Thrust Into His Arms

"Have you seen Curry?" I ask Maverick as soon as I see him. I really need to see her and talk to her. She is been ghosting my calls and texts which only prove very right what I already know. He shrugs, "No. I don’t think she will come today, or tomorrow.

She must be joining in the search for her lover."

"What do you mean?"

"Haven’t you heard? Courtney is missing." He announces matter-of-factly.

My strides came to a halt. "What?"

"Oh shit! I have to go! I have to give Gary his assignment. See ya!" He runs off without an explanation.

I thought of it as an incredulous piece of information. But later I learned it was true. It is what everyone is talking about. Maverick says it was even covered on the news. Several police agents had come by during third class period for questioning. They went to see the principal first before asking Courtney’s friends and a bunch of others.

They all had almost the same things to say. That they had last seen her that night. No one seems to know anything other than that. But I do. She had caught Calix with me in the restroom that night and stormed off in what I think to be anger. He had gone after her.

What might have happened after that? Courtney is not someone who would just disappear into thin air.

"Are you okay?" Rex’s voice and palm touching my forehead brings me out of my flashback thoughts. "I am fine."

"You seem to be but you are zoning out. I asked what you want me to get for your birthday present."

"Anything." I vaguely answer in a clipped tone. Not expecting anything much for this year other than that one wish of surviving whatever Calix intends for me.

Rex’s face holds an unsatisfactory look at my answer. "You can’t say anything. I need to know what you like. What if I get something you do not like?"

His genuine concern and attention brings a blush to my face. If he does gets me a present, that would make him the first person outside of my family to do so. "I would like it anyway as long it comes from you."

"Really? Then how about a voodoo ranger doll?"

I frown. "Don’t try that at all."

"But you just said anything."

CALIX

"I will be going with my mother to church this weekend." Curtis suddenly announces, getting all of our attention.

"What for?" Dom asks.

"To offer a prayer of thanks dude!" He snaps. "Do you know what we just escaped? If Courtney had not come to the party that night and was seen, how the hell were we going to explain that she was at our house? We would have been in for trouble as well as a lot of questioning!"

What he just says is true.

But on the other hand, she would not have died as there would not have been any need for me to kill her if she had not come. Curtis has been the only one going bonkers ever since the news was announced. Makes me wonder how he and the others would react if they knew that she is dead and her killer is sitting right here with them? The memories of how I had driven miles to dump her body in a lake and how I meticulously cleaned her with hydrochloric bleach before that to get rid of my fingerprints. Not that it can be traced to me anyway since I don’t have my fingerprint registered in the security database. I was just taking precautions. So long Courtney! I hope you burn to cinders in hell before I arrive. There are somethings one should just not mess with. She had learned that the hard way.

He continues fretting, "Where could she have gone? I mean who could have kidnapped her here at school? Or did she just disappear on her own? What do you guys think?"

"That you should become a police and join the investigation, idiot." Lucas hissed.

"Yeah, quit talking about her already. Maybe she just decided to disappear where no one can find her. We all know she is an attention seeker."

Dominic changes the topic by asking where Rex is. "Why ask that? You know where he is. He has been barely hanging out with us now ever since he started dating her." Answers Curtis.

"Yeah, I would not be surprised if they become prom king and queen."

Once again I am irritated. I hate to admit it, but the problem lies with me and not with her.

Why can’t I just be cool whenever she gets mentioned with Rex? I will be seeing her later today to collect my due. That was my planned thought until Dom suggested that he and I should go for a race tonight. I quickly agreed to it because it has been a while. The pump of adrenaline and the feeling of hanging off the cliffedge.

Its a level of intoxication all on its own. I do need it to take my mind of Gweneth for a while. A car race and a nice, hot hookup session later with my new fuck Rosie—who is supposedly Courtney’s best friend might send her thoughts packing out of my head for a short while at least.

GWENETH

It has been weighing on my mind all day whether or not to tell Rex or Maverick what I know about Courtney. But I can’t do so without having to explain what led to that which is Calix. So I don’t. I won’t. Dad also heard about Courtney’s disappearance and asked me quite a lot of questions like whether or not I was close to her to which I replied,"Sort of." Nothing more than that so as not to give away the suspicion of what I know.

I escort him to the door carrying Percy. "Keep the door locked, and—"

"Do not let anyone in. I know—this isn’t our first redo Dad." I completed with a soft sigh. He is acting like this is the first time Percy and I would be staying home alone. "Safety paranoia is the only valid paranoia kid." He shifts in a bit close to whisper, "You remember where the gun is right?"

"Yes. Tucked inside you and mom’s mattress." Dad keeps a gun at home. A 22—caliber desert eagle. I know how to dismantle, arrange, load a chamber and fire rounds at a target made to resemble a human. Dad has taken me with him for target practices at the shooting range four times. Mom had readily agreed when the idea was brought up. She thought it was a splendid idea me to learn how to shoot.

I am aware of the increasing level of insecurity in the country, but I am hoping it never reaches me to the level of having to pull a trigger at someone else to save myself even if as an act of self-defense because I do not think I can deal with the trauma of killing someone. I hate having to hold a gun. That damn thing is a lot heavier than it looks. There is also the deafening bang that comes from firing a bullet and the smell of gunpowder. I hate everything about it. But now I would readily go with Dad on his next target practice because I am itching to channel out all my hatred towards Calix somehow and picture his face as a target while I fire continuously at it. It might give me a morsel of satisfaction at least. "Bye Dad!" I yell from behind the door. He is still there to make sure that the door is truly locked before he leaves. "Goodnight kids!"

"Goodnight!!"

I put Percy to sleep and stayed up until midnight watching a miniseries and chatting with Rex in between as I did not feel like studying. Forcing myself would only give me a headache. Sleepiness takes me before I know it. I turn off the television and go to my room. I give room to the conflicting thoughts of whether or not I should turn off the lights. I decided to turned it off after making sure that my window is locked.

I don’t know how to tell my parents to put protective bars without telling them that my bully is sneaking in and out of my room at night.

I get in bed, completely wrapping myself inside the comforter like it can save me from whatever harmful monsters that might come out to hurt me. The monster under the bed syndrome is not yet completely gone for me. But now it is not just monsters that I have to watch out for. I don’t know which is scarier at this point—him or the monsters? I drifted off to sleep—I think. Until a hand clamps over my mouth from behind. The person’s body pressing against my back. I instantly knew that it was him. My eyes flew open, I instinctively burst into a fit of struggling. "Have you forgotten our deal, pet?" He said.

I went completely still.

"How do you keep sneaking in?" I frightfully ask, my voice coming out muffly against his palm.