Candy’s face, it had probably gone well. There were so many things I wanted to tell him, had to tell him.
For the tenth time, I rolled over to face the wall, hugging the pillow like a teddy bear. This was going to be a very long night.
Coming Clean…Mostly
“LILY?”
I shot up in bed, immediately looking at the clock. It was four in the morning. Two more hours left until the wake-up calls began. I must have finally dozed off.
Rubbing the sleep out of my eyes, I yawned. It took me a minute to realize the voice hadn’t been my roommate’s. With a few blinks, my vision came back in blurry focus. I let out a startled yelp, bunching the covers around me up to my chin.
Dustin sat perched on the end of my bed, staring at me. In the hazy darkness of the early morning, I could barely see his face.
“How’d you get in here?” I hissed.
He shrugged, inclining his head in True’s direction. “How’d she get out?”
I glanced over at the empty bed. That was weird. I hadn’t even heard her leave. We usually alerted each other when one of us was about to go out for a little late night snooping.
“She’s resourceful,” I quipped.
Dustin chuckled. “I’m sure she is…and I bet you are too. Just what have you been up to, Miss Mason?”
“You mean while you were busy following your little girlfriend around?” I crossed my arms. “And I would really appreciate it if you didn’t call me that.”
Dustin stood up, moving to stand beside me. He leaned in close, placing both hands on the mattress, caging me in with an arm on either side of me. His face was now merely inches away from mine. “I can’t tell whether the cause of your crankiness is lack of sleep or just plain jealousy.”
I sat frozen in that position for a minute before ducking under his arm to reach for my now ordinary glasses. “You wish, Lover Boy.”
He laughed quietly, straightening back up. “You said it was time we had a chat. So let’s talk.”
I rolled out of bed, walking to the closet to pull on a sweater and sneakers. “Let’s. But not here.”
“Course not. I know a place we can talk privately.” Dustin climbed onto the windowsill. “I’ll meet you outside.” He gave me a little salute before disappearing out the window.
Showoff. I finished tying my shoes and headed out the door, opting to just take the stairs like I had before. Dustin might have been an expert window jumper, but I sure wasn’t.
He was already moving when I caught up to him, not seeming to care about anyone seeing us. The sun had already started to inch its way over the horizon, sending a small splash of color across the smoky sky. There wasn’t much time. If Casey came to the room with both of our beds empty, it wouldn’t be good.
After a few minutes of walking, Dustin came to a halt. I glanced around. We stood in front of a vast lake encircled with greenery. The quiet was peaceful but unsettling. Such silence caused my ears to ring.
Dustin sat cross-legged at the edge of the lake. I took a seat next to him, pulling my knees up to my chest. Neither of us uttered a word, simply staring across the shimmering water.
I could see Dustin more clearly now. His crew cut was growing out and his wavy locks of hair had returned. He continued to stare straight ahead. “So, what is it you wanted to talk to me about?” he asked.
Taking a deep breath, I confessed to following Dr. Wacko and the boy to the golf course, describing the strange robotic movements of both the boy and the members of his little army. Once this was said, I really didn’t want to stop. I wanted to tell Dustin about True’s suspicions about Candy, the truth about Cameron’s death, and even my involvement with the FBI. Still I forced myself to wait, allowing everything I had told him so far to sink in.
He didn’t say anything for a minute or two, picking up a rock and skipping it across the water. After three or four skips, it plunged into the lake with a soft plunk.
“Maybe that’s
For the tenth time, I rolled over to face the wall, hugging the pillow like a teddy bear. This was going to be a very long night.
Coming Clean…Mostly
“LILY?”
I shot up in bed, immediately looking at the clock. It was four in the morning. Two more hours left until the wake-up calls began. I must have finally dozed off.
Rubbing the sleep out of my eyes, I yawned. It took me a minute to realize the voice hadn’t been my roommate’s. With a few blinks, my vision came back in blurry focus. I let out a startled yelp, bunching the covers around me up to my chin.
Dustin sat perched on the end of my bed, staring at me. In the hazy darkness of the early morning, I could barely see his face.
“How’d you get in here?” I hissed.
He shrugged, inclining his head in True’s direction. “How’d she get out?”
I glanced over at the empty bed. That was weird. I hadn’t even heard her leave. We usually alerted each other when one of us was about to go out for a little late night snooping.
“She’s resourceful,” I quipped.
Dustin chuckled. “I’m sure she is…and I bet you are too. Just what have you been up to, Miss Mason?”
“You mean while you were busy following your little girlfriend around?” I crossed my arms. “And I would really appreciate it if you didn’t call me that.”
Dustin stood up, moving to stand beside me. He leaned in close, placing both hands on the mattress, caging me in with an arm on either side of me. His face was now merely inches away from mine. “I can’t tell whether the cause of your crankiness is lack of sleep or just plain jealousy.”
I sat frozen in that position for a minute before ducking under his arm to reach for my now ordinary glasses. “You wish, Lover Boy.”
He laughed quietly, straightening back up. “You said it was time we had a chat. So let’s talk.”
I rolled out of bed, walking to the closet to pull on a sweater and sneakers. “Let’s. But not here.”
“Course not. I know a place we can talk privately.” Dustin climbed onto the windowsill. “I’ll meet you outside.” He gave me a little salute before disappearing out the window.
Showoff. I finished tying my shoes and headed out the door, opting to just take the stairs like I had before. Dustin might have been an expert window jumper, but I sure wasn’t.
He was already moving when I caught up to him, not seeming to care about anyone seeing us. The sun had already started to inch its way over the horizon, sending a small splash of color across the smoky sky. There wasn’t much time. If Casey came to the room with both of our beds empty, it wouldn’t be good.
After a few minutes of walking, Dustin came to a halt. I glanced around. We stood in front of a vast lake encircled with greenery. The quiet was peaceful but unsettling. Such silence caused my ears to ring.
Dustin sat cross-legged at the edge of the lake. I took a seat next to him, pulling my knees up to my chest. Neither of us uttered a word, simply staring across the shimmering water.
I could see Dustin more clearly now. His crew cut was growing out and his wavy locks of hair had returned. He continued to stare straight ahead. “So, what is it you wanted to talk to me about?” he asked.
Taking a deep breath, I confessed to following Dr. Wacko and the boy to the golf course, describing the strange robotic movements of both the boy and the members of his little army. Once this was said, I really didn’t want to stop. I wanted to tell Dustin about True’s suspicions about Candy, the truth about Cameron’s death, and even my involvement with the FBI. Still I forced myself to wait, allowing everything I had told him so far to sink in.
He didn’t say anything for a minute or two, picking up a rock and skipping it across the water. After three or four skips, it plunged into the lake with a soft plunk.
“Maybe that’s
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