Page 98 of Sincerely, Butterfly

“Yes, along with the other two girls I’ve already killed. And the number of girls I plan on killing in the future.”

Callie blinks at me, staring for so long I feel like there's a good chance this could go either way. Then she bursts out laughing.

“Holy fucking hell,” she chokes out between bouts of laughter, a big grin on her face. “You are nothing like I thought you were. You’re actually killing people to show them you’re just as bat-shit crazy as they are?”

“I mean, yeah, kind of? But I’m not just offing anyone, only the girls they sleep with or plan on sleeping with.”

“Oh my god,” she gushes. “That's so romantic.”

“I know, right!” I throw my arms in the air. “Thank you!”

“This is amazing,” she sighs happily. “Ugh. I was just thinking about how I hated that they fucked around with any girl who threw themselves at them. I told them they needed to find a girl to get serious with and settledown.”

“They don’t need to find a girl,” I grumble. “I’m right here.”

“Of course.” She nods. “And you’re better than any girl I could have imagined for them. Perfect really. I know I said they’re not worth it, but that was before I knew…” she waves her hand towards the body. “This.”

“Oh my god, you think I’m perfect for them?” My eyes water at her kind words. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome! You're so sweet and caring. You’re the best friend I’ve ever had. Hell, it’s only been a few weeks, and I already know you're the best person ever.”

“So are you,” I add.

“Thanks.” She smiles.

“You’re not freaked out, scared, horrified about the fact you just caught me killing someone?”

“Nah.” She waves me off. “My brother doesn’t know this, but I’ve known that he and the guys have been killing people for years. One time they came to visit me, and I snuck out to follow them. I caught them beheading about five guys. There was lots of blood.”

“Ugh. I’d have loved to see that. I did watch them kill my high school English teacher for me, though. Super hot. Like, panties melting level of hot.”

“Did you follow them, too?”

“Uh, no. Not exactly.”

“Then how did you find out?”

“That's a story for another time.” I wave her off.

“And they want to tell me they don’t see you in a romantic way. I knew they were bullshitting me. I asked about you over the summer, and they avoided the topic, but I saw how they looked at one another. They are totally in love with you, too.”

“And now you can see why I need to show them I’m perfect for them.”

“I do.” She nods. “Okay, what can I do to help?”

This is going to turn out so much better than I could have imagined. I don’t have to kill my best friend. Yay!

Grabbing the camera out of my bag, I hand it to her. “Can you take our photo?” I ask, slipping the mask back into place. “Just make sure to only get our faces.”

“Okay.” She takes it, and I crouch down on the ground. “Smile! Cheeeesee.”

I give a peace sign while giving the girl bunny ears, even though it won’t show up in the photo because it’s taken up close. Still gotta have some fun with it.

The camera licks and the light flashes.

“That’s gonna be a good one,” Callie laughs.

“You think?” I ask as she shakes out the photo. She hands it over to me, and I grin. “Oh, that is a good one!”