Chapter 24 Prey
prey
Saige
"Idon't even feel like dressing up this year," I tell Nolan, tossing the purge mask back into the bin.
"Come on, yeah, you do," Nolan says. "You love Halloween."
The guys decided to have a Halloween party. It's usually my favorite holiday, but I don't know. I guess since my own life resembles something of a horror movie now, I'm not feeling so festive.
The last few weeks haven't been so bad, though.
I still can't shake the feeling that I'm being watched and followed around campus.
Sometimes, I'll just be sitting in the library working, and the hair on the back of my neck will stand straight up.
I can write it off as a manifestation of my internal anxiety, but I can't make myself believe it.
Even though the texts have stopped, I still don't think it's over.
I'm afraid they're regrouping after not getting their desired effect.
I felt him the other day when I was at the rec center with Elias, which we've been doing about twice a week, but he assured me there was nothing there—that it was all in my head.
And then he told me it was okay to admit I was making it up because I'd grown fond of our arrangement and just like living with them, which is far from the fucking truth.
I still miss having my own space. I miss walking back from class without looking over my shoulder and around every corner. I didn't gut a squirrel and leave it in my own bed.
But I love being with Dax and Nolan. I don't think I've ever felt closer to anyone than I do to Nolan, and I've never even held him or felt his skin on mine. I don't need to; I know it's real.
And Dax might be my favorite person on the fucking planet, but I'll never tell him that. He doesn't need the ego boost. I'll leave that to everyone in his comment section.
I have to admit—but not to him—that I'm actually having fun playing hockey with Elias. The second time, he taught me how to shoot and let me hit him with the puck a few times, which was incredibly satisfying.
And he laughs a lot. He seems to be in a better mood overall.
Dax grabs the mask from the bin and pulls it over my face. "This is actually a good one for you, Saige. Kind of captures your lived experience, doesn't it?"
"Dax…" I rip off the mask and playfully punch him in the stomach.
"Careful, baby. I wouldn't want you to shatter your fist."
Nolan laughs as I shake my head. "It's not funny."
"I like this one." Dax grabs the skull printed ski mask from the wall and pulls it over his head before turning back to me, and I freeze. Suddenly, it's like someone sucked all the oxygen out of the room, because I can't fucking breath. I can't swallow the lump in my throat.
"What's wrong, Ripley?"
"Not that one," Nolan says, pulling it off of him.
"What? What's wrong with her?"
"It's the same one he wears."
"Oh…" Dax turns to me. "Really?"
I nod. "Yeah…"
"Well, fuck him. I'm going to fucking kill him."
"Saige!" Kira calls from the other side of the store. "Come over here."
"What is it?" I ask when I get closer.
"Be Wednesday!" she says. "You're the Wednesday to my Enid."
"Okay…that doesn't sound too bad."
"Yes! I love you for this. We need to go next door and get pink and blue hair color. You can help me dye it tonight."
Dax appears next to me in a Ghostface mask and throws his arm around me. "She can't. She's busy—get your own girlfriend."
Kira scoffs. "Get my own girlfriend? That's an interesting word choice from you."
Yeah. I finally admitted to her that I'm with both of them. While she adores Nolan, she and Dax can't stand each other.
"I'll help you dye your hair if you provide the drinks. I need to touch up my pink, too," I tell her. "Dax, you'll be at the gym with Elias, anyway."
"Eh…fine. I'll pick you up on the way back. Give me those." He snatches both the costume and the wig from my hands. "Hand yours over, too, Kira."
"You're going to buy my costume for me?"
"Yeah, whatever. I still hate you."
"Hate you, too," she says, handing it to him.
"Nolan?"
He hands Dax his grim reaper costume. "Fine."
"So, you decided to dress up as Saige. That's sweet."
I shoot him a look. "Dax…"
"Juuuuust kidding. I said that for no reason at all. You're an angel, Ripley."
Nolan pulls out his phone, checking the time. His mom picked up another night shift, and he has to babysit tonight and attend his sister's recital tomorrow. "I have to go, guys. Avery's recital will probably end around eight, so I'll probably be back right around when the party starts."
I squeeze his hand. I'd kiss him, but I know public displays of affection are even more uncomfortable for him than private ones. It makes him feel like everyone else is looking at him in a sexual way, and he doesn't like that. "I'll miss you."
"I'll miss you, too."
"I'm jealous of how sweet you are to him, Ripley," Dax says. "What do I have to do to get that treatment?"
I shake my head, ignoring him. "Tell Avery I said hi."
"I will. Bye."
He leaves the three of us in line, and after we check out, we go to the store next door to pick up Kira's hair color. While she searches the shelves, comparing the colors to the image on her phone, I wait with Dax's arms around my waist.
He leans in, kissing my earlobe, my neck. It tickles a little, and I jump back before wrapping my arm around him and bringing his lips to mine.
"Mmm…I love your mouth," he says. "That was sweet."
Kira makes a face at us. "Ew."
But I fucking love everything about him.
"You aren't sweet to Elias like this when you two go on your dates, are you?" he whispers.
"I told you—we don't go on dates."
"Then why won't you tell me what you're doing?"
"It's not a big deal, and I don't want him to kill me. He's not actively trying to make me miserable right now, and I want to keep it that way."
"Does he touch you?" he asks. "I won't be mad at you if the answer is yes."
"It's not. He doesn't touch me."
But that's not entirely true. Sometimes, he touches me…just a little. A lot of our time at the rink has turned into Elias teaching me, since he seems to be perfectly fine. He'll press his body against me, run his hands down my arms and hold mine.
He wraps his arms around me and whispers in my ear the kind of things he should keep to himself.
And I hold my breath and ask him to stop. There's tension there, sure, but I'd never, ever act on it.
I think he figured out that I'd lied about what I remembered after the party earlier this month. But he hasn't called me out yet.
Elias said he was obsessed with me. I know he wants to sleep with me, but I'll never let that happen. Maybe Dax sees me as a toy, but Elias sees me as prey. And that…is much worse.
He'll get over it. Maybe if he can get hockey back, his fixation on me will end. Either that, or he's going to fucking snap.
"Okay, I think I found them. I'm going to get in line," Kira tells us.
"Okay. I'll wait for you."
"Do you touch him?" Dax asks.
"Dax…no. Not at all. And I don't want to."
"We shouldn't keep secrets from each other."
"I don't want to keep secrets from you; it's not even a good secret. If you want to know so badly, then…figure it out. He can't murder me if you figure it out yourself."
"Are you giving me permission to stalk you?"
"I didn't realize you needed permission; you already stalk me."
"Sometimes…just a little bit. It's for your own good.
" He takes out my phone, holds it in front of my face to unlock it, and then changes my settings so I'm always sharing my location with him.
Then he slips it into my back pocket, tightens his arms around the front of my body, and kisses my neck again. "You're a good girl, Saige."
"That's what I hear."
From Elias. On our secret dates. Which are not dates, because I hate him.
"Ready to go?" Kira asks.
"Yeah. I'm going to go back with her, okay? I'd be alone at home, anyway. Nolan isn't there."
Dax rolls his eyes. "All right. I'll walk you guys back."
We stop to grab tacos on the way back, and then spend the next few hours in Kira's room, eating and dyeing each other's hair while we watch a marathon of The Purge movies.
I get a text from Dax around eight-thirty, telling me they're on their way back from the gym, and he'll pick me up out front.
I sigh, wishing I wanted to argue, but I don't—not this time. I want to go home with him. He has me. He has so much of me, I don't know where I end and he begins anymore.
And I fucking miss him. I'd ride his dick in the car if Elias weren't going to be there, too.
"Dax is going to be here in a minute."
"What? You're going home? Are you sure you don't want to go to the bars?"
"Nah, I'm tired. I'll see you tomorrow at the party, though. You can come over, and we can get ready together."
"Boo, you whore. Fine."
I make a face at her and start gathering my things. "Text me when you get off work."
"Can I bring Gia and Ashlee?"
"I don't care; it's not my house. Bring whoever you want."
"Cool. See you tomorrow."
"Bye."
I close the door behind me, look toward my own long-empty dorm room at the end of the hall, and sigh. I wish I would have at least gone inside, laid in the bed for a minute.
Oh well.
I walk down the hall and out the front door, where Dax's car waits at the curb.
Elias's giant ass climbs out and pulls the seat up, wordlessly waiting for me to get in the back.
He didn't bother putting on a shirt after showering at the gym, even though it's cold as fuck now, and barely leaves me any room to get by him.
As I climb into the car, my eyes settle on his abs—on the thin line of hair that runs from his belly button under the waistline of his pants.
Only because it's in my fucking face.
"What are you looking at, little sister?"
I gag. "Ugh. Don't do that. I'm not looking at anything."
"Your hair looks nice," Dax says.
"Thanks."
"I don't really like the pink," Elias says.
"Dude…shut the fuck up."