Page 28 of Zero Chance

Snickering, she let me drag her toward the door.“Are you afraid of letting Keene see you like this?”she asked, mortifying me to no end, even though she was at least discreet enough to keep her voice low.“I’m telling you, he’s harmless.”

“Don’t care,” I muttered, flinging the door open and shoving her up the steps.“Let’s go.”

She laughed but willingly complied.“Okay, okay.I’m going.”

I glanced back as I followed her in, just in time to see Keene turning back to look where Xander and I had been standing moments before.Spinning to search left when he found us gone, he then turned right and peered directly at me.Just as I shut the door between us.

Inside the safety of the kitchen, I exhaled harshly, only to jump out of my skin when someone said, “Holy shit, Hope wasn’t lying.You don’t look like Waverly at all.”

I lifted my face, only to find Faith Woods approaching.We were on a first-name basis from the library as well but had never talked outside of it before.I knew she was dating Hudson Ivey, though, one of Keene’s six best friends.

“Hi.”I waved and then had no idea what else to say.

The kitchen had cleared out a little since our last foray through it, but it was still uncomfortably warm, and I kind of wanted to go home.

I was too afraid to talk to people.

I was too afraid for Keene to see me like this.

I was too afraid to live.

Not noticing the mini freak-out session I was having in my head, Xander and Faith started talking about what it had taken for her and Oaklynn and Hope to fix me up.All the while, I crept in reverse until my back hit a wall.

And IthoughtI was hidden well enough there until I heard, “Psst.Hey, Waverly.”

Turning, I found Hope motioning me toward her where she was peeking into the entrance of the kitchen.

Xander was busy talking to Faith with her back to me, so I eased out from behind her and slipped in Hope’s direction, only to wince when some guy tried to maneuver through the doorway just as I reached it.He bumped into me, making me stumble a step back.

Hope smacked his shoulder.“Bro, really?”she demanded, lifting her hands and scowling at him.“Watch where you’re going.”

“Damn.Sorry,” he mumbled, not sounding apologetic at all.

She rolled her eyes after him but then turned to me and grabbed my arm.

“Wanna play lookout for me?”

I furrowed my brow in confusion, but she just pulled me after her, right into the front room and down the steps into the lower level of the house.

“So I have this sneaking suspicion that Keene’s afraid of snakes,” she told me as she glanced back with a devious smile.“Ergo…” She pulled a black snake up from inside her shirt, making me gasp and rear back before realizing it was fake.

“I’m going to hide this in his bed.”With a maniacal laugh, she motioned toward the steps.“Go guard the stairs and make sure he doesn’t come down here, will you?”

“O…kay.”I blinked after her as she dashed through the first door on the left, and I lifted onto my toes to see more into his room, but Hope glanced back and snapped her fingers.

“Waverly!Go.Watch.”

“Oh God.Okay,” I mumbled and turned around to make my way back up the stairs.

A couple of girls were trying to come down.

“Is there a bathroom down here?”one asked.

I started to shrug and shake my head, uncertain, before Hope called from Keene’s room, “First door on the right!”

I sent them a tight smile and pointed.“First door on the right.”

After they filed by, Hope appeared, smiling big.“Thanks,” she told me, bumping her arm into mine gratefully as she hurried up the steps past me.

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