Sometimes It Happens by Lauren Barnholdt Read Free Book Online

Senior Year
     
    “Can I talk to you?” Sebastian asks again. He’s asking again because the first time he said it, I totally ignored him.
    “No, you cannot talk to her,” Ava says. “You’re not even in this homeroom, so get out of here.” She’s turned toward him in her seat now, looking vaguely threatening even though she’s wearing a very girly purple dress.
    “I wasn’t talking to you, Ava,” Sebastian says. “So mind your own business.” Yikes.
    “Look,” I say. “I don’t have anything to say to you.” Wait. So Sebastian isn’t in this homeroom? He came in here just to talk to me? So Jessica Conrad was telling the truth. Wow. He made a special trip down from the third floor just to talk to me, even though the second bell’s going to ring any second. Not like Sebastian cares about being late for class. But still.
    Whatever. It doesn’t matter if he’s not in this homeroom. I mean, it doesn’t change the fact that, when it comes down to it, I really don’t have anything to say to Sebastian. He’s pretty much been ignoring me all summer, except fora couple of weeks ago when he randomly showed up at my house around one in the morning causing kind of a big scene, and then when he showed up at the diner causing an even bigger scene.
    “You have nothing to say to me?” Sebastian asks, sounding pissed, and a little bit surprised. “Does this have anything to do with Noah?”
    “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I say quickly, rolling my eyes and turning back to Ava, hoping she gets the point that Sebastian is a raving lunatic who has no idea what he’s talking about.
    “Is that why he was at your house the other night at one in the morning? And why he almost punched me?” The warning bell rings, signaling homeroom is going to start in one minute, and Sebastian stands up. “I’ll wait for you after homeroom,” he says to me. He shoots Ava a dirty look, and then takes off.
    “Noah almost punched him this summer?” Ava asks. “Why?” She’s turned completely toward me now, her eyes wide and questioning. Shit, shit, shit. Damn that Sebastian. Seriously, what is with him? Like he hasn’t ruined my life enough.
    “Oh, um, it was nothing,” I say. I uncap my pen and open my notebook, trying to look normal and like my biggest priority is writing down any important info we’re going to get in homeroom. “Sebastian stopped by the diner, you know, and he was being a jerk as usual.”
    “And Noah punched him?”
    “No. I mean, he almost did, but it didn’t really come to that.” I say it like there’s a big difference between actually punching someone and almost punching someone, which I guess there kind of is. I mean, you can’t get arrested for almost punching someone, even though the intent is the same.
    “Was he messing with Noah or something?” Ava asks.
    “No,” I say, shifting on my chair. This part, at least, is true. But luckily, I don’t have to say that, or explain it, because Mrs. McGovern walks in and starts taking attendance. Which is good. Because there’s no way I want Ava to know the real reason that Noah almost punched Sebastian. And that’s because of me.

The Summer
     
    “It’s definitely broken,” my mom says, looking down at our washer with a frown on her face. Ava only left three days ago, and already my life has hit a new low. Friday night. And I’m doing laundry. Although I guess it’s not technically night. I mean, it’s five o’clock, which is more like evening. And I guess I’m not technically doing laundry, because as soon as I put my clothes into the machine and tried to start it, the whole thing made this ridiculously horrible noise with lots of shuddering and shaking and then just . . . died.
    “Maybe it’s unplugged or something,” I say hopefully. I look behind the washer, but the cord is plugged right into the wall outlet. It stares back, taunting me. I think it might be pissed off. The washer, I mean. It could probably