Chapter 35: Lost Girl

“Toby just texted me back,” Haylee informed me as she sat on the edge of my bed and pulled on her tennis shoes. “He’s really bummed that you’re not coming along.”

I had spent the day contemplating whether I should go to the party. There was a good chance that Justin would be there, and though I owed him the opportunity to tell his side of the story, I was still too cowardly to confront him.

“It may be fun,” Haylee tempted me. “We can pretend we are drunk and take turns making out with Toby.”

“He would love that,” I agreed, giggling.

“I can stay home as well,” she offered. “We can make a puppet account and creep on Sienna’s socials.”

The idea did appeal to me, but then I recalled how angry and devastated Sienna had seemed. That sort of wrath is only created through pain, and I felt as if the poor thing had been through enough. The last thing she needed was her ex’s nosey girlfriend spying on her.

I smiled and shook my head. “I think I’m going to take it easy tonight. Maybe just soak in a bath and clear my head.”

“You can use my bath salts,” Haylee said, “but only if you promise not to snort them.”

“I’ll try to restrain myself,” I replied dryly.

I lay in my bed and hugged my pillow as I watched Haylee admire herself in my full-length mirror.

Making eye contact with me through her reflection, she asked, “Has Justin attempted to contact you?”

“Yeah, he sent me a series of texts and I have six missed calls from him,” I told her. “I had to turn off my notifications so I wouldn’t be tempted to respond.”

“Turn your notifications back on,” Haylee ordered. “I may need to call you to rescue me.”

I reached over and did as she requested, averting my eyes so I wouldn’t see the unanswered message count.

Haylee returned to the bed and leaned over for a parting hug. “I don’t think I should leave you here by your lonesome.”

“Tomorrow night will be reserved for us. I want to take you to a really cool pizzeria called Pat’s Pizza Planet.” Though the restaurant held some memories of Justin, I was not ready to surrender it to him. I planned on making new memories there with Haylee.

“Ooo, Pat’s Pizza Planet, I can’t wait,” she teased.

“It will be fun!” I asserted.

“I’m being serious,” Haylee cried with an expression of mock outrage. “Pat’s Pizza Planet is my dream destination. I wish I were there now.”

As she said this, I wondered why I hadn’t suggested it earlier. I glanced at the clock, realizing it was too late to ask Haylee to change her plans.

Haylee’s phone dinged in her hand. She hurried to respond, then returned her attention to me.

“Toby just got on the bus. He will be arriving at your stop in about ten minutes. I better hustle if I’m going to meet him.” She hesitated. “Are you sure I should go?”

“Yes,” I permitted. “Now, get out of here so I can have some peace.”

“I’ll text you later with all the details,” Haylee vowed, then turned to blow me a kiss before she disappeared down the hall.

I listened as the door closed in the foyer, then I threw my pillow and lifted myself from my bed so I could watch her from the window as she trotted down the driveway and then pivoted in the direction of the bus stop.

Once she disappeared from view, I grabbed my laptop from my desk and hauled it to my bed, intending on finding a movie to stream. But as I scrolled through the selection, I kept thinking about Haylee’s suggestion.

I needed to clear Justin’s name if I was going to continue my relationship with him, so I made a puppet account and turned on incognito mode so I could discreetly view Sienna’s pages.

I discovered she was on several platforms, constantly posting pictures of her puppy and giving her followers updates on her ink. Though most of her posts were art related, she seemed fond of quotes—particularly the ones that were meant to be uplifting but often had the opposite effect.

As I scrolled back, there was no mention of Justin or her pregnancy. It was as if she had attempted to scrub away evidence of the incident.

After I had exhausted all opportunities to snoop, I turned off my laptop and set it aside. I was about to shut off my lamp and call it a night, but decided I wanted to wait up for Haylee.

I grabbed my pillow, marched across the hall to the pink room, and crawled into the bed I had made for her. When she returned, she would be anxious to share her adventures, and I wanted to be readily accessible.

I lay in her bed and placed my phone beside my head on her pillow, expecting it to ding as soon as Haylee began taking selfies.

As I lay there, I wondered what Justin was doing at that moment. Haylee had promised that if she bumped into him, she wouldn’t utter a word about what we had discussed, nor would she divulge any information about my current state.

It wasn’t long before drowsiness overcame me, however, and I drifted off to sleep.

***

I slept fitfully. My mind jumped from one image to the next, not giving me time to comprehend what I was experiencing before it leapt into an entirely new experience.

I had just entered a dreamscape that seemed less chaotic when I was suddenly prompted awake.

Though Haylee had reported no issues, the overhead light was flashing erratically. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, it was now issuing a low hum.

“Damn it, I thought we fixed you,” I cursed at the light.

As if the light was voice activated, it suddenly died in response.

Using my fingertips, I located my phone and checked the time. I nearly leapt out of my skin when I realized that it was nearly five in the morning and the space beside me was still empty.

At first, I was frightened, but then I reasoned that she may have decided not to wake me and slept in my room, so I climbed out of bed to check on her.

I tiptoed across the hall and peeked into my room. Though the room was dim, I had not closed my curtains, and the light from the streetlamp filtered inside to expose my empty bed.

Afraid to trust my own eyes, I entered the room and turned on my bedside lamp. Once I’d confirmed Haylee wasn’t hidden under the blankets, I returned my attention to my phone.

A plethora of messages from Justin, but zero from Haylee.

I texted her, demanding to know where she was as I raced out of the room, hoping to find her downstairs in the kitchen, fixing herself a late-night snack.

The kitchen was barren and spotless.

I darted from one room to the next, hoping she would make an appearance. When I didn’t find her, I attempted to call her phone, but she must have turned it off, because “the caller I was attempting to reach was unavailable.”

I finally gave up and called Toby instead. I was relieved when I heard his raspy voice answer.

“Toby, thank god!” I exclaimed. “Is Haylee with you?”

“With me?” he sounded perplexed. “I thought she was with you.”