The group howls with laughter.
“Your turn,” someone says, nudging me.
I glance around, all eyes are on me, and I suddenly feel too hot. “Okay . . . you,” I point at Holly. “Truth or dare?”
She smirks. “Dare. Always dare.”
“Of course, it is,” I mutter. “Fine . . . I dare you to text Dale.”
Her eyes light up. “Oh, you evil little thing.” The group leans in. “What do I say?” she asks.
I grin, feeling reckless now. “Tell him you can’t stop thinking about that night.”
The room erupts again. Holly cackles as she types, then holds up her phone.
“Sent!”
“Oh my god,” someone shrieks.
“Wait . . . what if he replies?” I laugh.
Holly tosses her phone aside like it’s nothing. “Then I deal with it tomorrow.”
Later, the room blurs. The music is loud, the bass thumping through my brain like a hammer. There’s shrieking laughter that feels like it’s splitting my skull, but Holly isn’t going easy on me as she drags me to my feet to dance.
Someone spins me, and I almost fall. Holly catches me, and we both collapse into a heap on the floor, laughing like idiots.
“I needed this,” I admit breathlessly.
“I know,” she says, grinning.
But then it hits. Out of nowhere. A memory of Ray’s face as he lay beside me, his head propped up on his hand whilst his eyes scan my face with . . . love? At least that’s what I thought at the time. As if the universe wants to remind me, it’s cruelly replaced by the hatred he threw at me the night he was drunk in the casino. The way he discarded me so easily, like I was nothing.
The laughter around me fades, like someone’s turned the volume down, and anxiety creeps in. “I’m just gonna get some air,” I mumble, pushing myself up.
Holly nods, distracted, already being dragged back into another round of something.
The hallway is quiet. It’s a relief, although the thudding in my head hasn’t lessoned.
I lean against the wall, closing my eyes. And suddenly, I can’t breathe. It’s as if someone is sucking the oxygen from around me. And then the tears come. Thick and fast. Unstoppable as they slide down my cheeks. I press my hand to my mouth to keep quiet, but it doesn’t stop the sob that escapes.
“I’m okay,” I whisper to myself. “I’m okay.” But it’s a lie I’ve told myself too many times now. I’m wise to it.
RAY
“I noticed Wynter was partying last night with Holly,” Dale says casually, scrolling through his phone. “Holly posted pictures.”
I don’t even look at him. “Why the fuck have you got social media?”
“Not under my name,” he replies, unfazed. “It’s useful. Good way to keep an eye on people.”
“Spy, you mean?”
He snorts. “How’s it spying when they post everything themselves?”
I finally glance over. “And why are you following Holly?”
Dale arches a brow. “You’re missing the point.” I already know what he’s going to say. “Wynter’s not sat around crying over you,” he adds, like he’s commenting on the weather.