Chapter 13

THIRTEEN

L ast night, I might have realized that Evan lives far from campus, but that has nothing to do with what I'm doing.

Nothing at all.

I woke up early, packed Alice some breakfast, and dragged her out earlier than we usually leave. I use the excuse that I need to be at work, which she falls for. She doesn't notice the different route we are taking either. It's purely to see the scenic view, nothing else.

We pass the park, and then I slow down, looking for him since he has to take this road to school. What if he went a different way?

"Hey, that's Evan! Pull over. Let's give him a ride," Alice demands, smacking my side.

"No," I mutter, my gaze tracking him.

"Alek," she warns.

Grumbling to myself, I pull over right next to him. He's oblivious, looking down at his camera, so I roll down my window to call out, but Alice beats me to it. "Evan, hey!"

His head jerks up, and he blinks into the early morning sun. When he sees us, a bright smile curves his lips. "Anders duo." He nods. "What are you doing here?"

"Going to school. Get in, we'll give you a ride," Alice calls as she grabs her bag and climbs into the back, leaving the passenger seat open for Evan.

He spares me a look, and I roll my eyes. "You heard her." I sigh, pushing my shades down to peer at him. "Get in, rich boy, before I run you over."

He grins, dropping his camera to the strap and lifting his bag higher, then he steps off the curb, looking both ways before opening the door and sliding in.

He looks good in my passenger seat, which only pisses me off. Despite the fact I came this way, I'm annoyed and glare at him as he straps in.

"Isn't your house the other way?" he asks, confused. "That's the way you headed last night."

Shit.

"Last night?" Alice asks, appearing between the seats with a grin.

Double shit.

"Sit back. Seat belts or I'll leave you both," I snarl.

"He's not a morning person," Alice warns.

"Or an afternoon person," Evan teases, making her laugh as she sits back. It's nice seeing her joke with him. She can be super quiet sometimes, but she seems to open up around him.

"Don't expect me to pick you up again," I snap as I pull out into early morning traffic and purposely ignore him. It's childish, but true.

"I didn't today," he replies, and when I glance over, he's frowning at me.

He's right, he didn't. I came this way to see him, so why am I so angry?

It's because I went out of my way to look after him, and I don't understand why.

I'm quiet the whole way there, and I know the atmosphere in the car is tense, so it doesn't surprise me when they both climb out quickly when we pull up at campus. Evan waves tersely and waits for Alice, who leans into my window.

"Stop being an ass. You like the boy, so flirt, don't be a mean idiot." She huffs before heading his way, their arms linked as they chatter and walk toward their building. I could never be like that with him.

I could never touch him like that in public or handle the stares we would get. It pisses me off and only puts me in a worse mood, knowing he's more suited to my sister.

I gun it to work despite being early and shove my headphones in, ignoring everyone else. Not long after I get there, my phone buzzes, and I pull it out.

Rich Boy: How is your wound? Are you in pain? I can bring you some Tylenol.

I stare at the message, this morning flashing through my mind. We can never be together. We can never be anything. Besides, I don't even like him like that, so I should just stop leading him on. It's not fair to him, at least that's what I tell myself anyway as I block his number and toss my phone into my toolbox, focusing on the car before me.

While I work, Evan's words from last night float into my mind. I deserve to dream and be happy.

What would make me happy?

Truthfully, I don't even know anymore, but something about his sunshine smile, even for a moment, made me believe I had the right to be.

Reality has set back in, though, and it's better this way.

I should have known better. My past is a stark reminder of why I can't have Evan Shaw—a truth that Alice doesn't even know, nor will she ever.

It's another reason I moved here—one I will never share.