Clique Bait - Ann Valett Page 0,21

It was growing harder and harder to separate the two.

He switched the radio on, allowing my thoughts to drift. I wondered how things would be today. Would I be welcome at the table again? Would Claire insist I join her in physics class?

My questions were quickly answered. I gave a feigned flirty farewell to William and headed to class to be enthusiastically greeted by Claire again. She babbled to me about her invitation to a party held by a student from Richmond Prep this weekend.

“Anyway, you should totally try and make it,” she concluded, her voice low so the teacher wouldn’t overhear. “It will be so much fun.”

“I’ll check my plans and let you know,” I assured her. By check my plans, I meant check if Level One would be attending. But with Claire’s enthusiasm, I was already suspecting they would be.

“See you later,” she said once class ended, giving me a wave before disappearing into the throng of students.

The rest of the morning flew by, and before I knew it, it was time to face the Level Ones in the cafeteria. I went to my locker, dropped my textbooks onto the shelf, and swapped them for a purse so I could buy a cappuccino. As I closed it, I saw Sophie making her way over to me.

“Hey, Whittaker,” she said. Her pale eyes studied my face intently.

“Hi, Sophie,” I said, injecting an extra dose of friendly into my voice. “How are you?”

“Just peachy,” she said. Her fingers reached to touch my hair, and I had to force myself not to duck from her hand. “Cute pin.”

My cheeks warmed at her noticing it. Did she know it was Monica’s, or was that supposed to be one of her intimidating not-quite-compliments? “Thanks.”

“Coming to lunch?” she asked. “I hear Will’s saving you a seat again.”

“Yeah,” I breathed. “That sounds great.”

She gave me a smirk before spinning on her heel. I followed her hesitantly, paranoid that she had some kind of sinister motive.

“Chloe!” A hand tapped my back before I could process the voice. It was Jack, his black hair mussed from the rain. “I was trying to find you.”

A sharp dread filled me as I looked from him to Sophie. I hadn’t considered a situation in which he would be close enough to cause trouble with my plan. He knew too much about me and Monica—it would be so easy to slip . . .

“Coming, Chloe?” Sophie asked, her eyes flitting to assess Jack in the way someone might look when testing whether food had gone spoiled.

“Yeah—I just, um, why were you looking for me?” I asked Jack, internally swearing at myself for displaying my inner conflict.

“I was wondering if you wanted to eat together . . . but—”

“Don’t you know she has a boyfriend?” Sophie asked patronizingly.

Jack looked at her as if she had just brought a knife to his throat. “Of course.”

“Then stop being so obsessed,” she said bluntly. Then she turned to me as if I was her best friend. “Come on, Chlo, I have to talk to Maddy about an assignment.”

I tried to give Jack an apologetic look as I followed Sophie to the cafeteria, guilt creeping over me. He was hurt. It was obvious.

William was already waiting for me with two coffees in his hands. The aroma of the one he held out brought a grateful smile to my lips. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

I couldn’t tell if it was part of the act, or a genuine gesture, but it helped calm my nerves a little. It was a small—and probably delusional—reminder that at least someone was there to stop me from being plunged into the depths of Level One alone. Even so, a feeling of dread slowly settled in my abdomen.

Having William Bishop by my side was growing much too comfortable.

Luckily, my presence was largely ignored at the table today. Sophie was busy giving homework answers to Maddy, while William and Zach did a play-by-play of yesterday’s lacrosse practice. I picked at the salad I’d packed and tried unsuccessfully to tune in to Lola and Francis’s murmured conversation.

“Still on for tonight?” William asked, pulling me from my attempted eavesdropping.

“Yep,” I said. “I’ve got it all with me.”

“Great.” He looked a little relieved but quickly turned back to Zach to resume their conversation.

“So who was that guy, Chloe?” Sophie asked, propping her chin on her knuckles and raising a brow.

“Oh, Jack?” I asked, trying my best to keep a poker face as she scrutinized me.

“Yeah. He seemed really into