“Seriously?” Peak says. “Since when do you care? You’ve gone to school in your pajamas.”

“Please, Jubi.”

Peak glances back at me, looking worried. “Come with me?”

“He’s fine,” Jayla says. “I don’t bite. You’ll only be gone a second. I’m sure he can handle it.”

“Do you mind?” she asks, and I don’t miss the hope in her voice. It feels a little bit like my sister asking me if I’m safe, and it makes me bristle.

“It’s fine. Walk the dog.” I expected this, to be honest. Although, to be fair, I definitely did not expect the lecture would come from someone in drama-llama pants. And yet.

And yet.

Peak looks at me once more, and then a whine from Cooper seems to seal the deal. She hops up and slips his leash off the hook on the wall, clipping it onto him and stepping out the sliding glass door on the other side of the room.

“We don’t have a fenced yard,” Jayla says, like that matters. I feel like she would have found another way to send Peak outside even if they did.

I lean forward, resting my elbows on my knees, which I’m trying so hard not to bounce.

becoolbecoolbecoolbecoolbecool

“Is this where you give me the whole ‘if you hurt her, I’ll kill you’ speech?”

She sets down the lotion and looks at me, really looks at me, and I squirm a little in my seat. “No.”

“No?”

“No, I’m not going to give you the speech, because it doesn’t matter.”

“What do you mean?”

“It doesn’t matter what I say. You’re still going to hurt her.” I start to protest, but she shakes her head. “It’s not a knock against you. Everybody hurts everybody, even if they don’t mean to. Especially if they don’t mean to.”

“Then why is she outside?”

She narrows her eyes. “I just hope you know what you’re doing.”

“I have no idea what I’m doing,” I snort. “But I’m trying.”

Her eyes flick down to my bouncing knee and then back to my face. “How messed up are you, exactly? Like very or just moderately?”

“Very,” I say. I should be offended, but I’m not. I’m sure Jubilee has told her things; I’m glad she has someone to talk to.

Jayla nods, like she expected that answer. Peak said there wasn’t a test, but there is, there always is.

“For whatever reason, Jubi is convinced that you’re worth the drama. If she thinks you’re this special, I doubt you totally suck. I’d like it if we didn’t hate being around each other, for Jubi’s sake. That’s all I wanted to say.”

My ears get warm, and I stare down at my socks, wiggling my toes to distract myself. “Thanks?” I am profoundly uncomfortable now.