I stalled some more. “Can I just dry my hair first?”
Before they could say a thing, I found my blow drier and turned it on, then found a comb and slowly worked through my still wet strands to stall some more. I took a whole five minutes but stopped at last because my hair was perfectly dry. I even burned myself a little, and I knew I had to turn it off or ruin my hair.
“You guys don’t want to eat first?” I suggested. “It’s on me this once.”
I hadn't exhausted my allowance for the month yet, even after last night, and if I needed more money, I could just make a few calls. It wouldn’t bother me a bit to drop a little money, if it got me out of this interrogation. It was a Saturday, too, and we had no classes. Alicia and Caroline liked to get out of campus and go to a café nearby. The prices weren’t cheap, but the selection of pastries and coffees was more than what we could get on campus, and they usually talked me into paying after we went the first time and I offered.
“Do you not want to tell us?” Alicia asked, her face a picture of disappointment.
I froze.
“Yeah,” Caroline added, suspicious now. “It’s not such a big deal, right? You’re just telling us some random guy’s name. It’s not like you know him, right?”
It was true that I didn’t know him, and that was partly what bothered me. If I told them his name and Alicia and Caroline told everybody… What would I do if he told people about me once he realized I was the one that told? Well, not that I thought he was that kind of guy after how amazing he was last night.
“Sorry, guys,” I said, though I didn’t sound sorry at all as I turned to look at them. “A girl never kisses and tells.”
I didn’t try to hide behind humor, because the questions wouldn’t stop. I wanted them to know I was serious about this. They got the message, but they were not happy about it.
Alicia frowned. “The only reason you even know about this is because of me, so tell us, alright? I even gave you the number.”
I sighed and leaned back on my desk. “See, that’s fine and all, but if you want to know, then try it for yourself.”
Her jaw dropped. “You have to pay first, and you saw how expensive it was.”
“Yeah,” Caroline added a little petulantly. “If it had been one of us, even if we put our funds together, no way could we afford half of it if we want to keep eating every day.”
I bit my lip, because I felt a bit undecided, though I didn’t waver. I considered them my friends, and I did a lot of things for them. I looked at them both now and I started to wonder why I had to do everything they said. Why I wanted them to be my friends so desperately that I felt like I had to meet every demand they made.
That’s the thing; I don’t actually have to.
“You can find a different way, then,” I said, and blinked a look that I hoped screamed ‘tough luck’ at them.
They watched me silently for a long moment, and even though I felt uneasy inside, I didn’t lower my head. After a long moment, Alicia sighed and got up. Caroline glanced at her before doing the same.
“I never thought you were that kind of girl,” Alicia said with a shake of her head and my eyes narrowed.
“It’s disappointing,” Caroline added. “But I guess it’s to be expected. Your mom’s rich, so you just wanted us to think you were cool to fit in, right? We can’t match your numbers.”
I pursed my lips but didn’t say anything. They weren’t the only people talking about my wealth. I didn’t even know how people knew, but the fact that my background was a bit higher than most of my classmates had gotten around. I’d tried to be careful because people could be awkward about that sort of thing, but somehow it still got out. It had been such a pain in high school; I guess I shouldn’t have expected college to be different.
“We’ll be heading out,” Alicia continued, her tone churlish. “But don’t worry, you don’t have to treat us to anything, we can pay for ourselves.”
They headed for the door, and I didn’t even think to stop them. My arms were crossed over my chest, and I held my hands in tight fists against my sides. They left the room, and I let out a sigh as all the tension left my body. I didn’t find myself all that sad, even though I had a feeling they would start avoiding me from then on.