How to Ruin Series Part 76

"Nathan, don't ... "

"I'm here for you, babycakes." Before I can pull away, he licks off the jam and struggling bee with the tip of his tongue.

My hand flies over my mouth. "Oh, my G.o.d. Nathan-you just ate a bee!"

Nathan's face contorts in shock, and I realize I didn't have to tell him he ate a bee. He figured it out all by himself. "Ow!

What the fu-"

He runs to the garbage can faster than I've ever seen him move and spits jam and the bee out of his mouth.

"Nathan, are you allergic to bees?"

Miranda cries out over the commotion.

"No."

There's a sigh of relief that Nathan isn't going to die. I've never heard so many swear words come out of his mouth at one time since I've known him.

I rub his back as he rinses his tongue in the big metal kitchen sink. "I'm so sorry. I tried to warn you-"

"It sthung my tung. Thit," he swears. He sticks his tongue out and points. "Take de sthinger outh."

"Okay." I examine his tongue. "What should I be looking for?"

"The sthinger!"

Is it white? Red? Black? I've never taken out a stinger before. I'm frantic with worry.

"His tongue is swollen," Miranda says.

"I think he needs to go to the infirmary."

"Miranda's right," I cry out. "Nathan, I'm so sorry."

"You're thorry? Amy, thath's the lasth thime I'm pinthing your a.s.sth."

"Stop talking, Nathan. Your throat might swell up so bad it'll stop the oxygen."

Nathan opens his mouth wide and breathes in and out, proving his throat is letting enough air through.

"Close your mouth, Nathan," Tori says.

"You look like a d.a.m.n fish gasping for air, you dork."

"Uthually I'm thexy," Nathan tells her, then nudges me to intervene.

"The s.e.xiest," I agree, but I don't think Tori is buying it.

Noah leads Nathan, who's now screaming unintelligible obscenities, all the way to the infirmary. Great. Now I've ruined my fake boyfriend's reputation, too.

Tori finishes the task of piling plastic coffee mugs on a tray.

"Hey, Tori. I thought you said these were worker bees that don't sting," I say to her.

"I didn't say they won't sting if you eat them," she responds, then walks back out into the dining area with the tray of coffee mugs.

I follow her with a tray of jam-filled bowls. "It's too bad my boyfriend won't be able to kiss me because of his bee sting."

"Your problem, not mine," she says, att.i.tude dripping from each word.

I set two bowls on each table, wondering how I'm going to make her go out with Nathan after we "break up" and I'm supposedly devastated. "Who do you like?"

"As if I'm gonna tell you."

Seriously, this girl is so one- dimensional you'd think when she turns sideways she'd be as flat as a piece of paper. She belongs on another planet.

"You know, it wouldn't hurt if you acted a little nicer."

"Why should I? Acting nice didn't get me anywhere. It sure didn't keep my parents together, that's for sure."

"Are they divorced?"

"That's none of your business. Just leave me alone."

I'm shocked. Tori actually opened up to me. The good part is that I now know what her deal is. She's not mad at me, per se.

Okay, so I'm sure I annoy her 10 percent of the time. But the real issue behind her p.i.s.sy face and b.i.t.c.hy att.i.tude is a daughter who wants her parents to get together and doesn't see it happening any time soon.

"Not that you care, but I know how you feel," I tell her.

"I doubt it. Are your parents divorced?"

"No, worse. My parents were never married. How would you like growing up knowing you were the result of a one-night stand? That's my reality. And no matter how much att.i.tude I have, that will never change."

"But you have friends. I have n.o.body."

"If you'd act a little nicer maybe we could be friends. If you stop calling me a spaz every two minutes, that might be a start."

"What makes you think even if I wanted a friend, I'd pick you? Besides, you are a spaz." Tori tosses her hair with a flick of her wrist, showing me a flash of dark hair underneath her blond locks, and stomps back to the kitchen.

She ignores me the rest of the time as she busies herself with one task or another.

I guess now is not the time to become buddy-buddy with her, especially when she's in charge of the hot coffee. It's not a level playing field.

Avi walks in the door and I almost drop a bowl of jam. I wish I could forget the long talks we'd have on the phone when he was on military leave. Or that his hands are strong enough to dig ditches in record time and gentle enough to caress my skin and make me beg for more.

"Where's Noah?" he asks in a businesslike tone, as if I'm someone he just met.

"He took Nathan to the infirmary," I answer back, just as businesslike.

"Why?"

"Nathan kind of ate a live bee."

"Kind of? How does someone kind of eat a bee?"

"It's a long story," I say, not wanting to get into it.

Tori appears by Avi's side. "He licked it off her. You know, with his tongue." As if Avi can't get the visual, Tori sticks her tongue out and wiggles it up and down.

So much for the conversation staying businesslike. I have a vindictive urge to pull her tongue until it comes out of her mouth.

Avi looks as if he's about to be ill. "I get the picture. No need to demonstrate."

Avi and I meet up again at the tray full of bread baskets. I figure I need to explain, so I tap him on the arm. When his dark gaze meets mine, I step back. I can't think straight when I'm looking directly into his eyes.

"Um, yeah. The way Tori told you what happened isn't really how it went down."

"I don't need details."

"But I want to explain." I pretend to be busy picking up baskets of bread to set on the tables as I talk, sparing myself from looking directly at him. "So, um, there were bees stuck in the jam. And when Nathan pinched my b.u.t.t by accident, I twirled around and jam landed on my sleeve. He licked it off, not knowing there was a bee stuck in it."

"He didn't do anything by accident, Amy. Tell Nathan to keep his hands off your tachat. And while he's at it, tell him to keep his tongue away from you, too."

"You jealous?"

"Why should I be? I have Liron, right?"

"Right. And I have Nathan, right?"

He shrugs. "I don't know, you tell me.

You've obviously had his tongue down your throat multiple times."

Oh, that was low. How dare he turn this around and make me the bad person, when he's probably been playing "battling tongues" with Liron! "Yeah, well, he might be tongue-challenged at the moment, but normally he's the best. " I emphasize the last two words for effect. If Avi's tight, white knuckles are any indication, I think I've accomplished my goal.

"Amy?" He says, his voice laced with frustration.

I cross my arms on my chest (actually under my chest, because my b.o.o.bs are so big). "What?" I know we're about to have it out, right here in the middle of the IDF cafeteria.

The door between the kitchen and dining area opens. It's Jess and Ethan, bringing out the baskets of bread. Both stop in their tracks, obviously sensing the ma.s.sive amount of tension in the room.

"Everything okay in here?" Jess asks.

I narrow my eyes at Avi. "It's all peachy. Avi and I were just discussing the art of a good kiss."

"While that might be fascinating at another time, we have baskets of bread we need to put out. Help us," Jess says.

I see something, out of the corner of my eye, on one of the pieces of bread in the basket Jess is holding. "There are a couple of ants crawling on the bread."

Jess shrugs. "Noah said to consider them spices."

15.

Insects, whether they're bees or ants, should not be eaten alive.

Breakfast is half over when Nathan reappears.

"How's your tongue?" Miranda asks once he reaches our table.

Nathan shrugs. Noah is standing behind him. "He says it hurts to talk. The nurse told him the swelling should go down in a few hours."

"That's what you get for pinching my b.u.t.t. G.o.d was punis.h.i.+ng you."

He gives me the finger as he takes a seat beside me.

"G.o.d's gonna punish you for that, too."

Across the table, Miranda slams down her cup of milk. It splashes all over her uniform, but I don't think she notices.

"Amy, leave him alone. Don't you think he's dealing with enough without you making him feel worse?"

"I was just kidding, Miranda."

"Yeah, well ... " Miranda looks around, realizing she's causing a scene. Miranda's not used to creating drama. Her voice shakes as she says, "Maybe Nathan doesn't know you're kidding."

"Nathan and I joke around all the time.

We always do."

Nathan puts his arm around me, nods, and smiles.

"Oh," Miranda says, slowly sitting back down. She doesn't look up until we're done eating and dismissed from breakfast.

On the way back to the barracks, I catch up to Miranda. "I know why you're p.i.s.sed with me. You have the hots for Nathan."

She glances sideways at me. "So?"

Wow, I'm right. I mean, I got the idea when she went all ballistic on me, milk splattered on her face during breakfast. But I still can't believe it.

"I'm not really dating him, you know."