Page 1 of Catch Me

1

Sometime in the last minute or so, the dank, mold-infested hotel room faded away.

My eyes focus on a pair of blue-green irises staring straight back at me. By all measures, they’re pretty. Exotic even, but what’s inside is dark. Dangerous. Sasha is an evil mastermind dressed up like a showpiece.

Her lips turn into a smirk. She moves further into the hotel room, casting our surroundings a disgusted once-over before returning her attention to me. It’s clear she would never be caught dead in a place like this. Not Sasha Pontine. “This was more fun than I thought.” She laughs, the sound harsher than anything I’ve heard lately, and that’s saying something since I’ve been begging on the streets for a week. “You were too easy to manipulate, Briar. I mean, I barely said anything over the messages, but you just took right off, telling me all your thoughts and feelings.”

My mind races, thinking of everything I poured out, thinking of how the person on the other end of the screen had felt like a lifeline for so long. The whole time it was Sasha, laughing. My stomach threatens to expel again, but I won’t give her the gratification of that. Of losing myself over her. I want to ask her what the hell she wants, but instead, my lips form the question, “Why?”

Slowly, she crosses her arms over her chest. “Whydid I mess with you?” She shrugs. “It was fun. I was bored. You were there.”

Her words repeat in my head over and over. There’s a special place in hell for people like Sasha. She’s even worse than I imagined. She’s not just self-centered and cruel, she gets off on being mean. After we stare one another down for a moment, I say, “What are you doing here? Just throwing it in my face that I never really had a friend?”

“Now that would be too easy.” Her eyes flash. “No, I have more planned. You see, you really screwed up the thing Reid and I had going.”

My eyes go out of focus as a sharp stab hits my chest. She said his name. His name on her lips is so, so wrong.

Reid…

My heart clutches his name, not wanting to let it go. I’ve tried not to think about him the whole time I’ve been gone. I’ve tried not to think about anyone from home. There’s too much there.

She pierces me with a look, and I realize the painful groan I hear in my ears is actually me, filling the hotel room with my pain. It’s the sound I make when I replay what happened to Reid out on that football field. My mind begs me to ask her how he is, but at the same time, I won’t give her the satisfaction. I also know that whatever comes out of her mouth is most likely a lie.

“Get over yourself,” she snaps. “He’s a good lay, but notthatgood.”

My gaze narrows. Doesn’t she know it’s not about that? I take her in. Her perfect hair, her designer outfit. To her, it’s probably all about that. In that moment, I feel a little sorry for her. A little. She doesn’t know what love is—and that’s tragic.

The doorknob turns and the barrier between me and my real life pushes open once more. Sasha and I immediately turn that way. I back up, but the first thing out of Sasha’s mouth is, “Took you long enough.”

“Sorry, babe. I got busy.”

She rolls her eyes.

The backs of my legs hit the bed, and I take a seat. The bed squeaks, causing the newcomer to look over. “So, this is her?”

“Yeah,” Sasha says, not sparing me a glance. She grabs his shirt and yanks him toward her. Their lips collide until they fall into a raucous wrestling match that looks like it’s about who can bite the other’s face off first. I turn away.

“Don’t forget what you promised me,” a husky voice says, emerging from the sucking noises.

“I always come through,” Sasha says, her voice flipping from bitch to vixen in a heartbeat.

They start making out again, so I get up and walk toward the door. I’m not staying here. I don’t know where I’m going, but my heart hurts. It’s heavy in my chest. The owner of the hotel has a phone in the office. Maybe I should make that call, the one I told myself I wouldn’t make after I’d wake in sweats from a night filled with dreams about home. I told myself I couldn’t take the pain of returning, but I can’t take the pain of being away either.

A hand comes around my midsection, clamping down. “No, you don’t.”

The hand pushes back, sending me stumbling toward the bed. Once again, the mattress catches my knees, and I plop back on the bed. Sasha moves in front of me, making me look up to face her. She runs a finger under her bottom lip, fixing the smear of lipstick. “Here’s what’s going to happen, Briar. I get what I want. It occurred to me that that photo I have of you with your tiny little tit wouldn’t do much, but I had the thought that I could do so much better. So, I broughthimhere to do just that.”

The new guy starts to take his shirt off. He’s got an athletic body built for sports. My eyes stay trained on his face, and that’s when it hits me. I know this guy. I’ve seen him before. “You,” I say.

He smiles. We all know what I’m talking about, but none of us voice it aloud. My heart rips again, thinking about the tackle that took Reid down. Like it just happened, I see a guy run back to the sidelines with a smirk on his face. It’s this guy. I’m sure of it.

Sasha pulls her pink glittery cell phone out. “Alright, let’s get started.”

I turn toward her, unsure of what she’s even talking about. The guy eases the button on his jeans and lowers his zipper. Panic claws at my throat as Sasha starts snapping pictures. “What are you doing?”

“Making your life miserable. If you think Reid will want you again after this…”

Sasha’s accomplice takes my hand and puts them on the waistband of his jeans. I’m too numb to do anything at first, but once he holds them there, I pull out of his grip. “Stop.”

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