Page 50 of Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are

“I survived?” More chuckles bubbled up from his chest. He placed his drink on the counter and tucked my hair behind my ear. “There never was a crash.”

“Why are you all so fucking boring, hiding in here?” Alice asked, sneering at me from the doorway.

Nate searched my eyes, all traces of humor gone, before addressing Alice. “Have I been in a car crash, Alice?”

Walking forward, she pulled a face. Harper entered behind her, hopping up on the kitchen counter.

“What are you talking about, Nate?”

Shame heated my cheeks. I tried to look down and hide my face with my hair. But Nate snatched up my chin and forced my eyes to meet his gray ones. “It’s a simple question, Alice. Have I been in a car crash?”

The way his intense eyes bore into mine squeezed my heart uncomfortably. I wanted to look away. To hide. But he wouldn’t let me.

“No,” Alice replied, reaching for a glass. She gestured to Harper and Lily, who had entered the kitchen. “Do you want a drink?”

Directing her attention back to Nate, she continued, “You haven’t been in a car crash.”

“See?” he said to me, his heated breath skimming my lips. “It’s in your head.”

“Fuck you!” I shoved him off, stalking out of the room and wiping my cheeks angrily.

Lily chased after me. “What’s wrong?”

I spun around, my hair whipping around my face. “Everyone is lying!”

Looking at me warily, she stayed silent as the others sidled out of the kitchen. As they entered the living room, she inched closer. “What are they lying about, Skyler?”

“Everything,” I choked out, stiffening when she touched my arm. I didn’t want to be handled like a fragile flower, a mental nutcase that needed to be locked away. I knew I wasn’t making this stuff up.

“What do you mean by everything?”

“The crash.”

“What crash?”

My face crumbled.

Stepping away from her, I fisted my hands at my sides. “Why are you doing this?”

Lily watched me like I was an injured, frightened animal. She said carefully, “I am not doing anything. I’m trying to understand.”

“I’m not lying.”

“I never said you were.”

The song changed, and I closed my eyes as “Horror Show” by Hot Milk drifted through the open doorway.

Opening my eyes, I leaned back against the wall, breathing in the scent of the vodka in Lily’s glass mixed with her musky perfume. “Why won’t anyone tell me where Lewis and Max are? Why are you not looking for them? How about Dustin?”

Lily paused as a crease formed between her brow. “Max and Lewis? Who are they?”

My heart stopped beating and a soft breath slipped from my lips.

“You’re worrying me, Skyler,” she whispered, touching my arm again. I looked down at her hand, at her long fingers curled around my flesh.

Red nail polish contrasted against the black fabric of my dress, matching the color of her soft lips.

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

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