I pushed my way through until I reached the back deck. I opened a cooler and grabbed a beer. Popping the top off, I leaned against the railing and stared up at the sky.
"Not your scene either?"
Turning my head, I saw a girl with short brown hair. She was wearing a light blue flowy shirt and skinny jeans.
"Not really."
"My name is Lacey."
"Sawyer."
I leaned over and shook her hand.
"My friends dragged me here."
I chuckled and raised my beer. "Join the club then."
She laughed.
"Do we have matching shirts or something?"
I laughed, and Lacey stood next to me. I smiled at her.
"I don't have the creativity for that; I'll leave that to you."
Lacey threw her head back and laughed.
"Unless it's in a spreadsheet, I'm afraid I can't help you with that."
"Darn." I shook my head.
"Are you in my bio class?" she tilted her head.
I squinted. "Possibly? You sit in the back, don't you."
"Yeah, science isn't quite my thing."
"If you need any help, I can try to help you. I'm decent at it, unfortunately."
She beamed. "I'd like that."
Lacey took her phone out and handed it to me.
"Put your number in."
Jacob sat across from me at the diner. He hunched over his place setting. I took a few more sips of my soda before I put it back down.
"Are you sure you want to eat?"
"I need grease," Jacob muttered.
I bit back a chuckle, and a waitress came over. She was probably in her forties, with her tied back in a high bun. She took our orders and left while she was still scribbling away.
"You were hitting it back pretty hard, weren't you," I smirked.
"Fuck you," Jacob grumbled as he rubbed his head.
Jacob leaned back and stretched his legs near mine. Jacob looked at me and narrowed his eyes.
"Was I imagining things when you confessed that your dad is the lead guy on the cloning projects?"
"That is what you remember from last night?"
He shrugged.
"Yeah, he is, though," I responded quietly.
"And the clone lived with you?"
I nodded. "Her name is Madeline."
"You know her?"
"She lived in our house with us, so yeah, I know her well. The hope was that if she lived with a family, then she could be part of society." My voice was soft, and I spun my straw around in my soda, causing the ice to twirl.
"Shit, she's the girl that it's complicated with, isn't she?"
His eyes were round. My gaze stared at the drink before me, and I was only able to nod my head in response.
"You like the clone."
"Madeline."
"Madeline, you like her?"
"It's complicated, like I said."
"I'd say so. Madeline's a freaking clone. Is she normal?"
I shot him a look.
"She acts like every other human. If you met her, you'd never know she was a clone. She is just like you and me."
"Does she have a belly button?"
My eyebrows fused. "What the hell?"
"Does she have a belly button? I mean, if she wasn't in a womb, how did she get her nutrition?"
I huffed.
"I don't know the technical crap; I never asked my dad. He treats her, though."
"For real?"
Jacob raised an eyebrow.
"My dad has been known to lock her in her room. There was one time I had to break down her bedroom door to save her."
His face fell. "Hell."
"I told you, it's complicated. My dad treated both of us like crap. My mom ran off on us when I was little. Madeline and I have always had just the two of us."
"I'm sorry."
"It's fine, let's just eat."
The plates were timed well and placed in front of us. I picked up the toasted tomato wrap. I could feel the sting of the buffalo sauce as I brought it closer to my face. After a couple of bites, I picked up a curly fry. My phone went off. Glancing over at the screen that rested on the table, it was a number I didn't recognize, and it had a local area code. Clicking the text message, I scanned it.
Hey sawyer, it's Lacey from the party. Do you want to meet up tomorrow and go over the notes for the quiz?
Sure, I’m free at 2.
Great! I'm in Blanton hall, room 304a
"Who are you texting?"
"The girl from last night, she's in my bio class."
"Huh."
"Why?" I asked flatly and put my phone back down.
"Where are you all 'studying'?"
"Her room."
Jacob laughed. "Yeah, you won't be loyal to the clone in there."
"What are you talking about?" my voice came out rougher this time.
"You and Lacey alone in her bedroom. Do I need to spell it out any further than that?"
"You're crazy."
He raised an eyebrow. Jacob leaned back and raised an eyebrow at me.
"Are you a virgin?
My face warmed up.
"I'm done eating with you."
His mouth opened wide.
"How the hell is a guy like you a virgin?"
"A little louder, I don't think the people in the kitchen heard you." I hissed.
"You're not ugly."
I swear his ears only partly worked.
"Thanks. I dated a little, but I was just so focused on getting out of my dad's house I never got far with the girls I saw."
Not that there were many dates, but considering Jacob's lack of volume control, I wasn't bringing that up as well.
"You need to fix that problem."
"Virginity isn't a problem. Loud
