16

16

Claire’s stomach was still churning from the hateful things she’d read on the flier as she composed a text message to Bodie while walking up the driveway. As soon as she was on her doorstep, she put her key in the lock to open it while pressing send on her phone so he would know she was safely inside. She passed through the doorway a moment later and closed it behind her, intent on going to her room.

Instead, she let out a startled gasp of fright at both her parents standing in the hallway. They had their arms crossed and seemed confrontational, eerily reminding her of the one and only time she’d been late for curfew.

She’d just had a basic flip phone back then, and she hadn’t been able to call or text to let them know her battery had died, and her date had a flat tire. They’d seemed more forgiving then than they did now, which was utterly ridiculous considering she was an adult.

“Excuse me,” she said with a hint of annoyance as she tried to push past them. After a moment, they yie