Darkest Dawn. Katlyn Duncan

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СКАЧАТЬ in person. He had wanted her to come to the diner last night so it was something he wanted to say to her face. A hole widened the pit of her stomach.

      Bri lifted the handle of the suitcase she’d placed at the top of the stairs earlier that morning. Abbey came out of the room, her hands on her hips, scanning the area.

      Bri tapped her finger on the handle of the bag. Abbey grinned and fluffed Bri’s hair before taking the bag and gliding down the stairs. “Thanks, sweetie.”

      Max stuck her tongue out and Bri’s mom flicked Max’s ponytail playfully. “Let’s get a move on, ladies!”

      Bri flew down the stairs and bumped Max with her arm. Max wrinkled her nose and followed Abbey out of the house. Bri closed the door behind them, checking that the lock was in place. She and Abbey had been a duo since Bri was born, months after Abbey’s boyfriend had split. They shared the household tasks and made up for each other’s downfalls—Bri mostly making up for Abbey’s—but she wouldn’t have it any other way.

      Abbey slid into the passenger seat. “Chop chop!”

      Bri jogged to the driver’s side of the car, avoiding the rain so it didn’t make her hair go from straight and smooth to frizzy and unruly. She slid into the driver’s seat and checked her phone one last time. Even though the day had started off rough, she had a feeling today would end up okay. All she had to do was make it until lunch.

      ***

      Bri navigated the road, the windshield wipers thumping. The rain had picked up after they got into the car. At that point she knew they were going to be late but she’d rather that than end up in a ditch and never hear what Jake had to tell her.

      One of the perks of Abbey being the school librarian was prime parking in the faculty-assigned parking spots. Bri pulled into the busy lot at a snail’s pace so she wouldn’t run down any of her classmates. The car crawled behind a group of popular seniors, who didn’t care that a vehicle was behind them. As sophomores, Bri and Max weren’t at the bottom of the social ladder but certainly far from the top. They kept to themselves. Though Jake breezed up and down the ranks as he wished. Being the golden boy of both baseball and basketball teams had its advantages.

      Bri pulled into one of the teacher’s spots and put the car in park. “Max, there are two umbrellas under the seat.”

      Max shuffled under the seat and came up empty-handed. “Don’t see them.”

      “Hmm,” Abbey murmured, her bottom lip trapped under her teeth.

      Bri groaned. “Seriously?”

      “Well I did use them,” Abbey said lightly. “I may have left them inside.”

      The warning bell for first period shrilled outside.

      Abbey reached into her bag and pulled out two plastic grocery bags. “A little rain never hurt anyone.”

      Bri unbuckled her seatbelt and braced herself, peering back to Max who shot daggers at Bri’s mom. Loving daggers, of course.

      Max reached over the seat and kissed Abbey on the cheek. “I’m finding a new ride.”

      Abbey grinned. “Without me your life would be so uninteresting each morning.”

      “At least we’d be on time!” Max pulled the bag over her head. As a straight-A student she was determined to end her high school career without so much as a blemish on her record. That included perfect attendance.

      Bri tossed the keys to Abbey and kissed her cheek. “See you Sunday night?”

      “I’ll text you when we get there!” she called as Bri hopped out of the car.

      “Love you!”

      Bri was already soaked before she could get the bag on her head. She and Max raced to the front of the school just as the final bell rang. They climbed the front steps and shoved through the front doors, pulling the dripping bags from their heads.

      Max’s shirt clung to her body. “Awesome,” she deadpanned.

      Bri took Max’s bag and threw them both into the nearby recycling bin. Her socks squished with each step.

      They quickly scaled the two flights of stairs, their shoes squeaking over the linoleum floors. Max’s breathing was heavy and Bri was on the verge of breaking a sweat. They picked up their pace at the top of the steps and rounded the corner to the classroom.

      First period was English. Bri peeked into the room. Mrs. Brewster had her back to them. Max grunted something under her breath and opened the door. Mrs. Brewster turned. Her long fingers were wrapped around the phone attached to the wall. “Okay,” she said into it though her tone suggested she was not okay. At all.

      Abbey had called her in the knick of time. Mrs. Brewster’s eyes were on them as they made their way toward their seats in the middle of the first two rows. Their peers were quiet yet Bri could feel their stares. Her skin pricked with embarrassment. She’d have to remember to set the clocks back an hour and hide Mom’s phone so they could attempt to get to school on time.

      Mrs. Brewster hung up the phone. “As I was saying…”

      Her voice faded in the background as Bri lurched forward. Something had blocked her feet. She instinctively grabbed the closest thing, which happened to be football defense Tommy Sanders. His reflexes were incredible. His hands clamped onto her arms hard enough that she knew she was going to bruise. Better than face-planting in front of the class. She ignored the snickers and muffled laughter from her classmates as she looked down to see a bright pink backpack on the floor at her feet. She tasted blood. She nodded to Tommy in thanks and realized that none of what had just happened was her fault. A pair of emerald green eyes innocently peered up at her.

      Chloe Hudson reached down and picked up the bag that Bri knew she had intentionally put in the way. “Watch where you’re going, Freak,” she said under her breath.

      Bri blinked, feeling the contact lens in her left eye. Chloe had dubbed Bri with that cruel nickname. Her two different-colored eyes had always been fodder for her peers making fun of her. Even though she had purchased a green contact lens to match the right eye, the nickname had already stuck.

      A tightly packed ball of paper sailed across Bri’s periphery and nailed Chloe in the head.

      Chloe narrowed her eyes and snapped her head toward the assailant.

      Bri glanced over her shoulder to see Max sliding into her seat, her eyes fixed on Chloe.

      Bri continued down the aisle, her skin prickling. She sat at her desk, which was right next to Max’s. “Thanks.”

      “No problem.” Max balled up another sheet of paper from her notebook. “I always have your back.”

      Mrs. Brewster continued with her lesson, completely unaware of the exchange. Bri tried hard to concentrate on her teacher’s voice and resisted the temptation to rip out all of Chloe’s stupid blonde hair. Forget about her. She took a breath and relaxed into her chair. Chloe had been on her for a long time. Bri would get her revenge during swim practice.

      ***

      The rest of morning classes dragged like СКАЧАТЬ