Chapter 4
Chapter Four
My first night alone was awful. Every time I heard the slightest noise I’d panic. So sleep never happened. The moment the sun was starting to peek over the mountains surrounding the city, I threw on my workout clothes and went for a run. I needed to burn myself out to the point of not caring. Which entailed me running to the point of throwing up. At least I was home when it happened. I just wasn’t inside. I tried to make it. I was almost to the steps leading up to my porch when my stomach heaved and up came everything I’d eaten the night before.
For a moment I thought I was going to pass out. I needed to breathe like my life depended on it, which it did. Duh . But who could breathe while throwing up at the same time? I heaved twice before I could rein myself in and focus on the delicious air flowing into my lungs. “Crap,” I growled, wiping my mouth with the back of my hand.
“Are you alright, Shiloh?” I heard someone say.
With extremely labored breaths and hands on my hips, I turned. Keelan and who I assumed was another one of Colt’s brothers were standing in their driveway watching me. Like the twins and Keelan, the fourth brother had pale blond hair. It was buzzed short, military style, and he had golden brown eyes that matched Keelan’s. You could tell this guy was the oldest of the four Stone brothers and the bulkiest. The dude had some serious muscles.
They were both dressed in athletic wear with gym bags hanging on their shoulders. Maybe they were heading to work out. Their bodies definitely showed that they went to the gym religiously.
At the moment, I was so worn out I didn’t have it in me to feel embarrassed that my neighbors had gotten a front row seat to me barfing my brains out. Not to mention, I was probably red as a tomato and completely soaked with sweat. “Yeah, sorry you had to see that,” I breathed. “I pushed myself too hard this morning.”
“How long did you run for?” asked the brother whose name I didn’t know.
I pulled my phone out to look at the time. “A little over four hours.”
Keelan whistled. “Are you training for a marathon?”
I shook my head. “I just like to run.”
The older brother frowned a little as he studied me.
“Well, make sure you drink water and take it easy,” Keelan said and waved. They both climbed into the old classic car I’d seen them working on the day after I moved in.
Before heading in, I grabbed the hose from the side of the house to clean up my vomit. Exhaustion set in once I got inside and I didn’t make it past my couch. My legs felt like spaghetti and putting one foot in front of the other required way more work than I had the energy for. Instead of dragging myself to the bathroom to take a shower that I desperately needed, I plopped down on the couch and let myself drift off to sleep.
“Shi, have you seen my rose gold cuff?” Shayla asked as she dug through her jewelry box on her dresser.
I leaned against her bedroom door frame with a scowl. I couldn’t believe she was going to another party. She’d already lost her driving privileges from the last party she’d gotten caught at last weekend. “Mom and Dad are going to kill you if you come home drunk again,” I warned.
“Ah! Here it is. What the hell was it doing in my sock drawer? Oh well,” she mused out loud.
My sister could be a ditz and that scared me sometimes. “You know, if you stay home, we can binge watch Netflix and gorge on popcorn.”
“Or you could come with me and let loose for once,” she countered as she slipped on her cuff. She’d gotten it for Christmas from our parents last year. The cuff was designed with two feathers overlapping each other, forming a beautiful bracelet. It was unique and beautiful. Just like her.
I scoffed. “You know that will never happen.”
“Lame,” she groaned.
“You know why I can’t go.”
She rolled her eyes and stomped over to her full-length mirror next to her closet. “You haven’t heard from Mr. X in over a month. He’s probably moved on to better things than sending love letters to a teenaged girl.” She fluffed her blue hair. “I’m thinking of changing my hair to pink.”
It was my turn to roll my eyes because I swore, she had the attention span of a gnat.
Her eyes locked with mine through the mirror. “Come on, Shi. Maybe you’ll meet a guy and finally get past first base.”
I scrunched my nose.
“We’re going to be seventeen and all you’ve done is make out with that nerdy transfer student you dated for like a week.”
“He broke up with me after a week because I wasn’t ready to do more than kiss him. Nerd or jock, guys at our school are major jerks.” I sighed. “I’m not going to go, but if you won’t stay home with me, please be safe. I didn’t absorb you in Mom’s womb for a reason. Don’t get behind a wheel drunk or let some asshole spike your drink and ruin my master plans.”
She gave me a warm smile. “I love you, too.”
My eyes opened to darkness and shadows dancing on my bedroom ceiling. They flooded immediately as I remembered my dream-slash-memory. I let the tears fall and a pain-filled sob ripped from me. The pathetic sound pierced the silence and echoed off the walls. I winced, then remembered that it didn’t matter if I was loud. I was alone. I lay there crying until I didn’t have any more tears left. I missed her. I missed them, with every fiber of my being.
Rolling over, I picked up my phone from my nightstand to look at the time. It was almost five in the morning and today was my first day of school. I didn’t have time for a run, even though I was desperate for one. Running would have to wait until after school. I did, however, have time for a smoke. I was down to one every other day. Opening my nightstand drawer, I grabbed my pack of cigarettes and lighter.
Because I was wearing very short Spider-Man sleep shorts and a white tank that I was pretty sure was see-through, I scooped up a zip-up hoodie on my way out the front door. Stepping out onto the porch and taking a seat on the top step, I slipped into my hoodie. The sun was slowly peeking over the mountains and it was already getting hot, making me wish I had pulled my long and heavy hair up. I settle with tucking it behind my ears before putting a cigarette between my lips and lighting it. I tossed both the pack of cigarettes and the lighter next to me on the step. That first drag was terribly divine.
“No running this morning?” a deep familiar voice asked. I looked toward Colt’s house. His oldest brother was standing there looking like he was heading to the gym again. Like his brothers, he was gorgeous. Very broody and standoffish, which I found totally hot. The Stone brothers had definitely won the sexy gene lottery.
I blew out a puff of smoke. “No time. At least not enough time for my type of run.”
“You have enough time to run for half of the amount of time you usually run before you have to get ready for school.”
I guessed Colt had told him that I would be attending the same school. “Once I start running, it’s kind of hard for me to stop,” I said and took another drag.
He eyed my cigarette and judgment hardened his frown. “Where are your parents?” he asked.
My immediate reaction was to be defensive. I forced it down. Mustering the patience I knew I had buried deep, I put out my cigarette and got to my feet. Stuffing my hands in the pockets of my sweater to hide my clenching fists, I leveled my gaze with his. “They’re dead.”
He grimaced.
Without another word, I turned on my heel and went back inside to get ready for school.
I took my time getting ready by curling my long lilac hair and doing my makeup. I wasn’t a makeup expert or anything. I just knew what Shayla had taught me. It had been her dream to become a celebrity makeup artist and because of that I had always been her guinea pig for new looks. I went with light, shimmering colors to enhance my gray eyes and cheekbones. My face was a little heart-shaped and I had pouty lips with a defined Cupid’s bow.
Standing in my closet, going through my clothes, I tried to find something cute to wear. I had gone shopping last week for clothes that would cover my scars but also wouldn’t cause me to overheat. Wearing jackets and sweatshirts was getting old.
I decided on a cream-colored dress that billowed around my thighs and had long trumpet sleeves. I paired the dress with black thigh-high stockings and black ankle boots. Because the sleeves were gaping at the ends, I would need to be careful not to reveal my wrists. Remembering my dream, I walked over to my jewelry box on my new dresser and pulled out Shayla’s rose gold feather cuff. I slipped it on my wrist, and it did a good job at hiding one of my many nasty scars. My fingers brushed over the beautiful bracelet as I stared down at it. At least I’d have a piece of her with me today.
I finished getting ready by sending one of my two check-in texts for the day to Logan on the bare-bones burner flip phone, then stuffed it, along with my regular cell phone, in my backpack. After grabbing my car keys, I was ready to start my first day of school.