Fire with Fire (Burn for Burn #2)

“And he pulled the same exact shit with you,” I say.

“Pretty much!” Lillia bites her bottom lip. “And then, to add insult to injury, Rennie pretended someone put something in her drink so Reeve had to take her home. He said he was going to come back, but then he didn’t.”

That for sure sounds like a Rennie move. And then I wonder—will Lil feel weird about Rennie coming over to my house yesterday trying to make amends? I’m about to tell her about it, but like a downplayed version minus the tears, when Mary says, “Rennie’s a witch.”

Lillia looks like she still can’t believe it. “I don’t even care about Rennie. Reeve’s a world-class manipulator. Every single thing that comes out of his mouth is a lie.” She swallows. “Not that I haven’t been lying too, obviously. But if this whole thing had been for real, I could’ve gotten hurt, you know?” Then she lets out a long sigh. “The way I tried to defend him to you guys that day in the bathroom. God, he totally had me fooled!”

“Player got played,” I say, nodding. “Damn.”

To Mary, Lillia says, “I’m so sorry I couldn’t make this happen for you. I tried though. I really, really did.”

“Lillia, don’t talk like that,” Mary protests. “I’m so grateful for everything you’ve done. It couldn’t have been easy for you to pretend the way you did for so long.”

Lillia’s eyes flutter. “Whatever. It’s no skin off my back.” And then she downs the rest of her drink.

Mary tugs on a lock of her hair. “I can’t believe it. Things were going so well. The kiss in the parking lot . . .”

“I know,” Lillia says. “He’s even invited me to his family’s open house tomorrow.”

“Wait, Reeve invited you to his open house?” This is the first I’m hearing of this. “I used to go to that shit back in the day.”

“Yeah, well, clearly that’s not happening.” Leaning her elbows up against the counter, Lillia asks, “What is an open house anyway?”

“People in the neighborhood stop by and kick it throughout the day.” I pick at my nails. “My mom and dad took me a couple of times. You watch football, trim the tree, eat food.” Then I look up and say, “Yo, it would seem to me that if Reeve’s inviting you to this, it’s a BFD. How many girls do you think he’s ever introduced to his mom?”

“I’ve met his mom before,” Lillia says. “We’ve hung out at his house plenty of times.”

I wave her off. “Yeah, but this would be in the context of, ‘Mom, Dad, Grandma, Uncle Chris, Aunt Linda, this is the girl I’m seeing.’ I doubt he’s ever done that before.” Lil opens her mouth to argue and I add dreamily, “Reeve’s mom is a bomb-ass cook. . . . Every year she makes this sick chowder with scallops and all kinds of seafood. Like shrimp, clams . . . Speaking of which, do you have anything to eat? I’m starving.”

Lillia rummages around her fridge. “I’ve got leftover pizza, Brie, hummus.”

“I’ll take some Brie,” I say. I never say no to cheese.

“What about you, Mary?” Lillia asks, setting a wedge of Brie on a wooden cutting board. She goes to the cupboard and brings back a box of water crackers and a jar of Nutella.

“I’m not hungry,” Mary says, keeping her head down. “I just can’t believe it’s over.”

I look at Lillia. Because I’m not sure sure either. I would have bet my life on the fact that Reeve liked her. Then again, I wasn’t here last night.

Lillia rolls her eyes. “It is what it is. And I’m glad it’s over with. Now I don’t ever have to be nice to Reeve Tabatsky again for the rest of my life.” She picks up the remote. “Let’s watch a movie, something girly.”

I groan and Lillia throws a pillow at my head.

We’re in Lillia’s room, listening to music and talking. It’s getting late; it’s almost two in the morning. Mary’s lying on the floor with her blond hair fanned out around her. Abruptly she says, “Do you guys think Rennie and Reeve hooked up last night?”

Lillia gasps, and I nearly cough up the beer I nabbed from the fridge. “No way!” Lillia says.

“Why not?” Mary wants to know.

“Because,” Lillia sputters, “there’s no way. Hello, her mom was home! And also . . . I don’t think Reeve would do that.”

“Psh, Reeve is a man whore,” I say. “He would totally do that. He’s totally done that. Like, multiple times. Get it?” I bust up laughing, but Mary and Lillia don’t laugh with me. Mary just looks confused.

Delicately, Lillia dips her finger into the jar of Nutella. “Your innocence is special. That’s why you have to be careful. Mary, promise me that you won’t just hook up with some random guy unless you know you can trust them.”

I roll my eyes and take a swig of my beer. “Chill out. Mary’s still in the V club like you, so don’t you worry.”

Lillia goes still all of a sudden. Her face is white.

“What’s wrong?” I ask her. “What did I say?”

Lillia shakes her head. She looks like she’s going to cry.

“It’s okay,” Mary whispers. “You don’t have to say.”

Lil’s voice comes out strangled. She can’t even look at us. “I’m not a virgin anymore. I—I lost it to some guy I didn’t even know.”

I’m sort of in a state of shock. Lil? Hooking up with a rando? “For real? You? I could never picture you hooking up with a random dude. I thought you were saving it till marriage!”

Tears start rolling down her cheeks, and I feel like a dirtbag. Mary gives me an admonishing look, and I shrug back helplessly. What’s wrong with me? Why do I always say the first stupid shit that pops into my head?

“I was saving myself,” Lillia chokes out. “Maybe not till marriage, but at least for someone I loved. Someone who loved me.”

I reach out and give her leg a sympathetic squeeze. “My first time sucked too, Lil. It was in this guy’s basement, and his mom kept banging on the door because she wanted him to mow the lawn.”

Lillia cries harder. Her shoulders shake, and her hair covers her face.

I don’t know what to say to make her feel better. Hurriedly I add, “You know what? I think that even if it’s with someone you love, the first time still basically sucks.”