Page 73 of Every Broken Thing

Another fear crawled out between my lips. “What about when they inevitably make you choose?”

He laughed, but it wasn’t unkind. “You’re afraid I’ll choose them? Over you? They don’t know me. They don’t evenseeme. I might as well be invisible.” Slowly, hesitantly, he reached across the center console and curled his fingers around mine. “But you see me. With you, I don’t feel invisible. I don’twantto be invisible.”

And my God, his words cracked me right down the middle.

“I don’t think it’s possible for you to ever be invisible,” I whispered. “Not to me.”

A myriad of emotions played over his face, passing too quickly for me to comprehend them fully. But it didn’t matter. Because he was yanking me forward by his grip on my hand, enveloping me in a tight embrace. I might have yelped in surprise, but I hugged him back desperately. I wanted to drown in his spring soap and spearmint forever. And he held me just as tight, like maybe, just maybe, I was something worth holding on to.

When he finally pulled away, he didn’t go far. He pressed his forehead to mine, and my eyes shuttered closed. His exhale mixed with mine, and we both smelled like spearmint. It made me smile.

I didn’t think this was normal. Friends didn’t touch each other like this, didn’t say things like this. But as the anger and hurt washed away, I decided I didn’t care. This was how we were, and it was good. It was so good, and I never wanted it to end.

Opening my eyes, I found him watching me with an unfathomable expression, his eyes smoldering with a fire I couldn’t understand. The heat of his gaze seared my skin, and I was positive I would burst into flame any moment. I didn’t. I just sat there surrounded by his fire as I tried not to turn to ash.

It was a special kind of agony, but for him, I would gladly burn.

21

Teach You Respect

The vibe between Benand I was weird over the next few days. Not in a bad way, per se, but something had changed. I caught him sending me loaded glances, his eyes full of unsaid questions I didn’t know how to answer. Every touch we shared was heavy with unspoken secrets, and I swore I caught him checking out my ass once, though I chalked it up to wishful thinking.

Yeah, something had definitely changed. I just had no idea what thatsomethingwas.

“Silas, come on. It’s late. Even Ms. Acker is packing up for the day,” Kim whined as she smoothed a flyaway curl back away from her sweaty face.

I currently shouldered an oddly shaped wooden structure used as the base of shrubbery, and the damn thing was heavy. “Yeah, yeah. I just have a few more pieces to take to storage,” I puffed, and Kim rolled her eyes.

“Well, Mom’s boyfriend is coming for dinner tonight for the first time, and I’m already late.”

“Just go, Kim.” I balanced the wood on my shoulders and braced it with my palms. “You don’t need to wait for me. I’ll head out before Acker locks me in.”

Already distracted by her phone, she waved absently. “Okay. See you tomorrow.”

“Good luck.”

She didn’t hear me.

After stacking the small pile of props in the storage area above the stage, I returned to the dark auditorium to retrieve my backpack. My phone chimed with a text from Ben, asking if I was done yet, and I shot a quick reply. His practice must have run late if he was still here at school.

I shut down the backstage lights, leaving me in semi-darkness, but I knew the stage like the back of my hand. It was easy to make my way to the exit in the dark. Most of the area was clear of props now anyway, and the glow from the far-off hallway illuminated enough to break through the thick shadows.

Tucking my phone into my pocket, I clicked off the final light and bent to pick up my book bag. Something heavy hit the stage, and I straightened, leaving my bag on the floor. Standing in the wings, I couldn’t see the dark stage, but I’d made sure that the auditorium was empty before I started shutting down the lights.

It was probably some freshmen fucking around, and I abandoned my bag, retracing my steps. Another thud echoed through the auditorium, and I ground my teeth. At this rate, whoever was blundering about would break something, and thenIwould be the one held responsible.

“Hey!” I barked, fighting through the curtains. “Go fuck your girlfriend somewhere else.”

There was no reply, and when I emerged from the curtains, the stage was deserted. The green exit lights shining from the backof the auditorium cast an eerie glow over the stage, and though I couldn’t make out much, I verified the empty room.

I’d scared them off. Good.

Turning back the way I’d come, I froze mid-step as a hulking shadow separated from the rest, blocking my way.

Then Eric Boyt said, “We have unfinished business, you and I.”

By the time my brain even told my muscles to move, I was already running in the opposite direction. Toward the darkness in the back of the stage. Toward the emergency exit tucked away beside the dressing rooms.

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