Me & My Invisible Guy Read Online Free PDF Page A

over.”
    “But… it’s been over.”
    “I know. I mean, I know that. I just thought he’d quit being such a jerk someday. That he’d realize he’d lost me. That he’d for once use his brain to make a decision.”
    I didn’t know what to say. She had dumped him, and he had been trying to get her back—but she was crying because he didn’t succeed?
    “Tess, I’m sorry, but I’m lost here. Help me out.”
    She leaned her head back against the wall and wrapped her arms around her knees. “I didn’t realize, until like ten minutes ago, how over it really was. He’s not going to change.” She wiped at her face again. “So now we both need dates for homecoming.”
    I wasn’t going to let her switch the subject that easily. “What did he do?”
    “He slept with Cammie Herst. And it shouldn’t bother me. It shouldn’t matter what he does with himself anymore….”
    But obviously it did. I leaned my head against hers and tried to think of something brilliant and profound to say. But nothing came. Other than some random thoughts of causing bodily harm to Alex, I didn’t know how to make any of it better.
    On the way home, Tess shut down talk of Alex and turned the subject back to the fund-raiser. It wasn’t until we walked into my room that she stopped debating profit margins. She dropped her bag and did a slow three-sixty in the center of my room.
    “What happened in here?”
    The walls did look pretty blank without Todd anywhere.
    She looked at me. “So you really did it this time.”
    I glanced around, still not used to the bareness myself. “Yeah.”
    She threw her arms around me and squeezed. “I’m so proud of you. Did you find out why Liam was being a jerk?”
    “Yeah.”
    “And…”
    “Rumors. Apparently he was offered a great deal of info about me.”
    “You told him you don’t have a boyfriend, right?”
    “Yeah. But it doesn’t matter.”
    Tess pushed me. “Yes, it does! One, you talked to him. And two, you talked to him after breaking up with Todd. We should shoot off fireworks or something.”
    “Speaking of fireworks. Your mom?” I twisted the ring on my finger.
    Tess’s grin slid from her face, and her eyes darkened. “There’s nothing new to tell you. Just the same story on continuous replay. She makes me feel like the psycho. And my sister? If I were older, I’d take Ashley and leave.”
    “I thought your mom was going to that counselor.”
    Tess let out a hard laugh. “Yeah, that lasted one session. A record for her, though.” Tess changed into a T-shirt and cotton pants.
    “Did you keep anything?” she asked, switching gears.
    “Why bother?”
    “Oh, I don’t know. It’s just so weird to see your room like this.” She pulled a notebook from her backpack and then sat cross-legged on the bed. “Okay. We need to plan the best fund-raiser ever.”
    Tess didn’t want to think about her mom. And I wasn’t about to make her.
    So I went with it.

CHAPTER 4

    Tess drove me to school, and we rode in mutual silence. Neither of us were “morning people,” so we had an ongoing pact to give each other space to get coherent before speaking. It usually worked pretty well, but Tess had been woken up by a cell phone call from her mother and was fuming. We swung by her house so that she could check on Ashley. Tess came out quickly, but I could tell that she was still really upset.
    So I broke the pact.
    “Was Ashley okay?”
    Tess kept her eyes on the road. “She’s fine. But she didn’t have any lunch money, clean clothes, or anything to eat for breakfast. I gave her extra so she could eat at school.”
    “And your mom?”
    Tess scowled. “Passed out again. I never spoke to her.”
    Tess pulled into the parking lot and jammed the Jeep into park. But as soon as she stood up and closed the door, she seemed to shake off the reality of what was going on at home and put a smile on her face.
    I was totally impressed every time.
    We went inside together, and even though I was