Page 94 of The Young & the Sinner

“Me? Yeah. Sorry, you just surprised me is all.”

“Are you sure? You’ve been really quiet lately. Is there something you want to talk about?”

She shot me a look “Me? You’ve been just as quiet as me. Is there something you want to talk to me about?”

I’d been quiet because I didn’t know how to tell Lizzie that I had been spending my nights with Mason. But Lizzie was different. She seemed sad this past week, and I didn’t know what to make of it. Her and Sam were still going strong. He still worshiped the ground she walked on, and she was still in love with Max. Nothing had changed, but Lizzie felt different to me somehow.

I shook my head. “There’s nothing new to report about me. What about you? Are you sure you’re okay? You just seem a little down lately.”

I was surprised when bottom lip started trembling slightly, and her eyes watering.

“Lizzie?”

She blinked furiously and looked away. “I’m fine. I promise.”

“Of course, you’re fine. Whatever it is that’s got you so down, we’ll get through it together. And I’ll wait until you’re ready to tell me.”

She shot me a watery smile. “Thanks, Olivia.”

I pulled her into a tight hug, noting how much weight she’d lost. Lizzie had always been thin. But it had more to do with the way her body was built than her eating habits. This was something else entirely. She felt so fragile in my arms that I didn’t want to let her go. I was afraid she might disappear before my very eyes.

Lizzie pulled out her phone to check the time. We only had ten minutes before class started. She shot me small smile she obviously didn’t mean and walked away.

I hated the sadness I saw in her eyes. Lizzie was definitely dealing with something. Something big, otherwise she would have told me already. I could try and guess what was going on with her, but anything I came up with might be worse than it actually was, and I didn’t want to freak myself out.

I should probably get to class, but I didn’t want to. I wanted to ditch. But where would I go?

I shook my head. Some days it was harder to find the motivation to continue on with my daily routine than others.

I ended up doing what I usually did. I went on about my day and pretended my shoulders weren’t weighed down by everything.

* * *

The day endedup being shit.

I walked around campus in daze, going through the motion without really being present. If any of my professors were to give me a test on what was taught today, I would fail, no doubt about it.

I missed the point of the assignment that was assigned to us in biochemistry, and when Dr Martin called on me, the only thing I could do was stare at him, my face burning in embarrassment.

To top off an already shitty day, I spilled coffee on myself, staining my white sweater. It was currently soaking in the washer, though I doubted I would be able to get the stain out, considering it had been setting a few hours before I could get home to soak it.

I thought about why I had been feeling off all day. My dream about Lorenzo certainly didn’t help. I dreamt about all that went down in my house that Sunday afternoon, only this time, I couldn’t fight back. It was one of those dreams in which I had absolutely no control over my limbs, and no matter how much I wanted to move, all I could do was lay there, helpless, while he had his way with me.

Lizzie’s mood didn’t help at one bit. I still didn’t know what was bothering her.

I didn’t have the energy to pry.

I just didn’t want to be broken anymore.

I wanted to be back to normal. I wanted to worry about nothing more but what to wear to impress Mason, not how to make sure Lorenzo no longer haunted my every waking thought.

I just wanted to get better.

It was just a little after five-thirty when I heard the garage door opening.

Max walked through the door first. He smiled when he saw me, but I could barely muster a small one for him. He walked over to me and tugged on my hair playfully. Instead of feeling happy that he was home, I felt annoyance, and I was sure that annoyance showed on my face.

Max pulled back, a small frown marring his all-too-perfect face. I was even annoyed at the fact that he looked put together. Which was ridiculous, I knew it.

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