“They can manage without you for one night,” I argue. “Look, your phone is going in my pocket for the rest of the evening, and you can have it back when we leave, deal?”
Vee sinks her teeth into the inside of her cheek, considering her options. I can tell she’s so used to playing errand girl for her sister that leaving her on “Read” feels unnatural.
Aveena hit Pauseon every aspect of her life after her father passed when she was nine, from going to parties and dating to experiencing even the most mundane things in a teenager’s life.
I keep clinging to the hope that she’ll find someone to put her first one day. Someone to remind her to chase her own dreams. Hopefully, before we leave for college and she turns into a sex-deprived cat lady.
“Deal,” Aveena has no choice but to say when I squeeze her phone into my back pocket.
I must wish her a happy birthday a hundred times that night.
We talk, eat, gossip, and laugh as the restaurant gradually empties. I’m also careful not to mention Finn wanting to eat me out on the library rug.
We eventually migrate to the bar to keep chatting while the staff cleans up. Gaten’s, being the only restaurant in Silver Springs with a bar section,closes at around two every night, and as long as we don’t try to drink, my dad doesn’t mind if we stick around until closing.
The restaurant is deserted with the exception of the staff and us by the time we take a look around. The clock reads 1:49, and the exhaustion is starting to creep in.
I rub my eyes. “I’m going to call it a night.”
My phone chimes in my jeans, reminding me that I still have Aveena’s phone in my pocket. I give it back to her before checking my screen.
I have two text messages.
From Theo.
I gave him my number in case of an emergency after I found Finn in the library that night, but I didn’t think he’d actually use it. My pulse climbing, I unlock my phone and feel my throat close up.
Theo: You need to come home.
Theo: NOW.
* * *
“Just drop me off here. I’ll walk,” I assure Aveena when we turn onto the Richardses’ street twenty minutes later.
I’ve never seen my best friend this nervous before. She hasn’t said a word since we left the restaurant, gnawing on her bottom lip the way she does whenever anxiety takes a toll on her.
And the worst part?
It’s my fault.
As soon as Vee turned her phone back on, she realized her mom had been calling her for hours. And from the look on her face as she skimmed through her texts, she’s in for quite the welcome when she gets home.
Turns out her daughter celebrating her birthday wasn’t a good enough reason for Mrs. Harper to give her the night off.
“You sure?” Aveena worries, but she’s already slowing down to drop me off a block away from the house. Her mom made it clear she wants her home now.
“I’m sure.” I unbuckle my seat belt and open my arms to give her a hug. “Happy birthday, Vee,” I tell her again and climb out of her car.
She offers me a weak smile through the window and drives off into the night. Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I relive the absolute dread of reading Theo’s texts and set off toward the house.
The closer I get, the bigger the pit in my throat becomes.
I eventually see the metal gate to the mansion wide open for anyone to walk through and know…
Something is wrong.
Verywrong.