Beware of Bad Boy(15)

I opened my mouth to comment on a couple things she said, but she wasn’t done yet. “When Gianna started hanging out with the crew, she really came out of her shell. I feel so bad for her, though, being so gorgeous. You know she hates it, don’t you? She knows that most girls only want to be around her because she attracts guys’ attention. And, of course, you know why guys want to be around her.” She tilted her head to the side and studied me. “No offense, but I’m getting a definite player vibe coming off you.”

“None taken,” I replied wryly.

She shrugged one small shoulder and continued, “Anyways, in eighth grade, she heard all the other popular girls at school, who pretended to be her friend, talking shit about her in the bathroom. After that, she tried making friends with some unpopular kids, but they acted weirded out and nervous around her, like they had to impress her. I really hope she stays broken up with Josh, though.”

“Me, too,” I got in quickly, thinking of last night.

“He’s so obsessive about her. She told me once that she wishes she could come live with us, but she knows her mom would never allow it. I tell her to say fuck off to everyone, but she won’t. She’s always worried about pleasing everyone else around her, especially her mom, and in the process she makes herself miserable. Her mom has been conditioning her to be a certain way since she was little. It just makes everything jumbled in her head, her wants and her mom’s expectations. So, what exactly are you worried about?”

Like I said, this girl liked to talk. Summing it up to her satisfaction, I told her, “Basically the same thing.”

She popped up to give me a hug. “I’m so glad there’s someone up in Broomfield looking out for Gigi.” This made me feel guilty, for about two seconds.

“Don’t worry,” I assured her. “I’m going to make sure things are different for Gianna at home and school from now on.” I was feeling mixed up myself. I hadn’t decided my intentions in this new game between me and Gianna. I’d think about the stuff Cece told me and figure it out later. “By the way,” I began, “the nickname, Gigi?”

Cece looked proud as she explained, “Cece and Gigi, they rhyme.”

This girl was adorable. I could see why Gianna cared about her. However, if she were my sister, I’d probably put a muzzle on her when the yapping became too much.



GIANNA



I hadn’t seen Caleb for awhile and was annoyed his absence even registered in my mind. Maybe he went home. A girl could dream. My life sucked enough already. What’d I do to make the universe punish me with an evil, devious stepbrother like him?

While I was sulking and feeling sorry for myself, I saw Caleb and Cece come out of her room down the hallway. What the hell? He was such a manwhore. He brought some girl named Skylar to the party and now he was hooking up with Cece. And what was wrong with Cece? This wasn’t like her at all. Your best friend wasn’t supposed to hook up with your stepbrother. Maybe they’d just made out. That was more like Cece. I wouldn’t even care what Caleb got up to, but this was my best friend. They were totally off limits to each other.

Caleb walked up to me and I did my best to ignore him, but he put his arm around my shoulder and asked, “Miss me?”

“Fuck no,” I told him acidly.

“Gigi, watch your mouth! Am I going to have to tell mom?” he teased me, faking astonishment.

I said through clenched teeth, “She is not your mom and it’s Gianna to you”

“You know, Gigi,” he started as if I hadn’t spoken. “I was thinking you need to have more fun, and I think I’m just the person to help you out.”

“Unlikely,” I replied sarcastically. “I’m not into banging random sluts.”

He was quiet long enough for me to turn my head to look at him. “Just a moment,” he whispered. “Okay, image burned into my brain. Gonna have to save that one for later.”

“So gross,” I muttered, shuddering in distaste dramatically.

He ignored me and continued, “Tomorrow, when I’m in charge, we’re going to work on this new goal of ours.”

“I didn’t realize you knew what the word goal meant. Unless you count that your only goal in life is to not have any real goals at all.”

“You know, that may be true in the past, but now I have two goals. Making sure you have more fun is one of them.” He glanced at his wrist where a nonexistent watch rested and said, “Hey, it’s past midnight! Technically, it’s Sunday now and you’re supposed to do whatever I say.”