Finally! I slammed down my school bag next to the door, ran into the kitchen, grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl, and turned to leave again.

"Where are you going?" Emily had arrived back from school and she stood right between me and freedom!

"To Margot's house." I said quickly through an apple-stuffed mouth.

"Is this like a routinely thing?" Emily folded her arms.
I was antsy, anxious to get out of the house before my mom got home.

"Ya!" I tried to steer around Emily but she stepped in my path. "What!" I snapped, frustrated.

"Riley. You need to get over Claire. They're going to think you don't have a life."

"Ya, well I don't." I neglected being patient and forcefully moved  Emily out of the way.

"Unless..." She probed as I was halfway out the door. I clenched my jaw, just ignore her. "Unless you're not just to going to just see Claire anymore..."

I spun on my heal. "What?"

Emily shrugged. "Margot maybe?"

I snorted with laughter. Did Emily seriously think that I liked Margot! I'd heard her say some crazy things but that was definitely the craziest!

"I'm going to go hang out with Margot so I can be close to Claire." I clarified for her. "Claire's leaving next month so I don't have much time. Which is why I need to go before mom gets home and-"

I closed my eyes and gritted my teeth.

There was the dreaded sound of my mother's blue Suzuki Ertiga as it pulled into the driveway.

Immediately she spotted me by the door.

"Riley hun. Do you think you can help me with these groceries?" She called out to me.

I wanted to call back to her, "Mommy dear unfortunately I cannot. I have to go watch Montrose Mansion with Margot. It's very important."

Which it was.

But instead I sighed and made my way over to the car.

"Sorry Margot I'm going to be late." I muttered as I hefted up a giant watermelon.

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"You're late." Margot said as she opened the door.

"Sorry," I breathed. "My mom got home and asked me to help with the groceries, then she told me to find her reading glasses which were not in the room that she told me they were in. So I had to search the whole house.... blah blah blah." I stopped talking and my story faded away.

I frowned. I could see that Margot wasn't listening. Her mind was some place else.

"Well it's a good thing that you were late." She shut the door. "Because Emmanual came by."

I smirked, "Oh our little lover boy." I joked.

I expected Margot to roll her eyes and shut me down.

But instead she looked at me and said, "You were right."

"Huh?" I exclaimed.

She sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "He came by this afternoon and told me how he really felt about me." She looked at the floor.

"That's cute." I said. "But... you don't seem to be completely 'off the walls' about this?"

"Yeah well-"

"Hi Riley!"

I glanced over my shoulder to see that it was Claire.

"Hi Claire." I said quickly and turned back to Margot. "Yes?"

"I don't know," she said as we made our way to the couch. "He's been my friend ever since we were little. I just don't think about him in a romantic way."

I shrugged. "That's understandable. So what did you tell him?"

"Well he asked me if I'd like to do something with him. And I said...sure."

I arched my eyebrows. I was now confused. Didn't she just say she didn't like him?

Margot saw the look on my face. "It's not like I want to lead him on its just- I didn't want to hurt him."

I bit my lip. "Hmm. Lead him on... You seem to be pretty good at leading people on..." I coughed. "Uh- Thailand!" I gave her a pointed look.

She rolled her eyes. I wasn't going to let the fact that she'd kept one of the most important details of the year a secret from me!

"Ugh. Not this again. You're lucky I even told you."

"Ya." I muttered. "Completely blessed."

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A/N: Emmanual is in the equation now!
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