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“Zach,” Mia said, frowning “You won’t go to school with me?”

“I can’t leave her,” he said, looking miserable

“And you can leaveto cry

“No I want you to come with us I said that,” Zach answered “Come on, Mia—”

“What choice do I have?” Mia cried, looking fro my friend, too, huh?” Then she ran for the stairs

Zach followed his sister from the room and up the stairs

Lexi felt Jude’s gaze on her, judging her, bla her, and Lexi felt a rush of shaiven her so much, and now she was to blae to look up into Jude’s disappointed face “Don’t beher hands “Please ”

“You don’t understand what you’ve done,” Jude said Her voice was shaky and her face was pale

“I didn’t do anything It’s not my fault ”

“Isn’t it?”

“I didn’t tell him to do this … to want this ”

“Think of Mia instead of Zach Instead of yourself You kno talented she is, and how shy Hoould it be if the three of you lived together—really How long before you and Zach started to ignore her?”

“That would never happen ”

“Really? It looks as if it just did ” Jude paused; her face seele you up in all of this But if they don’t go to USC they’ll regret it, and sooner or later they’ll blame you ”

Lexi hated the truth she heard in those words