Page 147 of Loved

I really hoped my other friends would be more appropriate. But really…where the fuck were they? I glanced at my watch again.

A waitress walked over with our drinks. “And these arrived for you,” she said. She pulled out two envelopes that matched the one Mason had sent. She placed them on the table and walked away. One had my name on it, and the other had Rob’s.

“What the hell is this?” Rob asked and picked up the envelope addressed to him. “I swear, if Matt and Mason send us on some lame scavenger hunt I’m never speaking to them again.”

Penny laughed. “I love scavenger hunts. Open them.”

I grabbed mine too. Rob and I both opened them at the same time.

Inside of mine was a polaroid of Penny walking around campus back at the University of New Castle. I flipped it over. There was a note typed out on the back: “I can’t wait to fuck Penny. I’ve always had a thing for redheads. And when I’m done with her, I bet she’ll go for a great price at my club. -Mason.”

What. The. Fuck?My heart started racing. Seriously. What the fuck? I gripped my free hand into a fist. I was actually going to kill him.Breathe.

“What the fuck?” Rob said out loud.

I looked over at him. The picture on the front of his polaroid was a shot of the four of us from high school. We all looked…sad. Really fucking depressed. I was pretty sure it was taken shortly after the funeral.

“No one’s laughing, Rob,” Rob said as he read his note out loud. “If you ever see anyone laughing, they’re laughingatyou. Notwithyou. Because you’ve never been funny. -Matt.”

Rob looked up at me. “What the fuck is Matt’s problem?”

I clenched my jaw. What kind of sick game were Matt and Mason playing here?

“Maybe it’s some kind of joke?” Penny said.

Rob shook his head. “This shit isn’t funny.I’mfunny.”

I’d never seen Rob so offended before.

“I’m fucking funny, man,” he said again. “What did Matt say to you?”

“Mine wasn’t from Matt. It was from Mason.” I pushed the picture back in the envelope. I could barely even think straight. All I could see was red. How dare Mason talk about Penny that way. He knew we were dating. He knew I was finally fucking happy.Breathe.

“What did it say?” Penny asked.

“Nothing.”Breathe.But I was picturing Mason’s filthy hands on my girl. And I couldn’t fucking breathe.

“James. What did it say?” she asked again. She touched my wrist. Normally her skin on mine calmed me down. But my heart was racing too fast.

Rob grabbed my envelope out of my hand.

“Don’t,” I said but he’d already started reading the note out loud.

“I can’t wait to fuck Penny. I’ve always had a thing for redheads. And when I’m done with her, I bet she’ll go for…” his voice trailed off. “Those fuckers.”

“Go for what?” Penny asked.

“Nothing,” he said. He sounded as pissed as me.

Penny grabbed the picture from him. She stared at the image of her on campus and flipped it over. “I’ll go for a great price at his club?” She shook her head. She looked…hurt. It wasn’t like Rob joking around. She didn’t know Mason. And this wasn’t fucking funny, unlike my brother who was actually funny. Fuck the Caldwells.

“I’m going to kill him,” I said.

“I’m going to kill both of them,” Rob added.

“And you are funny,” I said.

“I know I’m fucking funny!”

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