Page 33 of Soul of a Psycho

Now he really tenses, and I notice his grip on the bag tightens.

“I don’t want any trouble,” he says and tries to side step me.

“I’m not—I don’t—” I try to block him, but he sucks himself in and slips past me without so much as a graze. “I wasn’t…” I trail off as he jogs away, my shoulders sagging as I watch him disappear around a corner.

Well, that didn’t work.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Sky

Iclutch Ruby’s vape pen in my fist as I brave the cold night. This is completely unhinged of me, but I can’t take it anymore. Ihaveto see him. I have to know he exists, that he’s alive, that we’re breathing the same air.

The wind whips at my hair as I stomp towards the edge of campus, my teeth chattering. This is a desperate measure, one unlikely to prove fruitful. I mean, what are the odds that he would be out here again? But I can’t take another night just dreaming about him. I’m beginning to forget what he looks like, the dreams getting muddy and losing their essence.

The soft lamps that dot Hillcrest like dying beacons don’t reach this far, and it’s darker than I remember. Unease chills my blood as a train whistles in the distance, and I look behind me, just in case. I can barely make out the spires of the academics building, given the low hanging clouds, and I realize why it seems so dark.

The moon is hidden.

I relax a little at the realization, and the worry can’t stick when I’m so intent on calling out Cade.

When I reach the little half wall, I’m shaking like a leaf in Cade’s jacket—from anger or the temperature, I don’t know at this point. I’m hesitant to sit down on the cold ground, and standstupidly instead, looking around like a girl who’s on the cusp of being stood up. How am I too much of a wimp to ask someone what dorm Cade is in, but I’m not too scared to come out here and make a fool of myself? I mean, Rubyknows,and yet I can’t bring myself to admit it. I’m programmed to deny, deny, deny after a lie. To tell her now would taste like blood from a split lip.

I blow my breath into the sleeves of the jacket, trying to warm my fingers. I might as well take a hit while I’m out here, even though I only brought it as an excuse. At least if he doesn’t show, my trek won’t be for nothing. I draw on the sweet smoke until my lungs can’t take anymore, intent on finding that bliss I experienced last time. But when I exhale, the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

I suddenly don’t feel alone.

My first instinct is to look at the trees, and I squint into the shadows, hoping Cade will appear like last time. But it really is darker, and I can’t see anything. I take a cautious step forward, and then another, picking my way over the crumbling wall. Of course, the weed chooses this second to kick in, and my eyes unfocus.

“Cade?” I whisper into the woods, and then giggle. It feels like I’m summoning a demon.

“Cadeeee?” I try again, suddenly feeling light. “I know you’re out there.”

I know no such thing, but if he is, coaxing is my best bet. I step under a low hanging branch, using my extra long sleeve to push it out of the way.

“I’m in your forest,” I taunt. “Don’t you want to reprimand me?” I giggle again.

Oh, jeez. Maybe taking a hit was a bad idea. But at least I don’t feel so cold anymore. If anything, the wind is exhilarating now. I’m even more aware of the orchestra the leaves are conducting.

It’s all,whish, whish, swishhhh.

Right. I’ve lost it. I’m making a fool of myself out here. I suddenly hope Cadeisn’there, so he doesn’t witness this. It was a half baked idea, anyway.

Half baked.

Oh, my god I’m so hilarious.

I turn back around, making sure to watch my step, and laugh to myself. I didn’t know I was so funny. I don’t think—

I freeze.

A figure stands, almost looming, on the pathway back. My heart stutters as I take in the contours of their face, paint hastily smeared to form a sinister skull. Their arms hang straight and still at their side, unnaturally still. The fear trickling through me comes at speed drip. Something telling me this isn’t a freshman fucking around. Their form is too menacing, too black, and my heart starts to hammer. I don’t dare blink, and even though their eyes are shrouded in the shadows, I’m sure they don’t either. Their sights are set on me, and dread roots me into place. I’m all alone out here.

The figure breaks into a run, my slow mind taking a second to register. And that precious second is wasted as I stumble, stupidly, backwards, tripping over the wall. I land hard on my ass, but I can’t think about it as they advance on me, kicking up dirt like stalled wheels. I twist around, shove myself up, and start running.

I duck into the dense foliage, my adrenaline kicking into gear. I don’t have the luxury of choosing a direction, and push my way forward, too scared to look back. Branches whip at my arms, snagging and tugging on my jacket as I curse at how dumb of an idea it was to come out here. All because I wanted to see the dick of a guy who couldn’t even be bothered to tell me that our kiss meant nothing. Now, I’m being corralled into the woods by alunatic, who paints their face and terrorizes girls stupid enough to leave their dorms after hours.

Maybe I’m just high and being paranoid, or maybe it’s a joke and it’s just some loser with his friends around the corner getting a kick out of me bolting like a deer. The thought calms me enough to stop for a second, and I try to catch my already erratic breathing. But the second my own heart rate isn’t pumping in my ears, I can hear it. The snapping of twigs, the break neck speed of boots thudding against dense soil. He’s coming, and he’s not messing around.

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