“Can you walk?”
He thought about this, then shook his head. “I don’t think so,” he whispered.
A bunch of other kids had rushed over by now, too. Shaken, Caitlin pulled out her cell and dialed 911. Adrenaline coursed through her as the operator picked up and said an ambulance would be there soon.
Soon enough, an ambulance roared up, and two burly EMTs loaded Josh into the back. Caitlin’s nerves were jumping everywhere—ambulances would always remind her of Taylor, no matter how long she lived. She watched as Josh peered at her from the gurney. He was grinding his teeth and squeezing his eyes shut to fight the pain. She broke free of the crowd and put one foot on the bumper. “Josh, do you want me to come with you?”
Josh met her gaze, but then the EMT stepped in the way. “Are you family?”
She shook her head.
“A girlfriend?”
Caitlin drew back. It wasn’t her job to ride with Josh to the hospital. Not anymore. She froze, the finality of the end of their relationship suddenly very real. “No,” she said quietly. “I’m not.”
The EMT closed the door with a loud clang. Its lights flashing, the ambulance let out one loud whoop of the siren, turned out of the driveway, and sped up the main road.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
THE FOLLOWING MONDAY MORNING, JULIE sat in her car, idling in the parking lot of Beacon High. Kids were gathering in clumps to recap their weekends. School buses huffed at the curbs, doors were slamming, and a group of girls stood by the art wing with a large banner bearing Lucas Granger’s face. The first bell blared, indicating that there were fifteen more minutes until homeroom began.
She totally wouldn’t be ready in fifteen minutes.
Julie buckled her seat belt and put the car back in drive. Then she felt a hand on hers. “Hey. You can do this.”
She looked up. Carson had wanted to pick her up this morning, but she’d insisted on picking him up instead, so she could make a quick getaway in the middle of the day if she needed to. “Come on,” he said, with a warm smile. “I’ll be with you every step of the way.”
Julie looked cautiously at the students streaming into the building. “I don’t know,” she whispered. “I can’t face Ashley.”
“Yes, you can. If we see her, we’ll just turn and go in the other direction, okay? Or even better, we’ll face her, and tell her what a pathetic bitch she is.”
Julie’s eyes flicked to the girls holding the Granger banner. She hadn’t been back to school since Granger was killed, and she’d assumed that stuff would have started to blow over by now. But it seemed like there were more Granger groupies than ever.
“Come on.” Carson opened the car door. With a long sigh, Julie turned off the ignition, grabbed her purse and books, and followed him into school.
It had only been a little over a week since she was last here, but Beacon High felt different—and looked different. There was a new fern in the lobby. There were all sorts of Granger posters in the halls. And Julie was different, too. When she’d left, she had still been Perfect Julie Redding, with a constant stream of people following her down the hall. Now she was dirty and shameful, leaving only the stench of cat piss and rotten food in her wake. At least that’s how she felt.
They made their way down the hall, Julie walking with her head down, Carson leading her by the elbow. “Julie!” someone called from behind her.
Julie flinched at the sound of her name, certain it was Ashley. But when she turned, her good friend Nyssa Frankel stood waving at her. Natalie Houma was by her side, sporting a totally normal smile.
“Did you study for the chem test?” Nyssa asked in a singsong. “I’m so screwed. Like, who needs to know how to balance equations?”
“Um, no . . .” Julie stammered, feeling dizzy. “I mean, yes, I studied. A little. But I think it’s going to be hard.”
“You’re coming on Friday, right?” Natalie chimed in. “You got my email, didn’t you?”
“Friday?” Julie had no idea what they were talking about. More than that, why were they acting so normal, not even mentioning the fact that she’d been gone a week? Then she remembered that Natalie had sent an email. Several, in fact. But Julie hadn’t read them.
“My Halloween party,” Nyssa explained. “We need to talk costumes at lunch. I’m thinking maybe sexy superheroes. Or sexy Disney princesses?”
“You can’t make everything sexy, Nyss,” Natalie teased, rolling her eyes at Julie. “Right, Julie?”