Page 29 of I Think He Knows?

“Well, thank you,” I say. “Do you want something to drink before we leave?”

“A shot of whiskey,” he says with a smirk.

I raise my eyebrows. “I don’t blame you.”

“Actually, water would be great.”

He sits on my couch while I grab two water bottles.

“This is a great place,” he says. “How long have you lived here?”

“Two years,” I say. “As soon as I saw this house, I knew I was meant to live here. It’s small but perfect for me.”

I hand him the water and sit next to him. This is the first time he’s been in my home, but it feels so natural.

We chat for a few minutes about homes and my furniture. As usual there aren’t any awkward moments in our conversation. It’s just as comfortable as it is at school.

“We should probably go,” I say.

He frowns. “I can’t believe I’m doing this.”

I smile. “It’ll be fun.”

He jumps to his feet. “If you say so. Let’s do this.”

* * *

When we pull up in front of Mystery Manor: The Ultimate Challenge, I immediately regret saying yes. The brick building looks old and run-down. Either they’ve made it look like that on purpose, or they found the perfect location to open an escape room.

“Oh, wow,” Cam says staring out the window. “Leave it to Ariel to find the shadiest location on the east coast.”

“Maybe it won’t be that bad inside,” I offer.

Cam gives me a doubtful look. “Alright, I’m ready.”

That makes one of us.

We walk toward the entrance, and as soon as we get in the lobby we see Ariel, Britney, Jess, and a few other staff members from the school. Judging by the expressions on everyone’s faces, they all have the same concerns as Cam and me. And the inside is just as bad as the exterior of the building. It’s dimly lit with old chandeliers and sconces. There are a few dark hallways with doors, and whoever designed this place deserves an award. They could film a horror movie in this establishment.

“Awesome, you found it,” Ariel calls. Britney scowls as soon as she sees Cam and I arrived together.

Jess hurries over. “This place is creepy.”

“Oh, come on, it’ll be fun,” Cam says mimicking me. I roll my eyes, but I deserve it because I committed us to this outing.

“Apparently this place is famous,” Jess tells us.

“Famous or infamous?” I ask.

“We’re just waiting on a few more,” Ariel announces from the ticket window.

“You should’ve invited Leo,” Jess says to Cam.

“I’ll make you a deal. If I make it out of this place alive, I’ll text Leo and ask if he wants to meet us for dinner.”

Jess beams. “Okay.”

This agreement is a good thing. We can count on Jess to do whatever it takes to get us out of here in one piece.

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