Page 9 of Left In The Dark

Lydia tugs on my arm, looking at me with pleading eyes. “Logan. Please. Really think this through. It’s you I’m worried about. I couldn’t care less about him.”

“I have,” I say sharply, marching toward the door as two of my friends shout words of encouragement behind me while Lydia slumps her shoulders. “Two wrongs don’t make a right” was something I used to say all the time to myself, but we’re way beyond that. He won’t stop holding me back from living the life I’ve always wanted. He’ll always show up out of nowhere, getting in my fucking way, and you can’t tell me it’s not on purpose.

“There you are,” he scoffs, rolling a joint between his lips.

“Here I am.” I hold up the keys. “Ready?”

“Yeah . . .” He pins me against the wall and a metallic smell hits my nose as a thick liquid pours over my head.

I’m boxed in by several people’s laughter, and as I’m wiping animal intestines from my eyes, Blake is turning up his nose. “You almost had me for a second, pig boy.”

A girl who I assume is his friend steps around the corner, hiding her grin behind her hand, and then someone else jumps out from behind a black pickup. “To think this asshole almost had you naked in the back of his car,” Hayden spews. “Think of all the showers you’d have to take after being contaminated.”

My heart races and I feel as if the ground is falling out from under me. All confidence gone, I feel like that small teen from two years ago. “What the fuck did you dump on my head?”

“Probably one of your family members,” Blake mocks.

Hayden steps up beside him, placing a hand behind his back. “Let me take you back inside and buy you a drink. It’s starting to stink really bad out here.”

Hayden walks ahead, the red‑headed girl who’s with them following closely behind. As soon as the door shuts, Blake starts to pass me and stops, leaning his mouth to my ear. “I bet you really thought tonight was gonna be your night, huh? I always figured you had a little crush on me.” He trails his eyes over my body. “Such a waste. Too bad you really couldn’t have been someone else. We could have had a lot of fun.”

He moves forward, tossing his head back and laughing as he opens the door. He looks at me one last time, eyes prideful. “Enjoy the rest of your night, pig boy. Although I’d probably walk home instead of drive,” he gloats and disappears inside.

I didn’t think hating him more was possible, but it is. Of course I almost have him, and then someone has to come interfere. Fucking Hayden, who I can tell hasn’t fully gotten over Blake and is clearly being kept around like some little puppy.

The door swings open and Jimmy gasps. “What the fuck happened?”

“I took too long, and apparently Hayden got the memo, reaching him first with a plan of his own.”

“Hayden did this?” Jimmy grinds out. “Yeah, fuck that asshole. I’m going to strangle his ass.”

“No,” I say, shouting before he can go all the way back inside. “Just forget it.” I toss him his keys and continue toward the parking lot.

“Where are you going?”

“Home. Go back inside and enjoy the rest of your night. I’ll be fine.” I keep telling myself that as I tread ahead, my head feeling light from the horrible stench I’m covered in.

The only way those words will be true is if I really do manage to get back at Blake Mitchell, and I’ll even give him one chance to show me a single ounce of humanity before going through with it too. And if he fails, he’ll wish he’d never recognized who I am tonight. He’ll wish all I’d done was fuck him in a parking lot and tied him to the car door handle naked for everyone to laugh at, because what I have in store for him next time is something neither of us will be able to come back from.

Two

Logan

Jimmy is riding the lawnmower, rubbing sweat from his brow as Mom brings us two cups of lemonade. Taking both from her hands, I give a silent thank you and plop down on the second porch step. It’s warmer this afternoon than it was this morning. More tolerable than the frigid air stabbing at my cheeks when I straightened the mailbox earlier.

“You boys hungry? I can fix you some potato salad and fried chicken.”

“I’ll never say no to your cooking, Mom. You know that.”

She waves her dish towel. “It’s so nice to have someone to cook for again. You two will definitely need the break soon.”

“Yeah, a break will be good before I do a second coat of paint on the mailbox.”

She looks ahead. “I bet it’s turning out real nice. Try not to work yourself too hard, though. It’s a Saturday. You boys should be out at the movies or something.”

“Maybe in a few hours. This kind of stuff is good for us too. Fresh air and a little exercise never hurt anyone.”

Chuckling, she tosses the dish towel over her shoulder. “I guess not. Food should be done in an hour.” She heads back into the house and I frown at all the neglected trees in front of me. Dad really let this place go. Was it the drinking? Some late mid-life crisis? Did he just get bored, or did he grow to hate his life so much he needed a drastic change? Judging by the state he was in when I saw him, he didn’t appear to be any happier than before.