Page 83 of Don't Love the Boy Next Door
“Are you sure you want to come?” I ask Katie Saturday morning as I tie my hair into a high ponytail and let it swing down the back of my neck. “Eric might be there.”
Shrugging, Katie brushes her hair. “Of course I want to come. Ethan’s my friend. And yes, his brother might be there and it’ll be hard to see him, but I want to.”
“Okay.” I check myself over and over in the mirror—I have no idea why—then tell Katie I’m good to go. She hardly looks at herself before following me out of the house.
I catch her eyes darting to the Palmer house, and her body tenses up. She kept her shade firmly shut the past few days, like she’s shutting off that bright part of her life. I still have no clue how to help her. She hasn’t even been in my latest live streams.
We climb on the bus and take it to the hospital. I don’t know how Ethan will react when he sees me. I mean, does he even want to see me?
Why am I even going?
“Phoenix, it’s our stop,” Katie says. She’s standing at the back doors, ready to descend as the bus slows to a stop. I rush to her and jump down the stairs and out of the bus.
“What are you so distracted with?” she asks as we make our way to the hospital a few blocks away.
I shrug. “Nothing.”
She gives me a face.
I sigh. “It’s selfish.”
“What is?”
I stop walking and turn to her. “For me to be nervous about seeing Ethan when you’re dreading seeing Eric. Like, I have noright to be a drama queen when you’re still hurting from what he did to you.”
“Why are you nervous?”
I continue walking. “I don’t know.”
“Phoenix.”
I turn around. “Okay…Iwantto see Ethan.” I cover my face. “Is that crazy? Like, I was up all night wondering if he’s okay. Everyone was saying on social media that he has small injuries, but, like, I still want to see him and see if he’s okay. That’s crazy. I mean, I don’t even like the guy.”
“Okay…why is your face red, then?”
My hand shoots to my cheek. It’s not that hot—okay it is. But why? I mean, I was worried about him after he got hurt, but so was the rest of the crowd. And Katie, too. So why do my cheeks think they have the right to turn red?
“We’re here,” she says once we get there and walk through the doors. We take an elevator to the right floor.
My heart is beating wildly and my stomach keeps closing in on itself. What the heck isupwith that? And my hands are a little sweaty. That’s never happened to me before.
The elevator doors ping open and we file out. After looking right and left, we find the room and step inside. But it’s nearly impossible to move because Ethan’s room is filled with kids from school, and even kids from other schools.
Katie and I exchange a glance. There’s no way we’ll be able to break through this blockade.
“Good, let’s go,” I say as I turn to go.
Katie grips my hand. “No way. He has to know we’re here.”
“Why?”
“Because we’re his friends.”
Friends…? Me? Nah, I don’t think so…but if I want to be honest with myself, I kind of want him to know I’m here.
“Everyone move!” I yell.
No one budges.
