20

                                    

                                          

                            

                                
                            
                              
                                  
                              
                              
                                
                                  
                                  
                                
                              
                             
                            
                            
                          
                          

Thorne wants to go to his place after the dance, as Charlie said she'd swing by to bring me my change of clothes and the stuff I left at her house. I told my parents I'd be staying with Saige for the weekend, which Thorne and I both know means I'll really be staying with him. When we reach Thorne's place, however, it's not just Charlie standing in the front lawn. It's Charlie and Violet and Jay and Wells. 
For some reason, Thorne isn't happy about this. 
"Shit!" he mutters under his breath, slamming his hand against the steering wheel the moment he spots his friends. I recognize the look on his face as one of annoyance, his green eyes glaring at his friends through the wind shield. If looks could kill, I'd be pretty scared for Thorne's friends right about now. 
"What?" I ask, raising my eyebrows. I don't think I've ever seen him regard his friends this way, and my curiosity only rises when Thorne curses under his breath once again, tapping his fingers against the steering wheel impatiently. 
"Nothing, Sunshine," he says, not meeting my gaze. "Nothing at all." I can tell that he's lying, but I don't want to get into something with him now, when his friends are standing outside in his yard. 
So instead of commenting, I step out of his car, giving Charlie and Violet quick hugs. Jay gives me a fist bump and says he likes my dress, which makes me smile. Wells lets out a low whistle when he sees me, nodding appreciatively. "You look amazing, Mia." 
"Thank you," I say politely, blushing. Thorne gets out of the car then, walking over to the rest of us with his hands in his pockets. He still looks pretty pissed, and I still don't know what's up with him. He refuses to even glance at me, only further adding to my confusion.
"I see you brought the whole gang," Thorne says to Charlie rather sarcastically, shooting her a glare. Charlie shrugs as Jay says, "You in a tux, bro? There was no way I could pass seeing that up." 
Thorne holds his hands out at his sides, spinning in a slow circle to let his friends see every inch of his suit. "There. You saw it. Happy?"
"What's up your ass?" Violet questions, raising an eyebrow at Thorne. She voices my exact thoughts, and I study Thorne warily as I await his response. 
"Nothing," Thorne hisses, doing that thing where he puffs his cheek out with his tongue—which he only does when he's annoyed. 
"I set your things inside," Charlie tells me, gesturing to Thorne's house behind us. "They're on the table. Did you guys have fun?"
"Yeah," I say, glancing at Thorne, suddenly wondering if maybe that's what he's so upset about. "Well, I did, at least. It was really nice." 
"Hey, Sunshine," Thorne says in a softer tone than he was using moments earlier, finally looking at me. "I had fun, too." 
"I never thought I'd see the day our little Thorne got dressed up and took girls to dances," Wells teases, punching Thorne's shoulder. Thorne rolls his eyes, not commenting, which is rather unlike him. I study him closely, wondering what's up.