Kayla spun around the straw in her drink. “Well, we probably shouldn’t have, like, bombarded you.”

Elisa nodded. “As soon as you left, we realized you probably felt kind of cornered.”

“A little,” Annabelle admitted. “But I get it now. You were trying to look out for me.”

“Sorry if we kind of bungled it, though,” Elisa said.

“And we’re really sorry if Connor hurt you,” Kayla added.

Annabelle had thought the Connor-hurt had already crested, but it hit her again at full force. “I should have realized,” she squeaked. “I shouldn’t have been so—”

“Hang on,” Elisa stopped her. “You can’t beat yourself up about this, Annabelle. It’s impossible not to be into it when someone like Connor is giving you that kind of attention.”

The way she said it, Annabelle got the impression she was speaking from experience.

“Did you . . .” She wasn’t sure how to finish the question she wanted to ask, but Elisa seemed to understand.

“We had a thing last summer. Or, I thought it was a thing.” Elisa’s voice was casual, but she tore off pieces of her napkin as she spoke. One corner, then the next, then the next. “We were close, and it seemed like it meant something, but then I found out it didn’t.”

She didn’t explain how she found that out, and Annabelle’s throat went dry as she remembered the way Connor had laughed at the pool when Jordan had called Elisa manly. Her heart hurt for last-summer Elisa almost as much as it hurt for herself.

“Well, now you have somebody way better to flirt with,” Kayla whispered to Elisa, glancing over toward the counter. Elisa’s eyes darted over, too, and Annabelle followed her gaze.

The guy who was working was tall with brown skin and short hair. When he noticed Elisa looking, he motioned for her to come over.

“Hey!” he said, pointing at the specials board. “What’s with this new drink? Chai-infused oatmilk?”

Elisa’s freckled cheeks flamed pink.

“Go,” Kayla urged. “Teach him how to make the oaty-chai magic!”

Elisa tossed her ripped-up napkin at Kayla, but she was beaming as she walked to the counter.

Kayla had gotten a giant muffin, and she pushed the plate toward Annabelle. “You want any? It’s blackberry thyme. The thyme’s kind of weird, but not bad as long as you know it’s coming.”

Annabelle took a little piece and watched Kayla tear one off, too.

She bit her bottom lip instead of eating the piece of muffin. Kayla had tried to talk to her about Connor even though that was obviously uncomfortable, but Annabelle had never said anything about where Kayla had been last summer and what she was recovering from. She still wasn’t sure how to talk about it, but she should at least try.

“Um, I know I’ve never really said anything about . . . when you were sick. And how you were at the treatment place last summer. I’m sorry you had to go through that. It must have been really hard. And I’m really happy you’re better.”