Chapter 15: Rumors and Memories

"Oh," Alex says, when he sees me with my mom at the door. He looks down, realizing that he's wearing only his boxers, then apparently decides to pretend otherwise. "Good morning, Mrs. Breyer."

"Good morning," my mom says, her eyes darting back to me. The look she gives me is less curious and much more accusatory than the one I got from Lucy. She leans toward me, dropping her voice. "Oh, Maebel. I know you're upset, honey, but was this really the smartest thing to do?"

"Nothing happened," I say, feeling a bit like a broken record.

"I slept on the couch," Alex says, using his towel to cover up as much of him as possible.

"It doesn't matter where anyone slept," my mom says. "The neighbors will have seen the car by now. There aren't many fancy sports cars like that around. They will all guess who it belongs to."

"I don't care what the neighbors think, Mom," I say, even as my stomach sinks.

"I know, dear. But I still think you need to be careful. People have already started talking, y