Someone banged on the door about four minutes later. I was sitting at the kitchen table, still clutching my cell phone. Too early to be Justin—unless he lived on this side of town. Every nerve in my body turned to ice.
Scott barreled out of the bedroom and glared at the phone in my hand. “You call the cops?” He made a move toward me, but the banging continued. He snuck up to the door and looked into the peephole. His shoulders relaxed at whoever was standing outside.
“Don’t pound on the door like that, jackass,” Scott said, opening the door.
This was followed by male laughter. Two guys walked in. One had long, frizzy hair and the other wore a beanie and about a billion facial piercings. Frizz Head made himself at home on the couch, and Beanie Guy followed Scott into the kitchen.
“What’s up?” Beanie Guy nodded at me.
I looked down and hightailed it to the front door. Their eyes burned into me.
“I think she’s retarded or something,” Scott said.
“Dude, that was
“Hey,” Frizz said from the couch, “you gonna let him talk about you like that?”
“Naomi?” I called, keeping my eyes focused on a hole in the wall. “Where are you?”
“I’m coming,” she said, tearing out of the room. “Sorry.” Her eyes darted from the couch to the kitchen.
“Justin’s coming to pick us up,” I said.
“Hey, Naomi!” Beanie called. “What’s wrong with your friend?”
She rolled her eyes. “She’s got standards.”
Scott leaned toward him. “That’s all she does, man. Stands in corners all hunched over. You say hi to her and she does this twitchy thing like—”
“We can hear you!” Naomi said.
“She’s kinda hot, though,” Beanie said back. Like I wasn’t even in the room. Like I didn’t matter.
Naomi wrapped her arms around me. “Ignore them.”
Frizz switched the TV on, cranking up the volume. Some cartoon roared through the apartment.
Scott walked over and clicked it off. “I got neighbors that bitch if I fart too loud, okay?” Another knock echoed around the apartment. “Who’s that?”
“Maybe you should consider a new line of work,” Naomi said. “You’re paranoid as hell.”
I hoped it was Justin.
Scott looked into the peephole again and yanked the door open. “Yeah?”
“Drea here?”
“Never heard of her.” He went to slam the door, but Naomi shoved him.
“Let him in—it’s just Drea’s boyfriend.”
“But he’s not—” I began.
Naomi put a hand over my mouth and looked back at Scott. “He’s cool, okay?”
Scott opened the door, studying Justin from head to toe. Justin walked in with his hands shoved into the pockets of his jeans. He stared back at Scott before turning to us and smiling. The Bjork shirt he wore almost made me smile back. I loved Bjork. But I didn’t love this situation.
“Drea has a boyfriend, apparently.” Scott walked back into the kitchen. “And he likes Ba-
“My little sister loves her,” Frizz said.
All three guys looked at Justin and snickered.
Justin rolled his eyes and nodded at the door. “Can we get out of here?”
“Yes, please,” I said, grabbing Naomi’s hand.
“Give me a minute, okay?” She looked back into the kitchen.
“How much for an eighth?” Beanie asked.
“Eighty,” Scott answered.
Beanie Guy shook his head. “I’ll give you fifty.”
“It’s weed, not used cars. Take it or leave it.”
Frizz joined them, and they continued to argue. Eventually, Scott went into his room and came out with a baggy. Naomi leaned against the couch, tapping the heel of her boot against the carpet.
Justin slipped his arm around my shoulders. I stiffened with his touch.
He pulled his arm away. “Sorry. You okay?”
I shook my head and leaned into him. His warmth felt amazing. He wrapped both arms around me, running his hands down my forearms. Naomi crinkled her brow at us, her mouth turning down at the corners. I wished I knew what she was thinking.
