Page 104

A pair of dark eyes, pleading with her.

But those were just fragments. Nothing gave her a clear picture.

There was one last sliver of memory. It filled Thicket up so quickly, clinging to her lungs and squeezing her heart.

It was panic.

Something bad had happened—was happening. She had to stop it, had to warn people.

Thicket threw her sheets off, ready to tear from the room. She froze, eyes colliding with something.

A girl. A reflection. Her.

Her curly hair was a matted mess and her arms and clothes were coated in thick layers of pastel yogurt.

Memories came flooding back.

Her fight with Linda.

Jett’s betrayal.

Getting a job.

Befriending Simon.

Getting exiled from school.

Hitting her head—

Thicket’s heart constricted as the old wounds stirred to life.

All of her progress was gone. She had lost her mother’s trust, was no longer tolerated at school, and had definitely drawn her last straw with Mr. Dunkum…

Worst of all, she had done what she had pledged to never do.

Embrace her dreams.

Thicket buried her head in her hands. How could she have been so stupid? She ruined all her progress by going through that door. Had proven them all right. If she hadn’t caught herself, she would have run out into the streets screaming her head off, just like she had in middle school. She would have been forced to go back to therapy. She would never be trusted again. Never be normal, accepted—

“Thicket, please answer me.”

Thicket took in a deep breath, stalling the panic swelling inside her. “I’m awake,” Thicket said.

She wasn’t sure if she was ready to face her mother yet, not after their fight. But she knew the longer she stayed in her room, the more suspicious she would seem. The last thing Thicket needed was for her mother to know she had succumbed to her delusions.

“Then come down,” her mother said. “It’s past noon.”

Thicket made her way to the door. Her hand hesitated on the knob, remembering another door. One embroidered with vines and star shaped flowers. She stole one last look at her disheveled appearance. She couldn’t let anybody know she embraced her dreams. She needed to try and get back to her normal life and fix what she had broken.

Her fingers tightened around the knob. The only door she would be going through any time soon was this one. Not one from her dreams. Not ever again.

She would make sure of that.

Something sweet guided Thicket down the stairs. The familiar scent made her pause.

Peanut butter banana chocolate chip muffins. Her favorite…

She forced her feet to descend the last few steps, dread burrowing in the pit of her stomach.