Free Vanished by E. E. Cooper

the way I wanted to be near her. But now I was discovering it wasn’t that at all .
    â€œIt wasn’t anything to do with you,” Beth said. She stopped her bike and it slid a bit on the sand that had blown across the cement. We’d been riding on the path that ran along the bay. It was the first time we’d hung out without Brit. Now I almost wished we’d invited her along. Beth pushed her hair out of her eyes. “You seem so . . .”
    I held my breath, waiting to hear how she would define me .
    â€œYou seemed so good.” She saw my expression. “I don’t mean like a goody-goody. I mean . . . you’re this fresh, honest, nondamaged person. I didn’t want you to get sucked into our messed-up dynamic.”
    â€œI’m not that innocent,” I promised. “I’m actually pretty screwed up.”
    Beth tilted her chin. “You’re screwed up in all the right ways.” She turned her handlebars so her front tire tapped mine. “Trust me, I would have been doing you a favor if I’d kept you away from us.”
    â€œAnd now?”
    She turned back to the wind and the seagulls. “I guess now I’m hoping you’ll be my way out.”
    Before I could respond, she pushed off and pedaled away. She looked back over her shoulder. “First you have to catch me!”
    I watched her for a second and jumped back on my bike. Her hair blew behind her, just slightly beyond my reach .

CHAPTER SEVEN
    As I pulled into the school parking lot the next morning, I saw Zach waiting for me with a weird expression on his face.
    â€œI called you like three times in the last fifteen minutes,” he said as soon I opened the door.
    I hoisted my bag from the passenger seat. “I was driving. You know I can’t pick up the phone when I’m in the car. If my parents ever found out, they’d revoke my car privileges and skin me alive to make a giant Kalah puppet that would go on the lecture circuit talking about driver safety.”
    Zach didn’t laugh. He grabbed my elbow and squeezed it gently. “I need to talk to you about something.”
    He knew. He knew about Beth and me.
    It was as if I’d suddenly swallowed a thousand-pound lead weight. I hitched my bag up on my shoulder. “Okay,” I managed. “What’s up?”
    â€œThe police are here.” Zach yanked his head to the side and I noticed a cop car parked in the no-parking space right in front of the school. “They’re taking Jason to the station to ask him some questions.”
    â€œQuestions about what?”
    â€œAbout Beth.”
    My brain scrambled trying to figure out what he was saying. It was like he was suddenly talking in pig Latin. “What does Jason have to do with Beth?”
    â€œSomeone saw Jason and Beth together before she left.”
    I pushed down a wave of annoyance. “So? They’re friends. He’s been dating her best friend for two years.”
    Zach gave me a look. “Not together like hanging out. Together like, you know, together .”
    My skin prickled. “Wait. Someone is saying Beth and Jason were screwing around?”
    Zach flushed. There were times when he acted like he was in the 1800s and some things could not be said aloud in case we all got a case of the vapors. “Some freshman saw them out in Lighthouse Park having a fight. Beth was crying and yanked away from him, but Jason pulled her back and then they were kissing. Full-on making out. Then they got into Jason’s car and took off. This was on Friday afternoon.”
    â€œNo way.” But my mind flashed an image of Beth bendingback as Jason kissed her, his hands winding into her hair, her mouth tasting like cinnamon gum. I started tapping my foot in rapid beats to stop my heart from racing. I stopped when I saw Zach glance down.
    We watched as Jason walked out of the school with Officer Siegel, our official school liaison officer. She