HOW I LOST YOU

CHAPTER FOUR

Chapter Four

Kya pointed at Brady. She’d brought him over along with her DVD of The Virgin Suicides. We were at her favorite scene in the movie, where the boys take the Lisbon sisters to a school dance. Brady was almost fast asleep on the sofa beside her. She wrinkled up her nose, lifted her hand to her forehead, and made a capital L sign with her fingers.

“Loser,” she mouthed to me and glared at Brady.

Apparently, his number was up. I faked a smile, kind of sorry for Brady. He certainly didn’t know he’d failed a major test. One should never show boredom during a viewing of The Virgin Suicides.

Boyfriends were disposable to Kya. She’d treat boys like crap and they’d fall at her feet, trying to win her over. Usually they’d turn to me for help. I got to play the friend role. Over and over again.

Brady reached up to grab her hand and mumbled something I couldn’t hear, but she pushed him away and jumped up from the couch. Distracted from the movie, which was much more her favorite than mine, my insides squished with unease for Brady who didn’t even know he was past his expiration date.

“You want a soda, Grace?” she said, walking toward the stairs.

“Hey, what about me?” Brady called.

She ignored him and his face drooped, betraying his disappointment. Once she made up her mind, there was really nothing to stop it.

“Sure. I’d love a soda. Oh, and make yourself at home,” I called, well versed in the art of sarcasm, thanks to my mom.

Kya turned back to stick her tongue out and then smiled, disappearing down the stairs toward the kitchen. I heard the fridge door open and her voice and my brother’s. Indie treated her better than he did me most of the time.

“Kya says you’re into paintball and stuff,” Brady said to me.

I looked at him. Eloquent, Brady. Especially since we’ve been in the same school for three years and you’re only now bringing this up.

“Yup,” I turned my attention back to the screen. No use trying to bond with him at this point. Ex-boyfriend-to-be. Soon it would be my job to ignore his existence; he just didn’t know it yet.

Kya returned up the stairs, holding three cans of soda. She tossed one to Brady. At him really. It almost smacked him in the head. Then she walked over to the couch where I sat and scootched in, snuggling up beside me, handing me a can, and then resting her head on my shoulder. She plopped up her feet up on the coffee table in front of us.

“Oh, I almost forgot,” she said, and reached into her hoodie pocket and pulled out a box. She tossed it in the air. “Nerds for my nerd.”

I grabbed it. “Yay!” I ripped open the box with my teeth, poured some in my hand, and held out the box but she shook her head.

“So. There a party tonight?” she called to Brady.

“I thought you wanted to stay in? Watch a movie. At your
bestie’s.” He imitated her voice on the last sentence and frowned at me as if it was my fault Kya could make him do whatever she wanted. Including hanging out at my place on a Friday night. It really was something, how much boys liked her despite the way she treated them.

I ignored him, less and less sorry for his impending heartbreak. I poured Nerds into my mouth and swirled them around my cheeks with my tongue.

“I told you, Grace is grounded,” she said to him. “Again,” she growled at me and shoved her elbow in my side. “On Friday night.”