Chapter 20
Twenty
Briana
“Tell me everything,” my brother, Silver, says as soon as we take our seats in the Mexican restaurant he chose.
I take a drink of my ice water to stall. “What is there to tell? College is a lot of work. I’ve got hard classes. I want to do well, so I’m studying a lot.”
“Are you taking time to have fun?”
I shrug. “Define fun.” I try to meet his gaze. I don’t want him to be suspicious of my behavior. I know I’m acting strange. I can’t help it. I’m not the same girl I was when the semester started. I’m someone else entirely.
Granted, my brother doesn’t know me well.
He barely knows me at all. I didn’t even know he existed until four years ago when he found me in foster care.
He’s seven years older than me, so he remembered me when we were separated.
I was two at the time. He’d been nine. I had no recollection of him.
It was a shock when he found me. We kept in contact while I was in high school, but not so often that he would notice I’m acting strangely now.
He narrows his gaze at me. His expression is serious. “Do you go to parties?”
“No. I don’t really like the party scene.
I hate the taste of alcohol, and drunk people are really weird if you don’t join them.
” This is my canned response when anyone asks.
It seems to satisfy them. And it’s probably true.
I only went to one party, and I would never fucking go to another in a million years, considering I was assaulted at my first and only.
But even before that incident, I wasn’t comfortable. The scene is not my thing.
He chuckles. “Okay. Well, that’s probably good. You should focus on your studies instead. You’re not having any problems with any of your classes? My offer stands if you need any help.”
“Nope. I’m doing well in all of them.” The waiter sets chips and salsa in front of us before taking our orders.
I hope Daddy doesn’t ask me what I ate for dinner, but just in case, I ordered a quesadilla.
I can tell him that without lying if he asks.
Now, if he wants to know if I cooked them… I hope it doesn’t come to that.
“And your roommates? They’re nice?”
“Yes. Very sweet. I really like them. I got lucky.”
“Do you have enough money?”
“Yes, Silver. I’m fine. I promise. Besides the fact that I have money in my account for room and board, you’re also adding to it each month. Don’t think I haven’t noticed. But I don’t need it.” I’m waving my hands around erratically.
He leans back. “You’re too…”
I stiffen and grip my thigh with my fingers, trying not to let my leg bounce. I can’t hold his gaze. It’s too intense. It feels like he’s looking right through me. So I pick up my water and take another sip. There’s no way I can eat a chip right now. I’d choke.
Why is he staring at me?
He leans forward, putting his elbows on the table, steepling his fingers in front of his lips.
I’m unnerved. “What?” I try to sound sarcastic.
“Have you heard of the freshman prank?”
I flinch. Fuck. “The what?”
He drops his hands and grabs the edge of the table, leaning in closer, gritting out his next words. “The fucking freshman prank. Have you heard of it? And don’t lie to me.”
I swallow and look down. Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck. I’m a shitty liar. If I were a better liar, I wouldn’t have kneeled in my own fucking room all by myself this afternoon, sucking a fake cock for half an hour. If I were a better liar, I wouldn’t have gone to the library every time I said I was there.
If I were a better liar, I wouldn’t be in this situation right now. I wouldn’t be answering to a man I’ve never actually met, doing his bidding, day in and day out like a fucking idiot.
“My roommates talked about it,” I admit. “Why?” That seems like a reasonable question.
“What did your roommates say, Bri?”
My heart is racing. How the fuck is this happening? I shrug. “Something about random girls getting grabbed and tormented as a prank. Why are you acting so strange?”
He narrows his eyes and slowly leans back.
I force myself to look at him directly. I didn’t tell Daddy I was going out with my brother tonight. If he finds out I had this kind of run-in with him…
“You went out that first night with your roommates.”
“Yeah, so?”
“You didn’t answer me when I called the next day. You didn’t respond to my texts. You’ve been putting off seeing me since you moved here. The only time I’ve seen you was a few minutes one morning because you had to get to class. I think you were pranked.”
I gasp. It just happens. I also start shaking my head. I’m doing it in disbelief that he figured this out, but it works in my favor when I finally find my voice. “That’s crazy.”
He nods. “It sure is. It’s fucked up. Did it happen?”
“Why would you think that? Wouldn’t I have called the police or told you? Or both?” I still haven’t answered him.
He’s staring at me, hard. Long seconds tick by while I try to pull myself together. I have to convince him it’s not true. I don’t have another choice. My entire life will collapse if I don’t.
I’m in love with a fucking stranger. It’s fucked up. He’s bossy. He’s controlling. He makes me do things I would never have considered doing before I met him.
He won’t show his face. Our entire relationship is a secret.
Sometimes, I stare into space and doubt myself, uncertain if I haven’t made the entire thing up.
Maybe I even died in the pantry that night, and everything from then on is an alternate reality.
I’ve seen movies where people died and they didn’t know it, and they kept living their lives without realizing no one could see them.
That’s ridiculous. I’m sitting here with Silver right now. We’re talking. I’m not dead.
Daddy has no name. I wouldn’t be able to pick him out of a lineup. I barely know his build, and I don’t know how tall he is. I know he makes me feel. He’s changed the trajectory of my life irrevocably.
I know I would die if I never saw him again.
I can’t fuck this up. I have to convince Silver it isn’t true. I have to lie. To my brother. Lord knows I can’t lie to my stalker, but I’m going to lie my ass off to Silver.
I shake my head. “You have a vivid imagination. I’m just busy.
I’m a freshman. There’s a lot going on. I really want to get good grades so I never have to rely on the government for assistance.
I want my independence. I’m getting straight A’s.
I’m doing everything in my power to be the best version of myself I can be.
How could I be doing all of that if I were assaulted on my first night in town? ”
Silver flinches. “I never said you were assaulted. Did your roommates suggest that was part of the freshman prank?”
I roll my eyes. “Silver, it’s a stupid rumor. I don’t even know if it’s real. I heard if it’s true, most girls don’t report it, so how the hell could I know what it entails?”
The waiter arrives and slides our plates in front of us. He’s quick and disappears, probably noticing how serious we are.
“You’re sure you’re okay?”
“Yes. I’m totally fine. Don’t worry about me. I’m just busy getting acclimated and making sure I keep my grades up.”
“Are you really making straight A’s?”
“So far.”
The corner of his mouth lifts. Finally, a glimpse of a smile. Maybe I am believable. “That’s cool. I’m proud of you. Will you please reach out more? Answer my calls and texts. I want us to get to know each other better. We’re siblings. We have no other family.”
I nod. “Yes, definitely. I want that, too.”
“Good. You have to come over for dinner next weekend. I’ll cook.”
I try not to react. There’s no way I can do that, of course, but I can’t tell him that. “I’ll check my schedule.”
He shakes his head. “You just told me you don’t go to parties. I know you don’t have class on Saturday night, so you’re coming over. I’ll make something delicious. I promise.” He’s so insistent.
“Okay,” I mumble. Fuck.
“Great, now eat your quesadilla.”
A strange shiver races down my spine as he points toward my food. For a second, he sounds like my stalker. All bossy and demanding. It’s just my imagination. But so weird.
The truth is, my brother is kind of similar to my stalker. His mannerisms and the way he talks. But shit, there are a lot of guys like that. Kind of nerdy and awkward.
I cut off a piece of my quesadilla and somehow manage to chew and swallow it. I’m kind of surprised, considering the tornado happening inside me. My stomach is in knots. I’m still not certain he even believes me. But at least he’s dropped the subject.
For now.
What the fuck am I going to do about having dinner at his house, though?
Thank goodness I have a week to figure it out.