Page 58 of The Woods

He shrugs and shakes his head. “Nothing out of the ordinary. They were all natural, straight-from-the-forest mushrooms.”

“What about you? Did you have an upset stomach after taking them?”

“I didn’t take any.”

Polly hears his words but can’t quite believe them. “You didn’t do any mushrooms on Friday night?”

He shakes his head. “No.”

Polly is mortified that she’d been that high while he was completely sober, taking it all in. “Why did you say you did, then? That’s a real asshole move, you know.” Defensiveness arrives to mask her mortification. She yanks her hand from his.

His eyebrows jump in surprise. “I never said I did. I offered them to you, and you took them. You didn’t even ask me if I’d taken any.”

Polly’s brain scrambles to recover the memory of when he met her at the side of the house and asked if she wanted to go on an adventure. She can’t remember the details clearly.

“That’s a bit creepy, don’t you think? Do you also go to bars and roofie girls’ drinks? Is it a power thing? Being sober while the girl is off her head?”

Gray appears genuinely confused by Polly’s reaction. “I guided you into the woods, and I guided you through your trip,” he says calmly. “Nothing creepy about it. And I don’t go to bars.”

“Let me guess,” she says. “You prefer the woods and your cave?”

Again, he shrugs, seeming nonplussed by what she’d meant as an insult. “I guess you could say that.” He shoves a hand through his hair and seems to be searching for the right words. “Look, I’m sorry about the confusion. I just wanted to have a night totally focused on you and your good time and I thought it was safer if I didn’t do them and made sure nothing bad happened.”

Polly’s annoyed by his refusal to be baited into an argument. How is she going to expel this feeling of shame and discomfort if she can’t fight it out, blame it all on him? “Okay,” she concedes, feeling like he hasn’t left her much choice. “It was an intense and creepy trip, and it feels even weirder now that I know I was the only one experiencing it.”

He holds up a hand. “So, wait, you didn’t like it, then?”

She covers her face with her hands. “I don’t even know. I don’t remember getting home. But I do remember waking up at four a.m. and puking my guts out. And I saw some really fucked-up shit: like creepy things in the woods and a bunch of figures standing over us when we were having sex.”

“What? You saw them?” She watches his face fall, like he’s said something he shouldn’t have.

“Them?” Polly’s voice rises with panic. “Who’s them?”

He holds up both hands. “No, no. There’s no them.” Gray is uncharacteristically flustered, which does not make Polly feel any better.

“You said ‘them,’ ” she shouts at him. “Did you see them too? Are they real?”

“No, I didn’t mean it that way. You were mumbling about so many things that night, figures and voices and shadows. I didn’t think that you were actually seeing things. I thought it was all in your head.”

She narrows her eyes at him. It’s a lame excuse, but she’s not sure what for exactly. “So, you didn’t invite a group of your friends into the cave to watch or record it or anything?”

He laughs, but there’s a nervousness to it. “Oh my God, Polly. I would never do something like that. I barely even have friends, other than you.”

The fight drains out of her. She’s not sure anymore what she’s even upset about. She exhales loudly, suddenly feeling very tired. “You didn’t happen to bring a joint, did you?” She wants to change the topic and hopes that some weed might settle her stomach.

“Ahh, no. I didn’t bring one.”

“What? Why not? You always have at least one.”

“I know. I’m trying to quit. You should too. It’s really not good for you.”

She shakes her head in disbelief. “Okay then. Whatever.”

“Anyway, I’d better go.” He leans forward and gives her a quick peck on the lips.

She grabs the sleeve of his jacket and asks, “What’s wrong? You only just got here.”

“Nothing. I just forgot about something I have to do.” He smiles, but it looks forced. “I’ll come back soon.” He gives her another quick kiss and then heads into the trees.