Shut Out by Kody Keplinger (best free e book reader .TXT) đ
- Author: Kody Keplinger
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â âNSync,â Susan said, nodding. âI havenât heard this song since elementary school.â
The thing was, Finn could not sing. He wasnât horrible or anythingânot like the really, really bad people they showcase on the American Idol audition episodes. But he wasnât really talented, either. Then again, none of the boys were. They performed as backup singers while Finn strummed his guitarâsomething he was talented at.
Cashâs eyes locked suddenly with mine as the second verse ended, and my heart thrummed in my chest. I knew this was about Mary and Finnâor, more likely, about the boys sabotaging us. But for a second, I wished he was singing to me. That he was telling me he wanted to be with me. That not being with me was killing him.
And he was killing me.
I looked away and nudged Chloe, who was crouching next to me. âDear God,â I said. âTheyâre like sirens. Weâve got to close the window and stop listening.â
âLissa, look at her.â She reached out her hands and forced me to turn and face Mary.
She was standing up, peering out the window with this look on her face like she might swoon. Her eyes were wide, and for a second I worried she was about to burst into tears. She slowly lifted a hand and placed it over her chest, her gaze fixed out the window. It was like a scene out of a Nicholas Sparks book.
âShe hasnât kissed him in over a month,â Chloe whispered in my ear. âShe wonât even be alone with him. Shane says Finnâs afraid itâs more than the strike. Like sheâs lost interest in him.â
I turned my head back to look at her. âYou talk to Shane?â
Chloe shrugged. âWeâre kind of friends. Like, weâve hooked up enough that weâre comfortable with each other. We talk.â
I narrowed my eyes at her âEven when you arenât hooking up?â
Chloe gave me a fierce stare. âYes, Lissa. Stop being so paranoid. Iâve stuck to the oath, but⊠but look at her. Mary. And Finn. Look at him, too. You remember how I told you there are some
good guys out there? Heâs one of them. I know Iâm not an expert on romance, but they are clearly in love, and this is hurting them.â
I opened my mouth to say something, but Susan turned to face me, her palms pressed against the windowâher boyfriend, Luther, was one of the boys singing up to us. âLissa,â she said, âwhen can this whole strike thing be over? Itâs been, like, a month. I thought it would be done by now.â
âYeah,â a few of the girls echoed. âI thought you said two weeks.â
âStop,â I said, jumping to my feetâIâd been kneeling by the window. âThis is what they want. They want us to give in. But we canât. We have to stay strong. We have to win.â I pushed Kelsey out of the way and positioned myself in front of the window just as the song ended and the last notes of Finnâs guitar were carried off by the October wind.
âGo home,â I called down to them. âThis wonât workâand youâll wake up the neighbors.â
âMary!â Finn called, ignoring me.
I felt Mary come up behind me so she could peer over my shoulder out the window.
âI miss you,â he said again. âIââ
Before he could finish, I slammed the window shut.
âLissa!â Kelsey snapped, annoyed. âWhy did you do that?â
âItâs a trap.â I looked right at Mary then. âYou know that, right? This is just another attempt by the boys to make us give in. To make us lose. But we canât. We have to win. You know that, right?â
Mary opened her mouth, paused, then closed it again. Slowly,
she nodded and turned away, her shoulders slumped as she moved toward Ellenâs bed.
Both Kelsey and Chloe were giving me the evil eye.
âWhat?â I asked. âIâm right. This is just a trick. Another one of their games. The same thing happened in Lysistrata.â
âIn⊠what?â Kelsey asked.
âItâs this Greek play about a group of women who decide to end the war by going on a sex strike,â I explained to the puzzled-looking group. âIâd never read it but, um, someone recommended it to me after the strike started. Anyway, the women take over the Acropolis and the men show up and try to lure them out. Just like this.â
âAnd what happens?â Susan asked.
âThey stay strong,â I told her. âTheir leader, Lysistrata, makes them stay insideâjust like Iâm doing. And they win. We have to win. Thatâs the point.â
âI thought the point was ending the rivalry,â Kelsey said.
âIt wasâI mean, it is. It still is. And we will. I was wrong before, when I said we should tease them. Weâll have to stop that, but if we just stay strong, keeping to the oath, theyâll give up.â
I could feel the unsatisfied murmur that rippled around the room, but no one argued with me. Instead, they all just exchanged glances before going back to what theyâd been doing before the boys had shown up.
Chloe gave me one last glanceâone full of recognizable frustrationâbefore walking across the room and sitting next to Kelsey.
Kelsey? Of all people?
They began to talk in low voices. Like they were friends. Like it was normal for them to speak without screaming at each other. And I knew they were talking about me. It felt like a slap in the face.
But I kept my mouth shut and turned back to the window. I could just make out the boysâ retreating backs as they skirted across Ellenâs backyard and out toward the gravel back roads of Hamilton. The moonlight framed their silhouettes, and for a moment, one paused. I could see him turning his head back, but he was too far off for me to recognize his face as he looked at the house. At the window. At me.
Somehow, I knew it was Cash.
chapter twenty-Ânine
The next morning, Ellen volunteered to drive me home. Logan had texted and asked me to be back by noon because he had something to tell Dad and me over lunch, so I accepted Ellenâs offer because, while Chloe would usually give me the lift, I got the vibe that she was still upset with me about last night. Though I wasnât sure what Iâd done to upset her so much.
âSo,â Ellen said slowly as we drove away from her house. The other girls had left only a few minutes before us, sneaking out as quietly as possible so as not to wake up Ellenâs mom, who really liked to sleep in on the weekends. âWe need to talk about this whole strike thing.â
âWhat about it?â I asked.
âLissa, IâLook, it was a good idea. Really, Iâm glad we did it because⊠Well, honestly, Iâve learned a lot. About what people expect of me and what I expect from myself. And because it brought us back together.â She gave me a quick smile before focusing her attention on the road again. âBut⊠I think itâs time to end it.â
âWhat? Why? We havenât won yet.â
Ellen sighed and switched on the turn signal. âWhat are we winning, exactly?â she asked.
âWe⊠The rivalry has to end. Thatâs the point.â
âIs it?â she asked, her voice very serious but not accusatory. âThink about this, Lissa. Is the rivalry really what the strike is about? Because I donât know if you noticed, but the boys arenât fighting anymore. The group at my house last night was made up of football and soccer players. They were working together.â
I didnât say anything.
Didnât know what to say.
But I did know what Ellen was thinking. And then she confirmed my suspicions.
âI think this is about Cash,â she said. âI think⊠Okay, donât get mad at me for saying this, but I think youâre using this to get back at him for how he hurt you. It didnât start that way, obviously, but now⊠Lissa, we all see the way you look at him. All of us. Even Kelsey mentioned it to Chloe and me.â
âWait, you guys talked about me? Behind my back?â
âNot in a bad way,â Ellen said quickly. âBut weâre worried. This strike was a great idea, but itâs going too far. They asked me to talk to you about it. They thought youâd listen to me.â
I stared out the window, refusing to look at Ellen. I was more than pissed. I was hurt. Angry. Betrayed. I thought these girls were on my side. Theyâd been on my side from the start and now, suddenly, they were against me. Talking about me when I wasnât around. Trying to think of ways to overthrow me.
Ellen must have guessed what I was thinking because she
quickly added, âWe love you, Lissa. Itâs not like weâre mad. But think about this, okay? The strike is tearing apart the guys and the girls. Itâs becoming its own rivalry. Even you talk about âwinningâ like itâs just a game to you. But didnât you start this to end a rivalry? To make peace?â
Yes, I thought, but I didnât respond. I was pushing down all the hurt and anger, falling back into my safe place, the one where I was Little Miss Ice Queen.
âIf we let this keep going, itâll turn into another long-lasting rivalry, and no one will know where or why it started,â Ellen continued. âI know you donât want that. I know because I know you.â She took a breath and let it out slowly. âThe end of Lysistrata?â
âWhat?â I asked coldly. âWhat about it?â
âThe end. The women won, but how? Do you remember?â
âLysistrata talked to the guy representing the men,â I said. âHe agreed on their behalf to end the war. Youâve read it?â
Ellen shrugged. âMy mom teaches Greek studies at the community college in Oak Hill. Iâve learned a lot.â She turned onto my street and continued talking. âBut think about what you just said. She talked to the leader of the guyâs side. Have you thought⊠Have you tried seriously talking to Cash?â
âYesâNoâŠ. Itâs complicated, okay?â
âI know.â She sighed. âAnd Iâm sorry. Iâm sorry things are weird between you two, but you canât let your relationship with Cash run this strike. You need to talk to him so that this can end. So that we can all move on.â
I didnât reply. As much as I hated to admit it, I knew she was right.
Ellenâs car stopped in my driveway, and we sat listening to the engine idle for a moment before either of us broke the silence.
âJust promise me youâll think about it,â she said. âPlease. Know that Iâll be on your side, no matter what. Iâll stand by your decision, but⊠but you owe me this.â
âI know,â I said quietly. âI owe it to all the girls. Theyâve stuck by meâall of
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