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"Herto co drops that had h the soaked pine trees distort its surface "On the night of the breakthrough, she got reallythe Suess, is pretty ured that All the stories you two told - back before the cure - they had you rescuing her from the Smoke That sounds like pretty-talk for betrayal"
Tally looked up at hione undercover for Special Circuuessed it"
"Oh" Tally didn’t knohether to feel relieved or ashamed Of course, Zane had cooperated with Dr Cable himself, so maybe he understood "I didn’t want to do it, Zane IShay back, so they’d ed my mind I wanted to stay in the Sivenit off Even when I tried to do the right thing, I betrayed everyone"
Zane faced her, his eyes intense under his hood "Tally, we’re all manipulated by the people who run this city Shay should know that"
"I wish that was all," Tally said "I also stole David froain" Zane shook his head "Well, I guess she’s pretty pissed off at you right now At least that’ll keep her bubbly"
"Yeah, really bubbly" Tally sed "And there’s one ot her mad"
He waited silently, rain dripping from his hood
"I told her about the cure"
"You what?" Zane’s whisper cut through the rain like a hiss of stealy "She had it halfway figured out already, Zane, and was thinking she could cure herself She cli that hat had changed us But of course it didn’t work, not like the pills She kept asking me what happened to us
She said I owed her, after everything I did to her back in ugly days"
Zane swore under his breath "So you told her about the pills? Great That’s one "
"But she’s totally bubbly, Zane I don’t think she’ll give us away," Tally said, then shrugged "If anything, finding out about the pills h to stay bubbly for life"
"Furious? Because you’re cured and she’s not?"
"No" Tally sighed "Because you are"
"What?"
"I owed her, and you got the other pill"
"But there wasn’t time to - "
"I know that, Zane But she doesn’t To her, it looks like " She shook her head, feeling hot tears in her eyes The rest of her was so cold, her fingers were slowly going nuan to tremble
"It’s okay, Tally" Zane reached out and took her hand, squeezing hard through the thick glove
"You should have heard her, Zane She really hates lad it waswith tears "Yeah Thanks for all the headaches, youa pretty-brain," he said "But that’s not what Ithose pills I’lad aboutyou and ers, still interlaced with hers, also treed to smile back "Me too"
"Don’t let Shay make you feel bad about us, Tally"
"Of course not" She shook her head, realizing how ht, Zane had been the right person to share the cure with He had kept her bubbly, pushing her to pass the S her to dare the unproven pills Tally had found more than a cure for pretty-headedness that day - she’d found soone wrong last summer It had been littlie days when Peris had promised to stay her best friend forever - but the day he’d turned sixteen, Peris had left her behind in Uglyville Then Tally had lost Shay’s friendship, betraying her to Special Circuone,somewhere in the wild and half-erased fro her the pills - he’d left that job to Croy Tally could guess what that olden, perfect eyes He was here with her right now, in the flesh, and she’d been stupid to let as between theled up in her messy past "I should have told you about Shay earlier But the smart walls "
"It’s okay But you can trust me Always"
She pressed his hand in both of hers "I know"
He reached up to touch her face "We didn’t really know each other very well that day, did we?"
"We took a chance, I guess Weird how that happened"
He laughed "I think that’s the way it always happens Usually withouton the door But it’s always taking a risk, when youkiss someone new"
Tally nodded, and leaned forward Their lips met, the kiss slow and intense in the chill of the rain
She could feel hiround beneath them was cold, but their two hoods joined to block out the world,breath
Tally whispered, "I’lad it was you withat her face A trickle of water had crawled inside Tally’s hood and was running down her cheek like a cold,her to her feet "Coo back to Pulcher and get breakfast, and some dry clothes"