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I got in her way. She looked up at me, a defeated look in her eyes. She looked ready to burst into tears. I gently took out the earbuds. “Hey.”
“Hey.” Her voice trembled.
“Need a hug?”
She let out a laugh that sounded more like a sob. “I’m not a hugger.”
“I’m a great hugger,” I said. “You’re invited to take a hug whenever you want.”
She made an effort to smile, but it made my heart ache.
“So I thought I’d walk you home,” I said. “Make sure you don’t faint or anything.”
“Funny.”
“It’s not funny, and I really don’t know what to tell you.”
“But you know something.” Her eyes narrowed. “Your friends, you act like I’m out of the loop, but you were all just as shocked as the townies on Halloween. So am I really supposed to think it was a prank?”
“You’re calling them townies now?” I couldn’t help smiling.
“Don’t change the subject,” she said sharply.
“Well,” I said. “What do you think happened?”
A pained look crossed her face. “I don’t know. I need to know.”
“Why? What’s so important?”
She looked away.
“Keeping secrets of your own now?” I meant it teasingly, but her cheeks flooded with colour. “You can talk to me, you know.”
She lifted her chin. “About what?”
“Your secrets.” I held her gaze. I knew she was different. I didn’t know why or how, but she certainly had secrets. Seeing her in the woods with the dead rabbit had confirmed that for me. The way she’d acted in my house had only reinforced it. “You tell me yours, and maybe I’ll tell you mine.”
“You can tell me yours,” she said softly. “But I don’t even know mine.”
I desperately wanted to wipe the pain out of her voice.
“What if we forget about secrets today,” I said. “What if we just… hang out and act like teenagers for a while. I was thinking we could head into town. I could show you around, treat you to a cheap, greasy dinner that will leave you hungry an hour later, but then we could grab an ice-cream.”
Her smile was fuller this time. “In this weather?”
“We’re already cold. What harm’s an ice-cream going to do?”
She bit her lip, and something fluttered in the pit of my stomach.
“Besides,” I said hoarsely. “I’m always warm.” I held up my hand. “One of these could warm your fingers back up after the ice-cream.”
She looked around, but I didn’t think she was going to say no anymore. “Now?”
“Unless you have plans. I’m free whenever.”
She made a face. “I definitely don’t have plans.”
“I’ll even pay for you on the bus. I’m charming like that.”
