Unforgettable (Haven Falls 4)

The phone begins screeching again, reminding me why the hell I would do something as stupid as remove myself off a guy like Noah Cage. It was honestly the most absurd decision I’ve ever made, especially considering the way my head has spun ever since I stood up.

I start searching around for the phone, kicking red cups and chunks of cake out of my way as I go. I follow the sound and eventually find a phone under the dining table in a metallic purple case, lighting up like the Fourth of July.

“Damn it,” I groan, realizing I’m going to have to get down on my hands and knees to get the fucker.

I make my way down to the ground feeling like I just celebrated my eightieth rather than my eighteenth and my knee instantly lands in something squishy. “Gross,” I whine.

I channel my inner Swifty and ‘Shake it Off’ before reaching under the table. After stretching a little further than what’s acceptable in my state and nearly falling flat on my face, my fingers curl around the purple phone. I hardly have it in front of my face before I silence the stupid thing and focus on working out who the hell it belongs to, though there’s something strangely familiar about it.

My question is answered no two seconds later when I flip the phone over in my hands and take in the massive ‘ALYSSA’ printed across the back in silver cursive letters. Ahhhh, that’s why it’s familiar; I’ve already studied this phone before.

My natural instinct has my thumb swiping over the screen, attempting to unlock it when I remember it’s not mine and I have no right to even be touching it, other than to put it in a safe place.

But then…what if she’s heard from Rivers again?

I look down at the phone and see it asking for a passcode. Shit. No, Henley, put the phone down on the table and back the fuck away. It’s not yours. You have absolutely no right to invade Alyssa’s privacy like that. Though, it’s not like I have the number to call for someone to come and get it. I’ll find that kind of information on the phone.

Shit. My priorities are fucked up.

What if Rivers is in some kind of trouble and he’s been leaning on Alyssa? Yep, that’s the deciding factor. Feeling a little happier with my decision, I look back down at the screen and try to remember what the code was.

It was 4 something, something, 7.

Damn it. 4…hmmmm. Maybe there was a 2 in there somewhere.

I think back to the moment Alyssa came to us in the cafeteria. I close my eyes and picture every moment of it. The way she fumbled with her phone, the way Noah demanded the passcode, the way she gawked at him.

4827.

Fuck, yeah. How the hell did I remember that?

I instantly put the code in and grin to myself like some kind of proud detective as the phone unlocks. Though, maybe detective is the wrong word. This seems a little more on the criminal side of things.

I really shouldn’t be doing this but now with the phone unlocked, I find myself unable to stop. My finger instantly finds the messages icon and my eyes start darting over the names. There are messages from the girls at school, her mom, some guy at school who’s not even close to being in her league, you know if you consider the fact that she was with Rivers. That’s got to mean something, right?

I start scrolling and by now, the meaning of right and wrong is completely lost on me.

Her mom wanted to remind her to study for her chemistry test, her friend Sara wanted to know if she’d arrived at last night’s party, Daniel from school was letting her know all the dirty things he wanted to do to her, while Rivers…there was nothing new there.

I start giving up hope of finding out anything on Rivers when a notification comes through on Alyssa’s Facebook Messenger app. Ahhhhh, of course. People message through Facebook all the time.

I find the app and open it and right there for the world to see is Rivers’ name with a message received from him just yesterday.

I scoot up onto the dining table, as let’s face it, the couch is an absolute mess, and I get busy. I scroll up as far as it will go and get stuck reading through all the messages from when they were dating.

I scroll past all that shit and find the good stuff from the past three weeks.

Alyssa – Wanna get dinner tonight?

Alyssa – Hello? What’s going on?

Alyssa – Babe?

There’s a response from him about a week following the car accident.

Rivers – Sorry, it’s been a shit week. What’s going on?

Alyssa – Have you been getting my texts?