The Screaming Season by Nancy Holder Read Free Book Online

posse of evil.
    Back in the day; that is, freshman year, we had mocked girls like Jane. Rolled our eyes in pity at all the effort Jane appeared to expend to stay at the top of the social heap—the right clothes, the right music, the right places to hang out. Funny thing was, once I was in, I discovered that for Jane, being number one was fairly effortless. The clothes, music, and loitering spots were right because that was what she wore and where she went, and not vice versa. Coolness was her reality bubble; trendiness was hers for the having. It was enough to make me believe in karma, or fate, like she’d paid for her good fortune by suffering in another life, and she was set. She never, ever fell from grace.
    Then there was me, having not only fallen, but plummeted, and splatted on grace’s sidewalk. I was the one suffering in this life.
    Still, I had acquired skills that had proven useful in keeping me alive at Marlwood . . . such as keeping a safe distance from Mandy. Never letting her get the upper hand when she dangled entrance to her clique as the price for my soul. So not interested.
    But I was interested in having my best friend back.
    “ Hola, Martinez.” I kept my tone light.
    “So, how you been?”
    “Fine.” Lie, lie, lie. No, wait. That was true. Ever since my visit from Dr. Morehouse, I was verging on fine. Sporadic bursts of fritz out were nothing compared to what I used to be like.
    “That was . . . terse,” she said.
    “Isn’t that a nice change? Me, kind of quiet?”
    “Huh.” She grunted. “Well.”
    I waited. She’d been the one to call.
    “I’m sorry about the movies,” she said. “I shouldn’t have just booted you out of the car. I should have talked to you. Listened—”
    “It’s okay.” It was too much to ask. I was too high maintenance. I still am.
    “The thing is,” she went on, “I had a nightmare last night. It was awful . And I woke up everybody, and my mom just completely unloaded on me for my drama.”
    “Sweet.”
    “She’s going through menopause. But anyway, I thought about you and how, you know, that can just happen. Screaming without warning.”
    “A nightmare,” I said slowly, tensing. Were they catching?
    “What was it about?” “I don’t remember.”
    I wasn’t sure I believed her.
    “Listen, Riley talks about you all the time. And he’s not hanging out with the Jane-bots much.”
    “Maybe he’ll become a human being someday,” I bit off. “But I’m not betting on it.”
    “Guys do wild stuff. She was all, you know, ‘come and get it, baby.’ When . . . it happened. He’d been drinking.”
    “Whatever.” I didn’t want to forgive him. Maybe I was being hard on him because I had almost forgotten that Troy still hadn’t broken up with Mandy. I’d managed to back-burner Troy’s semi-cheating because he had big blue eyes and he’d very gallantly excused my bad behavior.
    “Are you supposed to report back to Riley what I say?” I asked her.
    “Not officially.” She took a deep breath. “I miss you too, Lindsay. I’m so sorry I wasted the break. We could have hung out. My mom made the most rockin’ tamales.”
    I loved her mother’s Christmas tamales.
    “Why are you telling me this stuff about Riley?” I asked. “It’s not like I can do much of anything about it.”
    “Text, yo.”
    “He has to start it. And I’m not into long distance. I’m fourteen hours away.”
    “Then come home.”
    I hadn’t expected that. “It’s the second semester. Yo. ”
    “So? They’ll make you a study plan.” She hesitated. “I’ve just got this funny feeling. . .” Her voice trailed off.
    “So which is it?” I said. “Riley misses me, you miss me, you’ve got a funny feeling?”
    “Is it okay if he calls?”
    “Did he ask you to ask me that?” In spite of myself, my voice rose, excited. My coolness was evaporating.
    Wait a sec . I’m over him.
    “No. I’m taking some initiative.”
    “Why are you doing this, really?” I