It’s not over.
Not for me.
I miss her. So bad. I even miss Waze, which is ridiculous considering I’ve barely lived with him for a couple of hours. Waze. I wince. Our ship name. I hope it’s not gone forever.
“Dude, we going out tonight. You coming?” Vic pounds on the guest room’s door.
The same question.
“Pass.”
The same answer.
I hear him sigh. He’s been hanging out with the shittiest people lately, a bunch of frat boys that drag him deeper into depression. He’s desperate to get me to be his wingman, but I don’t give a single shit about picking up girls at the club.
I have a girlfriend, I told him.
She dumped your ass, he replied.
And he isn’t wrong.
I know I fucked up. I always knew if she found out, she’d think I only came to avenge my sister. I have to prove myself to her. She has to know that I wasn’t just using her to get to Marcus. She has to know that all I did, I did for her.
One word, kid. Just one and bad things might start to happen.
Ricky’s words claw at me. There’s so much she doesn’t know. So much she doesn’t want to hear. All I can do is pray they don’t know that she found out. Sure, Caleb didn’t know or tell her shit about the organization, but I doubt they’d see it the same way.
Fuck, how can I keep her safe when she won’t even see me? I need to do something. But what?
“Have you seen my earring?” some girl Vic brought home squeaks in the living room. From what I heard last night, she’s a screamer.
Her sentence slaps me right in the face.
It all becomes clear.
I know what I have to do.
WINTER
When I step out of the shower and hear laughter, I wonder if Allie is watching reruns of Friends or laughing at her own thoughts—which wouldn’t surprise me. Maybe Kendrick came home? Whatever it is, I doubt she invited people over. I didn’t exactly make tons of friends since moving back.
I dry off my hair with a towel and throw on the black dress Allie picked out for me. She said my pajamas aren’t good enough for what she’s planned. Agree to disagree, but okay.
When my eyes come in contact with my reflection in the mirror, nostalgia rolls over me. This is the black dress Ryder bought for me when Haze and I were playing runaway in Colton Gate. This seems like forever ago. Allie had no idea about the history of this dress when she randomly picked it out of my closet. Haze wasn’t big on me wearing it at first. I find myself smiling at the thought. Then my smile fades completely.
Well, he can’t stop me anymore.
I step out of the bathroom, my slightly wet hair falling down my back. I’m all dressed up, looking a lot better on the outside than I feel on the inside. I even put on a little bit of makeup. Not that I really had a choice. I’d rather not make any children cry today.
“There she is,” Allie cheers when I turn the corner. Sitting on the couch with Kendrick, she smiles at me.
I narrow my eyes. “You two made all that noise by yourself?”
She grins. “Not exactly.”
I let out a yelp when three people jump up from behind the couch and scream a loud “Surprise!”
I blink a few times.