Page 39 of Apathy
“Where do you think I’m going?” I reverted back, pulling my arm free from him, but he didn’t budge. “Let go of me, Dylan.”
“Sky,” he whispered, placing his other hand around my neck. “Don’t be mad at me. I can’t stand it when you’re mad at me.”
“Dylan—”
“Look at me,” he requested, but I kept staring at his neck instead of his eyes. “Please.” His lips pressed against my forehead as his thumb played against the pulse on my neck. “Gimme those pretty eyes, Little One.”
“I’m really pissed off at you,” I mumbled, refusing to look at him. “Like, really, really pissed.”
“I know, I know.” He hugged me to him, cradling my head against his chest. “I shouldn’t have said that. I’m sorry.”
He started making circles on my back with one of his hands, while still holding me to him. I was pissed at him, but I was also glad he was here. I could torment myself and him, and hold a grudge, but I had no idea how long he was going to stay, and who knew when I would be seeing him next.
“Forgive me?” he asked, taking a step back, holding my cheeks in his hands. “I’m just worried about you. There’s a maniac out there, and we don’t know if he or she is targeting you or if the name was randomly placed, but I don’t want to see you hurt.”
“I won’t be hurt.” I placed my hands on his wrists, squeezing him, trying to reassure him. “But if you lock me inside, I will go crazy. I need to feel normal. I need to put this behind me and continue living.”
A moment of silence, a moment too long, and when his eyes softened, when the Dylan I always knew came back to me, I knew I had him.
“All right,” he said. “Get your things. I’ll drive you to school.”
“Really?” I smiled. “You’re not gonna go all caveman on me and demand I stay at home, get married, and have ten million kids.”
He pinched my side, finally smiling. “Smartass. Who said I would ever let you get married? No one would ever be good enough for you.”
“Oh, I don’t know. I have a couple of candidates,” I joked, taking a step back, slowly exiting the hallway.
“Is that right?”
“I mean, you’ll have to let me go one day.”
Something passed over his face, something foreign, just like last night, but before I could even think about it, it vanished, replaced by an easy-going smile.
“I will never be able to let you go, Sky. You’re the best thing that life has ever given me.”
My throat closed, emotions flooding through my body. He always knew what to say and when to say it, to make me feel better about myself.
“And you are the best thing life has given me as well, Dylan. You’ll always be my favorite.” I sniffed as I started heading toward the stairs. “Oh hey,” I stopped, remembering the voices, knowing that Ash talked to him. “I thought I heard you talking with somebody before and doors closing. Who was it?”
With his hands on his hips, he stood there, watching me. “Just some guy trying to sell something. I told them we weren’t interested.”
“Huh.” Really? Why didn’t he want to tell me about Ash?
“Hurry up,” his voice boomed around the foyer. “I need to finish something in town after I drop you off.”
He started walking toward the living room, and all the while I kept thinking—why did he lie to me?
* * *
The parking in front of the school was completely empty of people when we pulled in. When I looked at the clock, I figured that second period had already started and most of the students were already inside. Since you could see the parking area from the teachers’ lounge, most of us avoided hanging out here if we were skipping classes. There were a few blind spots in the building, like that area beneath the stairs in the East Wing, or we simply left the school grounds completely.
Winworth High always seemed spooky to me, but without the students milling around, the darkening sky above felt almost sinister, and I suddenly wished that I had stayed at home. But if I started avoiding school because of what happened yesterday, knowing me, I wouldn’t be back for the next three months. I was pretty sure that most of the student body already knew what happened. I just didn’t know if they found out all the gritty details.
“Text me once you’re done,” Dylan spoke, breaking the silence in the car. “I’ll pick you up.”
I turned to the side, meeting his eyes. “I can catch a ride with one of the guys.” I smiled. “But, if I decide to leave earlier, I’ll let you know. We might go and hang out somewhere after school, so—”
“Skylar,” he groaned.
