“Basically.”

Basically my ass. “So why does he hate you?”

“Because I’m a bitch,” she said simply, as though it were the most obvious answer in the world.

“Come on,” I said, trying to look her in the eyes. “You have no one to talk to except me and I can’t tell anyone in the world about you.”

“Except Khail.”

I bit back a sharp retort. “Except Khail, who I hope to never speak to again lest I die young. So spill.”

“I liked him, I tried to get with him, he rejected me, and I . . .” She rolled her eyes and I couldn’t tell if it was because she didn’t believe what she was saying, or because she couldn’t believe she was saying it. “I reacted badly.”

“What do you mean, badly?”

“I was mean to him. I kinda held some stuff over his head; I picked on his sister,” she snapped. “I am a spiteful, terrible person, okay? There, I said it. Happy?”

“What did you hold over his head?”

She shook her head. “No way. I’ve learned my lesson—it’s his business, not mine. Just . . . I was a bitch; end of story.”

“Okay.” Then the rest of her admission sank in. “You picked on his sister?” I said, too loudly.

Kimberlee slid back against my pillows with an irritated sigh. “It’s ancient history; would you just leave it alone?”

“I can’t leave it alone when it keeps coming back and slapping me in the face. Today, almost literally. Is there anything else you’d like to tell me while you’re in confessional mode? Like why do all the kids at my lunch table hate you? What did you do to them? Did you pick on them, too?”

“No!” Kimberlee said, getting pissed. Somehow pissed was better than sad. Less scary. “I was the queen of the school. In case you are unfamiliar with the pecking order, that means I was that person that everyone either adored or hated because they were jealous out of their minds. That is not my fault.”

“Jealousy? That explains everything,” I said sarcastically. “Who did like you?”

“Langdon!”

“Oh good, Langdon the asshole. I’m so proud of you.”

“And Neil,” she continued almost desperately. “Kyndra liked me too. We kinda ran the school, okay?”

“With an iron fist, maybe? I’m starting to think you were just a bully with sticky fingers.”

“I was not a bully!” Kimberlee protested.

“Oh yeah? I find that a little hard to believe from someone who admits she was mean to someone she liked. How did you treat people you didn’t like?”

“Screw you!” Kimberlee said, standing on my bed. “You have no idea what it’s like to be me!”

“That’s because half the time you won’t tell me anything, and the other half you’re lying!” I yelled back, not considering until the words were out of my mouth that my dad, at least, was almost certainly home. If I made it through this ghost ordeal without getting thrown in a padded room, I was going to be seriously proud of myself.

Kimberlee glared at me for a second and then sank through my bed and out of my room via the floor. Despite everything that had happened in the last couple weeks, my hands started to shake at the creepiness of that moment. I managed about two and a half calming breaths before my phone rang, making my heart go erratic all over again.

And seeing Sera’s name on the caller ID may have sped it up even more than that.

“Hey,” I said, hoping my voice wasn’t shaky.

“Hi. My parents are driving me nuts. You want to do something tonight? Preferably outside of my house?”

“I’m fine; thanks for asking. And how are you?”

She started to laugh and the stress of the last few hours seemed to melt away. “Sorry,” she said. “Long day. Long week, really. I wish I got to see you more.”

“Me too,” I said, the sad truth of those words sinking right into my bones.

“So can we please, please, please do something tonight?”

I loved how she asked like I would even dream about saying no. “Well, since you said please. Did you have anything in mind?”

“Something completely brainless,” she replied. “How about we actually go to a movie this time?”

“Sounds good to me. What’s playing?”

“Does it matter?” Sera asked in a tone of voice that suddenly made me feel very anxious to leave.

“No, no, it doesn’t,” I replied. “When can we go?”

“In an hour?” she suggested.

“Half,” I replied with a grin.

“You’re on.”

I laughed as my mom knocked softly and popped her head through my doorway. “You have a guest,” she said, in a weird-ass cheerful tone that made me suspect she had heard me yelling at Kimberlee. My poor mom.

“I’ll be down in a sec, Mom,” I said, but she opened the door farther, revealing Khail’s steely gaze. His shoulders were as wide as my doorway.

Just to add to the weirdness, Kimberlee was standing behind him with her arms folded over her chest. I suspected they had “run into” each other in the front yard. My mouth went dry and I think my throat may have started closing up. “Hey, listen,” I said to Sera, the words pouring out of my mouth. “On second thought, let’s go in an hour. I’ll pick you up, okay?”