Page 127 of Ominous: Part 1

I try not to be bitter about it, more important things at hand here.

I stick my head out into the hallway, feeling as if I’m a bad actress in a shitty thriller, but I don’t see anyone. Just a set of doors closed at the opposite end of the hallway.

And for a moment, I don’t hear anything either.

I start to think maybe it wasn’t an argument. Maybe one of his friends came over, because unlike me, he does have those. Maybe they dropped something and it broke.

But just as I’m about to turn back and brush my teeth, make sure I don’t look like a complete wreck, I hear someone speak again.

Someone I don’t know. A deep, male voice, full of irritation.Similar to the one I heard in his car after the wrestling tournament.

His dad.Shit.

“Do her parents know where she is right now?”

Oh no.

I clamp my hand over my mouth, so I don’t accidentally breathe too heavily or something stupid.No, sir, my parents definitely do not know where I am right now.

Eli doesn’t respond, or if he does, I can’t hear it.

The voices are coming from down the spiral staircase. Maybe at the foyer if I had to guess.

“Are you two dating?”

Not this.I almost want to turn around, because I’m not sure I want to hear what Eli says to that. But he doesn’t say anything at all. Again.

I can hear his dad’s irritation climbing when he says, voice ragged, “I want to meet her.”

Nope. No. I glance down at my legs, Eli’s shirt. I think about all the rum I drank yesterday. Thankfully, I had the sense to hang up my swimsuit over the shower door in Eli’s bathroom, and none of my things are downstairs. Eli cleaned up the kitchen before we came up. But I’m sure his dad knows I’m here. In his son’s room.

He’s going to think I’m a whore, and I haven’t even met him yet. Now I have to fix a bad impression and—

My runaway thoughts are cut off by Eli’s laugh. It’s cold, drifting a shiver down my spine. I drop my hand from the doorknob to cross my arms over my chest as I lean against the doorframe, listening and not sure I want to hear what he’s going to say.

“Don’t you have a meeting with your secretary to run along to, Dad?” The question is rude, innuendo dripping from every word. I imagine speaking to Reece like that.

I have, many times before. It always ends in us screaming at each other. But Eli’s dad must have a little more patience because he says, “Go upstairs, let her know I’m here, and bring her down so I can introduce myself.”

No, no, no.Briefly, as my knees tremble and I turn my head, looking at the balcony door, I think about climbing out and running away. It’s possible, if not ideal, but Icoulddo it. I think I’d rather, than meet his dad under these circumstances, with me stowed up here in his bedroom where he probably thinks we had sex and…Shit.I think about the “entertainment room,” a combination of words which only exist for a certain tax bracket.

Did we get anything on the couch? I feel like I want to faint just thinking about it. I mean, Eli had to change his pants afterward. There could be something we missed.

I wait for Eli to push back again. He says nothing, and I wonder how often he gets away with his deafening silence.

I hear his dad sigh, and he says, “I’m leaving soon. Let me meet her, okay? Just this one thing, do it for me.” There’s an earnestness in his words. He’s not begging, really, but he’s sincere, and it doesn’t sound like he has ulterior motives. Then again, neither does Eli, even when I’m sure he does.

I don’t know what I want Eli to say. My heart hammering in my chest, part of me wants him to argue. A lot of me wants his dad to leave so I can breathe a little easier. A tiny, small sliver wants him to think I’m important enough to meet his family.

But only a miniscule part.

After another tense moment of silence, I hear footsteps on the stairs.

I think it’s Eli’s silent “yes.”

Fuck.

I slip back into his room, closing the door as quietly as I can before I bound to the bathroom. I dig my medicine from my backpack and take two pills, swallowing them dry before I zip up the bag and start brushing my teeth, glancing at my reflection in the mirror.