Don't Go There (Awkward Love 5)

“Come on, Katie,” I say, following her down the hallway. “I was trying to lighten things up.”

“There you are.” Darcy runs up to Katie and takes her hand. “She’s gone.”

“Who’s gone?” Katie frowns. “Lily?”

“What?” I snap, joining them. “Gone where?”

“I’m sorry,” Darcy whispers. “She snuck out. She was in the bathroom and I went outside to make a phone call …” Her voice trails off. “I came back and she was gone.”

“You left her alone?” Katie frowns.

“You left her alone with Darcy?” I growl at Katie.

“Hey, you don’t have to make it sound like I’m incompetent,” Darcy snaps.

“Really?” I laugh. “If you’re not incompetent, then where is she?”

“Hey, calm down,” Katie steps between us. She glares at me. “Leave Darcy alone. If you were that worried about losing Lily, then you should have taken her with you in the first place.”

That would’ve been fun explaining to Julian.

“Fine.” I sigh. “Any ideas on where she might’ve gone?”

“No,” Katie says. “Other than to try and find Julian?”

“He’d call me if she went there,” I say, not convinced.

“You don’t think she’d do anything stupid, do you?” Katie asks anxiously.

“You mean like fly halfway across the country to crash her ex boyfriend’s wedding?” Darcy quips. “No. Not Lily.”

“There’s no need to be sarcastic,” Katie mutters. “Lily’s not spiteful, she’s just—”

“Stupid?” Darcy supplies. Her eyes sparkle. “Why are you defending her after she sent …” Darcy freezes and stares at Katie, who looks like she wants to throttle her. “That thing to that other person …” she murmurs through her half-closed mouth.

I chuckle, disguising it as a cough when Katie shifts her glare to me.

“It’ll be fine, okay?” I soften my tone. “She couldn’t have gone very far.”

Katie closes her eyes and leans against the wall, swaying forward, like she’s having trouble keeping her balance. That means she’s either still hungover, or she’s really fucking tired. Her eyes fly open and narrow when they catch me looking at her.

“I never should’ve agreed to come,” she mutters.

“Oh, come on. And I shouldn’t have suggested we go out, and you shouldn’t have written that song when you were fourteen and Lily shouldn’t have sent it to her entire contact list.” Darcy shrugs. “There are a thousand variables that could’ve stopped this from happening. But maybe the alternative is worse?”

I grin at the mention of the song and glance at Katie, who has turned bright red.

“She’s right,” I say to her. “Don’t beat yourself up over this. Shit happens. You can’t change it, so you deal with it and move on.”

She looks at me, as if she’s waiting for the snide remark, but I don’t have one.

“Is Lola’s family really that bad?” she asks quietly.

“Yes,” I say simply. “They’re definitely people you don’t want to mess with.”

It’s the most honest thing I’ve said in months.

Lying has become second nature for me, to the point where it feels strange to tell the truth. I hate keeping things from the people close to me, but I find myself doing it more and more. I know it’ll be worth it in the end, but the end feels so far away. And is it worth it if the people I care about are going to hate me for lying to them?

Not only that, it’s fucking hard work keeping up with all the lies. I’ve told so many different things to so many people, it’s a wonder it hasn’t backfired on me. I really shouldn’t jinx myself, because there’s still time for me to fuck things up. Especially with these three on my hands.

“But Alberto … he wouldn’t hurt her, would he?” Darcy asks.

“I don’t know,” I admit.

Katie shakes her head. “I can’t imagine Julian getting mixed up in that kind of life.” She narrows her eyes at me. “You, on the other hand, this has Adam Jenkins written all over it.”

“Harsh.” I smirk. “Wait, was that an insult or a compliment?”

“Only you would have trouble discerning that.” Darcy chuckles, flashing him a smile. The she frowns. “Should we be, uh, looking for Lily or something? You know, just an idea.”

“Darcy’s right. But where do we even start?” Katie frowns.

“We start by thinking like Lily,” I say after a moment.

“That sounds dangerous,” Darcy mutters. “Can’t I just do what anyone else would do and look through her phone?”

Katie and I glare at Darcy when she holds up Lily’s phone.

“Are you kidding me?” I growl angrily at her. “Why the fuck would you wait until now to mention you have her phone?”

“Sorry, I was distracted,” she says defensively.

Katie’s eyes meet mine. She shakes her head and turns around, pacing back and forth around us while Darcy goes through her phone. I’m just about to yell at Darcy to hurry up, when Katie’s head snaps up. She stares at me with wide eyes.

“I think I know where she is,” Katie says excitedly.