Chapter 8: Columbus

Connor looked at my hand.

"Why?"

"Because if I sent her thirty texts, she'll be scared to hear my voice. Let's hear her be scared."

He hesitated.

Then he unlocked the phone and called her himself.

He held it between us on speaker.

Half the fourth floor was listening from the windows.

It rang four times.

"Con?" Kayleigh's voice was bright and loud. There was laughing in the background, and glasses. "Where are you? I thought you went to bed."

"I'm at Bellgrave," he said. "With Hallie."

The laughing in the background got quieter.

Like she'd walked into a different room.

"Why would you be with her?"

"Hi, V," I said.

Silence.

"Connor showed me the texts," I said. "The ones from me. What number did they come from?"

A long breath.

Then her voice changed completely.

Small. Wobbly. Wet.

"Connor, why would you do this to me? You know how scared I am of her. You promised you'd keep her away."

"What number, Kayleigh?" I said.

"I blocked it. Obviously I blocked it. I'm not going to keep a psycho's number in my phone."

"Then how do you still have the thread?"

She started crying. Real, gasping crying.

"I can't do this. Con, please. Please come back. I need you."

Connor's jaw worked.

He took the phone off speaker and put it to his ear.

"Hey. Hey. It's okay. I'm coming."

He turned his back on me and walked into the rain with her crying in his ear.

He didn't look back.

Malik stood beside me under the umbrella.

"She's good," he said.

"She's always been good."

"We're better."

He handed me the bag of fries.

They were still warm.

The Keystone regional qualifier was in Columbus, the second weekend of November.

A hotel ballroom with gold carpet and bad coffee.

Eighteen teams from six states. Only two would move on to the finals in April.

Margin went ninth.

Malik ran the demo. Kelsey did the numbers.

I did the part I was scared of.

I stood at the front of the room and told three judges about the girl who couldn't read her calc textbook and drew it instead.