Page 47 of Kiss Slay Replay

Ravi. White button-down, slacks, the Brooklyn Flea bomber jacket. I know him so well, I knew that’s what he’d wear. But…

Tanya. Tanya. Pink satin dress. Black ribbon choker. Black YSL bag. Straight out of a magazine. An absolute beauty.

An absolute nightmare.

I get my phone out. I open Google and type “intense prolonged déjà vu” into the search bar.

Temporal lobe epilepsy. Great!

Migraines with aura. Cool.

Stress and fatigue. Sounds about right.

Other neurological conditions. Yeah, why not?

“Willa Ann.” Cass is over my shoulder.

I drop my phone back into my bag. “You don’t want to worry about me? Then don’t worry about me. I’m not asking you to be my whole support system.”

She scoffs. “Where did that come from?”

“I’m just saying.” I wish I could walk away, but I can only hobble.

The woods are to my left, and I wonder if he’s there. The Eyeball Man. If he’s waiting, watching, biding his time.

I see you.

Cassie surprises me by taking my hand. She squeezes.

“I’m sorry,” I tell her. “I know it’s been a lot. I’ve been a lot. I’m not in my right mind. Obviously.”

She sighs. She’s an artist and it’s her medium.

I want to tell her that it’s not fair to resent me for needing her. I ignored my needs for so long, imploded, and now I’m actually asking for help and it’s too much.

But I can’t say any of this, at least not right now, because then I’m being self-centered. Making the wedding weekend about me.

Fuck it.

Only way out is through.

“To the bar?” I ask her.

“To the bar.”

4

We wait in line, make small talk with relatives. When we finally get up to the bar, Cassie orders a double tequila soda, and I get a whiskey sour.

“We also have the couple’s signature drinks here,” the bartender says, pointing to a sign advertising “The Steph” and “The Jace” in loopy script.

“We’re good,” Cassie says, answering for both of us. We’re quiet as the bartender mixes our drinks. Cass scans the party; I keep my back to it. “Is that Vicky? Ew.”

“You and Evan sure know how to hold a grudge.”

Vicky used to be part of the group, but then sophomore year she hooked up with Alex Fitzgerald knowing full well that Evan was in love with him. She also briefly dated Luke before he and Cassie got together. She was never my favorite, but I always questioned whether her scarlet letter was earned.

“I forget that Steph is still close with her,” Cassie says.