Page 9 of My Lovely Tragedy
I can’t help it—I fucking laugh. And it hurts becauseeverythinghurts, but I don’t know what else to do.
Everything is surreal and confusing, and I have no idea what I’m doing here.
“Yeah, sure.”
“To which?” he asks without hesitation.
“Uh. I guess I should probably eat… don’t know when the last time I ate was,” I ponder mostly to myself. Tobias clicks his tongue. “Then, I’d like a shower, but I should probably get home…” I trail off, feeling rude.
I clearly put myself in his car last night and came here of my own volition—cause there’s no way he could’ve forced me. I think we’re close to the same height, if he’s not a bit taller, but I definitely have him beat on muscle. He’s… spindly. And almost… fluid.
I think I vaguely remember falling into him and how it was. Soaked clothes. The walk through the city, snow everywhere. Talking. Puking.
This time, it’s Tobias who frowns. “I’m afraid the storm has blocked the roads for miles around. The power is out as well, but I have a generator specifically for this reason. It is one of the downsides to living, essentially, in the middle of nowhere.”
I don’t wait for him to finish talking before I’m scrambling out from beneath the blanket and to the nearest window. My eyes roll back as I fling the curtain aside, and I’m blinded by the glaring sun reflecting offfeetof bright, pristine snow.
Expansive evergreens are covered in white from the direction the wind was blowing, branches weighed down from the density. There’s a shed far to the right, barely in sight, and its walls are dusted with white as well.
“Fuck.”
“Indeed.” I whirl around at the sound of his voice coming from directly behind me. Tobias is a mere foot away, arms clasped behind his back as he stands tall and impossibly straight. And as I glance up at his face, I realize that he is, in fact, a few inches taller than me.
He glances down with a small smile, showcasing a slight indent of a dimple. “I apologize. I realize the last thing you probably want is to be stuck here with a stranger for God knows how many days.”
My shoulders lift in a half-assed shrug as I turn back to look out the window, hating the way his eyes never quite meet mine. I’d really like to see that red again—I’ve never seen eyes quite like his before. But of course, I just catch his vague reflection in the glass.
“It’s not like you could’ve known it was going to turn out so bad.” His eye twitches before I feel a small exhale linger over the back of my neck.
“Still.”
“Yeah.”Because what else is there to say?I’m stuck here, probably for at least a few days if the endless woodland is any indication. Might as well try and make the most of it.
And I suppose it helps that Tobias has no fucking clue who I am.
I can be whoever I want and not who I’ve been forced to be.
It could be good for me. I think.
“So,” I spin around on my heels, forcing a smile I don’t really feel, “need some help cooking?”
* * *
It turns out,Tobias is a bit of a control freak in the kitchen. He accepted my offer to help, but any time I would pickanythingup, he was right by my side, hovering over me, murmuring words of encouragement, like I don’t know how to properly chop up a bell pepper.
After a few minutes, I set the knife down and took a step back, unable to hold back my amused smile as Tobias’s shoulders dropped. “Is it all right if I go shower… if you’ve got this?” I clamp my hand around the back of my neck, face burning with chagrin.
He nods, head bowed slightly as he takes my place. “There are towels in the cupboard and anything else you could need to…” his throat bobs, “cleanse yourself, is in there as well. As soon as I have finished with this, I will find you some clothes. Is there anything in particular you’d prefer?” He peers over his shoulder, gauging me.
I shrug again. “I’m easy.” And then, I brush past him, heading for the bathroom, filling the space between us with hurried steps.
Once the door is shut behind me, I drop back against it with a noisy exhale. And then I laugh because it smells like fucking vanilla in here.
CHAPTERFOUR
BROOKLYN
By the timeI turn the water off, the room is damp with condensation and the mirror is entirely fogged over.
