Mezzanine

| 27 |

I rushed to my room and put my phone on the charger. I would have borrowed the car and driven to Lola's to get her, but my mom took it to work, so I was stuck with my dead phone as my only lifeline.

"Come on." I held down the power button, staring at the screen and begging it to light up. "Wake up, stupid piece of shit."

I imagined Lola driving down an empty street and Andy's pickup pulling up behind her. What was he capable of with that demon possessing him? Would he run her off the road? Try to break into her car? Hurt her?

I ground my teeth until my jaw hurt. I hated feeling so powerless.

Suddenly, a knock pounded at my door, and I jumped.

It couldn't be Lola yet, could it? She'd just hung up a few minutes ago. No way she would already be here.

My blood ran cold as another thought struck me. Could it be Andy? Had he known where I was going and that was why he didn't follow me off into the woods? He figured it would be easier to drive to my house and get me?

The knock pounded again, and I bit my tongue. What if it was Lola? I couldn't leave her standing out there waiting.

I swallowed my fear and rushed to the front door. My heart hammered in my chest as I peeked through the peephole.

The drone of the rain expanded to a roar as I flung the door open. "Lola!" I gasped like I'd seen a ghost.

She stood on the porch, pushing her hair out of her eyes as the wind swirled it around her face. Her cheeks blushed red even through her tan skin, and her breathing was heavy like she'd been running. The roof overhang was barely large enough to keep her out of the downpour.

"Were you expecting someone else?" She put on her usual attitude, but her voice faltered. Her lower lip quivered as a flash of lightning lit up the sky, followed by a crash of thunder. She glanced over her shoulder, like she was checking to make sure no one had followed her.

"You're early." I forced a smile, but the expression probably came across more pained than anything else. "Come on, get in." I gestured to the side with my head as I stepped out of the doorway.

I shoved the door closed behind her, muffling the screaming storm. The fear that something else might follow her in if I kept it open for too long swirled in my mind. I slammed the deadbolt in just in case.

"I brought your jacket," Lola said as I turned to face her. "You left it in my car, remember?" She held it out and smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. Instead, they shimmered in the dim lighting of the foyer like she was fighting back tears.

"Thank you." Hesitantly, I took it and hung it on one of the coat hooks by the door, next to the damp hoodie I'd taken off after getting home.

"I meant to give it to you at school today," Lola continued when I turned back to face her, "but..."

"Things got weird," I picked up when she trailed off.

"Yeah." She met my eyes for a second before quickly turning her gaze away.

"Can I take your jacket?" I asked.

She nodded as she shrugged out of her raincoat and handed it to me. She still wore the same red flannel she'd had on at school, but she'd changed into a pair of sneakers and light wash jeans that were stylishly ripped at the knees. Chewing on a strand of curly hair, she paced into the living room.

I followed her in after hanging up her coat.

She paused in front of the end table with a couple of framed pictures resting on it. One was a recent selfie of my mom and me in front of our house the day we moved in. The other was of my brother and me at the beach when we were kids. We stood in a massive hole we'd spent the entire day digging. I had a shovel and Damien had a sunburn, but we were both smiling.