Page 25 of Save Me

Suddenly, you could hear a pin drop.

I slowly turn around. James is lounging in his chair, in stark contrast to the tension that’s now filling the room.

“I’m sorry?” Lin says what I’m thinking.

“Black-and-white’s been done,” James repeats, just as dryly as the first time.

“I heard what you said,” Lin hisses.

He frowns at her. “Then I don’t understand your question.”

“We’re brainstorming, Beaufort. We throw out ideas and write them all downwithoutcomment so that our spontaneous suggestions can lead to the answer,” I explain as quietly as possible.

“I know what brainstorming is, Bell,” he replies, jutting his chin at the whiteboard. “And I’m telling you, we won’t get anywhere like that.”

“Says the guy who thinks you need strippers to create atmosphere,” mutters Kieran.

“I wouldn’t have had to if I hadn’t known how lame your party was going to be.”

Nobody speaks, but I can feel the mood in the room going from bad to worse. Everyone but Camille is glaring at James with furious eyes, but he doesn’t seem remotely bothered. Eyebrows raised, he looks around. “Oh, come on. Don’t tell me you didn’t notice.”

“You’re not all there,” says Kieran, and Jessalyn nods.

“Guys,” I say. I look at them all in concern. “Pull yourselves together.” James’s lips twitch suspiciously, and I point my pen at him like it’s a gun. “Stop grinning like that. We spent most of the holidays planning that party. It wasn’t lame.”

James leans forward in his chair, resting both arms on the table. “That’s a matter of opinion.”

It feels as though there’s a vein throbbing at my temple. “Oh, really.”

He nods.

“Why’s that, if I may ask?” Lin’s voice is sickly sweet. I know that tone. It bodes ill, and now I’ve got goose bumps, and not in a good way.

James lifts a hand and counts on his fingers. “The buffet looked cheap. The music was shit. The dress code was unclear. And it was totally dead for hours.”

I can feel Lin shaking beside me. If we were alone, I could wring James’s neck for his unconstructive criticism. Everyone in this room put so much work into that party, it’s not fair to say it was all a total flop. And not true either. But as team leader, I have to keep my cool. And therewerethings that didn’t go entirely to plan; we agreed on that on Monday.

“I agree with you about the music,” I say. “It wasn’t great. But people danced anyway, so I wouldn’t call it a total write-off.”

“Because that’s what you do at a party. But decent music would have made for a way better atmosphere.”

Three years ago, at my old school, I did a course on conflict resolution. It ran over five afternoons and taught us ways to avoid arguments. I don’t remember everything, but one thing that did stick in my head is that you have to make everyone feel heard and that you should divert energy away from a row and into what matters.

With this aim in mind, I take a deep breath and look at James. “I hear your criticism, and I’ll make note of it. But that doesn’t alter the fact that we’re still deciding on a theme for Halloween. Doug’s suggestion is a good one, and I’ll write it down. And I’ll write down everyone else’s ideas, and in the end, we can have a look through and see what works and what doesn’t.” I writeBlack-and-whiteon the board. Then I turn around again. “Anything else?”

“OK, I’ve got an idea,” Jessalyn says, raising her hands like she’s seeing a vision. “Classical chic with a ghostly touch. Candles, black flowers. Modernizing the traditional Halloween party.”

I make a note.

“Equally dull.”

“If you’ve got nothing to contribute, then shut the fuck up, Beaufort,” Lin snarls.

“Black-and-red vampire party,” Kieran suggests.

“Still lame,” mutters James.

I’m going to get through this. I am not going to stab him in the eye with a pen.

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