Page 22 of Hold Me
Caleb grimaces, but then he relents. Jade is allowed out from time to time, but Isaac isn’t. If it weren’t for the stories they tell each other, they would feel completely trapped... Trapped. Something about that word makes Caleb’s stomach twist and he takes a deep breath. “It wasn’t a date. It was...” He isn’t really sure how to call what he and Lilith did. “Whatever. Her name is Lilith. We...” He lowers his voice. “We went to the movies.”
“Wait, isn’t that the name of some demon?” Isaac laughs.
“What movie did you watch?” Jade’s eyes sparkle with excitement. “Was it good?”
“It was some action movie.” Caleb’s lips spread into a smile. “It was kind of fun.”
“Shh, you don’t want the horse face over there to hear you.” Isaac bobs his head toward the guard at the door, who is intently staring at the TV screen on the other side of the room.
Caleb rolls his eyes.
“What’s she like?” Jade asks.
“Different.” It’s the first word that comes to Caleb’s mind. “She’s... I don’t think she knows about... “
“Of course she doesn’t. If she did, she wouldn’t want to parade you as her boyfriend,” Isaac says. “But she’ll find out eventually.”
Caleb frowns. He doesn’t want Lilith to find out. Ever. “She won’t. She’ll find better company and forget about me.”
Isaac punches him lightly in the shoulder. “Oh God, you like her.”
“I...”
“No, don’t even try to deny it. But didn’t she only want to fuck you? The movie was probably because she had a fantasy about a perfect date.”
“We didn’t have sex today,” Caleb says. “She only wanted company.”
Isaac gapes at him, his eyes wide. “Are you sure she’s right in the head? Or is she just that rich?”
Caleb cuts him an annoyed look. “She’s not crazy. Her boyfriend was an asshole, so I guess she has trust issues.”
“Ah, lovely.” Isaac snickers. “I don’t see how paying for dates with you is going to help her.”
“Shut up.” Jade narrows her eyes at Isaac. “I wish someone would take me out.”
“Why?” Isaac gives her an incredulous look. “So you can pretend you’re living a normal life?”
“Isaac...” Caleb says in a pleading voice.
“What?” Isaac crosses his arms. “Raphael will kill us all before he lets us go. Why pretend it’s any different?”
“Do you really think we need a reminder?” Jade presses her lips into a tight line.
“I guess not.” Isaac scratches his head, then leans forward, lowering his voice. “Does anyone have extra... um, you know?”
Jade shakes her head, and Caleb’s brow furrows.
“Why? Didn’t Raphael give you any?”
“I pissed him off.” Isaac rubs his arms. “Do you have it?”
“No.” It’s a lie, but Caleb doesn’t want to add to Isaac’s addiction. Isaac’s already taking more pills than any of them.
“Fuck.” Isaac digs his nails into his skin. “I feel like my skull is going to explode.”
“You should stop doing that to yourself,” Caleb says.
“Doing what? Telling that son of a bitch what he deserves?”