My heart was beating so hard against my ribs it felt like a small bird trapped inside me. I took one quick step back, my hands holding tight to the edge of the desk behind me, my breath getting stuck in my throat. The person walked fully into the soft light coming from the lamp in the hall, and Maya made a small gasp sound next to me.
It was Xander.
"You?" The word came out of me, barely more than a soft whisper. My mind was spinning fast steady, good Xander, the one who had always been there for me, whose father had worked with my Dad, who had given me copies of papers and stood by me when everyone else walked away. "How… why?"
He did not look like he felt shame. He did not even look sorry. He just looked calm, as if we were talking about school homework and not standing in a room full
