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Chapter Twenty-Nine

KAT

Before

The school bell rings, signaling the end of class. I quickly gather my things—a purse and stack of textbooks—from my desk and head to my locker. Walking down the bustling hall, I feel a sense of relief, knowing that I'll see Jack, my boyfriend, waiting for me at my locker. When I reach it, I find him leaning casually against the metal door with a charming grin.

"Hey there, beautiful," he greets me.

"Hi," I reply with a smile and lean in for a kiss.

I open my locker, shove my heavy books inside, and then pull out only what I need for my next class.

“Did you finish your paper last night?” I ask.

“Yeah. But I don’t think Mr. Jacobs is going to like it. It’s all about football.”

“Of course it is.” I laugh.

Jack is tall and lean, with broad shoulders and muscular arms. His sandy blonde hair is messy yet effortlessly attractive, and his bright blue eyes sparkle in the sunlight. He is the quarterback of our high school’s football team. Jack lives and breathes football—a sport that consumes him entirely. His talents have caught the eye of top scouts from around the country, who watch his every move with awe and admiration. He’s every girl’s dream—my dream.

We have been wrapped up in each other's arms for nearly a year, lost in the intoxicating embrace of teenage love. He is my first and only. Losing my virginity to him was the best night of my life.

He hooks his arm around me as we walk down the hall, heading to the English class that we have together.

The final bell rings as we walk into the classroom and take our seats next to each other.

“Good afternoon, students. Please get your papers out, and I will walk by and collect them,” Mr. Jacobs says.

He walks by the desk and grabs the paper I wrote. He turns to Jack’s desk and grabs his.

“Football? Why am I not surprised, Mr. Dillard?”

Jack shrugs.

While Mr. Jacobs stands at his podium, discussing Romeo and Juliet, I discreetly pass a note to Jacob.

Am I still coming over tonight since your parents are out of town?

Jacob looks at me and winks. I smile like a teenage girl in love because I am.

The bell rings, and school is over. Jacob and I grab our notebooks and leave the room.

“I have to get ready for football. I’ll swing by and pick you up after practice.” He kisses my lips.

“I can’t wait.” I smile .

“Me either, babe.”

Normally, Jack would drive me home after school since my car was in the shop. But since he has practice, I catch a ride with my best friend, Kourtney.

“Wanna hang out later?” Kourtney asks, pulling into my driveway.

“Jack’s parents are out of town, and I’m going over there tonight, which reminds me. I’m going to tell my mom that I’m spending the night over your house because your mom is working the night shift at the hospital, and you don’t want to be alone. We can hang out tomorrow.”

“Okay. I’ll be your cover for sexy time with your boyfriend.” She grins.

“Thanks for the ride. I’ll talk to you later.”

I step through the front door of my home and drop my backpack on the floor.

“Kat, is that you?” I hear my mother shout from upstairs.

“Yeah.” I walk into the kitchen and grab a can of Coke from the refrigerator.

She walks into the kitchen, her hands covered in yellow rubber gloves, holding a bucket.

“I just scrubbed your bathroom floor upstairs. So, if you go in there, be careful.”

“Thanks, Mom.”

“How was school?” she asks, dumping the dirty water in the sink.

“It was good.”

“Homework?” She turns and looks at me.

“Yes, and I’m going upstairs to work on it now. I’m spending the night at Kourtney’s tonight. Her mom has to work the night shift at the hospital, and she doesn’t want to be alone. She’ll drive us to school in the morning. ”

“Okay. You’re not seeing Jack tonight? Usually, you two are glued at the hip.” A playful smirk crosses her lips.

“He’s hanging with his friends tonight,” I lie.

I grab my backpack from the floor and take it to my room. I throw myself on my bed, pull out my phone, and fall down the rabbit hole of Instagram. After a while, I take out my physics book and read today’s homework assignment.

An hour into studying, my phone pings with a text from Jack.

Hey, babe. I have to cancel our plans for tonight. I’m really sick.

My heart sinks.

What’s wrong?

I was in the middle of practice and started throwing up. The coach sent me home early. I barely made it home before I threw up again. I’m sorry.

That’s okay. I hope you feel better. I can bring you some chicken soup.

That’s sweet of you, babe, but I don’t want you coming anywhere near me. I don’t want you to catch this bug. I’m going to lie down now and try to sleep. My stomach is killing me. I’ll talk to you later. I love you.

I love you too, Jack. Feel better. Text me if you need anything.

Disappointment courses through me. Shit. Now, what do I tell my mom? I climb off the bed and head downstairs.

“Hey, Mom.” I walk into the kitchen where she’s cooking dinner. “Change of plans. Kourtney just texted me that her mom is sick and she’s not going to work tonight.”

“Okay, sweetie.” She smiles. “Oh, by the way. Your father just called. Your car is ready, and he’s picking it up after work from the mechanic.

“Thank God. I hate depending on people for rides.”

After dinner, I went upstairs and texted Jack. After waiting a while, I texted him again. He must still be sleeping and really sick. Poor Jack. I hope he’s better tomorrow.

I hear my alarm sound, reach over, and turn it off. Rolling over, I grab my phone and look at it, expecting to see text messages from Jack. Nothing. He never responded to my text messages last night.

I get up and dress for school. Jack doesn’t show up, and he won’t text me back. I can’t help but worry about him all day. I’ll stop by his house when school lets out and check on him.

School is over, and I still haven’t heard from Jack. I pull out of the school parking lot and head to his house. When I turn on his street, several police cars take up most of the space outside his home. I see his parents in the driveway. They must have returned from their trip this afternoon. His mom is shaking and screaming, and his dad, who is visibly upset, tries to comfort her.

I climb out of my car and run down the sidewalk to their house. A police officer stops me.

“I’m sorry, miss. You can’t go any further. This is a crime scene.”

A crime scene? What the hell is he talking about ?

“Mr. and Mrs. Dillard!” I shout as the police officer holds me back.

Mr. Dillard looks at me and walks over.

“What happened?” I’m so nervous I want to throw up.

“God, Kat.” He sobs. “We got home from our trip and found Jack?—”

I look up as his body is being wheeled from the house, covered from head to toe in a white sheet.

“NO!” I scream.

His father grabs and hugs me. “He was murdered, Kat. My son was murdered.”

The police say it was a break-in gone wrong, and Jack must have tried to fight the intruder off, ending up on the floor with twenty-two stab wounds.

I will never be okay again.