Their preoccupation with the school show, however, was good in that I could hang out with Tobias as much as I wanted to without lying to them. I’d noticed that Tobias hadn’t really recommitted to school like I’d hoped he would. He was still spending a lot of his free time with Stevie doing who knew what.

So when he offered to try to make it up to me for being cold to me that day in the cafeteria I came up with a plan that would benefit us both. I made Tobias agree to come over to my place after dinner to work on his poetry assignment. Of course, my assignment was already done since I’d written a poem a while ago that fit the assignment perfectly. Our presentation on Hamlet went really well; we’d both gotten As, and I used this, along with his guilt, as leverage to get Tobias to agree to let me help with his poem.

That meant I got to enjoy his company while reading a book as he did his homework, only stopping to answer his questions when he had them.

To me that was the equivalent of being offered a free ticket to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal in Orlando.

Ah-mazing!

And it kicked off superbly.

I’d just let Tobias into the house when my dad happened to come out of the kitchen with a mug of coffee in his hand. He stopped abruptly at the sight of the tall, handsome boy standing next to me in the hallway.

“Comet?” he queried softly before taking a casual sip of his coffee.

“Kyle, this is Tobias, a friend from school.”

“Nice to meet you, Tobias.” Dad offered his hand.

Tobias stiffened beside me, his gaze dropping to the proffered hand, and I could almost hear him cursing out my father in his head for being a dipshit to me. He reluctantly shook my dad’s hand, but he didn’t return the platitude.

I loved him for being mad at my dad on my behalf.

“We’re going to study for English.” I pointed to my bedroom door.

Dad’s brows drew together. “Alone? In your room?”

Annoyed at the accusatory, concerned tone, I grabbed Tobias’s hand and led him toward my room. “Yes.”

Tobias followed me, squeezing my hand in solidarity as we disappeared into my bedroom and closed the door behind us. I dropped his hand to put both mine on my hips in irritation.

My friend grinned. “You showed him, huh.”

“It’s just hypocrisy,” I grumbled. “Pretending to care.”

“Maybe he does care.” Tobias kicked off his trainers and lay down on my bed as if he did it every day. “He seemed to care.”

“About me getting pregnant maybe. God forbid I add another unwanted mouth to feed into the household.”

Tension suddenly filled the air, most of it emanating from Tobias, and I understood by the flush high on his cheeks and the uncomfortable way he cleared his throat as he pulled his English homework out of his backpack that I’d said the wrong thing. I’d just suggested Tobias and I might be in here having sex.

Embarrassed, tingling in places I shouldn’t be, my lips feeling weirdly swollen considering no one had been near them, I turned away under the pretense of looking for a book to read.

As I scoured my bookshelves I changed the subject, hoping I hadn’t made Tobias too uncomfortable. “Do you have any idea what you want to write about?”

“Not a clue.”

I grabbed a book that caught my fancy and headed over to lie down beside him. We’d lain like this before on my bed and I didn’t want to not to do it, because that would just draw attention to the weirdness between us.

“Let me see.” I held out my hands to see what notes he’d written down in class today.

He handed them over, trusting me with them.

For the next ten minutes we talked about his poem, the style he could use, and then I left him to it to read my book. For a while I was perfectly content with Tobias’s warm body next to mine, slowly losing myself in an epic fantasy world about a female assassin.

In fact, I was so lost in my book that I didn’t hear Tobias say my name the first time. Not until he took the book right out of my hands.

“Hey!”

He grinned at me. “You were gone. I’ve been trying to get your attention for the last thirty seconds.”

I blushed. “Sorry. What were you saying?”

“I was saying, are you really going to lie there and read while I work?”

“I believe I was.” I gestured to my book, clutched in his hands. “It’s more fun than what you’re doing.”

He looked at the book and then at me. There was something surprisingly solemn in his expression. “You’re always reading, Comet.”

The way he said it made me tense, and I tried to laugh it off, teasing, “Books tend to be more interesting and fun than reality, Tobias.”

But Tobias didn’t laugh. “Anytime I ask you what you’ve been up to, you’ve either been writing poetry for your anonymous blog, visiting that poetry café you won’t take me to or reading a book. When everyone else is at a party, where is Comet? Alone in her room, reading a book.”

Hurt that he would say that, that he would think it, when I’d thought he was the one person I didn’t have to worry about disappointing, I sat up to reach for my book, but he deliberately held it out of reach. “I’m not boring. Fictional worlds are just better. Give me the book, Tobias.” I reached for it again, and he held it above his head. “Tobias.”

“Fictional worlds are better?”

“Tobias!” I lunged for it but he jerked back and I swayed into him, my hands coming down on his chest for balance.

We froze.

Our heads close, our eyes locked.

I didn’t know if it was my imagination or not, but Tobias’s chest seemed to rise and fall a little faster, his breathing shallow.

“Better than reality?” he whispered, staring at my lips. “Than what’s right in front of you?”

Heat suffused me and this overwhelming restless feeling enveloped me, making my fingers curl into his T-shirt as I watched his head move slowly toward mine. My lips seemed to swell, as if inviting his to touch them.

Please, I whimpered inwardly. Please, kiss me.

His warm breath caressed my lips and my eyes fluttered closed as my heart thudded in anticipation.

Rock music suddenly blared into the room, startling me, and I pushed up off Tobias’s chest.

Tobias frowned and reached for his phone. “It’s Stevie.” He pressed the hang up button. “I’ll just text him.” He held my book out toward me, watching me carefully. I didn’t know how to read him. Was he disappointed we’d been interrupted, or was he glad? I reached for the book, and he snapped it away from me momentarily. “Stop hiding in these.” He shook the book. “Be in the moment. You never know when it might disappear.”

What the hell did that mean?

I took the book back, watching him text Stevie and receive a reply. “What does he want?”

“Why do you always use that snarky tone when talking about Stevie?” he huffed.

I frowned, wondering why we were arguing. “What tone?”

“Like he’s scum. He’s not scum.”

“He’s not exactly Mr. Wonderful either.”

Tobias sat up, glowering at me. “What happened to wanting us all to be friends? You can’t be friends with someone you think is scum. You don’t even know him.”

“You’re right, I don’t. And I want to trust you about him because your friends say a lot about you. But the way that whole crowd acts make it hard.”

“Oh, so because you’re friends with Steph I’m to assume you’re a vapid, narcissistic princess?”

“Tobias!”

“What? You can trash my friend but I can’t trash yours?”

“I’m not trashing, Stevie... I just... I’m worried about you. I’m worried that you’re trying so hard to protect Stevie from making mistakes with those idiots he calls friends that you’re forgetting about yourself and the way you want to live your life.”

“I told you I’ve got Stevie’s back because he’s a good guy. I don’t need to explain that further.” He rolled off the bed, giving me a look of reproach. “He doesn’t talk crap about you because you’re shy as shit. He doesn’t judge you. Not like you judge him, and you of all people should know better. And I’ll remind you that he’s not just my friend, he’s my family.”