Page 11 of Shattered

“It’s just someone from school,” she offers, even though I said nothing. The pink darkens when the side of my lips tip up. Guaranteed, she’s talking to a boy with that type of reaction. “Please don’t tell Jason.” Her voice is quiet, confirming my suspicion.

I raise my hands, palms out. “I won’t, but you know he’ll beat whoever you’re talking to up if he finds out.”

A giggle pours out of her lips when she pushes to her feet—her face lit with amusement because she knows I’m right—then she walks out of the room, typing on her phone again.

I grab the biggest spoon from the drawer and shove a spoonful of cereal into my mouth just as my phone goes off.

Sunflower: You’ve told me a time or two. And I remember everything :)

Warmth floods my chest, causing my heart to beat just that much faster, and my smile widens. Just a simple text from her will do that.

I start typing a reply, but I’m interrupted by a loud crash coming from the hallway. A few rushed steps have me stepping through the doorway to find Jason stumbling as he tries to pick up the frame he knocked over.

He chuckles when he sees me standing there, but unlike earlier, all humor is gone from my face. He looks . . . off.

“What’s going on with you?” I ask, warily taking the frame from him.

“Nothin’,” he replies, sweeping a hand through his hair. “Just took a little something extra to help. Don’t worry about it.” He shrugs as another giant smile spreads across his face, but with red glossy eyes, it does little to quell the uneasy turning of my gut.

“Come on,” I tell him, placing the frame back in its spot on the wall. “Let’s take the food to your room, then.”

I don’t want his parents or sisters to see him like this.

CHAPTER FOUR

Neilix

Once we’re in the privacy of his room, I set the food on his desk and pull out a chair while he flops onto his bed. I watch him as he stares up at the ceiling, tapping his hands on the bed beside him, lost somewhere in his, no doubt, scattered mind.

“Do you ever wonder what would have happened if we went to that party?” Jason wonders aloud, still looking up. I do occasionally. But thinking about the what-ifs is like trying to put a puzzle together with no reference image to go off. We didn’t go, so we don’t know what would have happened. “Guaranteed, none of this shit. Dad said he heard Jennifer’s dad is getting it fast-tracked. I’ve got a bad feeling about it all.”

My insides curdle with worry, and it’s not only for Jacob, though I know he has it the worst. It’s just, what happened to him seems to be the catalyst for everything else going wrong in our lives.

Our group is falling apart.

“I heard they’re looking into him being a pedophile,” I mumble quietly. “Not sure how true that is, though . . . that they’re looking into it, I mean.”

Jason pushes up to a sitting position, his eyes slightly unfocused and wide. “What the actual fuck? That’s messed up.”

“I know.” I sigh, shaking my head with the same disbelief, then flit my gaze over his face again. He’s trying to float above all this shit, but there are still a few tethers keeping him tied to reality for the moment. “What did you take?” I ask. “You said you took something extra.”

“Oh.” Bounding up, he walks to his dresser and opens the third drawer, then sticks his arm inside at a weird angle. A moment later, he pulls out a baggie with tape attached to it and flings it across the room at me. “Got them from Casey.”

“Your cousin, I assume.” Holding up the baggie, I examine the little pills inside. “What even are they?”

Jason walks back to the bed and plops down, his leg bouncing like he can’t stay still. “They’re called Happy Makers. Not sure exactly what’s in them. I think it’s a new mixture. But I feel all loosey-goosey and horny.”

I drop my hand fisting the bag into my lap. “You don’t know what’s in them? There could be all sorts of sketchy stuff mixed into them. Rat poison, for instance.”

He huffs out a delirious sort of laugh. “Casey wouldn’t give me something like that. Besides, he took one with me when I first got them.”

Pulling off my glasses, I run a hand over my face. “I don’t think it’s a good idea to get mixed up in all that shit, man. It’s one thing to smoke some weed, but to get messed up on pills?” Sliding my glasses back on, I shake my head. “It’s not good.”

Jason chuckles again. “You worry too much.” Reaching over, he grabs a bag of cookies off his desk. “Want one? Best white chocolate and macadamia cookies ever.” He pulls one out and stuffs it into his mouth, offering me the bag.

I take it from him but don’t pull one out for myself. An unwelcome feeling has taken up residence in my stomach, and I don’t know if I could eat anything right now. I had even dumped the rest of my cereal before coming in here.

My phone dings from his desk, and I snatch it up immediately, welcoming the distraction.

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