shout, "Tell me I'm having a nightmare!"
I roll back over to face the door just as PJ, Amber's ex, busts his way in. "Hey there, sweet thing," he says, kissing both her cheeks, French style. "Guess who arrived to light up your life?
And don't say Debby Boone."
"Who?" Amber asks.
"Leave it to you not to know a real musical artiste when you hear one. Now, I don't have Skittles, but I'm always looking for a good time. Will peanut M&M's suffice?" He flashes the yellow package inside his pocket. "Saved all the green ones for you, Trisket."
"What are you doing here?" she asks, her mouth hanging open in a gawk.
Except for his hair color, which he tends to change at least twice a semester and which, at present, oddly appears to be a mainstream shade of honey brown (to contrast his 118
usual shades of plum purple and melon orange), he looks exactly the same-- tall, thin, with dark gray eyes and short, spiky hair.
'And you thought you could slip your little self away from me so easily"
"PJ!" I say, leaping out of bed. I wrap my arms around him, even surprising myself. I mean, PJ
and I have never been close; it's just, after everything, it's refreshing to see a familiar face--
especially one that knows what I'm going through, who was there when I lost Jacob.
"Hey there, Miss B," he says, hugging me back. "I meant to call you once or a hundred times, but you know how it goes for a swanker like me-- "
"Too busy harassing girls?" Amber asks.
"No way, my jealous jar of jelly The only girl I'd ever think of harassing is you." He winks at her and then focuses back on me. "So how are you feeling?" Instead of answering, I squeeze him tighter. "Better watch out, teacup," he says to Amber, "you might have a little competition on your hands."
"It's good to see you," I say breaking the embrace.
"Am natural, my little witchy one."
"What's going on?" Janie asks, sitting up in bed.
"Chips ahoy," PJ says, stepping over a pile of clothes to greet her. He extends his hand for a shake, but ends up kissing the back of her hand instead, his lips landing on a sticker of a happy bunch of grapes. "I'm PJ; maybe you've heard of me?"
"Yeah," Janie says. "You must be Amber's ex-boyfriend."
119
"So she has talked about me." PJ taps a finger over his lips in thought.
"Just a little," Janie says, picking a matching grape sticker off her face.
"Do tell. I suppose she told you all about our fits of passion, how she couldn't keep her hands off me . . . the little schoolboy outfits she had me wear. Such a kinkoid, that one." He growls.
"Maybe in your dreams," Amber says.
As a matter of fact, I have been known to wake up in the middle of the night-- sweaty jammers torn askew, screaming out your name . . . feisty little one." He winks at her.
"Help!" Amber moans.
"Don't let her negativity fool you," he continues to Janie. "She's just bitter because I broke it off with her. See that Spider-Man doll over there? She closes her eyes at night and imagines it's me."
"Oh my god, you're so cute," Janie says, hopping up and down on her bed.
"Finally a lady with taste," he says.
"Do you go here?" Janie asks.
PJ turns to Amber. "I do now."
"Um . . . what?" Amber's mouth hangs open.
PJ's completely beaming now. "Guess who Beacon University's newest transfer student happens to be?"
"Tell me you didn't."
"Gotta love a straight-A first semester at community college, late registration here, and a hefty donation from Dad to sweeten the deal."
120
"Oh my god," Amber says, taking a seat on her bed. "This isn't happening. Tell me this isn't happening."
"Au contraire, my thorny little bush." PJ pounces down next to her, planting not one, not two, but three mushy kisses on her cheek. "Believe it or not, there is a splash of bad news amidst all this loveliness."
"There's more?" Amber groans.
"I'm homeless."
"How's that possible?" I ask.
"The dorms are all filled, that's how. I'm staying at the Shady 8 Motel and Smoke Shop down the road. So," he
I roll back over to face the door just as PJ, Amber's ex, busts his way in. "Hey there, sweet thing," he says, kissing both her cheeks, French style. "Guess who arrived to light up your life?
And don't say Debby Boone."
"Who?" Amber asks.
"Leave it to you not to know a real musical artiste when you hear one. Now, I don't have Skittles, but I'm always looking for a good time. Will peanut M&M's suffice?" He flashes the yellow package inside his pocket. "Saved all the green ones for you, Trisket."
"What are you doing here?" she asks, her mouth hanging open in a gawk.
Except for his hair color, which he tends to change at least twice a semester and which, at present, oddly appears to be a mainstream shade of honey brown (to contrast his 118
usual shades of plum purple and melon orange), he looks exactly the same-- tall, thin, with dark gray eyes and short, spiky hair.
'And you thought you could slip your little self away from me so easily"
"PJ!" I say, leaping out of bed. I wrap my arms around him, even surprising myself. I mean, PJ
and I have never been close; it's just, after everything, it's refreshing to see a familiar face--
especially one that knows what I'm going through, who was there when I lost Jacob.
"Hey there, Miss B," he says, hugging me back. "I meant to call you once or a hundred times, but you know how it goes for a swanker like me-- "
"Too busy harassing girls?" Amber asks.
"No way, my jealous jar of jelly The only girl I'd ever think of harassing is you." He winks at her and then focuses back on me. "So how are you feeling?" Instead of answering, I squeeze him tighter. "Better watch out, teacup," he says to Amber, "you might have a little competition on your hands."
"It's good to see you," I say breaking the embrace.
"Am natural, my little witchy one."
"What's going on?" Janie asks, sitting up in bed.
"Chips ahoy," PJ says, stepping over a pile of clothes to greet her. He extends his hand for a shake, but ends up kissing the back of her hand instead, his lips landing on a sticker of a happy bunch of grapes. "I'm PJ; maybe you've heard of me?"
"Yeah," Janie says. "You must be Amber's ex-boyfriend."
119
"So she has talked about me." PJ taps a finger over his lips in thought.
"Just a little," Janie says, picking a matching grape sticker off her face.
"Do tell. I suppose she told you all about our fits of passion, how she couldn't keep her hands off me . . . the little schoolboy outfits she had me wear. Such a kinkoid, that one." He growls.
"Maybe in your dreams," Amber says.
As a matter of fact, I have been known to wake up in the middle of the night-- sweaty jammers torn askew, screaming out your name . . . feisty little one." He winks at her.
"Help!" Amber moans.
"Don't let her negativity fool you," he continues to Janie. "She's just bitter because I broke it off with her. See that Spider-Man doll over there? She closes her eyes at night and imagines it's me."
"Oh my god, you're so cute," Janie says, hopping up and down on her bed.
"Finally a lady with taste," he says.
"Do you go here?" Janie asks.
PJ turns to Amber. "I do now."
"Um . . . what?" Amber's mouth hangs open.
PJ's completely beaming now. "Guess who Beacon University's newest transfer student happens to be?"
"Tell me you didn't."
"Gotta love a straight-A first semester at community college, late registration here, and a hefty donation from Dad to sweeten the deal."
120
"Oh my god," Amber says, taking a seat on her bed. "This isn't happening. Tell me this isn't happening."
"Au contraire, my thorny little bush." PJ pounces down next to her, planting not one, not two, but three mushy kisses on her cheek. "Believe it or not, there is a splash of bad news amidst all this loveliness."
"There's more?" Amber groans.
"I'm homeless."
"How's that possible?" I ask.
"The dorms are all filled, that's how. I'm staying at the Shady 8 Motel and Smoke Shop down the road. So," he
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