“Well, apparently he didn’t,” I say quickly. “And anyhow, I just wanted a chance to be normal, you know? But I don’t think I like it.”

“Normal?” Jesse says. “What are you talking about? Why would you want to be normal?”

Like my mom, he says it like it’s a bad word. The timer on my watch beeps.

“Jesse, I’m sorry. I have to go,” I say. “I’ll be home soon.”

“Star! Don’t hang up—”

I hang up.

At the restaurant I spot a familiar face.

“Hey, Amanda,” she says as I approach her table reluctantly to get her drink order.

“Hi, Anne,” I say. It’s the dark-haired girl from last night, the one I met when Nick and I first arrived at the party. His longtime friend. One of the last people I want to see right now, thank you very much.

“Did you have a good time last night?” she asks.

“I guess,” I say. I feel like an idiot. I’m sure she saw me drunk. How embarrassing. I renew my vow never to drink again. My head is still pounding. “What can I get you?” I ask politely.

“Look, Amanda?” Anne says. She reaches forward and puts her hand on my forearm. “Can I talk to you for a minute? About Nick?”

I look at her in surprise, then shake my head.

“I’m actually really busy right now,” I say. The last thing I want to talk about now is Nick or anything having to do with Nick.

“No problem,” Anne says. “I’ll wait.”

She orders a Coke and a pepperoni calzone, and she sits in my booth reading a book until the crowd has thinned out. At two p.m., she’s still sitting there patiently, sipping her drink.

“Okay,” I say reluctantly, materializing beside her table. “You wanted to talk to me?”

She nods. “Look, about last night . . .,” she says, her voice trailing off. “I heard you met Kallie.”

I try not to make a face.

“Yeah,” I say, trying to sound casual. “I didn’t know Nick had a girlfriend.”

Anne shakes her head.

“That’s what I wanted to tell you,” she says. “Kallie isn’t his girlfriend. Not anymore, anyhow. They dated for six months. Then she cheated on him with some football player guy at her school.”

I look at Anne skeptically.

“But everyone at the party last night seemed to think they were still together,” I say. “And Kallie said so herself.”

“Kallie’s a liar,” Anne says. The vehemence in her voice surprises me. “She totally regrets cheating on him. The new guy dumped her like a week later and started dating some cheerleader. Kallie was totally embarrassed. She’s been trying to get Nick back ever since. But he doesn’t want anything to do with her. I think he feels really betrayed.”

“I know how that feels,” I mutter.