What We Knew Read Online Free

for support.
    “No. I’m fine. Can you make sure she gets home?”
    The second it left my mouth, I was sorry I’d said it. I didn’t trust her that night.
    “Maybe you could call her a cab,” I said, digging through my pocket for cash I didn’t have.
    “I’ve got it,” he said. He gave me a quick kiss and tapped my nose. “Go, before you’re late.”
    It was stupid, walking alone so late at night, taking the shortest route instead of the safest. I never go that way. It’s too dark. But that night I was too busy being angry, angry with Lisa, angry with Trent. After what my father did to my mother, it hurt to think they might be the same. I was wondering whose betrayal would hurt Gabe worse—his girlfriend or his best friend—when I heard it: the whisper of rubber on concrete, a whirring chain spinning. Too close to outrun. A shadow rose up sharply, swallowing mine. Brakes squealed. A hand clutched my shoulder. My body did it again, just like that day in Troy when my arms and legs seized up instead of lashing out. Frozen, I braced for the black pain of a knife in the ribs until a familiar voice asked, “Why so tense?”
    My limbs relaxed, softening, and I turned. It wasn’t some jerk in a hoodie. It wasn’t the monster from my nightmares. Soft brown curls. Warm brown eyes. My heart took on a different rhythm, beating out Foley, Foley, Foley. I never know what to call him—Michael Foley. There needs to be a word for someone who straddles friend and soul mate. He was there for me when my parents split up. Lisa talked to me, but Foley listened. He’s one of those rare people who make you feel like you’re the most important person in the world. That he cares for no one more than you. And he means it. That’s why everyone loves him. And because everyone loves him, I can’t. I hate that he makes everyone feel special.
    I don’t like to share.
    “How’s it going with Adam?” he said. He hopped off his bike and ran his fingers through his hair. I could remember the way it felt running my own through it. I used to love his hair, especially when he let it get a little too long. Now I loved Adam’s.
    “Good! Great! Amazing!” I groaned internally—I sounded shrieky and stupid, but I couldn’t stop. “We’re so good together! I’m really, really happy!”
    “Really, really?!” Foley mimicked. I rolled my eyes. But then in that intense voice of his—the one I secretly wished was reserved for me—he said, “If not, I want to know.” After what happened with Jerk Face, Foley started keeping tabs on my boyfriends. He’s the only one who knows what really happened. Not even Lisa knows.
    “I’m a little stressed right now,” I said. “It’s been a really weird night.”
    “I’m supposed to meet Jeff Hollenbeck,” he said, shifting his weight. “Come with me and we’ll talk on the way.”
    I checked my phone. The only way I’d make it home now was if I sprinted.
    “I can’t,” I said. “Call me, okay? You never call me anymore.”
    “I will.” He smiled and my insides went soft and fluttery. “Hey, it was really good to see you,” he said, flicking my collar—Adam’s collar. “Really, really.”
    Watching him bike away, I kicked myself for not going with him. He looked back before he turned the corner and the wind caught his curls and I imagined twisting a soft lock round and round my finger. Foley’s never been my boyfriend, but we’ve fooled around. The last time was a couple of weeks before I started dating Adam. We were in the cemetery. Creepy, I know. But my mother always says it’s not the dead you have to fear, it’s the living.
    Suddenly the street turned darker and quieter. Everything stilled. It was the same feeling I’d had in the woods. Someone was watching. I could feel eyes everywhere at once. Leering, lurking. From the rooftops, the storm drains, the alley. Under my skin, inside my thoughts. My stomach twisted as my heart sped up. I started running, my eyes