Page 78 of Love Me Not
A knock sounded at the door and both Georgie and I turned to find Trey lingering in the doorway. “Sorry to interrupt. Can I talk to you for a second?”
A slew of profanity raced through my brain. How long had he been there? How much did he hear?
“I need to get back to my room anyway,” Georgie said, shooting me a holy crap look.
“You don’t have to go,” Trey said. “I just wanted to let Lindsey know that I won’t be able to make rehearsal tonight.”
Nothing like proving my point and crushing my spirit at the same time. “That’s fine,” I said. “I’ve got it.”
“I’ll be there for the trial run on the backdrop on Monday, though.”
“No worries.” Brain only half working, I said, “Have a good weekend.” As if we didn’t have four more classes to go and he wouldn’t be right across the hall for all of them.
As if reading my mind, he said, “I’ll still be here the rest of the day.”
“Of course. Right. Yeah.”
Georgie took pity on me. “I was just telling Lindsey that she should come down to my room so I can show her my new… purse.” Without warning, she dragged me out of my chair. “We better go before the period ends.”
Trey was forced to back into the hall as she pulled me through the doorway and down to her room. As soon as we were inside, I jerked my hand away. “What was that?”
“I panicked,” she whispered, out of breath. “What do you want from me?”
“I thought you were the expert in these situations.”
“I’m only an expert on paper. Give me three drafts and I’d have written a much better ending to that scene.”
Hand pressed to my forehead, I paced between two rows of desks. “How much do you think he heard?”
She shook her head. “I don’t know. The man is impossible to read. He must be really good at poker.”
Footsteps sounded in the hall and we both raced to her desk. “Where’s the damn purse?” I whispered.
“There is no purse,” she whispered back. “I made that up.”
“What are you two whispering about?” came a voice from the doorway, making us both jump out of our skin.
Thankfully, it wasn’t Trey.
We spun to find Ronald Devonshire lingering just inside the room in his typical dapper vest and perfectly pressed pocket square. He taught Finance next door, and as far as I remembered did not have third period free.
“Nothing,” Georgie said. “Don’t you have a class?”
“I do. And I’d appreciate it if you two wouldn’t run past my door like two teeny-boppers chasing their celebrity crush through an airport.”
Who said teeny-boppers anymore?
“We apologize,” I said. “Georgie saw a bug.”
Ronald stepped farther into the room, hand flattened on his chest. “In the hall? How big was it?”
“It was huge,” Georgie replied. “And furry. You should go back to your room and close the door to make sure it doesn’t get in.”
Eyes on the hall, he nodded. “They need to get an exterminator in this place.”
“They do,” I agreed, as if there really had been a creepy crawly in the hallway. “Someone should send an email about that.”
“I’ll do it,” he said, as I knew he would. Ronald wasn’t known as head of the faculty complaint department for nothing. “This school is going to hell in a handbasket.”