"Would you be willing to tell Quinn that?"
"Kill a little jealousy? Sure, man, whatever you need. I'll check in and call her later," he slapped my shoulder and disappeared down the back stairwell after his friends.
I walked back into my apartment and felt the hair on the back of my neck go up. Something was off. Jasper was going to be helpful with Quinn, but why was he in such a hurry to leave?
I shook off the feeling. I had been off all day. Ever since Mr. Thomas confronted me about breaking up with Sienna, I had felt jumpy. He had said what I had always felt sick about. I had broken up with Sienna and then she committed suicide. Was I to blame?
I replayed the rest of the day in my head. At the tournament, I had thought it best to stay away from Quinn. Not only was Mr. Thomas watching my every move, but he had to have told her about it on the car ride. Only later did I realize he had said nothing to Quinn. She was the only person that did not blame me for Sienna's suicide. And I had treated her badly.
I paced around the kitchen island. I had to tell her about what her father had said. It wasn't so much that he blamed me, but that he was right in thinking the timing of our breakup affected Sienna's decision. There was no good way to broach the idea that Quinn’s sister had died because I broke her heart.
Even as I thought about it, I knew it did not feel true. Sienna had not been brokenhearted over the breakup. Things had not been right with us for a while. But if Mr. Thomas was going to try to keep Quinn away from me, it was exactly the kind of accusation he would level against me.
I picked up the phone and dialed Quinn's number. It rang and rang before her voicemail picked up. I hung up and tried again. The third time it had not yet reached her voicemail when a heavy knock shook my door. I hung up the phone.
The police were back, and they pushed their way into my apartment without a word. One of the uniformed men tossed me another search warrant and they started to take the place apart.
Like my life, I thought. Everything getting knocked out of place.
Chapter Seventeen
Quinn
I got in the door and was relieved to find both my parents were out. My father was meeting with a client in preparation for an upcoming trial. My mother had decided to indulge in a spa package in order to relax. All I needed to relax was a pizza and the quiet house.
The only problem was after I had ordered the pizza, all I could do was pace. I still felt the rush of adrenaline from the accident scene. It played over and over in my head, and each time, I was amazed. My body had reacted before my brain caught up. Then, my mind worked faster and more fluidly than it ever had during class. I made decisions quickly, recalled what I had learned in first aid training, and it had all felt so natural.
When the phone rang, I was so distracted that I did not notice the unknown caller icon. "Hello?"
"Is this Quinn Thomas?" a cheerful male voice asked.
"I'm sorry, who is this?"
"My name is Evan. Is this the Quinn Thomas that used my mother's Hermes scarf as a sling?"
"Evan! You surprised me. How did you get this number?" I asked.
"Well, you did not accept our dinner invitation, but you did tell me your name and that you were a local so I looked you up," Evan said. "Now I understand about not wanting dinner, but my parents and I would really like to thank you."
"Please don't. It was nothing," I said. How could I explain how exhilarating I had found his accident?
"It’s not just us that thought so," Evan said. "The EMTs were pretty impressed too. We all got to talking and I think we've come up with a great suggestion."
"You talked about me on the way to the hospital?"
"All good things. So, as a thank you, my parents and I would like to offer to pay for your EMT training and certification. To be honest, we did the research and it may have cost more to take you to that five-star restaurant," Evan said. "This way, we figure our thank you will end up helping a lot more people."
I laughed. "That is very generous of you, but I cannot accept that much money from you. I'm just glad you are okay."
"Just consider it," Evan said. He gave me his number and hung up.
I was still smiling when my mother came in carrying the pizza. "I paid for it in the driveway," she said. "I hope that's okay."
"Thanks." I pulled out an extra plate and napkin for her.
"So," my mother said as she sat down at a kitchen stool, "what are you smiling about?"
She was so relaxed and calm it was hard not to feel at ease around her. "I think I know what I want to do," I said.