Page 115 of Death is My BFF

Her shaped eyebrows bowed inward, the incredulity in her expression making me nervous. “You’d tell me if it was something else, right?”

“There’s nothing else. Honest.” I smiled convincingly.

“Good . . . Well, let me help you with that before your arms fall off.” Brightening, she took the crate of apples from me and placed them on the towels in the backseat of her Toyota.

“What do you think about you and me hanging out at that cute coffee shop in the barn house until the sun goes down?” Aunt Sarah asked, once she closed the door. In a theatrical movement, she flashed a set of haunted hayride tickets in front of my face. “Since I got these bad boys!”

XX

My initial reaction was to say no. After meeting with Death, I wanted to go home to my safe ground. But maybe that was exactly what he wanted, and I was sick and tired of living in fear.

“Hey,chicas!” I turned, just in time to unexpectedly catch Marcy running full force into me. “Fancy seeing you two gorgeous gals here!” She bumped the sides of her hips with mine and Aunt Sarah’s.

“You know, Faith, part of playing hooky is picking the prime day to skip. It was an early dismissal today and Principal Mallory handed out candy in homeroom. Should have just come in, ya boob.”

“My fault,” Aunt Sarah said with a laugh. “I’m the one who kidnapped her.”

“What’s up, Auntie?” Marcy lifted her fist to bump knuckles with my aunt. “Did you get your hair done? Looks fab.”

“Really? You like it?” Aunt Sarah gushed, fluffing her blond hair.

“Went a little darker blond this time. It’s supposed to make me look less old, according toCosmo.”

“Old?” Marcy jerked back. “Excuse me, I will not accept such negativity in my presence. You could literally pass for a superhot college girl. The color is a total vibe.”

Marcy and Aunt Sarah caught up, while I stood in silence. The shock and panic oftwoof my loved ones here with Death lurking around settled sourly in my gut.

“This is Nathan, by the way.” Marcy motioned to the handsome boy approaching us with a funnel cake in his hand. With his surfer boy blond hair and twinkling blue eyes, I instantly compared him to Thomas, which made me even more sick to my stomach as I harked back to Thomas being taken away with Malphas. “Faith, you know Nathan, right? He’s on the basketball team and lives down the street from me.”

She gave me a knowing look to play along, and I bit back a laugh. Ever since Marcy witnessed Nathan washing down his truck last summer with his shirt off, she’d had huge heart eyes for him. Nathan’s knack for hitting three-pointers was legendary in Pleasant Valley. The kid was smart too. He was in a few of my AP classes.

“Sure, I know Nathan,” I said with my bestI’m friendly andoutgoingsmile. Fake it till you make it, right? “Congratulations, by the way. Word in the hallways is you already have a full ride to the University of Kentucky.”

“Thank you,” he said with a bashful smile. “I’m excited for November, gonna make Coach proud my last season. You should come out and see us when we’re home.” He smiled at Marcy. “It’d be cool to see both of you in the stands.”

“We would love to!” I enthused.

Nathan seemed kind and down-to-earth.

“So,” Marcy said, stealing some of Nathan’s funnel cake, “you guys going on the haunted hayride later?”

Our hayride shone vibrant neon green in the night, decorated with glow-in-the-dark pumpkin signs with spooky faces.

“Woo-hoo!” Aunt Sarah bounced up and down on her stack of hay. She shook my shoulder playfully. “Aren’t you excited?”

“Excited as hypothermia will allow.” I pulled the ends of my sweatshirt sleeves over my hands and fisted the fabric closed in my palms. Had I known it would be this cold at night, I would have packed a parka. And a space heater. Better yet, I would have stayed in bed.

The freezing temperature wasn’t the only reason for my foul mood. Aunt Sarah and I sat all the way in the back of the second cart with Marcy and Nathan. In the first cart, attached to ours by a few questionable rusty bolts and chains, were a few more teenagers from our high school and a man dressed in all black with his back to us. I scowled. Instead of a cloak, Death wore the same hoodie and leather jacket with the popped collar that he sported earlier. He had appeared out of nowhere, of course, but only I seemed to notice.

I glanced over at Marcy and Nathan. Catching my eye, Marcy jabbed a finger discreetly at Nathan’s crotch and raised both her eyebrows with wide eyes. Then she winked with a sly smile. I laughed, immediately understanding.

Apparently, she anticipated Nathan had a nice you-know-what.

“What are you two giggling at?” Nathan asked in a joking tone.

“Nothing,” Marcy and I said at the same time, laughing harder.

“Weirdos.” Nathan rolled his eyes and stretched his arm behind Marcy. She cuddled into his side, and I thought they’d make a great couple. She seemed genuinely happy with him, which made me happy.

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