Has Josh found me? Or maybe this is Lukas getting payback for putting doubt in Brooke’s mind.
I consider running for it but I don’t want to risk losing Brooke to the chance she doesn’t run with me.
What do we do?
My sense of time loses me. I don’t know if we have been standing here for only a few seconds or if we’ve wasted valuable time freaking out when we could have made an escape.
All I know is that when the handle of the front door begins to turn, it’s all I can handle.
A scream rips out of me as tears spring from my eyes.
I don’t want to die. Not now. Not without living a full life with Nate first.
My scream pulls a terrified shriek out of Brooke and I tighten my grip on her hand before hauling ass into the kitchen. These people are coming for us whether we want them to or not, and I’ll be damned if this goes down without us defending ourselves.
I look back over my shoulder and keep an eye on the door. Watching as it slowly opens, revealing the hooded figure.
Holy fuck. Fuck. FUCK.
I grab a knife and force it into Brooke’s hand. I scramble around for another, but all I can reach is a frypan. It will have to do.
I have no idea where the other person is, all I know is that he’s in the house somewhere.
The hooded figure steps across the threshold and in the blink of an eye, the lights come flickering back on, blinding me with the suddenness before unbelievable laughter fills the dead silence.
I stand beside Brooke, holding onto her with a deep confusion. The laughter is familiar but my mind is too scrambled to place it.
A girl appears in the hallway with a smile as the hood is pushed back from the figure in the doorway.
“Surprise,” Brylee calls, throwing her hands up in the sky as Courtney laughs in the hallway.
I grip harder on the frypan.
“Bry?” Brooke questions, bringing her hand up to wipe the tears from her confused face.
I snap into action and grab hold of her wrist, forcing it back down, realizing she’s completely forgotten the knife I put in her delicate hand.
“Fuck,” she grunts, looking down at the knife.
I turn my glare on the girls. “What the hell was that?” I demand, throwing the frypan in the sink as Puck waltzes through the door behind Bry.
“Cutting the power was a good touch, huh?” He howls, slapping his thigh as he tries to gain control of his laughter.
“Fucking stupid, is what it is,” I growl. “I was about ready to beat the shit out of you guys with a frypan. Brooke has a fucking knife in her hands. Are you morons?”
“Shit, Tora,” Courtney grumbles. “It’s a joke. Calm down.”
“Yeah, funny joke,” Brooke scoffs, releasing my other hand and walking out of the kitchen. “I nearly wet my fucking pants.”
“Sorry,” Bry mumbles, pressing her lips together and trying her hardest not to laugh anymore. “It originally wasn’t our intention to scare you but when Puck suggested it, well… we couldn’t resist.”
I turn on Puck. “Nate is going to pulverize you for this.”
His face falls. “Fuck,” he grunts as his eyes widen. Pure panic seeps into his features. “I didn’t even think about that,” he gasps. “Shit, I’ll make it up to you. Don’t tell him. My face is too pretty to be broken into a hundred pieces.”
I shrug my shoulder and wink. “Good luck with that.”
“Shiiiit,” he groans before turning to Courtney. “I told you, I wanted to stay home and fuck all day, but nooooo, we just had to leave the house. Are you happy now? I’m going to look like a fucking gorilla.” With that, he turns and stalks out the door as Courtney chuckles at his back.
I let out a deep breath and focus on Brylee as I walk towards her. “I’d really like to say it’s great to see you, but I’m not feeling it just yet. Give me a few minutes and I’m sure I’ll be ecstatic.”
“Understandable,” she laughs, throwing her arms around me and pulling me in tight. “How are you?”
“Exhausted,” I tell her honestly as Brooke comes forward too. “What are you doing here? Did Yale kick you out already?”
“No,” she scoffs. “I happen to be killing it. I’m at the top of most my classes. It’s just this damn Suzie McFuckface who keeps besting me.”
“You’re such a nerd,” Brooke says, barging me out of the way to give Bry a hug. “But seriously, what are you doing here?”
“It’s my aunt’s wedding on Sunday, so I thought I’d come down a few days early and see you all first.”
“Well then,” Brooke smiles, looking across at me, making me realize exactly what my night is going to hold. “I guess we better call Elle.”