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so I can live longer.”
    “What’s the point of living longer if you’re not having any fun?” I asked.
    Kellen sat back, his face dark with frustration. “This isn’t a meal. It’s a dissection.”
    “Underestimated those mushrooms, didn’t you?”
    “Maybe.”
    I shook my head as I handed him half my Hammy. “You’re hopeless.”
    He smiled gratefully. He took a large bite before leaning over and planting a crumb covered kiss on my cheek.
    “And you’re the best.”
    As Kellen sat back in his seat, happily scarfing down half my lunch, my eyes met my dad’s over the table. He was chewing on a bite of his heart attack platter as he watched me. He was smiling.

     
     
     

Chapter Four
Four Months Later
     
     
     
    Kellen ended up taking Laney to his Senior Prom. As a sophomore, it was a huge win for her, one I heard about endlessly for the entire month before it happened and then all through the summer. They must have hit it off because after that they started casually dating. They still didn’t talk much when Kellen was at the house tutoring me. Nothing beyond hello, goodbye and a quick kiss that made me sick inside. Laney was really busy with activities like Dance Team and gossiping and Kellen I knew already had a busy schedule so their time together was limited to weekends. When the summer hit and they had more time they’d stay at the house and lounge around the pool or head out to parties or movies. Laney wasn’t dating anyone else and as far as I knew, neither was Kellen.
    I avoided them when they were together. It wasn’t that I was jealous of my sister trying to take over my friend. Not exactly. It was more like I didn’t understand it. Kellen was weird when he was with Laney. He wasn’t exactly the same guy he was when he was with me, but dad reminded me that Kellen and I were friends while Laney was more of a girlfriend. He was bound to act differently with her. But it didn’t seem right to me. He was always so sure of himself, so certain of every choice, of every move he made. Even when he was ordering the wrong food, he was sure that was what he wanted. You couldn’t tal k him out of it. But with Laney he was almost complacent. He was more subdued. Quieter. He let her make most of the decisions and I didn’t know if it was because he really didn’t care or if he was just trying to make her happy. Maybe that was it. Maybe that’s what relationships were. Giving up a little bit of yourself to fit with someone else.
    But then I saw him on the couch watching The Bachelor with her and I decided either I was wrong or love was. I went to sleep soundly that night, happy for once to be alone.
    “Jenna,” Laney whispered.
    She shook me roughly by the shoulder.
    “Jenna.”
    “What?” I grumbled groggily. “Whatssamatter?”
    “Wake up. I need to talk to you.”
    I rolled over until I lay on my back. Rubbing my hands up and down my face, I tried to open my eyes. My room was still dark except for the moonlight pouring in from my open window. The smell of sea salt was heavy on the air and I could hear the crashing of the waves just outside past the bluffs. It was dark in here. Peaceful. Perfect for dosing, drowsing, sleeping…
    “Wake up,” Laney hissed in my ear.
    “Ughhhhhhhh,” I groaned, sitting up. “What do you want?”
    “He said he loves me.”
    My eyes shot open. Laney was sitting on the side of my bed illuminated by the moonlight. Her eyes were bright and excited, her face flushed. Her lips full. Swollen.
    “Seriously?”
    She nodded, smiling. “Yeah. He said he loves me, Jenna.”
    I didn’t get too excited. For one, I’d heard him say that to a burrito before. A couple of times actually. Once to a Danish. And two, it made my heart hurt though I didn’t really know why. I was fourteen and feeling like I was finally closing that age gap between Kellen and I but time is a bitch and she doesn’t work like that. He’d just turned eighteen that month, widening the gap yet