Page 97 of Riot House
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I hide the flocked card underneath a book on my desk when I hear Carina wailing my name down the hall. “Elodie Stillwater, let me in immediately!”
I open the door, and there are dark circles under her eyes, which look puffy like she's been crying. She marches into my room and slumps onto my bed, groaning as she throws herself back against my pillows.
“Hey. Whoa, what's going on?” I clamber up onto the bed beside her, stroking her hair back out of her face. She screws her eyes shut, whimpering.
“Andre. He—we're through. He dumped me.”
“What the fuck? What happened?”
“I don't know. Everything seemed to be going so well, and then yesterday he bailed on dinner. And then this afternoon I get this weird, vague ass text, telling me that he can't hang out anymore because his workload just tripled at college. Hang out anymore! Like we were just screwing around. He told me he was in love with me a week ago, Elle. How can a person fall in love and out of love in such a short space of time? That's a motherfucking record.”
“That’s so weird. He didn’t seem like that kind of guy.”
“I know! Heisn’tthat kind of guy. Which is how I know Dashiell had something to do with this. I know it, Elodie. It’s so like him, to interfere and meddle in other people’s affairs. He can’t stand anyone else being happy.”
“Have you confronted him? Asked him if he said anything?”
“No.” She sniffs. “It wouldn’t help. He’d just deny it, anyway. Thatasshole! And all I wanna do is binge Netflix and eat pizza, but I have so much work to catch up on,” she moans. “I'm gonna have to pull an all-nighter if I want to get my English and my Science projects completed for tomorrow.”
“You want me to come work with you? I'm really good at the whole moral support thing.”
She drags a pillow over her face, moaning again. “Please don't take this the wrong way, but I'm not the type of girl who wants to be around other people when she's hurting. I'm about to descend into a shame spiral of epic proportions. It's better if there are no witnesses.” It's surprising how well I can understand her with the pillow covering her mouth. “If you come and hang out in my room, all I'm gonna do is cry and rage, and that won't be a fun time for either of us. And I reallyhavegot to get this work done.”
I take hold of the corner of the pillow, attempting to tug it down so I can see her face, but she slaps a hand down on top of it, pinning it in place. “I came to see if you have any spare highlighters. And Post-Its. And Valium.”
“Yes, on the stationary. No, on the prescription meds, I'm afraid.”
She groans even louder. The pillow gets thrown across the room. “Why does no one in this school have any good drugs? Fuck recreational use. You'd think at least half of us were medicated for our veryrealanxiety disorders.”
I can guarantee that someone at Riot House has the kind of chemical relief she's looking for. No way in hell am I suggesting she go knocking on their door, though. “It's gonna be okay, babe. Andre's a fucking fool if he doesn't want to be with you. And you're gonna ace these assignments. You're a bad bitch. No doubt about it.”
She wrinkles her nose, teetering on the verge of tears again. “You're a good friend, Stillwater. Hand over the highlighters before I lose the will to live.”
I give her what she needs, and she goes. I close my bedroom door, knowing that she was wrong on so many levels. Hating myself for it. I'm keeping so many secrets from her now that I feel like a goddamn monster. And short of telling her that I'm in love with Wren Jacobi, nothing's going to change that.
* * *
WREN: You awake?
ME: Just about. You?
WREN: Nope. I text in my sleep. It's a problem.
ME: Funny.
WREN: You get the invite?
ME: Yeah. It was under my door when I came back to my room. You didn't feel like waiting for me?
WREN: Pax left it for you. I told him not to.
I stare at the message, the words stark and painful.I told him not to.Wren’s been tight-lipped about the whole party, and I figured I was over analyzing the situation. He doesn’t want me at the party, though? After everything we’ve been through of late, that doesn’t make any sense. Even if we had to steal kisses in dark rooms, where no one would find us, I still would have thought he’dwantme there. Something withers and dies inside me.
ME: Wow. Well, that stings.
WREN: I don't even wanna go to this thing, E. Believe me, it's gonna be a nightmare. I didn't want you to come because these things get fucking messy.
