answer it for about three people total. Jeremy was one of them.
“Hey, man,” I answered a little breathlessly as I walked fast, bag on my shoulder still loaded with my trig book and notebooks.
“You running somewhere?” he asked.
“Work.”
“I thought you were sticking to weekends and holiday breaks?” he said in concern.
“Mostly. But I could use a little extra.”
I wouldn’t tell him that his absence had stretched my budget. Jeremy had picked up the tab on beers and meals too often. I never should have let him do that; it was my own fault if reality was biting me in the ass.
“Ace, if you need me to float you a loan—”
“No.”
“Just until winter break—”
“No.”
“You know I don’t mind. You could pay me back later.”
“Jeremy,” I growled.
“Okay.” His voice lightened. “Just watch those grades. You’re in the homestretch now.”
I smiled. “What about you, Mr. Fellowship? You keeping your grades up?”
Jeremy was finishing his degree in Chicago while working an internship at an investment firm. It would be a great stepping-stone to a better job after graduation, but I knew he hated being so far from Benji. The Millers had always been tight. Not like us Collinses; we’d throw each other under the bus in a heartbeat if it meant getting a leg up. And my mom and stepdad considered what I’d done exactly that: choosing to go to college and no longer giving them most of my paychecks to cover their monthly bills. Home was less than three hours away, but with their junker of a car, there might as well have been an ocean between us, and that was for the best. I’d stayed up here to work over breaks, sure, but also because I didn’t want to get sucked back into their toxic atmosphere.
There was a part of me — even so close to graduating — that was still afraid I’d never get free of that life.
“I’m good,” Jeremy said. “Don’t worry about me. Just keep an eye out for Benji.”
I jogged through a crosswalk and turned a corner, huffing for breath. “You know I will.”
“Thanks, man. What about that secret admirer crap? Did that stop?”
“Uh…”
“You said you might know who was doing it.”
“Yeah,” I said, wary of what was coming.
“Then tell them to stop.”
“Would you stop worrying? It’s harmless.”
“According to you, it’s harmless. I think it’s weird.”
I winced. I felt uncomfortable enough with what I was doing. Hearing Jeremy call it weird made heat rush to my face.
“It makes Benji happy,” I mumbled, more in defense of my own actions than Jeremy would ever know.
He sighed. “You’re sure it’s harmless?”
“I’m positive.”
“I’m holding you to that.”
“I know.”
He grumbled a bit more but backed down as I neared the boutique where I’d be clocking in. “I’m almost to work. Try not to worry. I’ve got Benji’s back.”
“And I’ve got yours. Let me know if you change your mind about that loan.”
I rolled my eyes. Same old Jeremy. As much as I’d enjoy cutting back on work, I couldn’t continue to use him as a crutch. I’d get through my last year on my own, and then I’d start a fresh life far from that ramshackle trailer where I grew up.
Benji
Rain streaked the coffee shop window, turning the scene outside into a colorful blur. It made me think of rainbows, and I smiled.
“Who is Jonas?” Tracy asked.
I turned back to her and the list of “suspects.” At this point, pretty much everyone I knew was on the list and it still wasn’t that long. We’d both perused these names before, but when no more gifts had shown up, there hadn’t been much to go on. The appearance of the rainbow gift renewed Tracy’s determination to solve the mystery.
“Okay, Nancy Drew,” I teased. “Jonas is a guy with Ace’s frat.”
“Ace? Who’s that?” She scanned the list. “I don’t see him on here.”
I shrugged uncomfortably. “I know it’s not him, so…”
“How do you know?”
I scoffed. “For one thing, I’ve seen him. Way out of my league.”
Tracy lifted an eyebrow, not letting me off the hook.
I shook my head. “He’s my brother’s best friend. He knew me when I was a little kid. There’s no way.”
“Mm-hmm.” Tracy neatly printed A-C-E at the bottom of the list.
I huffed. “Fine, then you should add your name too.”
She didn’t laugh and assure me she wasn’t the secret admirer, as I’d expected. Instead, she wrote her name beneath Ace’s. “Anyone else you know but haven’t listed?”
“My roommate, Dre. He has a girlfriend, so it wouldn’t be…” I trailed off