He was the one who got the next photo. This time it was bigger, and it was in his locker.
He found me at lunch and pulled me aside. And at first I didn’t get what he was saying, and then I was just sad, because even though it was freaking me out, it had still felt special to have it only happening to me.
“It’s a gravestone,” I said when he showed it to me.
“Yeah, I know.”
“I can’t read it.”
Jack looked at me funny then.
“Do you really not know what it is?” he asked.
I shook my head. I had no idea what he was talking about.
He tried to stare me down.
“Look, Evan, I need to know: Did you put this in my locker?”
“What do you mean?”
“If this is your kind of sick joke, that’s fine. I know things have been messed up. But this crosses the line.”
His accusation stung. At the very least, I thought we had trust.
“Jack,” I said, “I didn’t put it in your locker. I’ve never seen it before.”
“She never told you?”
“Told me what?”
There must have been enough disbelief in my voice, because he relented a little.
“Never mind,” he said.
“No. Tell me.” Even though it was in his locker, the photo was still at least partly mine.
“She never told you?”
“No.” You never told me what you saw in him. Not convincingly.
“This,” he said, pointing at the gravestone, “is where she and I first kissed.”
Did I tell you I didn’t want to know? Or did you choose not to tell me?
Jack looked all messed up now, and I needed him not to be. Being messed up was my thing, not his.
“What the hell’s going on?” he asked. “Is this about Miranda?”
I was confused. “Miranda?”
“Look, Ev—you know Miranda Lee?”
I nodded.
“We … well, we might be dating. I mean, I want us to be. And I think we are. We just haven’t, you know, had the conversation yet.”
“Oh.”
“I was going to tell you.”
“Why? I mean, you don’t have to.”
“C’mon, Ev. I was going to tell you. I mean, it’s not anything yet. And it’s not like I’m … I mean, it’s been a while. And Miranda’s really nice.”
She was. Nice.
Part of me was happy for him. Happy happy happy. And part of me was just … surprised. It felt … wrong sudden disloyal mean I didn’t know what it felt.
I didn’t know what to say. So instead I held up the photo of the gravestone and told him, “You have to show me where it is.”