Page 54 of Snake

Nim

”Are you sure you don’t want me to come inside with you?” Romi ducks her head to glance through the windshield, her hands tightening on the steering wheel of her dark, plum-colored Audi A5. “Moral support, that kind of thing?”

“I’ll be fine.”

She turns to stare at me, her eyes misting up. “I can’t believe you’re finally going to know.”

I search her face for a moment, speechless. I don’t think I’ll ever get how seriously the townsfolk around here get about the politics between families. I want to know who was nice enough to pay for my studies, but for Romi it’s like she’ll finally know where I fit in.

If my sponsors are trailer trash, does that mean I can’t be her friend anymore?

Suddenly my eyes are stinging too. “See you at the dance.”

She leans over in a rush and gives me a fierce hug. “Definitely.”

I decided last night that I would go to the dance with the Serpents. It’s the perfect way to test them. To see if they can actually respect the boundaries I set up between us. I left before telling them, but Romi gave me Knox’s number, so I’m planning to call him as soon as I’m done here so I can meet up with him and get ready for the dance. Mason mentioned he had two sisters, so I’m sure I can use their makeup and hair dryers and stuff.

Although Knox is probably going to want to braid my hair. I’m undecided whether I should let him. After all, I told him to stop treating me like a dress-up doll.

Romi waves at me as she leaves, and I stand looking up at Vicky’s mansion for a few seconds before starting forward, suddenly nervous.

Vicky doesn’t meet me at the door like I’d been expecting. A pretty young girl with black hair and blue eyes answers my knock. “Yes?” she asks, somehow snooty and wary at the same time.

The night I came here with my parents, Vicky’s house was empty. She’d said her kids were at sleepovers or something.This must be one of them.

“Uh...I’m here to see Vicky?”

“Mom’s not here.” She narrows her eyes at me. “Are you Nim?”

I nod.

“She’ll be back soon. She said you could wait inside.” The girl steps aside so I can come inside, and points toward the living room. “You can sit there.”

I don’t know if she’s being guarded on purpose, or if it’s her personality.

“Sissa!” someone hollers from upstairs. “Who’s at the door?”

The girl doesn’t break eye contact with me as she yells back, “None of your beeswax!”

Seconds later, an older girl trundles down the sweeping staircase. She’s in a robe, her hair bundled up in a towel. When she sees me, she gets that same standoffish expression on her face as her younger sister. “Who’s this?”

Sissa groans. “She’s here for Mom. It’s Nim, ’member?”

The other girl strolls toward me, hands crossed over her chest. “So you’re Nim.”

“None other,” I mutter, put off by their strange disposition. “How long till your mom gets back?” At this stage, I’m considering just leaving altogether—fuck my sponsors. It’ll keep me up at night, not knowing, but I won’t sit here and be subjected to—

“She’s fine.” The older girl gives me another quick once over. “And since douchecanoe isn’t here, I guess you’ll have to do.”

Douchecanoe? Is that how these girls refer to their mom?“Help? With what?”

“Yeah. Come on.”

“Mom said she had to wait here,” Sissa whines when I get up to follow the older girl.

“Mom also said we should be nicer to guests, and Nim is our guest now.”

Sissa juts out her chin in protest, but follows us upstairs anyway. The place still looks the same as the last time I saw it. The girls lead me straight into the pink bedroom I was in that fateful night.

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