Lake focused on her menu, her cheeks reddening. Well, it’d been over two months since I’d gotten out. Lake had to suspect her sister and I were having sex. Maybe she was still the same wide-eyed girl I’d known, but she was definitely less naïve than she’d been when I’d left her. Hell, she’d been headed down that path the week we’d spent together at camp. She’d taken her top off in front of me. Lake knew about sex. Maybe she’d even come close with one of the boys at school.
I’d wring the motherfucker’s neck.
The unbidden thought made my necktie feel tight and the words and prices on my menu blur. I tugged my collar, downed some water, and took a breath. I had no right to think that way. None.
A server appeared with champagne and five glasses. “What are we celebrating?” he asked, popping the cork.
Charles gestured at Lake. “Tell him, honey.”
“It’s dumb,” she said. “I made honor roll. But so did, like, a hundred other students.”
“You are not like a hundred other students,” Charles said. He picked up his glass and stood, waiting until all our flutes were filled and raised. He turned to Lake. “I know I’ve pushed you. I know you’ve worked harder than your friends, read more books, gone the extra mile for the plus on the end of your ‘A’ when an ‘A’ alone would’ve sufficed.”
Charles swallowed, inhaling through his nose. His hand shook, and his eyes watered. “I’m so . . . so . . . ”
Tiffany pretended to read her menu but glanced up when her dad’s voice broke.
“Oh, honey,” Cathy said, reaching out to hold his hand.
He picked up the gift bag and passed it to Lake. “I’m so proud. And I knew you could do it.”
Lake looked confused, but it was then I realized this wasn’t about the Principal’s Honor Roll or even Student of the Month. She peeked in the bag, then up at her dad. Instantly, her eyes also watered. “Are you serious?”
He nodded. “Congratulations, sweetheart.”
Seeing Lake’s expression change from confusion to shock, my heart swelled. This was what I wanted for her. Everything. This was why I’d done the time, had kept my hands to myself, had watched from afar. So she wouldn’t lose sight of what was important. I had to clench my own jaw to keep from getting emotional.
Lake’s mom put her hands over her mouth. “Charles.”
“What is it?” Tiffany asked.
Lake’s hands trembled as she pulled a thick, white packet out of the bag. She turned it over, then held it up for us all to see. Proud of her as I was, in that moment, my eyes went to Tiffany. When she registered the USC logo on the packet, her expression remained smooth. I couldn’t read her. Tiffany might put on a show sometimes, but I knew she cared about Lake. That first and foremost, Lake was her sister. I didn’t believe she’d feel anything but pride watching Lake get everything she wanted, but the way her complexion paled, I wasn’t sure. Could Tiffany ever truly be happy for her sister, who’d now done everything their dad had ever expected of her? Or would Tiffany see this as something else?
Cathy stood and went around the table to pull a still-in-shock Lake into a tight hug. Her dad did the same. Tiffany slid the unopened packet over to her side of the table. “What if it’s a rejection?” she asked so only I could hear.
“You know it’s not.”
She tore one corner of the envelope right before I took it away. “Don’t spoil this.”
Tiffany’s eyes fixed on me as she sat back and crossed her arms. Maybe she thought I was the enemy, but I wasn’t. If Charles saw Tiffany with the envelope, he’d make a scene. I put it back in its rightful spot, in front of Lake.
Once they were all seated again, Lake ran a hand over the envelope.
“Aren’t you going to open it?” Charles asked.
She slid a finger under the flap and removed a sheet with a cardinal red-and-gold booklet. She read her acceptance letter as we all watched.
“So?” Charles asked after a few seconds of silence. “How does it feel to officially be a Trojan?”
“Good.”
“That’s it?” he pressed. “Good?”
Lake’s nostrils flared. A few silent tears tracked down her cheeks. Cathy had her hands clasped in front of her, looking as on edge as I felt. Lake’s body began to visibly shake as she covered her face and dissolved into sobs.
Cathy’s eyebrows drew together as she and Charles exchanged a glance. “What?” she mouthed.
“Overwhelmed,” he said softly.
I reacted physically, my throat thickening with a lump, my hands aching to hold Lake. Her crying sent my body mixed signals. I was the last person at the table who should comfort her, but maybe the only one who knew her well enough to understand her tears. Was she overwhelmed? Relieved? Yes. But the intensity with which she cried told me there was more to it than that. Maybe she didn’t want this after all. I’d tried to warn her, years ago, that she’d have to fight to be heard if she had any doubts about USC. Maybe she hadn’t really believed me, hadn’t realized that was true, until this moment.