Chapter 107
Harper I''m in shock.
I don’t move for a few minutes after my confession to Easton that their arrival is a nightmare.
He grips my hand in his.
I squeeze right back.
How are we supposed to deal with this? While I don''t like Aisha, okay, I hate her, and I’m at a breaking
point with ke, I don’t wish death on them.
At least not yet.
“Yeah, it’s rough out there, ''
Ryan finally says, getting up on his feet and grabbing a few nkets.
“We were just sitting down to y a few games, you guys hungry? ''
Ryan looks like he’d rather shove his head into a toilet then offer them food, but bonus points for
actually being nice.
I’m still trying to look away from the massive amount of cleavage Aisha is showing.
I can’t stop myself from rolling my eyes.
I want to toss a sweatshirt at her and then a nket for good measure just so her girls don’t spill out
and give the guys a show.
I know I''m being ridiculous, but at the same time, I''m so angry that they''re back and ruining our time
together once again, I want to scream.
“Starved. ''
ke plops himself down on the couch, his dark man bun in disarray as if Aisha has had her hands
through it.
I frown.
He meets my gaze, his eyes lock on mine, like he has something to say, which automatically makes me
squirm as he licks his lips and winks.
What? I quickly look away as Ryan brings over some chips and dip, along with a fifth of whiskey—wow,
yeah, because all good choices follow shots of whiskey.
Maybe I should numb myself a bit, so I don’tmit homicide because as of right now, as Aisha
adjusts her ck top where I swear I almost see nipple, I think prison might be nice.
“S$00000. ''
ke rubs his hands together, then runs them through his long, jet ck hair, pulling it back into his
little bun again, looking effortlessly hot, which just annoys me even more because why the hell is he
with Aisha? What a waste.
“What were you guys up to before we came back? ''
“Rxing, ''
I say in an annoyed voice as I lean in closer to Easton and grab his hand.
He kisses me on the head almost as if to say hey, it’s fine, it’s just a storm, everything’s all right.
The sound of thunder has everyone in the house jumping a foot.
And, then, the lights flicker, giving me hope they’ re about toe back on, but my hope is wasted as
the room stays deathly dark.
“I need to go check on the food, ''
Easton says, kissing me on the cheek.
He gets up and ke decides to join him along with Ryan.
So basically all the boys are ying hero while the girls are sitting in a small circle, staring at each
other, waiting to draw blood.
It’s awkward as hell.
I just want Easton.
And more vacation.
Moreke.
And no Aisha.
With her fake blonde hair and emerald green eyes, she''s pretty, I''ll at least give her that, but she uses
her beauty as a weapon.
She''s the sort of girl who you warn people about, one who will pretend to be your friend to your face
while jamming a knife in your back while she says sorry.
I shudder.
“So. ''
Sadie clears her throat.
“Bad roads, then? ''
Aisha rolls her eyes.
“Duh, isn’t that what we said? ''
Sadie’s hands clench into tiny fists.
“Were there some trees down or something? ''
I intervene.
“Yeah. ''
Aisha looks away, then jumps a foot when the thunder sounds again.
Her eyes flicker to mine, then to the door.
“Are the guysing back? ''
“They''re fine, probably just working on the food, ''
Sadie says in a bored voice, but I notice something different.
I notice Aisha.
Frowning, I watch closely as she grabs a nearby nket and wraps it around herself.
Her body shivers as lightning shes through the window and when the thunder hits again she
squeezes her eyes shut.
One solitary tear slides down her cheek before she swipes it away with her perfectly manicured, pointy,
purple nail.
“Are you scared of storms? ''
I ask, curious but also trying to cut the tension a bit.
She shrugs.
“Storms are scary. ''
‘Yeah, so are heights and Ryan somehow manages to go bungee jumping like a pro. ''
She shudders.
“It’s okay to be scared of shit. ''
She peers around me.
? 2024 N?v/el/Dram/a.Org.
“Are we sure the boys are okay? ''
“They''re fine. ''
Sadie jumps to her feet.
“But, because you''re so damn worried, I''ll go check on them.
Happy, princess? ''
Aisha sniffs.
“Yes. ''
“Perfect. ''
Sadie halfway growls, then stomps out of the living room, abandoning me to Aisha and her weird
moods.
More thunder sounds.
Aisha practically sters herself against the couch.
“Do you need anything? ''
I ask.
She snorts out augh.
“Like you actually care. ''
“I do care. ''
And I mean it.
“I mean, while I would one hundred percent attach your body to a metal pole and leave you for the
lightning, I do care.
Right now, I care. ''
Aishaughs.
“I''m feisty, you''d have to get me strapped in the first ce. ''
“Oh, I have ns, I''d knock you out first. ''
“I''ll be sure to be on the lookout for blunt objects. ''
She actuallyughs.
And I find myself joining in.
“So. ''
I shrug.
“Storms? ''
She swallows, then her eyes meet mine.
For the first time since I''ve Known her, there isn’t a pretense, no hidden agenda, just a scared girl.
“He died. ''
I lean forward.
“Who did? ''
“My brother. ''
She hugs the nket tighter around herself.
“What do you mean? ''
I pry.
“I didn’t even know you had a brother? ''
I vaguely remember Ryan being upset about a kid at another school getting hurt but we didn’t hang out
as much back when we were freshman, I hurt his cool factor.
“How could you? ''
She shrugs.
“He went to the perfect private school across town, besides, most people forget, it’s easy to forget.
You know, way easier, because then it doesn’t hurt as much, then you can almost believe it didn’t
happen because how could that happen to someone so young? ''
Her voice cracks.
“He was driving up here, to Easton’ske house, actually... ''
She shudders.
“We were freshman, he was a senior. ''
I shake my head.
“I don’t remember. ''
“Well, you are a nerd. ''
She offers with augh.
I weirdly don''t feel offended.
“But there was a storm, a lot like this one, and my idiot brother needed to drive back for football
practice. ''
“What happened? ''
I''m almost afraid to ask more of the story.
Her eyes meet mine before she whispers, “Easton killed their friendship.
The storm finished him off.”