned into him. The fireworks were coming faster now, with barely any pauses between them, and I knew we were approaching the finale. Teddy’s arm tightened around my