Daydream (Maple Hills, #3)(57)
I still haven’t determined when Henry’s touch became soothing to me, but I sink into him, resting my cheek against his chest. “I’ll call you from the road, promise.”
* * *
THE ONLY POSITIVE THING ABOUT the drive to Will’s is getting a chance to catch up on my audiobook for book club. Literally the only positive.
When I called Henry to explain, his first question was how could a kid leave the state and her parents have no idea she was lying to them. My mom and stepdad aren’t negligent, although I accept that this isn’t their greatest work. I would’ve never even considered doing this at Gigi’s age, and Grayson had no reason to sneak around because he got away with everything anyway. They’re just inexperienced.
Henry’s second point was she’s lucky she was at a college where she knew someone, but the alternative is not something I can stomach right now.
There’s an unmistakable unsettled feeling in my gut as I pull up in front of Will’s place. I’ve been here so many times, and yet a little time away and a new group of friends have made me realize how not unwelcome, but not welcome I was. The reception I receive when I go to Henry or Cami’s house compared to here is so different. But I truly didn’t realize at the time.
Knocking on the door hard, I can hear laughter on the other side, and see Gigi and Will’s roommates when he finally opens the door. “Hi, baby,” he says, leaning in to kiss me. I don’t think he’s ever called me “baby” before.
I dodge him like he’s a bullet. “What are you doing?”
He pulls me closer to him by the waist, leaning in again slower this time to kiss my cheek. He lowers his voice. “You didn’t tell her we broke up. So pretend that you love me. Shouldn’t be hard for you.”
His face lingers near mine, but having him so close makes me uneasy. I can’t remember if I used to feel like this, or if I was just better at suppressing it.
I step around him and focus on Gigi on the couch looking guilty. “What the hell are you playing at?”
“It isn’t my fault,” she says immediately.
“It’s never your fault, Gianna. Stuff just happens to you and you’re never to blame. That’s how this goes, right?”
Will’s roommates immediately stand and shuffle toward the backyard.
“You’re not my mom, Halle. You don’t get to talk to me like this. I’m not a child!”
“I know I’m not your mom. Do you think I want to parent you? Do you think I want to cancel my Friday night plans to drive here to argue with you?”
“You love telling me what to do, so maybe this is your idea of a good time.”
“Do you know how lucky you are that Will goes here? Do you have any idea what happens to girls alone at night in this country? To them in the middle of the day? You’re irresponsible, Gianna, and actually, you are a child. You are literally a child, and the fact you think I’m going to put up with your attitude when you’re in the wrong freaking state is wild. How could you be so reckless with your safety? What if Will was at an away game? What would you have done?”
“Okay, okay…” Will says, stepping closer to me. He stands behind me and rubs his hands up and down my arms. “I think maybe you’re escalating things that don’t need to be escalated, Hals. Let’s not terrify the poor girl. She made a mistake and she’s sorry.”
“I already talked to my friend. She said she’ll drive me home with her in the morning like we planned, but she wants tonight to cool off from our fight. You didn’t even need to come. It isn’t a big deal.”
I immediately spin to face Will. He holds up both hands defensively. “I don’t want an unsupervised minor in my house any more than you want her here. She didn’t tell me it was fixed until you were already on the road, and I didn’t want to distract you when you were driving. Stop looking at me like you’re going to rip my head off, Hals.”
“Oh no, you have to see your boyfriend unexpectedly,” Gigi mumbles, and it just shows how out of touch she is with how mad at her I am. “Poor Halle.”
“We broke up, Gi. Two months ago,” I say flatly, getting a twisted sense of satisfaction at the way her eyes widen in shock. Not because it’s an enjoyable topic, but just because her attitude sucks. “I had no desire to come here unexpectedly.”
For the first time in the ten years Gianna has been my sister, she’s speechless.
“I’m happy to see you even if you’re not happy to see me,” Will says as he takes a seat beside Gigi on the couch. I purposely walk to a chair on the other side of the room. Out of all the people in the world I’m mad at, they’re the top two. “It’s like old times—the three of us hanging out together. You telling Halle she isn’t your mom. Halle blowing things out of proportion. It feels nostalgic. You two can take my bed and I’ll sleep in one of the other rooms.”
“We’re not staying,” I say quickly, looking at Will and not Gigi, whose attitude has definitely softened in the past thirty seconds. The arms folded defiantly across her chest are now tucked in as she picks at her nails on her lap. Her head is hanging lower, with lips pressed into a hard line.
“Halle, look. I know you’re mad and I get it. She’s like my little sister, too, but just stay. You’re not going to be able to get a hotel and you can’t drive back to Maple Hills to come back with her in the morning. So just stay. I miss hanging out with both of you.”