by Joy Elbel
“Coming!” I yelled as I waited for Zach to button his shirt and sit down on the futon in an attempt to pretend nothing was going on. He turned on the TV and tried to look casual as I opened the door. I started to believe in the power of prayer when I found Rachel on the other side of it and not my parents.
“Sorry to interrupt, but all hell’s breaking loose and Shelly and Jason were about to come looking for you,” Rachel said with a serious look on her face. “I figured if someone was going to catch you in the act you’d rather it be me.”
“What’s going on?” It was only now that my head was slightly clearer and it felt like someone doused my nether regions with a bucket of ice water that I could hear the skirmish brewing below us. The pounding bass was now gone, replaced instead by angry shouts.
“The fine line between Crimson and Ivy finally snapped—there’s a full on catfight going on down there! Boone and Drake can’t decide whether to break it up or film it, and your parents and the chaperones are trying to clear everyone else out. The party’s definitely over.” Rachel peeked around the door to get a better look at Zach. “Sorry, little brother, but it looks like your private party is over, too.”
Zach’s face was already fifty shades of red but he somehow managed to blush just a hint brighter with her comment. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he stammered. “We were just watching TV—that’s all.”
“You better work on your excuses, Zach. And if you guys want to have sex and keep it a secret there are a few other things you need to work on, too,” Rachel replied with a tone of satisfaction in her voice.
I didn’t want to full out admit she was right but I definitely needed her advice on this. Casually, I asked, “Oh, so what makes you think we were doing anything? Not that we were—just wondering.”
“Three things guys,” she said as she held up three fingers. “First, you both look guilty as hell. Second, you need to hone your quick dressing skills.”
I interrupted her tutorial there. “What do mean by that?” We were both fully dressed—it’s not like we even got very far or anything.
She gave me a smug smile. “Your dress is half unlaced and Zach missed a button on his shirt. I’ll give you partial credit for the fact that you did it with one broken arm but I’m pretty sure Ruby’s parents wouldn’t be interested in partial credit.”
I looked first at my dress and then at his shirt. She was right on both counts. “I’ll stall your parents for a few minutes while you pull yourselves together.” Rachel started to leave but I stopped her.
“Just for future reference, what’s number three?” She wrinkled her nose and pointed to Zach’s crotch. “Do something with that thing will you? This isn’t the IMAX— your pants shouldn’t be in 3D!”
Zach glanced down to see what she was talking about and quickly grabbed a throw pillow to hide himself. “I can buy you five minutes—no more. By the looks of it, Zach, you should have enough time to finish and have four and a half minutes to spare!”
He grabbed another pillow and flung it at the door just missing her head as she bounded down the steps giggling. I closed the door and ran straight to the mirror to fix my dress while Zach fumbled with the buttons on his shirt. Once I was satisfied that I had wiped away all traces of our rendezvous from my appearance, I went to help him. As I buttoned his shirt for him, I couldn’t help myself—I gave him a soft kiss on the chest.
“Whoa, you have to stop—I can’t go downstairs looking like this, Ruby,” he said pointing in the direction of his pants.
“Sorry, Zach. I just wish we’d had enough time to…well, to…you know.” “Trust me, I know. But we didn’t so…I have to calm down, so to speak.” His face started to slowly return to normal after Rachel left but inch by inch the redness was returning. “I need to, um, use the restroom.”
“Oh,” I said innocently. Then I finally got it. “OH! Okay, I’ll wait out here,” I said pointing to the living room. “Far away and I’ll do something loud.”
He gave me an odd look and disappeared into the bathroom. I plopped down onto the futon and turned the volume up on the TV. “I’ll do something loud”—why was I such an idiot? I always assumed there were noises of some sort that accompanied such an activity—I guess I was wrong. While I considered my complete lack of knowledge in that area, Zach resurfaced looking much calmer—thirty seconds later. Rachel nailed that one on the head, no pun intended. I definitely needed to tap into her wealth of information regarding boys.
Zach sat down beside me on the futon. Things were a little awkward at first and I feared that maybe he changed his mind about everything. So I decided to make small talk to ease the tension.
“So, I guess we have a lot of catching up to do—about normal stuff, that is. We haven’t talked to each other in a month. And now that I think about it, we kind of didn’t talk much before that either.”
“Thank you!” he exhaled triumphantly. “I was hoping it wasn’t just me who noticed that. I got so caught up in loving you that I almost forgot that I liked you too, you know, as a friend and all.”
Finally, we seemed to be getting our relationship in sync. He already felt more like the boy I fell in love with over the summer. “I agree. There’s so much I need to fill you in on. So much has happened with Garnet—she’s the one who pushed you down the stairs, by the way—my new job, school—we need to take some time to reconnect.”
Zach squeezed my hand. “Can I take you out tomorrow night? I have things to tell you, too, and I want to know all about your new haunting.”
“Yes, I’ve missed you.” I leaned against him and he put his arm around me.
“I’ve missed you too, sweetie,” he said and kissed the top of my head. We snuggled there for a few minutes before we reluctantly went back downstairs. The ballroom was cleared out except for the other members of NeverMore who were busy packing up their gear. When we got to the bottom of the grand staircase Rachel and Boone were there to meet us.
Boone greeted Zach with a knowing wink and a pat on the back. Rachel was such a blabbermouth. “You look much better than you did when I last saw you, Ruby!” She made obvious eye contact with Zach’s zipper area and added, “You, too, little brother!”
“Smart ass,” Zach mumbled under his breath just loud enough for me to hear. “It was a great party, Rachel—what I saw of it.” I threw open my arms for a hug. “And thanks for everything else, too.”
When Rachel and I embraced, Boone let out a wolf whistle. “Now that’s hot!” My breath caught in my throat as I waited for Zach to overreact and haul off and hit him. But he didn’t. All he did was punch Boone lightly on the arm and call him a perv. The old Zach was back—my Zach was back. Nothing—and no one—could come between us now.
After Rachel and Boone left, I walked Zach out to his car. I just couldn’t believe it when I saw where it was parked. The plan to get us back together stretched far beyond Rachel—my parents actually helped. Even after everything that happened—after everything he’d done—Dad and Shelly still supported our relationship. There was definitely something special about Zach and I wasn’t the only one who could see it.
He backed the car out of the garage and then hopped out to say goodnight. “So I guess I’ll see you in the morning then,” he said as he pulled me close. “Until then,” he paused to give me a gentle kiss on the cheek, “Mwah and sweet dreams.”
“Mwah,” I replied and watched as he got into his car and drove away. Dad and Shelly snuck up behind me on the porch and joined me as I watched until he was out of sight. “Good party,” my dad said.
“The best party ever!” I agreed as I hugged them both at once. The best party…ever. Sweet dreams. Those two simple words Zach uttered before he left spoke volumes to me. How could I have anything but? Once I was in my pajamas and nestled into bed, I stared at the ceiling and imagined him there with me. I could still smell the scent of his cologne on my comforter, still feel the warmth of his hands on my skin. And when I rolled over to pet
Coco, I heard the sound of the condom wrapper crinkling under the pillow right where he left it.
Reaching under my head to retrieve it, I held it in my hand for just a minute—admiring it like it was a fine diamond. I opened the drawer of the nightstand and concealed it underneath my well-worn copy of Dracula. Hiding that thing from Dad and Shelly was priority number one, but keeping it safe for next time ran a close second in my opinion.
Next time. When exactly would that be anyway? Zach didn’t want to do it the backseat of the Neon, so that left only his house and mine as potential scenes for the crime. I had to admit that I preferred it to be here at Rosewood for several reasons. For starters, my bed was way bigger than his. And since I didn’t have any brothers or sisters, my house would be more private. As glad as I was that it was only Rachel at the door tonight, it was still downright embarrassing. I made up my mind—I would tell Zach I wanted it to happen here.
The only obstacle I could foresee was finding a way to get the house to ourselves. If all I had to deal with was my dad, things would be easy. He worked long hours and never popped in unexpectedly. Shelly, however, was a different story entirely. The only time she left the house for more than a half hour was when she went shopping or out to dinner with my dad. Which brought up an interesting question—how much time would we need? Now that the lines of communication were open between us, I would have to ask him for his input. It wouldn’t hurt to have a second, more experienced opinion either—I would find a delicate way to ask Rachel, too. Once I had a rough estimate, I could think of a way to get them out of the house for long enough.
The exhaustive emotional turmoil of the day finally caught up with me as my eyelids fluttered shut and the world of dreams opened up to me. The last thing I saw before I fell asleep was the ring on my hand—the ring that now bound me to Zach Mason. Sweet dreams.
They were anything but. The dream started out like a normal boring day at school. listening to Mr. Raspatello upcoming assignments, fidgeting in my chair from restlessness. While doodling Zach’s name on my notebook to pass the time, I noticed movement in the hallway from the corner of my eye. There were two girls arguing in the hall and one of them was Garnet. The second girl was familiar somehow but when I craned my neck to see who she was, I recoiled in horror. She had no face. A hollow void sat where it should have been, shrouded ghoulishly by a frame of mousy brown hair.
I was seated in English class drone on and on about our Even though she had no eyes, I could sense that somehow she saw me, saw me watching her. I shrank back into my seat to get out of her field of vision but I could still feel her “eyes” on me. Pretend she’s not there, I told myself and refocused my attention on Mr. Raspatello. It was the wrong thing to do. His face was now gone, too.
Close your eyes. Close your eyes. I repeated that phrase to myself silently. When you open them, you’ll be awake! Believing it could happen, I squeezed my lids tightly shut and began the countdown. Five. Give it some time. Four. They’ll all be gone. Three. This nightmare will end. Two. You’ll be safe in your bed. One. You’ll be awake. My eyes snapped back open.
Instead of seeing my bedroom walls, I was met with a vision that was even more ghastly than before. Now, no one had a face, just an empty pit of blackness where their faces should have been. I could still hear their voices but there were no mouths or lips to move in sync with the sound. My breathing became shallow as they all turned to “look” at me, voices chattering away from out of the voids they once called faces. No one took a single step, but it felt like they were closing in on me. I writhed in my seat, afraid to stay there but too frightened to run past them to escape. That’s when I caught my reflection in the window.
My face had been swallowed up by blackness, too. No eyes, no mouth but somehow I could still see the horror and hear the piercing scream it evoked.
32. Back to Unreality
The first sensation I had upon waking was an intense urge to throw up. I bolted from the bed and got hunched over the toilet just in time. My life seemed so perfect when I fell asleep last night but the light of day reminded me of what still lay ahead. The nightmare was horrendous—the worst I’d had in a while—but it was nothing compared to what I had to deal with while I was awake.
Getting back together with Zach clouded my vision of the future, but now I could clearly see every pitiful step I would have to take today. I broke into the school yesterday— what if someone found out about it? How would I be able to hide my guilt as I walked past the window that I smashed in a panic so I could get out of there undetected? Not to mention dealing with Garnet.
Garnet. I did everything I could to help the girl—hell, I even felt sorry for her after everything she did to Zach. I knew myself well enough to know that no living soul would have garnered my sympathy after that one. But I hit a wall, came to the end of the road, and any other cliché you could think of to describe my situation. I couldn’t give her what she wanted because I didn’t know what it was. Without that suicide note, I was useless to her. How would she react now that I was forced to give up?
Not well, I imagine. I was still getting sick, I was still losing weight. Her slow assault on me had me wishing that she would just shove me down the stairs too and get it over with. Was that what she was looking for—to make me so miserable that I wanted to die, too? Zach wouldn’t know how to help me, but at least I wasn’t alone in this anymore. He would listen to what I went through, hold me while I cried, then vow to find a way to protect me. It wouldn’t help me get rid of Garnet, but it would make me feel better. And right now, that was the most I could hope for.
I looked like hell and I felt like hell, but I climbed into my car for the drive to school anyway. I was just putting it into gear when I looked into the rearview to see Zach pulling down the drive.
“What are you doing here?” I asked as he leaned in my window and gave me a kiss on the cheek. “I’m here to give you a ride to school, sweetie, unless you’d rather go alone.” He started to walk away in a mock show of wounded pride.
“Oh no, you don’t!” I threatened, as I turned off the engine and leapt out of the car after him, “Get back here!” Locking my arms around his waist, I announced, “You’re not going anywhere without me!”
He opened the passenger side door of his car for me with a laugh. “Now, that’s more like it!” “Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy to see you—but aren’t you working at the shelter after school today? Who’s going to give me a ride home?” I probably should have asked that question before we were half way down the road.
“Nope—not today. I asked Andy for the day off so I could spend more time with you.”
Maybe today wouldn’t be so bad after all. “Thanks, Zach—you’re the best boyfriend in the whole world!” “Yeah, I know,” he said laughing. “But that’s only because I have the best girlfriend in the whole world.” We were apart for so long that now every single second I spent with him felt like a gift from the gods. “So what are we doing after school then?”
“I thought I could take you out to dinner and then we could just go somewhere to talk. I want you to tell me everything about your ghost.”
The fact that he wanted to know what I was going through—every wretched detail—did in fact make him the best boyfriend in the world and I told him so.
“Well, I just hope I can live up to that title.” He remained silent as he pulled into the school parking lot. Once we were parked, Zach added, “Just know that I will do anything I can to help you. What I said to you last night in the oak grove wasn’t just me saying whatever it took to win you back. When I said I would take a bullet for you, I meant it.”
“I know, Zach—but I wish you would stop saying that.” I fidgeted nervously in my seat. “Promise me you’ll never say it again—promise right now,” I pleaded.
“Okay, okay! I promise!” He reached over and gave me a quick kiss before getting out of the car. “You’re not going to make me pinky swear, are you?”
“Very funny Zach Mason
—just for that I should make you pinky swear.” He laughed, grabbed my hand and led me into the building. We weren’t more than five steps inside when Rachel ran up to us.
“Hey guys—have you heard?” She didn’t give us any time to reply before blurting out, “Someone broke into the school!” Here we go. I had to look surprised, had to ask the questions any innocent person would ask. “Really? When?” “It happened sometime Sunday night during the party,” she replied animatedly. “They’re asking around to see if anyone knows anything or saw anything suspicious—the police are in Principal Lascher’s office right now.”
Oh no. How did they narrow down the timeframe so drastically? I never thought anyone would be able to pinpoint the break in to within a few hours. It was a good thing I threw up this morning because if I hadn’t, there would be a hot, steaming pile on the floor at my feet.
“Ruby and I don’t know anything about it—I was too busy winning her back to pay attention to what anyone else was doing.”
Zach was going to flip out when I told him that it was me who broke into the school so I almost decided not to tell him. But lack of communication, half-truths, and flat out lies just weren’t working for us anymore. If our relationship was going to last, I had to cut the dishonesty and tell him everything regardless of the consequences.
“That’s not the only thing you were busy doing!” Rachel quipped as she bounced off down the hall. Guilt followed me around all day, digging its dirty claws into my gut every time I went near the broken window or listened to anyone’s conversation about what happened. Rumors spread like a bad case of acne so by the end of the day people were saying that the thieves stole thousands of dollars’ worth of stuff from the computer lab. Whatever. I broke a window and that was it.
I also felt a twinge of shame when I saw Mr. Raspatello. There was still definitely something off about the way he reacted when I mentioned the Black Raven Society, but I knew for sure now that he didn’t kill Garnet. Still, sometimes I would catch him looking at me with an odd expression on his face, like he was analyzing me or something. He wasn’t a killer but he was creepy, that’s for sure.