Page 62 of The Obsession

“I—I’m falling in love with you,” she whispered, “and it scares me to death. I’ve never loved a guy before, not like this. And I want it to be perfect, do you understand?”

“It is. It’s totally perfect.”

“No, it’s not. How can it be perfect when you have that video over my head? When I fall in love, I want it to be pure. Nothing between us but pure, innocent love. When I kiss you again—and I will, I’ve been dreaming about it—but when we do kiss again, I want it to be like our first kiss, where all I wanted was you and there was nothing hanging over me.”

I gaped at her as her words swam through my head like a school of fish, whirling this way and that one second and dispersing the next. I could hardly fathom what she was saying. My mind was still singing with the joy of having her tell me she liked me. No, not just liked. She said she was falling in love with me. It was finally happening!

But no. It wasn’t. Something was stopping her, she said. Clarity plodded in on painfully slow legs. The video. I struggled to understand. But why? The video was safe with me, surely she saw that. But maybe she was right. The video made our relationship different. We weren’t on the same level as each other.

I nodded slowly, and Delilah visibly relaxed. Anger shot through me, sudden and surprising. Why was she so fucking worried about that video all the time? She squeaked, and that was when I realized I’d tightened my hold on her arms. I loosened my grip, but she still looked scared, and I hated that, I had to explain to her that she was safe. There was nowhere safe for Delilah except with me.

“You need to trust me, Dee, do you trust me?”

“Yes.”

But she didn’t. She looked like she wanted to run away from me. I knew then that I had no choice. Ihadto kill her, to stop her from running away from me. To save her. The video didn’t matter. I could delete that, no problem. It wouldn’t make a difference. All that mattered was making sure she was mine. Mine for eternity.

Chapter Twenty

Delilah

Aisha and I walked toward the boys’ dorm, taking the long route to avoid the streetlights. It was way after curfew. Mom would have a shit fit if she knew I’d stolen out of the house and came to school, but Mom was fast asleep; I’d made sure of that before I left.

“Okay, you remember what you’re going to say to him?” I asked.

“I heard something about someone saying something that might be related to Sophie,” she recited.

I swear, I could kill her. She didn’t understand just how precarious everything was. How dangerous Logan was. After our last date, when he’d grabbed me with surprising strength, I hadn’t been able to sleep. Each time I dozed off, I’d startle awake, convinced I’d find Logan standing at the foot of my bed, watching me with that intense gaze of his.

I glared at Aisha, and she rolled her eyes. “Obviously I will be a lot more specific than that,” she said. “Dude, you’re being a bit of a control freak right now, just so you know. Have more faith in me, okay? I’m in your corner.”

Guilt sank its teeth, sharp and quick. I’d been so fixated on finding the video I hadn’t stopped to think what a huge favor Aisha was doing for me. If we got caught, that would be the end of her future too. Aiding and abetting. I didn’t want to think of how many years she’d get for it. No, I wouldn’t let that happen. I’d tell them she knew nothing, that I’d been manipulating her all along. “Thank you,” I said.

“You owe me. Okay, go hide. I’m gonna call him.”

I slipped around the corner and watched as Aisha dialed his number. Her phone screen flashed bright in the dark. I breathed into my hands to keep them warm. I’d worn layers and gloves, but winter was nudging in; the air was crisp and my fingers were numb. Draycott at midnight was different, witchy and wild, like creatures could come out from the woods at any moment and take over the campus. Snatches of Aisha’s voice floated to where I stood.

“—meet—now—outside—”

She hung up and flashed me a quick thumbs-up. Holy crap, we were really doing this. Now that it was about to happen, it felt unreal, a game, some sort of bad joke. A shrill bout of laughter threatened to overcome me. I pinched myself to keep silent.

The door swung open, and my breath caught in my throat. Logan walked out. I crept forward, willing every muscle to move as silently as humanly possible.

“What is it?” Logan asked, so close, his voice so clear. God, if he turned to his left just a couple of degrees right now—

“Not here,” Aisha said sharply.

Wow, go Aisha.

“Come on,” she said, and strode off to the other side of the building, leaving Logan with no choice but to follow.

I had a moment of panic once the front door slipped shut behind me. The world went silent, save for flutters of noise from within the rooms: a sudden loud snore, the creak of a bed, the tap-tapping of a keyboard, probably some kid finishing up a last-minute paper.

I’d done my research, I knew where Logan’s room was, but for one second, I was rooted to my spot, frozen. Surely they could sense me here, an intruder, my breath so loud in the enclosed space. And what the hell was I doing anyway? I couldn’t go through with this. It was completely hopeless. I couldn’t—

Then, as suddenly as it captured me, panic’s grip released, and I crept forward. One step, two, silent as a cat. I glided up the stairs to Logan’s room. I’d been given a key, but his door was unlocked anyway. I slipped inside and let my breath out.

Unlocking my phone, I propped it up on the floor, facing away from the window. It gave me enough visibility to avoid crashing into things but was dim enough so no one outside would be able to see the light through the window.

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