A Shattered Moment (Fractured Lives 1)

His question threw me off and took me a few seconds to process. “What?”

“I asked if you were done studying tonight.” He grinned.

“Um—why?”

“Because it’s a holiday, and I thought maybe we could go do something.”

“I’m not sure that’s the best idea.”

“Why not? Do you have other plans for the holiday?”

My eyes narrowed. Was he mocking me? It was hard to tell since he was still grinning. “I’m not sure Halloween is technically considered a holiday.”

“Sure it is. Check the calendar. It’s on there. I think that makes it a law that it has to be observed, recognized, and celebrated.”

A smile tugged at my lips. “Well, Presidents’ Day is on the calendar, too. What about that one?”

“Absolutely. We exchange political presents for that one.”

“What, like a year of Obamacare?” I teased.

“Exactly.” He winked at me. “So, what do you say? Want to blow this Cracker Jack box and have some fun?”

“I probably shouldn’t,” I answered, thinking of the safe haven of my dorm room. It may be lonely, but it would keep me veiled in obscurity.

“Come on. We’re friends, right?”

“We are?” The claim was new to me. Besides, it had been so long since I had made a new friend.

“Please. Of course we are. How about it, then?” he asked like a child begging to open presents on Christmas morning.

“What did you have in mind?” I could feel the butterflies taking flight in my stomach.

“My roommates said there’s a Halloween party going on at our building.”

“Oh.” My stomach dropped. “I don’t do parties.”

“Like at all, ever?”

My throat became as dry as the Sahara. “No, not ever.” It was a lie. There was a time when I would have gone to my share of parties, but my crew was always with me. We hung out together in our own little bubble. People would filter in and out, talking and joking, but in the end, they were outsiders. We didn’t do it intentionally. It was just the way it had always been.

“That’s cool. We can do something else. How about going to a haunted house? I heard the Petrified Forest is killer this year.”

I shook my head as the first stirrings of despair began to claw their way through me. Walking through a crowded haunted house with my leg wasn’t the best idea anyway, but the Petrified Forest was outside, which would be nearly impossible. My leg wasn’t ready for unpaved terrain.

“Wait. I got it! Do you like chocolate?”

“Love it,” I answered, wondering if he was going to suggest trick-or-treating. I hated to shoot down another suggestion.

“Excellent,” he said, rubbing his hands together like a kid before reaching for my backpack. “Okay, well, let’s hit it.”

“Where are we going?” I asked apprehensively as he shouldered my backpack. I had no idea how I’d suddenly gone from wishing for the sanctity of my dorm room to going who knows where to do who knows what.

“You’ll have to wait and see.” He reached for my hand.

“You know trick-or-treating is probably out, too,” I said, looking down at our linked hands. Whether I was reading more into it than he intended, I wasn’t sure, but I pulled away. It was a little presumptuous of him to think I would jump immediately from talking in the library to becoming the type of friends who held hands.

“Come on, this way.” He continued as if he hadn’t even noticed my reluctance.