wonât want my sentences in there
.
She deleted them, hit save, and silently read:
âHow could you do this?â
âDo what?â
âYou know, bring me here. You donât know the Darkness that awaits.â
Pages and pages of dialogue filled the screen. But there was no description. No narrative.
Of course, Nick probably doesnât know, or canât remember, or â¦
Chloe thought for an instant, leaned in, and spoke.
The lake stretched out for miles, clear and blue and shimmering, with clouds of pink and purple â¦
Hobo barked and stared intently at the screen.
âYou donât like pink and purple? Fine.â She turned back to the screen. âPatches of white hovering over the water.â
Chloe kept adding. Hobo kept barking. Finally, Hobo lay down and Chloe glanced at the clock.
âWow, okay, better get home, but at least it reads a little smoother.â She powered down the computer. âI think heâll like it, donât you? I mean, you heard him â he said I could help.â
Hobo was asleep. Chloe slipped out of the room, off their property, and ran home.
CHAPTER
8
W EEKS PASSED, and inside Aldoâs Movie Palace
The Vapor
was a huge success. Mom smiled a bit more, and seemed to worry about Grandpa a bit less. Who would have thought a horror flick could make such a positive difference?
The kids at Chloeâs school continued to be horrid, but her mind was elsewhere â in a different world: one named Retinya. Nickâs fantasy was alluring and terrifying and offered the perfect escape. Chloe dreamed of it, sketched out its inhabitants, and spent Mr. Kolbergâs algebra class creating detailed maps of the landscape.
âChloe?â
She carefully traced the Wandering Road, marked the location of the wood elvesâ invisible kingdom, and stared lazily around her kitchen.
âChloe!â Mom clanked two pans together.
âOh. Sorry. This homework is really absorbing.â
âAbsorbing.â Mom frowned. âMaybe my task will bring you back. I want you to take a break from Aldoâs. Q will take your place in the booth after school starting today.â
Chloe dropped her spoon into her Cheerios. âBut weâve never done so well. Donât you need me?â
âSomeone needs you more.â Mom eased down across from her. âNickâs mother called. Apparently, Nickâs back home. He wonât be in school tomorrow, but heâd like to see you. Something about a screenplay?â
âHe wants to see me?â
âThatâs what Mrs. Harris said. I want you to go over to their house after school.â
âBut ââ
âHeâs expecting you.â
Chloe pushed away her cereal bowl â she wasnât hungry. Sheâd been making changes to his script every day for two weeks.
This little meeting isnât going to be pleasant
.
School zoomed by, and Chloe stepped off the bus in front of Nickâs gate, her stomach filled with butterflies. She entered the gateâs code, walked up to the door, and knocked.
It swung open immediately.
âIs that you, Chloe?â
âYeah, Nick. I â Ow! Donât yank the hair!â
With a yank, Chloeâs attempt at a pre-war peace talk was ended promptly, and she had no choice but to follow him to his room. Nick sat in front of his computer in stony silence. She stared at the screen and chewed her nails.
âI thought your work here was limited to taking care of Hobo.â
âOkay, it was.â Chloe took a deep breath. âBut Retinya, itâs really good. I kind of got lost in it. Blame Hobo too. He helped.â
âMy dog helped you write a script?â
Hobo turned away.
âIt was weird. He barked and I wrote and â Oh, like Iâve been trying to say, I may have gone too far.â
âMay have? I listened to the script. I should just call it Re-Chloe-ia.â He hinted a