Page 72 of Tell No Lies

“Had.”

“Aubrey, you are not alone. No matter what that stupid note said, you will never be alone.”

“It sure … feels like … it.” My breaths were coming in short gasps.

She turned to face me and grabbed my face in her hands. “No, Aubrey. Don’t let yourself think that. You have Brandon, Carter, Gage, Cassie, and me. You will never be left alone.”

“They’re doing this on purpose.”

“I know. I don’t know why such a sick person is after you, but you are going to be fine. We will keep you safe.”

My head was shaking involuntarily. Even my subconscious didn’t believe it. “I was safe, because I had my friends around me. Now they’re gone.”

I looked around for Brandon and saw him pacing with his phone in the kitchen. His face was full of rage, and whoever was on the other side of that call was on the receiving end of it.

“I want them back. I want my friends back, Liv.”

She was nodding while gazing out the window. “I know, Aubrey. We’re going to fix this, okay?”

After a tight hug, she jumped up and whispered to Brandon before walking to the door. She waved and gave me a sad smile.

Twenty-Three

School had never been a problem for me. I genuinely enjoyed learning and participating. But over the course of a week, I grew to dread the six hours of emotional torture.

Since the seating arrangement in math was alphabetical, there was no way to get around seeing Mike every morning. He glared at me while I took my seat, and I could feel his laser glare burning a hole in the back of my head.

As soon as the school found out about the breakup, things seemed to shift. Nick had been my saving grace. The moment we were released to do homework, he would grab the corner of my desk and bring me to his side. He took me in when I needed it the most.

Mr. Cox lectured for only twenty minutes today before taking his seat and ignoring us. Without turning, I knew—well, I could feel—Mike glaring at my back. Nick shot him a look as he reached across the aisle and pulled me over.

“Don’t let him bother you. He’s an idiot for letting you go, but now the rest of us have a chance.” He winked and nudged me in the ribs, my most sensitive ticklish spot.

Before I could contain it, laughter escaped. It wasn’t the polite, quiet kind either.

Once Nick realized what he did, he repeated his poking until I was in tears from laughing. The dull noise of conversations ceased as everyone turned to look at me.

“Control yourself, Ms. Tate.”

I held up my hand, waving that I understood, but I couldn’t stop. It felt too good to be carefree, even for a few seconds.

By the time I composed myself, the rest of the class moved on, but I glanced back to find Mike looking at me with a mixture of hatred and jealousy. I was so caught off guard that I locked eyes with him for a split second. He shook his head and lowered his gaze.

Apparently, I wasn’t allowed to be happy ever again, or even show signs of enjoying myself. He probably thought I was going to move on to Nick next.

When I looked back at Nick, he was wiping tears from his eyes. “Part of me is sorry for doing that, but the other, bigger part is so happy I found out your kryptonite.”

“With great power comes great responsibility.”

“Wrong superhero.”

I rolled my eyes and organized the mess on my desk. My notebook and papers were everywhere from my little episode.

☼ ☼ ☼

I got used to the awkward smile and small wave Sean gave me at the end of fourth period now. I waved back and gathered my things before walking out of class. Hopefully, Gage would be around, and I wouldn’t be alone again.

When I got to his bench, it was empty. I began to panic, but a hand grabbed my shoulder and tugged me forward. Gage was standing next to me with a small smile on his face.