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“First of all, I don’t hate cats, but if I did ... Well, I would keep it. I missed out on a lot as a kid when I was bouncing around homes. Eric gets what he wants.”
“See?” Kerry said. “I told you.”
Nicole ignored her and slowly nodded.
Kerry gave a thumbs-up, but she wasn’t looking at me. She was looking out the window. I followed her line of sight and saw a flash of golden-brown hair.
Had everyone lost their minds?
“I hope that clarifies things,” I said slowly.
“Yes. It does.”
I looked back out the window again, but there was nothing. “I’m ... gonna go. Nice talking to you.”
“You too,” Nicole said.
“Are you sure there’s not a cat?” I asked. “If it’s outside, I could get it.”
“No cat,” Nicole said. “But at least I know who to call if there ever is one.”
I blinked, still unable to make sense of the purpose of that question. I walked over to Eric.
“Are you friends with my teacher now?” he asked as he grabbed my hand.
“No, I think this entire town has finally lost their collective minds,” I muttered. “Don’t worry about me. I’m fine.”
“You seemed mad this morning.”
I had been. The betrayal was fresh. It still hurt to think about, though I was more worried about how people would act.
It turned out the answer was far weirder than I expected.
I could deal with weird.
“I’m fine,” I said. “Let’s get you home and get you a snack.”
“Will Mollie be there?”
I hadn’t seen her since this morning. I wasn’t sure if I could handle it. “I don’t think so. It’s just the two of us.”
Eric sighed. “Fine. But I wanna show her my art.”
I didn’t blame him. Even while mad, I still thought about her throughout the day. I didn’t think I knew how to stop.
Which meant she and I needed to talk as soon as she got back from wherever she’d gone.
When Mollie didn’t come home, I grew worried. I’d asked for space, but she didn’t need to leave the house. Or worse, the town.
As time ticked by, I thought back to everything I had said to her. In my anger, I knew I hadn’t been the nicest, but I hoped there was nothing that would have made her leave permanently. Eric was attached.
So was I.
I sat on the couch as the night grew into the morning, hoping to see her come back. If she hadn’t by the next day, I would start asking people if they’d seen her.
I must have dozed off at some point, because my eyes flew open when I heard the front door shut. I was lying down when she walked in, a massive folder in her hand.
“Where were you?”