Lurker

“I’ll leave those kind of dramatics to you and Drew.”

“So, what are you going to do?” Laurel asked.

“I don’t know. That’s why I called you.”

“Are you going to tell Kyle?”

“God no. This has nothing to do with him.”

Mandy looked at her computer screen, more precisely at her buddy list window. Kyle still wasn’t signed on. She really wanted to chat with him. He always made her feel calm and cool. Great. The one night she really needed to chat, and he pulls a vanishing act. Where are you?

“So, that just leaves dealing with Dale, and you’ve already dealt with Dale.”

“So, you don’t think I should call and thank him? I mean, it’s a pretty big deal if you think about it.”

“Big deal? His daddy’s got more scratch than Puffy. He could send you a car, and it wouldn’t be a big deal to him. As far as I’m concerned, he’s still got some lesson to learn.”

“Okay, L,” Mandy said. “Jeez, I thought you liked Dale.”

“Dale is fine, as in fine face, fine bod, and financially secure, but he treated you wrong. You did the right thing. You gotta look out for yourself.”

Later in the evening, near eleven, Mandy shut down her computer. The last surprise of the day was that Kyle never signed on. He never even wrote her an e-mail. She went to bed worried she’d done or said something to make him mad. That was silly, of course. She didn’t do anything. The last time they chatted, he was in a good mood, only signing off because his mom needed him for something.

But you mentioned talking on the phone, Mandy thought. He made a couple of jokes, then suddenly had to go. Was there a reason he didn’t want to talk to her, something about his voice? Maybe he sounded like Mickey Mouse. She didn’t know, but the question ran through her mind and, like a lullaby, carried her off to sleep.

8

Friday was just awful for Mandy. She woke up expecting to find an e-mail from Kyle, but her inbox only harbored spam and five notes from Drew, all about the date she was having with Jacob. After the third e-mail— OMG. I STILL can’t believe this!—Mandy signed off and got ready for school.

After nine days, most things at Lake Crest, while not back to normal, were at least tolerable. Classes returned to being informational, if not interesting, and her friends were in high spirits, Drew especially. Still, for Mandy it was horrible. She spent the whole day ducking her head when she saw Dale, scurrying down hallways that took her to places she didn’t need to be, and once even hiding in the girls’ restroom when she spotted him down the hall.

Fortunately, they didn’t share any classes. It didn’t make the day easy, just easier. Nothing was going to make the day easy.

During her free period, Mandy went outside for some air. The crush of students in the halls, the fear of seeing Dale again, was just too much to handle. The sun shone brightly, though the day was chill. She hugged herself and walked around the main building, past the niche in the wall where the smokers gathered, toward the “Patio.”

The Patio was a broad slab of white concrete. There were about a dozen tables surrounded by metal chairs. During good weather a lot of kids ate their lunch there, but it was getting cooler and the area was pretty much abandoned until spring came. That’s why Mandy was surprised to see a handful of students gathered at a single table. Fiona Charlotte, a senior girl who was usually ignored, paced beside the table. She was moving her hands frantically while the other kids watched her.

“…totally like Jack the Ripper,” Mandy heard Fiona say as she approached.

“You mean he took her ovaries and junk?” Tim Wayland asked.

“No,” Fiona said excitedly, all but dancing on the concrete. “He didn’t take anything. He’s not a collector, that’s what my dad calls them. But he like…played with stuff. Moved stuff, you know?”

“Jack the Ripper took their ovaries and junk,” Tim said, as if he hadn’t made his point clear the first time.

“Whatever!” Fiona replied. “I’m just saying Nicki was totally messed up…inside. Okay? It was like he cut her open and did all of this gross stuff. She was totally butchered.”

Mandy’s stomach clenched, disgusted by Fiona’s performance. A thick lump lodged in her throat, and she held herself tighter.

“Like what?” Ian Page asked. He sounded eager, like Fiona was describing a sexual event. The knot in Mandy’s stomach rolled.

How could they do this? How could they talk about Nicki like she was some distant celebrity whose tragedy was nothing more than entertainment?

“He squeezed some of the organs,” Fiona said. “Like squeezed them till they popped. My dad said it was a total mess in there. Just soup.”

“Ohhhhh nasty,” Ian said with a laugh. “Nicki stew.”

The other kids laughed nervously, some lowered their heads and shook them back and forth. “Totally!” Fiona exclaimed. “My dad’s been on the police force for like a million years, and he said he’s never seen anything this full-on gross.”

Mandy backed away from the table and her excited classmates. They were awful. God, they were just so awful. She turned and ran back to the front of school, tears brimming in her eyes.

After school, Mandy and her friends went to Bodyworks. She wanted to get Fiona Charlotte’s cruel and amused voice out of her head. Cut. Butchered. Totally Jack the Ripper. She didn’t say a word to Laurel or Drew, because she just wanted to forget, though she doubted she ever would.

She was totally butchered.

They changed into their workout clothes and met at the elliptical machines. Once they programmed their routines, Drew dove into exercise and pumped her legs like her life depended on it.

“Do you think I could lose like ten pounds if I just kept running until my date with Jacob?”

“Cutting off your head would do it,” Laurel said.

Mandy winced at the comment.

“I just wish I had more time to get ready,” Drew said, panting now. “I so wasn’t expecting him to call.”

“Well, your ass wasn’t too fat for him to call in the first place, so it probably isn’t too fat now,” Laurel said.

“What if he hates me?” Drew asked.

“He won’t hate you,” Mandy said, rolling her eyes.

“No more than anybody else,” Laurel added.

“You’re so mean,” Drew said, a drop of sweat rolling down her cheek. “I mean, I’m about to have a total nervous breakdown, and you’re all bitchy. It’s only like the most important thing to me ever.”

“It’s just a date,” Laurel said. “Quit hemorrhaging. He likes you. And hell, at least you get to go out. I have to stay home with Dad and clean my gun.”

Mandy and Drew just shook their heads.

After twenty minutes, Mandy was exhausted and Drew looked like she’d just stepped out of a shower. Laurel announced it was time for abs, and Mandy groaned. She was so tired. Last night was rough. Asleep, she’d had terrible dreams. Awake, she’d worried what to do about Dale and Kyle. And the fear was back. The fear she’d felt in the days following Nicki’s death had returned, thanks to Fiona.

He said he’s never seen anything this full-on gross.

“You guys have to meet,” Laurel said, startling Mandy. “Unless you just don’t want to, and then you have to delete him, because you can’t chat forever.”

“I know.”

“Has Kyle asked you to meet?” Drew asked, finishing her crunches and dropping back to the mat.

“No,” Mandy said. “Do you think that’s weird?”