Page 12 of Her Wicked Knights
"We went to the movies last weekend," Tripp begins.
"No!" I gasp. "I forgot all about the movie! Did you see it without me?"
Tripp bites his lip, glancing at Rev for backup. I've seen every one of the franchise with Tripp since we were kids. When they first announced this one two summers ago we made pre-emptive plans to see it together— plans that I forgot all about.
"Shit, Tripp. I'm sorry! You should have reminded me!"
"You were with your family." He shrugs, like that's a good reason for forgetting the standing plans.
"Yeah," I sigh. "I guess. Still, I didn't mean to abandon you. I'm glad you had Rev to go with, at least."
"If you still want to see it, I'll go again." Tripp shrugs. "No big deal."
"We had a good time." Rev assures me with a soft smile. He glances at Tripp but then turns his gaze quickly back to me. "Anyway, there's something you should know."
"Don't spoil it for me!" I say, clapping my hands over my ears before he can ruin it. "We can see it when it hits the Emporium."
Our local theater, The Emporium is a second-run theater. We usually don't get movies here ‘til a month after they were released to the bigger cities. But their atmosphere completely makes up for it. The entire theater is thematically decorated, with each auditorium dedicated to a different horror franchise. Hadley and I used to live there in the summers when everyone else was out of town. And the whole month of October, they play a different horror movie every night.
"No, it's not the movie we're going to ruin." Rev says, pulling my wrists so that I can hear his nervous laugh as he looks to Tripp for backup.
"We saw Audrey and Jake there." Tripp rushes out. "Together."
They stare at me as they await my reaction, and I stare at them as I await whatever else they have to say. But it seems that's all they've got, because they share a glance and then turn back to me.
"Sorry." Rev clears his throat.
"Oh." It's all I can think to say. I'm not sure what type of reaction they're looking for. "Did you guys sit together?"
"No," Tripp says, at the same time Rev says, "Yes."
When I raise an eyebrow, awaiting clarification, Rev chuckles. "I mean, we sat together. Jake and Audrey were in front of us. They didn't notice us."
"You're saying Jake and Audrey were watching a sci-fi?" I laugh, unable to help myself. "I think you probably saw someone else."
"It was them," Tripp says softly. "And they kissed."
I can't help it; I snort. Audrey and Jake bicker like brother and sister. They tolerate each other for my sake, but I can't imagine them driving an hour together to the city to see a movie thatneither of them has any interest in. That's all hard enough to conceive, but then trying to imagine them kissing? It’s gross, making me cringe. "You definitely saw someone else." I laugh. "There's no way Jake and Audrey were together."
"Marley," Tripp shakes his head. "It's true."
"There's just no way." I laugh. "I mean, what time was the movie?"
"The seven o'clock showing." Rev supplies easily.
"I was texting Audrey, like, all night Thursday. She sent me pictures of her cat and complained about how bored she was without me in town."
"Well, she lied." Tripp snaps, shaking his head at me as if I'm being ridiculous. If anyone is being ridiculous here, it's the two of them. I'm not sure who they saw, but I know who they didn't see. There's no way Audrey was there, despite whatever theythinkthey were witness to.
"Tripp." I laugh, unable to control it.
"Marley!" He snaps back at me, his voice full of frustration. It's not something he directs at me often, and it hurts. It feels almost as if he's slapped me, which is stupid because it's not that serious, and yet, tears spring to my eyes. I could tell there was friction between us these last few months, but I'm surprised that he's taking it out on me right now. It's not a pleasant feeling, particularly when Rev is standing right here to witness my humiliation. "Just open your fucking eyes, and you'll see. She's toxic."
"Audrey's toxic?" I laugh.
Audrey isn't perfect. She's far from it, actually. But she has been there for me from the first day we met at The Dive, and I appreciate her loyalty. She may occasionally hit me with compliments that come off a little backhanded, but it's who she is. She's never made any attempt to be anything other thanherself. Unlike Tripp, who's always acted like he's such a good friend and then goes and yells at me.
"So toxic I'm surprised you haven't begun to decay from the exposure." Tripp nods, reaching for my hand. His fingers just graze against mine before I jerk it out of his grasp.
