Page 44 of Phobia

Guilt gnawed at me as I snatched my bag off the floor. My cell phone rang, too loud in the surrounding silence, making me flinch.

Larkin.

I answered hesitantly. “Everything ok?”

“Yeah. Sorry. I just saw your messages.” He was breathing hard, like he’d been out running or lifting weights, though I didn’t hear the usual metallic clanging in the background. Even if he was at the gym, he used his phone for music, which meant he would have known I was texting. So either he was lying or he didn’t have his phone until just now, which still begged the question—where was he?

“Anything you want to talk about?” I asked.

“Uh, no. But I can meet you at the house in like two hours, if that’s ok?”

“Don’t worry about it. I’m here now. Tim let me in.”

“Are you going to hang out until I get back?”

“I wasn’t planning on it.”

“Please?” I could already picture his puppy eyes and his downturned lip. “I want to see you. I don’t like the way our conversation went yesterday.”

A sigh escaped before I could help it. So hedidwant to talk, but not on the phone. Where the hell was he, anyway? Sunderland was about two hours away. Had he gone back to his grandma’s house to finish packing her things? Without me? I mean, it’s not like he needed my permission. It was technically his house, after all, and I’d literally told him the night before that we were leading separate lives, so it’s not like I could be mad he was moving on with his. I just thought he’d want the help tackling decades’ worth of antiques and knick-knacks.

“Two hours?” I repeated, checking the time on my phone.

“Give or take. Just hang out in my room. See if you can beat that level in Call of Duty. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

“Fine. I’ll see you in two hours.” I disconnected and then flopped on his bed, kicking off my shoes. I wasn’t really in a gaming mood, so I scrolled through my phone in an attempt to pass the time and not think about whatever the hell Larkin was up to. Without me.

I must have dozed off because the next thing I knew, there was a knock on Larkin’s door, jarring me awake.

“Yeah. Coming.” I sat up and scooted to the edge of the bed, wriggling my feet back into my shoes. The door opened and closed, but the boots that stopped in front of me didn’t belong to Larkin. It’s not like he’d knock on his own door, anyway.

I looked up slowly, swallowing when I saw Cody looming over me. “‘Sup, man? Larkin’s not here.”

He smirked. “I know. Tim said you were up here, all alone.”

“What do you want?”

“Call it unfinished business.”

I couldn’t help but shudder. I hated that term. Usually it was because it was in reference to ghosts, but it applied to this asshole, too. Still, I forced myself to my feet and headed toward the door. “Look, I’m not interested in whatever—”

Cody slid to the side, blocking me. “What’s the deal with you two? You fuck buddies?”

“No,” I managed to spit out, even though my heart was lodged in my throat. The door handle was right there, but even if I managed to grab it, I’d still have to make my way around his massive body somehow. “He’s a friend. We grew up together.”

“But you’re gay, right?”

“What the fuck do you care?”

He trailed a finger down the side of my face before grabbing my jaw and pulling me closer. “You’re no different from all the other slutty twinks that hang around here. You know that? I bet you suck Larkin’s dick every chance you get. Hmm? Take his fat cock up that little ass of yours?”

“If you’re so obsessed with Larkin’s dick, why don’t you go find him and leave me the fuck alone?” I tried to push him off but Cody was too strong. I was trapped, all over again, unable to save myself despite the fact I was a fucking adult this time around.

His face twisted into a sneer, all too reminiscent of another predator I wished I could forget. “I love mouthy little brats. It’s going to be so much fun to bend you over your boyfriend’s bed and listen to you scream like the bitch you are.”

Mentally, I wasn’t there anymore. I wasn’t in Larkin’s room. I was thirteen years old, back on the dark sidewalk in Sunderland, my Halloween mask obscuring most of my vision. All I could feel was that giant hand on my jaw, squeezing and dragging me closer, while hot breath wafted over my skin in the frigid October air.

“Are you going to scream like a little bitch?” the stranger’s deep voice asked, squeezing harder until I cried out. “Go ahead. It’s Halloween. No one will take you seriously. It’s all fun and games tonight. You’ll see.”