Razzledazzle [ ✓ ]

Chapter 27 | The Twins

It's a little while before I stop running, and I realize that I've made my way back to Ms. O'Carthy's room. There's no one inside, even Ms. O'Carthy has left.

I collapse against the desk with my head in my hands, and it's a little while before I hear footsteps trailing after me.

Glory and Alex, trying to make me feel better. Maybe it's Lee, going to apologize... no, Lee's here telling me how stupid I am to fall for it. Or maybe it's Troy, come to convince me that he was right all along.

But all of that's wrong, because I turn around, and it's Tyler who has run into the room.

"Tyler?" I ask quietly. "What do you want?"

"I want you to listen to me," he says firmly. "I want you to hear me out."

I snort. "There's nothing to say."

Tyler kneels down beside me. "Listen to me, Rose. Lee isn't a bad person."

"Then why was he on Troy's side the whole time? Why were you?"

"There was never a 'Troy's side' or a 'Lee's side', Rose. It was so much more complicated than that. No, I take that back, it wasn't complicated at all. It was simply this: Troy wanted revenge, so we decided to help him."

"Yeah, and you manipulated me into liking some jerk just to benefit Troy," I growl. "Just because I hate Lee now doesn't mean I'm going to be friendly with Troy."

Tyler sighs. "I'll admit, Troy's dare was cruel, but he never meant to hurt you, he was trying to hurt Lee. Troy doesn't have anything against you."

"That can't be true!" I spit. "He purposely dared Lee to get me to like him! That doesn't hurt Lee at all! The only person it hurts is me, and Troy must have done it on purpose! He has to have something against me!"

Tyler nods. "That's what I thought," he says, "until a few minutes ago."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

He sighs again. "This dare never had anything to do with you, Rose. He never mentioned you in the dare at all. He had no idea it was going to be you."

"You're being ridiculous," I retort. "Troy even said it himself—he dared Lee to get me to say yes."

"No." Tyler looks at me with those silvery blue eyes, identical to Troy's. He's not sporting the Singleton grin. He's just looking at me.

"He never mentioned you. The dare was for Lee to ask his crush out, it was never supposed to be you."

"But that's impossible. Do you see the way he treats me? He doesn't like me."

"The way he teases you, and messes with you, and likes to make you mad? That's how guys flirt."

"Yeah—in the third grade!"

Tyler laughs. "Yeah, Lee's about as mature as a third grader, so that's about right."

"There's no way," I repeat. "Who even told you that that was the real dare?"

"Lee did, after Troy asked about the ice-cream. He says he bought you some ice-cream while you two were walking home? Troy never asked him to do that. That was all him."

"Why am I always the last one to find out my own secrets?" I grumble, standing up. "Besides, if Lee was serious about that, he would have told me about the dare."

Tyler sighs for what seems like the hundredth time. "I never said he was smart, did I? Troy was always the smart one in the operation."

Considering he pulled off this little stunt, I don't doubt that.

"You should go talk to him," Tyler urged. "Make him apologize."

"If he doesn't want to apologize then I'm not gonna force him," I snarl.

"You should still talk to him," says Tyler. I look him up and down, and I don't know why, but I have the sudden urge to hug him.

He almost seems surprised when I do hug him, but he relaxes quickly. "Not too hard," he warns me. "I have a girlfriend, you know."

I roll my eyes and step back. His slate-gray eyes are glittering and he's flashing me the Singleton grin, but it's not evil-looking, it's friendly.

The way he looked before all of this drama happened.

"Thanks, Tyler," I mutter. "For telling me."

"Hey, you deserve it, since I was such a lying jerk." I smile as we walk out of Ms. O'Carthy's room, off in separate directions.

That's it. I'm going to find Lee now.

As I'm speed walking down the deserted hallways, I round a corner and bump into someone. For a second, I'm grateful that I've finally found Lee, but it turns out to just be Troy.

When Troy turns around, I give him a meaningful glance. "Is it true?" I ask ruefully.

Troy sighs. "What—that I dared Lee to ask his crush out? Yeah." He nods. "Did my brother go running to tell you that story?"

It's my turn to nod. "That was pretty mean, Troy. Playing me like that."

"I didn't know it would be you, or I wouldn't have said it!" he cries. "I thought he would like someone else! I thought you two hated each other!"

"Well, you thought wrong," I say spitefully.

"Listen, Rose, I'm sorry. The only person that was supposed to get hurt was him. I thought whoever he asked would reject him, and that would be payback enough."

I can't help but nod in defeat. Everyone makes mistakes, I guess. I can't do anything about that. And I can tell that he means it, just by looking at him.

"It's okay," I reply finally, and he smiles, looking identical to Tyler. Looking how he did before all of this drama.

I don't hug him, though. That was a one-time thing.

"Where are Glory and Alex?" I ask instead, and he looks at me sharply. By his expression, I think Glory might still be kind of mad at him, for not letting her warn me.

"Looking for you, like Tyler was. I'm actually surprised that he found you first." Troy looks at me. "They can wait. You should go and talk to Lee."

"Yeah, you and your brother think a lot alike," I say. Maybe you really aren't a bad person, Troy. Maybe.

But now that I've forgiven the twins for what they did, I need to forgive the biggest liar of all.

Lee.