Page 23 of Bleeding Hearts
My phone buzzes, and I pull it out, preparing to accept Alek’s apology, but it fizzles and flashes, and I sit up as my screen turns black, and then the Risk logo appears before it fades into what looks like an old game. There’s a little chicken trying to cross a road with cars, and it keeps failing and dying. It finally dies and floats up, and then a time appears.
Overpass at 6 PM.
That’s it.
The next game is tonight, and my first thought is of Lally.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
I’m sure everyone got the same text I did, which means Alice did as well, so I keep my hood up and hide in the crowd. I need to avoid her. One look, one word, and I’ll come running. I need to stay away from her. It’s for the best. Facing the bustling overpass only reminds me why.
I could die in these stupid games. My life isn’t a given, nobody’s is, but I’m taking risks and heightening the likelihood I’ll die. It doesn’t bother me, since I’m not scared of dying, but I would hate to hurt her more by her being attached.
Cars whiz below us, the late-night traffic oblivious to why we are all up here or indifferent on their rush to get home. They probably think it’s some sort of teenage meetup. The overpass, which was barricaded, is filled with people. There are no lights or a speaker, but there’s murmuring in the crowd, and I push through to find out why.
The instructions for the next game are written in bright spray paint with a drawing of a rope hanging over the overpass.
Take the rope and trust the fall.
Those who make it have nothing to fear at all.
I glance to the side to see ropes attached to hooks bolted into the edge of the overpass. They hang over the side, and when I lean over, I discover they dangle into the middle of the road.
“Shit, do we need to climb down into the road and somehow make it there?” someone hisses, and I follow their pointing finger across the street, where there’s a Risk logo spray painted on a tree on the side.
“I guess so.” I sigh.
“No fucking way!”
“Who the fuck is crazy enough to do that?”
While they debate and hesitate, I walk over to the rope closest to that side of the road—I’m not totally dumb, after all.
Someone catches my hand, and I know who it is before I look. I have no idea why she joined this game, but it’s probably to be a pain in my side.
“Lally, don’t,” she begs, terror in her eyes. “This is stupid. You could die. Is it really worth it?”
I tug my hand free and clip onto the rope, then I step up onto the ledge of the overpass. Her hands claw at me, but I kick them off and turn to face the crowd. A sea of shocked, disbelieving faces stare back at me as, yet again, I’m the first to take the plunge. I fall back, my arms open wide.
The crowd screams as I disappear over the edge. I jerk to a halt just below the overpass, and I look up at Alice’s wide eyes as she gapes down at me. Gripping the rope, I climb down, and when I near the bottom, I glance behind me to see the fast-moving cars. I dangle just above them, the rope swinging back and forth precariously. People honk and swerve as adrenaline pumps through me.
For a moment, I hang here, feeling more alive than I have in a long time, other than when I was in her arms, but then I hear the distinctive honk of a truck.
Turning once more, I see it.
Its big lights barrel toward me, and I know if I’m still here when it reaches me, it will kill me, but both lanes on either side are blocked. The truck is heading straight for me, honking constantly now. My name is screamed as I fumble with the locking mechanism to free myself, my fingers clumsy in my panic.
The lights become brighter, almost blinding me, and I know it’s almost here. Finally, I unclip and hit the ground, hard. Rolling to the side, I avoid the truck as it screams past, but there’s another honk and a crash, and when I look up, I see the car in this lane swerved and hit the barrier to avoid me. Getting to my feet, I peer into the vehicle to check that they are okay. They look dazed and wide-eyed but alive, so I turn and run, leaping across the divider. I linger on the other side as the cars pass the other way, driving so fast it blows my hair back.
“Lally, stop!” Her voice cuts through all the chaos, but I don’t look back. I tighten my grip on the barrier, timing it, and then I race forward. I pass the first two lanes before I stop and stumble back as a car swerves toward me, not seeing me. There’s a honk, and I have to rush forward, almost catching the bumper. I pass the final lane, rolling into the grass as the car narrowly avoids hitting me.
Climbing to my weak legs, I stare at the road in shock.
I did it.
My gaze goes to the overpass to see others climbing down the ropes now, but Alice stands there, and despite everyone around her, she is all I see. Her mouth is open, and there is so much terror in her eyes, it kills me. For a moment, I can’t look away, but then I force myself to. Slipping into the trees, I slap my hand against the spray-painted one and head into the forest before the police turn up.
I did it, I won another game, but at what cost?
