“Thank you again for letting me crash your party. It was good to see you again.” Hayley pulled Parker into a hug and accepted one from Grayson.

I hugged both, too. I knew Parker needed friends and if I could get through this night, then having a friendship with her was doable. Hayley and I were silent until I pulled out of the driveway.

“Holy fuckballs! She’s so into you still!” Hayley squeezed my leg. “I mean, I was waiting for the room to explode. So much chemistry.”

“Fuck. I can’t have that, sis. She’s married to my quarterback. I’m technically his boss. Please tell me you’re just reading into it.”

Hayley turned to me, this time squeezing my arm. “Are you kidding me? The tension was there when we walked in the house. At first I thought he was oblivious, but did you see that look they shared when I said you and Lexi broke up?”

I clenched the steering wheel, refusing to let my mind wander. “He knows we have a past. I’m sure that’s all it is. We even talked about it before he took the job. I told him there wasn’t a problem with us working together.” I paused, thinking back to Parker searching my face for answers in the soft moment we shared in the kitchen. Her guard was down for a minute. Mine was down for fifty-five seconds. I looked at Hayley. “She’s off limits.”

Hayley sighed and flopped back in the seat. “I know. And all this sucks for you. It can’t be easy.”

“It’s weird really. At first, I was avoiding her at all costs. I locked away the feelings I had for her. I never let go and seeing her again just brought everything to the surface. That’s why I’m suffering now.”

Hayley’s soft voice punctured the momentary fairy tale. “She’s suffering, too. Maybe if we stay up all night and talk things through, you’ll feel better about your situation. That always worked when we were young.”

I took her hand. “Thank you for being the best friend in the whole world.”

“Ride or die, sister.”

I nodded. “Ride or die.”

Chapter Seventeen—The Snap

Past

Even though I was the assistant principal’s daughter, I still had to fill out all the forms for the gay club I wanted to start at Oak Grove. I was stuck on the line for faculty advisor.

“What about Mr. Everett? He’s pretty cool and he knows you’re gay,” Haley asked.

“He’s old,” I said.

“So what? Old people can’t support gay and lesbian students? My grandmother loves you.”