The shadow drew away and I grabbed the door handle, twisting the lock and yanking it open. I’m not going to be scared of shadows in toilets.
I stepped out, my foot slipping in something wet and I gasped as I skidded on the tiles and my back impacted with the hard floor. Shit.
I twisted my head toward the door just as it swung shut, the culprit gone. One of the sinks had been blocked, the water washing over the top of it and soaking the floor.
I got up with a curse, rubbing my bruised elbows where I’d caught myself on the tiles and moved to turn the water off. My heart constricted in my chest as the words Night Whore glared back at me, written across the length of the long mirror in red lipstick. My lipstick.
I looked around for it, but it was gone.
My heart pounded harder and I gritted my teeth, refusing to let this rattle me. If Pearl and her friends wanted to freak me out, then I wasn’t going to give them the satisfaction.
I shed my blazer, tying the sleeves around my waist to cover up my soaking wet skirt and marched out of the bathroom with my chin held high.
There was no one in the corridor. It was the end of the school day after all. And something about the empty hallway made an eerie sensation creep through my skin.
I hurried to exit the building, the sound of chatter in the courtyard outside making me relax as I took out my phone and shot Mila a message.
Tatum:
Did you get them?
I had the mother of all humiliations planned for tonight and Mila had been helping me prepare for it the past few days.
Mila:
Girl, I got four whole boxes.
I laughed, my heart beginning to pound for a whole different reason.
Tatum:
Great! See you soon.
“Hey, Tatum!” someone called and I looked up, spotting a group of some of the footballers on one of the picnic benches with Toby amongst them, waving me over.
I hesitated for half a second before jogging toward them and Chad McCormack gave Toby a look of surprise for addressing me. The Night Keepers would probably drown them if they stepped past the invisible walls my captors had built around me. The message from the three of them was clear: stay the hell away from our girl. But they were nowhere in sight, and I was in the mood to push against the barriers of my cage.
“Wanna hang out for a bit?” Toby offered, his eyes bright with hope. He looked like a changed man since he’d been welcomed back into society, but there was still a nervousness about him that I could sense beneath the surface of his smile.
“Oh, I can’t, me and Mila are meeting up to study.” And the Night Keepers would literally destroy me if they found me here talking to you guys as I am only allowed one friend.
Hell, what has my life come to?
Danny carved a hand through his blonde hair. “Are you hanging out with her all night, or…?” he trailed off.
“I’ll only keep her for a couple of hours,” I said with a grin and he smiled stupidly.
Chad punched his arm. “You are so pussy whipped, bro. What happened to our pact of dicking ten girls per semester? You dip it in one and practically put a ring on it.” He was the typical jock with his bulky muscles and dude-bro vibe about him, his dark hair messy in that way girls liked.
“Shut up, man.” Danny punched him back. “Mila’s not just any girl.”
My heart lifted as he earned himself a lot of bestie brownie points.
“How far along are you with that pact, Chad?” I asked airily and he puffed out his chest.
“I get my Chad-stick in a tight hole every fucking day.” He smirked.
His Chad-stick??? I’m gonna vom.
“Oh, is that what I saw you doing this morning?” I asked innocently and the footballers all looked to Chad for explanation.
“What?” Chad’s dark brows pulled together.
“You remember. You had your Chad-stick in that hole in the willow tree near the boathouse. I hope there isn’t a family of traumatised squirrels living in there.” I tossed my hair with a smirk and Toby roared a laugh just as the rest of Chad’s friends lost it.
“I don’t fuck trees,” Chad balked, his face starting to turn beetroot red.
“I dunno what else you could really call it when you push your boner into a tree hole,” I said thoughtfully. “Is it just willows that get you off or do the pine trees do it for you too? You must be constantly hard around here.”
“I don’t fuck trees!” Chad repeated as his friends laughed and shoved him.
“It’s alright, bro, no one’s judging,” Toby snorted. “Did you part her branches and tickle her mossy patch?”
I snorted as the others went crazy, clapping Toby on the shoulder.
“Shut up, man,” Chad huffed, his ears bright red now.
“Did you lick her sap and make her blossom?” Danny threw in and Chad started throwing punches to try and make them stop.
“You’re funny, Night Girl,” Zayne Jackson called from the back of the group and I shrugged.
Movement in my periphery made me turn and the footballers followed my gaze to Bait who was trying to creep past them down the path, his eyes wide beneath his mask.
Chad suddenly cupped his hands around his mouth and made a noise like a war horn. “To the hunt!”
“To the hunt!” the footballers all echoed and they jumped off of the picnic bench they were occupying, tearing after Bait who high-tailed it down the path. Toby ran with them and it was
