The Dead and Buried by Kim Harrington Read Free Book Online

polished wood … then feeling her balance go out from underneath her. I imagined what she must have felt in the instant she realized she was falling through air. The terror that must have gripped her heart. The panic rushing through her veins as she rushed toward the bottom.
    I saw the floor coming up to meet her, fast and furious, but then realized in horror that I wasn’t imagining anymore. My hand no longer gripped the banister. I wasn’t picturing Kayla falling. I was falling.
    What happened? Did someone push me? Did I fall on my own?
    I screamed but no sound came out. The air rushing at my face told me I was falling fast, but it seemed to be happening in slow motion. I tried to put my arms up, to soften the blow I knew was coming to my head, but I couldn’t move my limbs. I was paralyzed.
    And then I hit bottom.
    My face crushed into the hardwood. Instant pain reverberated through me. I couldn’t move, couldn’t open my eyes. All I could do was wait for death to take me away.
    Someone was calling my name again. But this time it was familiar. It was Colby, his voice panicked.
    “Jade!”
    I blinked as forms came into view, familiar but at wrong angles.
    “Are you okay?” Colby asked, worry making his voice tremble.
    I pushed myself up on my elbows. The confusion was burning away, though the ache in my cheekbone remained. I was on my bedroom floor. I quickly figured out what had happened. I’d fallen out of bed, woken Colby with my loud thump, and he’d come in and turned the lights on.
    “It’s okay, buddy,” I said softly. “You can go back to bed.”
    He blinked his glassy, tired eyes, nodded, and slowly retreated to his room. My bones cracked as I pulled myself up and stood in front of the mirror. Sweat plastered my hair to my face. I pulled it back and saw the raging red mark under my left eye. I’d have a bruise there tomorrow. How would I explain that in school?
    Oh yeah, I dreamt I was Kayla falling down the staircase, but really I’d fallen out of bed and hit my face on the floor. Even though I’ve never fallen out of bed before in my life. Yeah, that makes sense.
    A tightness pulled across my neck and I realized I’d forgotten to take my pendant off before I went to sleep. The clearquartz. I unclasped the necklace and stared at the stone uneasily for a few moments. The gem hung from a silver mounting and was delicately tapered to a pointed end. I shuddered as I thought of the crystal’s use: to promote out-of-body experiences, lucid dreaming, and communication with the dead.

Hola, Diary. Long time, no write. Been super busy with soccer, classes, parties, hazing the freshmen. Good times.
    14 keeps asking me every day who I’m going to go after this year. She wants to know if I’m taking dibs on 7, obvs. I don’t think I will. Mainly because everyone expects me to. And 7 will always be in my back pocket, no matter what. I don’t even have to claim dibs. 7 is mine, natch. No matter who else he’s with at the time.
    But, no, I have my eyes on someone new. Someone different. I’ve actually never even written about him in here before, so he’s going to need a number. And the next available one is … 28.
    So, 28 was at 15’s party Saturday night. I wore my tightest jeans and that spaghetti-strapped red tank. Looked so hot I even caught 9 staring at me through the window. The creeper. Anyway 28 was all shy and adorkable, wearing some Halo T-shirt with paint stains on his fingertips. He’s not emo or anything. Just one of those artistic guys.
    And I’m thinking … time for a taste of something different?

“W hat the hell happened to you?”
    “Thanks,” I mumbled. Apparently concealer did not work wonders. The fluorescent lighting in the school bathroom wasn’t helping any, either. “I fell.”
    “Into a fist?” Alexa finished drying her hands and stomped up to me, suspicion in her eyes.
    “No. I fell out of bed.”
    “Face-first?”
    “It’s a hardwood floor,” I explained.