AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I shook my head before she even finished speaking. “No. I’m not ready to go out yet.”
“You’ve been in bed long enough. You need to get some fresh air… and a shower.”
I covered my face with my hands. “You’re not going to leave me alone, are you?”
“Nope!” She skipped over to my closet and gasped. “Merritt! You haven’t even unpacked?”
“Look at me, Shell. Does it look like I unpacked?”
Her eyes gave me a once over. “Fine. I’ll bring my steamer over later and we can get the wrinkles out of some of these clothes. You’ll look great tonight.”
“I don’t care what I look like. I’m only going out because you are as relentless as a squirrel.”
“I’m not getting that analogy – how is a squirrel relentless? Like, that wasn’t even funny.”
“I just went through a lot. I guess I’m off my game.”
“Maybe you’re just not funny anymore. Maybe you’ve hit your sarcasm quota for life.”
I clutched my heart. “Don’t say such a thing! Sarcasm is all I have left in this world.”
She giggled as she walked to the side of the bed, and threw her arm around my shoulders. “And me!”
“Hurry up and get to school. You’re going to be late for class.”
“I’ll come by later to get ready for tonight.” She grabbed her things and bounced out of the apartment.
Alone again. I laid back down on my pillow, pulling the covers up around my chin. I typed out yet another text to Chase. Staring at my phone, I waited for him to respond. After twenty minutes, my eyes began to close again.
It was getting dark when I opened my eyes. I frantically searched for my phone in the covers, hoping to see a response from Chase. All I found was a text from Shelly stating that she was on her way. Looking at the time, she would be here any minute. I unlocked the door, texted her to let herself in, and turned on the water in the shower.
Shelly came into the bathroom when she arrived. “You don’t have anything picked out for tonight.”
“I didn’t know what to wear.” I popped my head out from behind the shower curtain. Shelly was wearing brown boots with jeans, and a navy sweater. “I’ll just do jeans and a long sleeve tee. I’ll wear my Uggs. I want to be comfortable.”
“I’ll steam a few shirts so you can pick which one you want.”
I breathed a sigh of relief that she did not argue with me about what I should wear. I did my hair, and made enough of an effort to put mascara on my lashes. That was all Shelly would get out of me tonight, and she knew it. She didn’t complain once.
I surveyed the three tops she laid out on the bed for me, and pulled the black V-neck over my head. I tucked my jeans into my black knit boots, and spritzed perfume on. Lastly, I fastened the necklace Chase gave me around my neck.
“You look nice,” Shelly said. “You’re looking a little thin these days, but we’ll get some food in you soon.”
“I’m just not hungry.” I checked my phone one last time before tossing it into my purse. Still nothing. I wondered why he was not responding to my texts. I knew he was upset, but I didn’t expect him to ignore me for days at a time. I almost wished he was sending me angry texts instead. I already had abandonment issues from my mother – the last thing I needed was complete radio silence.
Shelly linked her arm with mine as we walked into the living room. “He will come around. I promise.”
When we arrived at the party, we searched for Brody.
“Hey, bitch!” I heard someone shout behind me. I turned to see Tina and Kenzie making their way over to me through the crowded living room.
“I forgot to tell you,” Shelly leaned in. “The girls were pissed you didn’t say goodbye.”
“Don’t you roll your eyes at me,” Tina pointed as she took her stance in front of me. “You left, and you didn’t even tell us you were leaving! Who does that?”
Kenzie’s eyes were wide with curiosity. “Tell me everything! How is it in California? I’m so jealous.”
“Don’t be.” I spotted Brody in the kitchen, and nudged Shelly. “There he is.”
