“Who?” they both asked, again at the same time.
“Sebastian Harper.”
“Who?” Dorian asked, obviously not remembering who that was.
“You know, the guy who… you know…” Frey tried to explain in a weird way and Eva didn’t understand why.
But, then again, she also couldn’t really describe him if she was asked to do it. The guy with the tattoos? The guy she saw at the library? What else was there about him that would be distinctive enough to recognize him?
“Oh, I think I know who you mean,” Dorian seemed to remember. “I don’t know him very well.”
“I know him so-so,” Frey told her. “Sounds like a nice guy overall.”
“Well, he is… really nice,” she smiled at the thought of Sebastian. “So, I’d like him to be in.”
“But, is he…” Dorian started.
“I don’t know yet. I have to see. But that is my condition. Everyone or no one.”
“Sure, I’m in,” Frey shrugged his shoulders and she had to appreciate his eagerness to try.
Dorian was waiting. His lips pressed tight, so tight that his mouth was just one thin line. He then bit his lower lip and released a sigh.
“I guess so…” he nodded.
“Great,” Eva smiled, completely flabbergasted that she’d arranged the whole thing, and it started off totally differently. “But, remember, not a word of this to anyone.”
“You have our word,” Frey assured her and for some reason, she trusted him.
She always trusted her gut feeling and there seemed nothing wrong with either of them. Still, this was slippery ground, one she wasn’t used to yet. She smiled, deciding to let time reveal their true natures.
Chapter 12
During one of the breaks, Eva rushed to the bathroom. It was that time of the month, so she needed to change her tampon. She chose the last stall, locked herself in, and took care of business. When she was done, she suddenly heard some commotion.
“Get out!” Someone was shouting and the voice reverberated throughout the bathroom.
“Quickly, let’s go, out!” The same voice repeated and Eva heard the sound of rushing footsteps. A second later and the bathroom seemed empty, only, it wasn’t. The sound of footsteps was heard again, shoes with a slight wooden heel, getting closer and closer. Eva knew someone was walking over to her stall. Her eyes inspected the lock again. It was bolted. It wasn’t much of a protection from whatever was going on, but it might buy her a few precious seconds.
Eva expected yelling, shouting, breaking the door down, but not a gentle knock that followed three times.
“Knock, knock!”
That same voice repeated, and as Eva looked down, she could see a shadow peeking through the empty space between the stall door and the floor. Fear crept up on her, like icy fingers resting on her shoulders, burying its fingers so deeply that she was unable to shake it off, no matter how much she tried.
She swallowed heavily, realizing that she recognized the voice. She knew who it belonged to and that made her even more afraid.
“Open the door!” the voice sang its order, giving it an additional layer of fright.
Eva had no idea what was about to happen. She realized that the voice had shooed away everyone else, so now, Eva was alone in here. Alone, with Katrina.
“I won’t ask so nicely again,” Katrina growled.
Eva took a deep breath. Everything inside of her was screaming to keep the door closed, but she knew that, eventually, she would have to get out. She wouldn’t be able to hide behind it forever. She unbolted the door and swung it open quickly, almost noiselessly.
“Well, well, well…” Katrina hissed.
Eva took a step and walked out into the open. She could see now that Katrina wasn’t alone. She never was. Her two friends were there, Ruby and Nora. They seemed faceless, almost like caricatures, brought to life only through the voice of Katrina’s commands. Eva pitied them. They probably had no idea how pathetic they were, but she couldn’t bother with that right now. She needed to get out of this bathroom, before Katrina did something they all might regret.