I said sincerely.
She shrugged as if it was no big deal, but at the same time looked pretty pleased with herself. “My parents went there,” she said.
“That’s right! I remember,” I said.
“What—you guys knew each other before now?” Hayden asked.
“Yeah. We both used to come here on vacation when we were ten, eleven,” I said. I’d been here five summers in a row, from when I wasten to fifteen, and Caroline had been here three of those summers. “We had cottage rentals next door to each other,” I explained. Which might have been the only reason we started hanging out, come to think of it. Proximity. Throughout history, the great friendship maker.
“We actually hung out all the time,” I said, just to let Caroline know I hadn’t forgotten, even if she had. I don’t know why it mattered so much to me. I guess it’s that I can’t stand being snobbed by someone I already know. Like when you talk to a guy from school at a party, at length, about all kinds of personal stuff, and then you see him the next day and he’s with his friends and acts like it never happened. Like he barely even knows your name. I hate that. When I’d first seen Caroline, in my first panicky moments, I’d had this hope that she might make it easier for me to blend in. Quite the opposite had happened. I was blending in just fine, but it was no thanks to her.
“So you guys go way back. That’s very interesting,” Hayden said.
“Well, we’re not the only people here whoknow each other from before,” Caroline said. “Zoe and Hayden are from the same town, and—”
“Not exactly the same town,” Hayden explained. “Neighboring. We went to the same high school, that’s all.”
“Private day school,” Caroline corrected him.
“Huh,” I said. “Is that the famous Maple Leaf Academy?” I teased.
“Mapleville,” Hayden said.
“Ah. Of course. Very interesting.”
“Is it?” Hayden asked.
“Sure.” I finished my bowl of cereal and walked over to set it in the sink.
“Did you know?” Hayden asked as he came up behind me.
“About you and Zoe?” I said.
He looked a little confused. “About me and Zoe what?”
“Going to the same private school,” I said. “No, I didn’t—”
“That’s not what I meant.” He set a plate and knife into the sink next to my bowl. “I wasgoing to tell you that new people around here do all the dishes. Did anyone tell you yet?”
“Yeah, right,” I scoffed.
“No, seriously,” he insisted. “You fill up the dish racks over there, then carry them upstairs to the main kitchen—”
“Okay, so when do we get to be not the new people anymore?” I asked him. “Is there like a day of amnesty?”
“Yeah, this isn’t a fraternity, you know,” Claire added. “You can’t keep hazing us forever.”
“We’re not doing anything that bad! Just teasing. Come on, lighten up,” Hayden said to me.
“Yeah, well, it’s not actually all that funny,” I said, trying to keep a straight face. Because I wasn’t mad, and I didn’t care. They could ask us to do the dishes all they wanted, but it didn’t mean we would.
“It’s not funny?” Hayden asked, wrinkling his nose.
“No.”
“Really.”
“Really,” I said. “It’s getting old. Tired. Kind of sad.”
We just looked at each other for a few seconds. His eyes were this deep, dark-blue steel gray, the kind that seem impossible to read.
“Liza. Liza? Liza!”
I think it took three tries before I actually heard my name being called, though it could have been more, because I wasn’t paying attention to anything but Hayden for a minute.
Oh no, I thought as I turned around and saw Miss Crossley standing in the doorway. There were a couple of problems here. One, I was feeling this incredible pull toward Hayden, suspiciously like an undertow. I’d have to move from the spot where I was standing or I could be in trouble.
Problem Two, Miss Crossley was here looking for me. That might not be
She shrugged as if it was no big deal, but at the same time looked pretty pleased with herself. “My parents went there,” she said.
“That’s right! I remember,” I said.
“What—you guys knew each other before now?” Hayden asked.
“Yeah. We both used to come here on vacation when we were ten, eleven,” I said. I’d been here five summers in a row, from when I wasten to fifteen, and Caroline had been here three of those summers. “We had cottage rentals next door to each other,” I explained. Which might have been the only reason we started hanging out, come to think of it. Proximity. Throughout history, the great friendship maker.
“We actually hung out all the time,” I said, just to let Caroline know I hadn’t forgotten, even if she had. I don’t know why it mattered so much to me. I guess it’s that I can’t stand being snobbed by someone I already know. Like when you talk to a guy from school at a party, at length, about all kinds of personal stuff, and then you see him the next day and he’s with his friends and acts like it never happened. Like he barely even knows your name. I hate that. When I’d first seen Caroline, in my first panicky moments, I’d had this hope that she might make it easier for me to blend in. Quite the opposite had happened. I was blending in just fine, but it was no thanks to her.
“So you guys go way back. That’s very interesting,” Hayden said.
“Well, we’re not the only people here whoknow each other from before,” Caroline said. “Zoe and Hayden are from the same town, and—”
“Not exactly the same town,” Hayden explained. “Neighboring. We went to the same high school, that’s all.”
“Private day school,” Caroline corrected him.
“Huh,” I said. “Is that the famous Maple Leaf Academy?” I teased.
“Mapleville,” Hayden said.
“Ah. Of course. Very interesting.”
“Is it?” Hayden asked.
“Sure.” I finished my bowl of cereal and walked over to set it in the sink.
“Did you know?” Hayden asked as he came up behind me.
“About you and Zoe?” I said.
He looked a little confused. “About me and Zoe what?”
“Going to the same private school,” I said. “No, I didn’t—”
“That’s not what I meant.” He set a plate and knife into the sink next to my bowl. “I wasgoing to tell you that new people around here do all the dishes. Did anyone tell you yet?”
“Yeah, right,” I scoffed.
“No, seriously,” he insisted. “You fill up the dish racks over there, then carry them upstairs to the main kitchen—”
“Okay, so when do we get to be not the new people anymore?” I asked him. “Is there like a day of amnesty?”
“Yeah, this isn’t a fraternity, you know,” Claire added. “You can’t keep hazing us forever.”
“We’re not doing anything that bad! Just teasing. Come on, lighten up,” Hayden said to me.
“Yeah, well, it’s not actually all that funny,” I said, trying to keep a straight face. Because I wasn’t mad, and I didn’t care. They could ask us to do the dishes all they wanted, but it didn’t mean we would.
“It’s not funny?” Hayden asked, wrinkling his nose.
“No.”
“Really.”
“Really,” I said. “It’s getting old. Tired. Kind of sad.”
We just looked at each other for a few seconds. His eyes were this deep, dark-blue steel gray, the kind that seem impossible to read.
“Liza. Liza? Liza!”
I think it took three tries before I actually heard my name being called, though it could have been more, because I wasn’t paying attention to anything but Hayden for a minute.
Oh no, I thought as I turned around and saw Miss Crossley standing in the doorway. There were a couple of problems here. One, I was feeling this incredible pull toward Hayden, suspiciously like an undertow. I’d have to move from the spot where I was standing or I could be in trouble.
Problem Two, Miss Crossley was here looking for me. That might not be
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