Page 73 of Soul of a Psycho

Tomorrow. I’ll catch up tomorrow.

Chapter Forty-Nine

Sky

Icrank the heater as high as it will go before climbing into bed. It’s absolutely frigid, and I can only imagine how Cade is fairing in the woods. I tried to convince him to sleep in his dorm, but he refused. Apparently, Caleb—the guy he manipulated into punching him—is his assigned roommate.

I don’t think there’s anyone he gets along with. Except Bobby, if you would consider not hurting Bobby as getting along. But I think that’s the best Cade can do.

I frown and pull the blanket up over my nose. If Cade didn’t have so many walls, they could be good friends, in an older/younger brother type way. Cade did find the guy who gave Bobby a black eye, and I think that’s an indicator that, in his own way, he cares. Needless to say, he ended up in the headmistress’s office for it.

I don’t understand how he hasn’t been expelled. Surely, a little blackmail can only go so far. Luckily though, the incident on Halloween hasn’t come to light. There’s no way he would have been able to get away with trying to light someone on fire. At the very least, he would get sent back to Briarcreek.

I shudder at what Cade told me about the place after he calmed down from my admission. I don’t know how they expect people who are grappling with their mental health to get bettersomewhere so depressing. And his own mother forced him to stay there. I can only be so grateful that my father hasn’t thought of putting me in an institution.

The one positive though, is that Cade did say it changed his mind about wanting to kill himself. That it was in there that he realized he wanted to live, to graduate, and I’ll be forever thankful for that. Even if his obsession with graduation is a little odd.

I turn my back on Ruby, who’s already sound asleep, and wonder what graduating will mean for Cade and mine’s relationship. If I can’t manage the funds for Japan—I’m up to two-hundred—I’m going to end up at university. Cade hasn’t said anything about college, but I know he’s gunning for Valedictorian, and with grades like that, he could realistically go anywhere he wants. Would he be willing to follow me?

I close my eyes and fall asleep, thinking maybe university under my father’s thumb wouldn’t be so bad as long as Cade was with me.

Ruby’s scream jolts me awake. It’s the kind that could wake the dead, and my heart hits my throat before I even know what’s happening. On instinct, I scramble against the headboard, the room a blur of darkness. She shrieks again, the time worthy of shattering glass, and I blink, desperate to know what the fuck we’re screaming about.

I just catch the silhouette of a figure fleeing into the hallway. They’re too tall, too shrouded, to be someone from our floor, and I can’t help but scream too. Their boots hit the floorboards, sending vibrations up my bed frame as they bolt down the corridor. The thuds match the pace of my heart, and I clutch the blanket to my chest.

The whole building seems to shake when they finally reach the iron staircase, the rattle so deafening I’m almost afraid it could collapse, leaving us stranded on the top floor.

“Who was it?” I gasp, squinting to see Ruby in the dark.

“He was just standing there!” she cries as doors start to open along our floor.

“Who?!” I press, even though she’s frightened. She’s bunched up against the wall, similar to me, and there’s a glistening on her cheeks that must be tears.

“I don’t know! I don’t know. His face was painted.”

“Painted…?” My stomach tightens. Please, no.

“Yes, like a fucking skull.” She seems to get her spirit back and flings her blanket off. “Black around the sockets of his eyes and… and horrible white—”

My mind spins, and I stop listening as she explains. I already know what it looks like: the haphazard paint, as if smeared on without a mirror, and the chaotic streaks of white and black. That face seared into my memory. But it can’t be him. The guy who chased me is just supposed to be a freshman that was fucking around, not a nefarious predator that breaks into girls’ dorms. Our dorm.My dorm. There’s not a doubt in my mind that if it was him, he was in here for me.

A chill runs down my spine as Ruby storms into the hallway. There’s enough light from the others opening their doors that the sinister shadows have dissipated, but I’m lost in my own darkness. He wasin here. All that running I did, and he wasin herewhile I slept, completely unaware. What the fuck does he want from me?

Groggy, wide-eyed girls flood the hall. Even Britney, her red hair mussed and frizzy. She gives Ruby a scathing look, and I finally climb out of bed, my legs wobbly, and join everyone.

“Do your nightmares really have to disturb everyone?” Britney plants a hand on her hip and looks down at Ruby.

“It wasn’t a nightmare, you dim cunt. There was a guy in our room.” Ruby narrows her eyes but rubs at her arms, obviously still freaked out.

“Sure there was. Sounds like wishful thinking to me.”

Ruby opens her mouth to retort, but a smaller girl comes forward, cutting her off.

“There was someone in your room?”

“Yes.” Ruby turns to her. “His face was all painted up like a skeleton.”

“A skeleton?” Britney raises an eyebrow in disbelief.

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