And Then There Was Vince

Chapter 26: What About Gomez Adams?

    Unsurprisingly, we ended up seeing a lot of Liam. He assimilated into the circle as if he'd always been a part of it. I felt comfortable around him, as if he'd truly been an old friend. He didn't exude the same energy that Alex and Eric could. He was calm, charming, and subtly hilarious. The other boys would have been wise to take notes.

    Shortly after he blew in, Vince breezed back onto the continent. I practically exploded when I saw him in class.

    "You're not allowed to go away again, ever," I commanded after assuming my usual place.

    "Is that so?" He smirked. "Because I have to go visit my grandmother in Seattle over Christmas break, and that's really going to put a damper on my mother's plans."

    "I guess we can make an exception," I shrugged. "But only for your grandma."

    I felt like I was soaring. It had been a long week without him, and it felt amazing to finally have him back. I couldn't joke this way with any other person.

    I kept noticing Ashley glaring back at us every time we got loud during free moments, but brushed it off as best as I could.

            "So what's with you and Gomez Adams?" She ambushed me later at lunch.

            "What?" I asked, playing dumb.

            "You know, you and Vincent," she pushed. "I know you worked on a project together but it seems like its gone a bit further than that."

             "Oh right," I said. "We do hang out a lot now. He's a really cool person."

             I slid some peas around my tray with a fork and pretended to be deeply interested in the activity in order to avoid her gaze.

             "But you guys aren't like...A thing or anything right?"

             "No," I admitted. "Well not really, but sort of."

              I glanced around the table, catching all three of them staring at me, making a variety of very strained faces.

              "Oh, cute," Ashley finally said unconvincingly before returning to her regular gossip.

               She definitely did not think it was cute.