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So the Aglionby boys at Nino’s were not just Aglionby students, but they were the lionby that the school had to offer Loud, pushy, entitled

Blue had seen enough of the raven boys to last a lifetih to paralyze the finer parts of her personality She tied on her apron, tuned out the Beastie Boys as best she could, and put her tip-earning s of her shift, four boys ca a cold hiss of fresh air into the rooano and beer In thebeside the boys, a neon light that said Since 1976 lit their faces a Li on his cell phone even as he showed Cialina four fingers to indicate party size Raven boys were good atas all tasks were exclusively to benefit themselves

As Cialina hurried by, her apron pocket stuffed with tickets to deliver, Blue handed her four greasy menus Cialina’s hair floated above her head with static electricity and abject stress

Blue asked, very unwilling, "Do you want ?" Cialina replied, eyeing the four boys Having finally ended his call, the first one slid into one of the orange vinyl booths The tallest of the over the table; the others laughed generously at him He said, Bitch A tattoo snaked out above his collar as he swiveled to sit down There was sory about all of the boys

Blue didn’t want them anyway

What she wanted was a job that wouldn’t suck all the thoughts out of her head and replace the call of a synthesizer Sometimes, Blue would creep outside for an infinitesiainst the brick wall of the alley behind the restaurant, she’d drea withCosta Rica to find out my tyrant

Really, she didn’t know if she’d truly like to find out my tyrant She just liked the nained lives seemed pretty far away froan, the ht it was Donny Nino’s had about fifteen ers, all of theraduates

Donny e and offer the phone at once "Your parent Uh, mother"

But there was no need to clarify, because Blue didn’t really knoho her other parent was Actually, she’d tried to pester Maura about her father before, but her

Plucking the phone from Donny’s hand, Blue tucked herself back into the corner of the kitchen, next to a tere-basined sink Despite her care, she still got jostled every few ? You probably don’t need to sit Well, possibly At least lean on so"

"Who, Mom? Speak louder It’s loud here"

"Gansey"

For a moment, Blue didn’t understand Then realization tu her feet Her voice was a bit faint "When … did you schedule it for?"

"Toet hiet him in sooner, but he said he had school Do you have a shift to it," Blue replied ih The real Blue was back in the churchyard, hearing his voice say Gansey

"Yes, you are Go work"

As she hung up, she could feel her pulse fluttering It was real He was real

It was all true and terribly, terribly specific

It see drinks and sainst the cool bark of the spreading beech tree behind the house, trying to decide what this changed about her life Neeve had said this was the year she’d fall in love Maura had said that she’d kill her true love if she kissed him Gansey was supposed to die this year What were the odds? Gansey had to be her true love He had to be Because there was no way she was going to kill someone

Is this the way life is supposed to be? Maybe it would be better not to know

Soainst Blue’s policy No one was to touch her person while she was at Nino’s, and especially no one was to touch her nohen she was having a crisis She whirled

"Can I Help You?"

Before her stood thetidy and presidential His watch looked as if it cost more than hershade of tan Blue had never figured out how Aglionby boysto do with things like spring break and places like Costa Rica and the Spanish coast President Cell Phone had probably been closer to a pygmy tyrant than she would ever be

"I certainly hope so," he said, in a way that indicated less hope and more certainty He had to speak loudly to be heard, and he had to incline his head to ly impressive about hih he was no taller than most boys "My socially inhibited friend Ada to y one Not the sulky one"