“You can’t just buy my affections, Raven,” I snap.
Raven looks taken aback for a moment but then she sighs and frowns.
“You know, you almost had me fooled back in the hospital. I really thought whatever had happened to you had made you grow up a little bit, but I see now I was wrong. You don’t want your dad to be happy, do you?”
It’s my turn to be taken aback. How dare she imply I don’t want my dad to be happy? Of course I want him to be happy. Just not with her. I can hardly say that though, can I? Get a fucking grip, Sailor. Make her like you.
“We were perfectly happy already before you came along,” I snap, completely ignoring my own advice. “So don’t start thinking he can only be happy with you.”
Raven shakes her head and smiles sadly.
“Your dad is very good at putting on a brave face for you, Sailor. And don’t get me wrong, I know how much he loves you, and he will always be happy if you’re happy. But he was lonely. He wanted… no, needed, some adult company. And I think deep down, you know that.”
I feel myself nodding despite myself. I do know that. And I know I’m being selfish not wanting him to move on. But if I’m right about Raven, then she’s literally the worst choice he could have made. Why couldn’t she just be a normal teacher who has hobbies like reading or foreign movies rather than hobbies like stealing the Soul Gems and trying to get me killed?
“Look, Sailor, I get that you don’t like me. Maybe in time you’ll see that I care for your dad a lot and that I have good intentions with him. Maybe I’ll grow on you, or maybe I won’t. But why don’t we at least agree to be civil to one another? For your dad’s sake.”
I nod again.
“I’m sorry,” I say sullenly.
I know I have to snap out of this. I have to get her to trust me. And whether I like it or not, she’s right. Until I can prove my theory, the team isn’t going to help me do anything to get her out of my dad’s life, and I seem to be failing miserably at doing it myself. Or proving my theory. That means she’s going to be sticking around for the foreseeable future, and if she keeps up this nice act and I am the one acting like a little bitch, if she does leave, my dad will always blame me for ruining what they had.
I force myself to smile at her, searching my mind for something I can say to make her think I get what she’s saying. In the end, I settle for the truth. Minus the gems and the killing of course.
“I guess I’m just used to it just being me and my dad. And I remember how he was after Mom… you know. I don’t want to see him get hurt again, that’s all,” I say.
Raven reaches out and squeezes the top of my arm with a sympathetic smile. I resist the urge to pull away and her smile brightens slightly. She thinks we’re making progress. We are, just not the type she thinks we’re making. She thinks we’re on the road to singing songs and roasting marshmallows over a campfire. I think we’re on the road to her slipping up and revealing something I can use against her.
God, when did I become so bitter?
Oh, I don’t know, maybe around the time I discovered the fate of the world rests on my shoulders and my dad’s girlfriend is just using him to get close to me and work against me.
“I get that,” she says. “And I promise you I have no intention of hurting him. Now, do you want to try those jeans on or not?”
I shake my head, a smile crossing my face as I come up with an idea to move us on to a safer topic of conversation and let her think we’re starting to bond.
“No. But I think you should,” I say.
“Me?” Raven laughs. “Honey, I think I’m twenty years too old for them.”
“No way,” I say. “You’ve got an amazing figure. You’ll look great in them. Come on.”
I pull her into the store before she can argue any more. I lead her to the jeans and find the size I think will fit her. I push them into her hands and usher her towards the fitting rooms.
“Go on,” I say, laughing.
She laughs with me, and with a resigned sigh, she goes into one of the fitting rooms. I wonder fleetingly if I could have gotten her to try on something she would have looked ridiculous in, just to keep me happy, but I push the thought aside. She might have done it to avoid an argument, but she’s not an idiot. She would have known what I was up to, and that’s hardly the way to gain her trust.
I stand in the store waiting for her, and although I hate to admit it to myself, I know she was at least partially right outside the store. No one on the team really thinks she’s part of the Boundless, and I’m starting to think I’m letting my own prejudice about her cloud my judgement.
I remind myself of the overheard phone call, of how Raven always seems to pop up at just the
