“Yeah … I think I’m turning in, too,” Corey says, pulling his wet shirt from his chest. “We have to be at the gym at seven.”
“It’s Halloween,” Lenny objects. “This night happens once a year.”
“It feels like there’s a puddle between each of my toes,” Hadley says. “I can’t.” She releases her grip on my arm and takes a step back as she looks at me. “But you guys have fun.”
“Where should we start?” Palmer asks, looking at me.
I shake my head. “I’m out, too, man.”
Lenny grins. “I could’ve guessed. You guys have fun.”
Ethan, Hadley, Hannah, and I cross the gravel parking lot. “We’ll see you guys at the house,” Hannah says, ducking into Ethan’s car.
“You don’t have to go back to the house with me,” Hadley says. “I mean, I know you know that, but if you want to… You don’t need my permission if you want to go and hang out or…”
“Cutlass,” I say, taking a step forward as the rain continues to fall, faster and harder now. “Get in the truck.”
“I’m serious. I can catch a ride with Hannah and Ethan.”
I pull open the passenger door. “I’ll pick you every time, Cutlass.”
Her blue eyes dance across my face. If it wasn’t pouring down rain, I think she might wait for me to expand upon my admission, but instead, she climbs into my passenger seat.
We stop to pick up fast food on our way home.
“Hannah says they went to Ethan’s because he didn’t have any extra clothes,” Hadley says, reading the text as we walk into the house. She proceeds to flip on every light.
The house groans, a sound that occurs every time the furnace or air conditioning kicks on. Hadley jumps, eyes round as she looks toward the living room.
“A little on edge?”
“I have full confidence that the nightmares induced from that trail will go away in about a decade.”
I chuckle. “Oh, Cutlass. Want me to go upstairs while you change?”
“Will you mock me for all of eternity?”
“Only for tonight.”
“And you won’t pull a prank and terrify me?”
I draw an ‘X’ across my chest. “You have my word.”
“Will you please?”
I grin, setting the food on the table before following her upstairs.
She leaves her bedroom door open. “You’ve already seen everything,” she calls when I remain in the hall.
“But we’re friends, Cutlass.”
“Ahhh, right.” She comes back to the doorway, topless without a bra. My mouth waters and blood whooshes through my body.
She closes the door.
Minutes later she reappears wearing sweats and socks.
“I can’t believe you sleep with socks on.”