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Chapter 3: Read between the lines

Arjun's mom gave me fruit snacks when I left, and I made sure to rub it in Kairo's face. We walked to my house because my ex decided to pull up with the music blasting. My mom called me, saying, "That fast-tail lil' girl outside my house."

Even though it was October, bits of summer still lingered in the air. The air is sticky. Light sweat coated my forehead.

"Arjun's weird," I said, as we rounded the corner.

"He isn't." Kairo nudges me. He trips on the sidewalk and I burst out laughing.

I wanted to tell him what Arjun said, but decided not to. You couldn't possibly watch a person and tell they like someone, could you? 

Zariah was leaning on her Tesla when we walked up. I could smell her stank-ass attitude.

"Hey." I tried to be casual about it.

"So you looked in your fucking closet, huh?"

I rolled my eyes. "Why the fuck are you here?" 

"For my goddamn hoodie, nigga."

Oh, she mad, mad.

"Maybe you should give her back her hoodie," Kairo said.

"I don't have it!" It was the truth. "Kairo does."

"Wait what?" He shoved me.

"Okay, so I lent it to Kairo, and he never gave it back."

"You never lent me anything."

"The pink Barbie hoodie."

"Oh." 

"Oh," Zariah said. "Oh, my ass! I want my shit."

Kairo and I looked at each other.

"I gave it back to Noah tho." 

Zariah screams. My neighbor outside looks at us telling us to quiet down, but Zariah screams even louder in his direction. He shakes his head and goes back to watering his grass. I wished he would have sprayed her ass.

"Okay, I'll go look in my closet now." I punched Kario in the arm.

I hear the clink clanking of her heels. She was following us. I spun around so fast that I ended up bumping into Kairo; he pushed me forward, and I put my hand out, stopping her in her tracks. 

"And where the fuck are you going?" I raised a thick brow.

"With you two." 

"Um, no," I said pointing at her car. "You stay there."

She slapped my hand away, marching past us up the stone path toward my house. Kairo laughed, and I shot him a dirty look. When we walked in, my mom was sitting in the living room. She craned her neck, her face twisting the second she saw my ex.

"Noah." my mom said. 

"She's just picking up something."

I pushed Zariah up the stairs. I hear Kairo asking my mom how she was and she says something like "I'll be good once Miss Thing leaves."

The three of us were in my room. Kairo sat in my desk chair, messing around with my red Power Ranger action figure. I was digging through my closet, hunting for that damn hoodie. Nothing pink.

"So," Zariah said. "You're still friends with him, Kairo?" 

What the hell does that mean? I pushed hangers out of the way looking towards the back of the closet.

 "He's my homie."

"Mmm." It's the attitude she gives him that makes me want to cuss her out.

I couldn't find her hoodie but I found her false eyelash—just one.