Love Lines

16: Don't Cry Over Shattered Glass

Chapter Sixteen

"Your hair is longer."

Schylar was in the kitchen helping me get everyone something to drink. It was still early in the morning but not everyone drank coffee so I'd made a pitcher of lemonade tea. Enough kick to wake you up but not enough to make you hyper for the rest of the day if you drank more than one glass.

"Not my choice," I answered as I continued to stir. "I'd cut it again if I could."

He put several glasses on the counter next to me and then leaned against it. I could only imagine what was spinning through his head right now but I didn't want to look up to find out. I knew he wasn't Cecil's biggest fan, in fact when he found out Cecil was sitting at the table, he stopped dead in the hallway while everyone piled up behind him. The hate that radiated out of his eyes was unparalleled by anything I'd ever seen. Schy may have known I'd eventually end up with Cecil but that didn't mean he had to like it. He'd get around to voicing his opinion and here it was. I'd hoped we'd be much more alone but it looked like that wasn't going to happen.

"Is it some weird Elite thing?"

"Yup. If I even try to cut it off, it'll just grow back." I tapped the wooden spoon on the lip of the pitcher. "Anything else you want to ask?"

"Not in polite company, no."

Finally I looked up at him, hand on my hip, and confronted what he was feeling but not voicing. I was a little startled by what I saw and it softened me up a bit so my hand dropped from my hip.

"Don't even think it."

"I know we talked about it in a joking manner but..." he fiddled with one of the glasses "...you're not going to...?"

"I'm not dropping you or anyone else like a bad habit, Schy." I took a step forward and hugged him. "Besides, there is no one in this world like you, my man whore."

"I don't want to be replaced."

"Who said I was replacing you? You're irreplaceable, like Thomas J."

"Are you trying to tell me something?"

"Just that you're the best friend a girl could ever ask for...that wasn't gay."

He shoved me away and I grinned at him.

"You're like a butt pimple."

I gapped at him. "Now that's just mean!"

"You just called me gay."

"I did not! You need to learn how to listen. Want to carry the lemonade for me? It's heavy."

"Carry your own lemonade." He picked it up despite his words and I collected the glasses. "You're the worst best friend ever."

"Why? Because I made you carry the lemonade or, if we go back a little further, because I didn't let you teach me about self-fulfillment?"

He nearly dropped the pitcher and turned to look at me, all panicked like. "You said we'd never talk about that again."

"Funny how things pop into my head now that I'm Elite. You never know what I'm going to say next."

He narrowed his eyes at me. "Don't even."

"Then don't even think about telling embarrassing stories about me from the past three years or your one slip up with me will be known to all of our friends forever."

When I said we were completely platonic best friends, I meant it. The one and only time we even considered taking it anywhere else, it was completely awkward and unpleasant. We swore never to talk about it again, even went as far as cutting open the pads of our pointer fingers to seal the promise. But the last thing I wanted was him spilling all my secrets from the years Cecil missed. Schy would do it just to embarrass the hell out of me and try to make Cecil feel like he'd missed too much so he'd bolt.