Guys, Lies & Alibis by Kimberly Reid

Author:Kimberly Reid [Reid, Kimberly]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: JUV028000 JUVENILE FICTION / Mysteries & Detective Stories; JUV014000 JUVENILE FICTION / Girls & Women; JUV039060 JUVENILE FICTION / Social Issues / Friendship
Publisher: NLA Digital LLC
Published: 2014-04-10T04:00:00+00:00

*

As soon as last bell rings, I make a quick trip to my locker before heading to the library. When I turn the corner of the shelves in the 600 section, I can tell Marco is surprised to see me. I register a whole range of emotions on his face before he says a word: surprise, confusion, relief, anger.

“I should have known it wasn’t Brent. He would never ask to meet in the library.”

“I thought you’d only meet him if it was somewhere private, but not too private. Clever how I specified the table near section 620, huh? Memorizing the Dewey Decimal system in fifth grade finally paid off.”

“This isn’t a game,” Marco says, taking the seat across from me.

“I worried it might give me away, but I figured that would be the last thing on your mind considering it was Brent demanding a meeting.”

“Except it wasn’t Brent who texted me. How did you get access to his phone?”

I smile at him and place my hands over his. “You know how I do.”

“Do you hear me, Chanti? This isn’t a game. You have no idea.”

“So enlighten me. You keep saying you’re not into something with Brent, but this proves you are.”

He’s quiet for a moment, then says, “I need to decide . . . don’t you ever wish for a do-over? That’s what I need, a do-over. Unless you know a way to turn back time, you can’t help me.”

“Maybe I can, even without a time machine, if you’d just let me in. That’s why I’m here, to find out the truth, why you’re willing to meet a guy who hurt you the way Brent did.”

“I was serious about what I said last night,” Marco says, rising from the table.

I grab his arm.

“You being here now tells me that whatever’s going on with Brent is important enough for you to continue engaging with him despite that black eye you’re wearing.”

Marco gives up on leaving and sits again, putting both hands flat on the table. He’s calm for the first time since he saw me waiting for him instead of Brent. He says nothing, just looks down at his hands. The gesture makes me think he’s about to open up, that he may be thinking of the right words to say, so I continue, hoping to help him along.

“But it’s also bad enough to keep you from wanting anyone else to know about it, including me. It’s not a big deal that Brent loaned you money for your car. If he’s charging crazy interest, that’s all the more reason to let me help you pay it back. Otherwise, he’ll keep beating you until he gets his money.”

“It isn’t about the money. Like I said last night, I’m not keeping the truth from you because it’s a big dark secret. I’m doing it to protect—”

“Protect me, I know. Maybe I don’t need or want to be protected. Maybe what I want is to help you out of whatever this is. Because if your life is screwed up, mine is, too.

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