Kiss and Break Up - Ella Fields Page 0,89

“I don’t know. All I know is it’s an emergency.”

“If you come home stinking of weed, I’ll confiscate your Xbox and phone.”

Church came prancing down the hall, his folded ears twitching as he met my leg and started curling himself around it. “Not to sound like I don’t like having you here and all—”

Dad snorted. “Let’s not waste time with lies.”

“Fine. Why are you home so much all of a sudden?”

At that moment, Mom’s heels clapped down the stairs, heading this way.

Dad actually smiled at her as she used our hallway like her own personal runway. I looked back at her and found a mirrored smile. A real one. Teeth and all.

Ew.

“Okay, so this is fun, but I have places to be.”

“You’re grounded,” Mom said, breezing by me to latch her arm around Dad’s waist.

“What is this? Gang warfare?”

Mom rolled her eyes, then inspected her nails. “So dramatic.”

Dad hummed, taking another sip of coffee. “Wonder where he gets that from?”

Mom and I both glared at him.

He chuckled, then jerked his head. “Go on then. Be home by four. We’re going to dinner.”

“Okay.” I stopped. “Say what?”

Mom’s red lips pursed as she fiddled with the waist of Dad’s sweatpants. “You heard him. Dinner. Where we eat food. Together.”

I blinked, then started backing away before they suggested a trip to Disneyland.

I’d been before, but it was Peggy’s mom and dad who’d taken us, not long before they’d split.

“Four, Dash,” Dad reiterated.

I waved over my head. “What-the fuck-ever.”

Raven and Lars were already there, Raven’s remote-control car doing three sixties in the bowl.

“Didn’t know it was an official car date,” Raven said.

I grunted, sliding under the railing with my own. “Couldn’t be fucked to ride.”

“What’s with the dazed look?”

“My parents.”

Lars raised a brow.

I set my car down, turning on the remote. “Call me crazy, but I think they might actually dig each other.”

Lars scoffed. “They are married.”

“Yeah, but Dad’s been home more, and I haven’t seen Emanuel since the start of school.”

Raven lit a cigarette. “Guess maybe they’re tired of messing around.”

I made my little Mazda RX-7 leap over the smaller jump, cringing as it hit the ground too hard and the bumper scraped over the concrete. Hitting the brake, I shook my head, baffled. “The world is changing. I don’t do well with too much change.” I’d do better if I had a certain curly haired blonde still at my beck and call, but I’d make it happen. No other alternative existed for us. We would be us again but even better. Dash and Peggy 2.0.

If she thought I could be friend zoned again, I’d kiss the stupid right out of her.

“Tell me about it,” Jackson said, jumping over the rail with a bottle of Jack.

“You fuck.” I leaned forward, pulling a squashed as hell pack of cigarettes from my back pocket. Sliding one between my teeth, I talked around it. “Bringing something to drink when I can’t fucking have any.”

He cracked the top as I lit my smoke with Raven’s lighter. “I’m not sharing anyway.”

Jackson sat over the lip, legs hanging. I frowned at his tense posture and the way his shoulders were curving inward as though he’d been battling something for too long and was now defeated.

“Why can’t you drink?” Rave asked, taking his lighter back.

“Daddy Dearest said not to, and I rather like my Xbox and phone.” I blew out a long stream of smoke, my eyes closing as the nicotine worked its magic. “Need them to stalk Peggy, or I wouldn’t care so much about their sudden attempts at parenting.”

“Enough about your shit.” Jackson downed a long chug of whiskey, then swiped a hand over his mouth. “Got actual problems here.”

We all looked at him, waiting. “Well?” I asked when he did nothing but stare down into the bowl.

He took another sip, not even wincing as he swallowed. “Our parents found out.”

“Fuck,” Lars spewed.

Raven’s mouth hung open.

I pursed my lips. “And?”

Jackson shook his head, glaring at me, then sighed. “And Willa’s moving to her dad’s.”

“They caught you?” Lars asked.

I laughed through a haze of smoke. “No shit, Sherlock.”

“No,” Jackson said, and my cigarette almost fell from my mouth. “Someone tipped them off.”

Peggy

I can feel you. So hot and wet …

Growing flustered, I removed myself from bed. From the memories tied to it and the temptation to touch myself as I let them blaze through my head.

After dressing, I scarfed down a banana while Mom made coffee. She’d been quiet yesterday after our talk on Saturday, which pretty much consisted