Meet me at the parking lot in 10
Can you drive over to the library? So people don’t see us?
K
If this gets back to Levi your gonna call him and fix it
And when he gets back your gonna tell him so I don’t feel like I’m keeping secrets
Levi must be sick of secrets.
Deal.
Again and again, I run over how I’m going to explain this. The task helps distract me from the panic boiling in my stomach.
There’s Ethan’s truck at the library. Can’t have small-school rumors starting over this, so I slide in with my best Sydney Bristow moves and double over in the seat. I crack into a laugh at the absurdity of my covert op, releasing some of the stress.
Austin snorts as he turns the ignition. “Okay, Crazy. You have some explaining to do.” He and Sophie really are cut from the same cloth. “You used Sophie against me. This better be important.”Gray-blue eyes intense, bushy brown brows raised. His stern look again.
I wince. “Sorry. It is. So, you might have noticed I have some … quirks?”
“Yup.”
I hide my hands under my legs on the old cloth seat. Gritty like I’m used to.
“I don’t want to get into the specifics, but things between Levi and me have been really complicated because I have”—I pull in a breath to steel myself—“Because I have these awful memories. Flashbacks. That’s why I won’t ride shotgun. Or share a couch. And I avoid rain. This … is an experiment.”
Austin must see the darkening sky. “An experiment?”
“To see if I have flashbacks with you too.”
“And if you do?”
“If I do, that will suck for me today, but I’ll know it’s not just with Levi.”
“If you don’t?”
“If I don’t, then he’s the catalyst. That wouldn’t be good for me and him. It would make things very … impractical for us.”
“What makes it more likely for you to have a flashback?”
I half smile. He’s trying to rig the experiment. “Yelling.” I won’t say touch. That’s past the line. “Loud noises.”
Austin glances over with a soft look.
I avert my gaze to the window. No rain yet.
“What should I do if your experiment works? What will happen?”
“If it works you can head back. I’ll … freak out, feel scared. I always cry. It’s embarrassing.”
“That’s why you jet out of a room sometimes?”
“Yeah.”
“How much of this does Jeeves know?”
“I told him everything yesterday. But not about this.” I motion to the truck.
