The Perfect Son by Freida McFadden(15)
“…”
“Olivia, if you could tell us what you told me earlier about what happened next…”
“You mean about that guy?”
“Right. You said that a man approached you on the street.”
“Yeah. I was out walking my dog and this old guy—he was, like, maybe fifty—he came up to me and asked me if I was Olivia Reynolds. And it totally freaked me out because, you know, you hear all these stories about some girl going out to walk her dog and she never comes home. And he looked kind of creepy too.”
“How did he look creepy?”
“I don’t know. He smelled like cigarettes and his teeth were kind of yellow. Probably because of cigarettes, right? That’s why I am not going to smoke ever. Or vape. Vaping is even worse. My health teacher says you can get popcorn lung from vaping, where your lungs look like microwave popcorn.”
“Uh, right. So what happened next, Olivia?”
“So I didn’t really say anything. I just looked at the guy, but he seemed to know who I was. And then he asked me if I knew Liam, and that was really weird.”
“What did you say?”
“I said yes.”
“And what did he say then?”
“Well, he started telling me all the stuff he knew about me. Like, bad stuff. I mean, not really bad. I haven’t done anything that bad. But, like, he had screenshots of all these text messages on my phone that I wouldn’t want my parents or my teachers to see. And some other stuff.”
“What sort of stuff?”
“Um, do I have to tell you that?”
“We’d like to have all the information.”
“It wasn’t illegal. I swear.”
“You’re not in trouble, Olivia. I promise. Just tell us the truth.”
“Okay… well, I was dating this guy last year and I sent him some pictures of myself that I shouldn’t have. It was really stupid. And I don’t know how that creepy guy ended up getting those photos. God, it’s so embarrassing…”
“So what happened next?”
“The guy said if I kept hanging around with Liam, he was going to show everyone.”
“So what did you say?”
“What do you think? I mean, I liked Liam, but not enough to get in trouble. So I said I wouldn’t hang out with him anymore.”
“And did you?”
“Yeah. But honestly, it didn’t really matter, because the next day… Well, you know.”
“Did you have any thoughts on why that man told you not to hang out with Liam?”
“No. I was just so freaked out about the whole thing. I thought… I don’t know. It was the weirdest thing ever, honestly.”
“Well, thank you, Olivia. This has been very helpful.”
“Detective?”
“Yes?”
“Do you really think Liam did it?”
“I can’t share any details of our investigation with you, unfortunately.”
“I just want to say… I don’t think he did. I’ve known him for over two years, and he’s a really nice guy. I’m not just saying that because he’s cute. He’s really serious about competing and he’s very smart and he just wouldn’t. I don’t think he could. I mean, what kind of person does something like that? I just can’t imagine it.”
“Then why did you contact us?”
“Because… I don’t know. I don’t think Liam did it. But I guess I’m not absolutely sure. You never know.”
Chapter 14
Olivia
It’s about a mile to the diner, and Liam and I walk together. Well, we’re with half the track team and also some of their girlfriends, but Liam and I hang back behind them. His jacket is warm and smells like he does—Dial soap. The sleeves are long enough on me that my fingertips barely poke through.
We talk about math class mostly. Liam says Mr. Gregor smells like old cheese, which is actually pretty accurate. He doesn’t seem to like Mr. Gregor much, which surprises me, because a lot of kids act like smartasses in that class, but Liam doesn’t. He’s really polite to Mr. Gregor—to his face. I get the feeling he’s one of Mr. Gregor’s favorite students, and not just because he’s acing the class.
Liam stands very close to me when we walk. A few times, his hand brushes against my fingertips and I think he’s going to try to hold my hand, but he doesn’t.
When we get to the diner, there are a lot of kids from our school already there. Even though it’s a long walk, Charlie’s has the best milkshakes. They are so good, I swear. It’s like the best ice cream you’ve ever tasted in shake form. I notice Tyler Martinson is sitting in one of the booths, and I remember what Madison said earlier. That Tyler said Liam is crazy. That Tyler is afraid of him.
Could that really be true? Tyler doesn’t seem like a guy who would be afraid of anything. And when we walk past him, he and Liam don’t make eye contact. He doesn’t look at me either, and I wonder if he’s still mad at me for not going out with him. I saw him with a different girl a week later though, so it looks like he got over it quick.
We all squeeze into an extra-large booth. There are six of us, and my body is pressed up tightly against Liam. I feel the warmth of his thigh against mine. And I don’t mind one bit.