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Hilary ignored the kid’s ehest sticker is the best?" she said

"You got it"

"And whose is that?"

"He’d like to invite you into his office"

P-Nut extended his hand She took it

As they walked hand in hand, she could see all the Skater girls in the roo A swarm of jealous reactions followed her across the whole roo She hadn’t really felt it since Sairls in the school, just for the fact that she was a Pretty One She used to get it from the other Pretty Ones, jealous that she had Saht have slept with every girl in his gang, but that’s pretty much what she expected

P-Nut led her into a dark roohter sparked A little flaue dark mass of P-Nut’s body He hting candles It seemed almost as hokey as his line about how he "lived for her," but she wasn’t coht to the point, don’t you?"

"Ha, you’re funny," he said,to show you I care"

There were ten short, thin, brown candles lit around the roo It was an office with antique bookshelves, a plush reading chair, and an ornately carved wooden desk All of it was lit by golden candlelight that revealed the deep red stain of theand faotten used to a roo in the drop," Hilary said

"I guess Principal Warfield was a big antique freak All this is from his office I’ve kept the she would have expected

"And the candles?" she said

The candles were finely made, smooth from trunk to tip And Hilary would know They orthy to be sold at the Pretty Ones’ market table Well, they would have been, if Gates’s free-for-all hadn’t flooded the school with real beauty and bathing products that put their homemade ones to shame

"Nah, I made them," P-Nut said

"You are a fantastic liar"

"I did make them," he said "You really think I’m just some idiot, don’t you?"

"Kinda," she said "You kno to make candles?"

"Of course I do You think this vibe creates itself?"

"Okay, then what’d youtiether"

"And the wicks?"

"Shoelaces," P-Nut said "I unwove them and waxed the individual threads"

Why did that turn her on so much?

"I only break them out for special occasions For special people"

"I’ on the inside only It had been too long since she’d had even a decent compliment

He walked closer to her

"I want to talk about our future"

"Ew, stalker," she said and backed up, hoping he didn’t see through her bluff

"Don’t talk tough Be yourself with s"

"What kind of big things?"