All Chapters of Lay Me Down: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

29 Chapters

You Make Me Nervous

Price blinked at Kylee and twirled one hand. “I can’t ask them to take you. I mean, it’s not my car. It’s kind of rude.”Kylee took a step back from the fence, her shoulders hunching forward as she deflated. “You just don’t want your friends to know you talked to me.”“No,” he said. “It’s not that.”“Who’s picking you up? Michael? Amy?” Of the twelve hundred students at Kellam High, only a small handful lived in this part of town. Whoever he was going with had to be a friend of hers. “Forget it. Tell everyone hi for me.”She turned on her heel and stomped toward the house.“Kylee,” Price called after her.He remembered her name. In spite of her anger and hurt, a spark of triumph flared in her c

Last Updated : 2025-08-06

Block his Laser Eyes

Kylee lowered her eyes. Suddenly everything about Price was endearing, from his spiky brown hair to his light-brown eyelashes to his fidgeting feet. She made him nervous? The thought brought a delighted smile to her lips.He coughed. “Yeah, okay, you can laugh.”Her eyes shot up. “No, no, I’m not laughing at you. I understand better than you think, actually. I get nervous too, right?” She gave what she hoped was a sincere smile. “I’d love to go. It would be nice to have a friend. I deserve that, right?”He cocked his head and peered at her. “Yeah. Yeah, you do.”Something in his eyes was so serious, so tender, that Kylee felt like he was seeing an intimate part of her. She pulled her shirt tighter around her as if to block his laser eyes.“I better get inside,” she w

Last Updated : 2025-08-08

Get Out

Kylee jerked on the mailbox, angry when the lid jammed.“Need help?”“I got it.” She gritted her teeth and pried it open on the third pull.“Hey, don’t be like that. I don’t pretend you don’t exist.”She whirled to face Price, jaw tightening. “Yes, you do! As soon as your sister appears, you stop talking to me! I know she ignores me, which is rude enough, but you, too? Can’t you just tell her we’re friends?”His face reddened, and Kylee interpreted his answer for him.“No,” she said. “Okay. I get it. Fine.” She swiveled around.“Wait, Kylee, please, listen.” Price paraded in front of her, holding his hands out with the palms facing her. “Don’t stop talking to me

Last Updated : 2025-08-10

Too Much Blood

The thought hammered through her head like a metronome. She couldn’t stay here. Bill would get in. Kylee whirled around. She slipped out the open window and raced across the yard. Bill’s voice carried all the way to the tree line. Kylee covered her ears, sobbing as she ran to her fallen trunk. Shaking and trembling, she crawled inside the hollow.Finally, silence. From here she couldn’t hear Bill. She was safe.Her heart tightened as she thought of her mother. Bill would turn on her now, take out his anger on someone else. “Stupid, stupid,” Kylee sobbed. She never should’ve asked to go to the beach. She knew better.She needed a release. She needed a cut. To hell with her resolution. Reaching behind her and digging her fingers into the dirt, Kylee’s fingers brushed the small paring knife before she found what she wanted: a sharp steak knife.

Last Updated : 2025-08-13

Can I Stay?

She knew that was his room. She’d watched his silhouette in the evenings when the night grew dark and his light was on. Kylee couldn’t recall making a conscious decision to come here, and she didn’t remember running over to his house. Yet now that she was here, it seemed the most logical course of action.She glanced around, wondering how to get to that second floor. There were no nearby trees. A vine snaked up the brick exterior, but Kylee doubted it would hold her. Still, she didn’t see any ladders or anything. That left the vine. She grabbed onto it and gave it a tug. It didn’t budge. She put her weight on it, pushing off from the ground and swinging. It didn’t come free.Satisfied, Kylee pressed her feet against the house and rappelled upward, using her grip on the vine to climb to the second story. There was no landing or anything to rest on when she reached the window. Luc

Last Updated : 2025-08-15

The Disappearing Cuts

The rooster crowing woke Kylee in the morning. She stretched her arms out, wondering why the bed felt so hard beneath her shoulder blades. And she had a horrible crick in her neck. She rolled over and opened her eyes.This wasn’t her room. Kylee bolted upright before her memory came crashing back. She spotted the open window, the screen propped up under it. Her eyes scanned along the pastel-blue wall and reached the desk with a fancy computer monitor next to a set of speakers. A stack of games in plastic cases leaned against the side of the desk. She had no idea what that desk was made of, but she knew it was something more solid than the plywood construction she had in her room. Swiveling in her blankets, Kylee turned to see the twin bed next to her, the sheet-covered lump in the middle that rose and fell with each heavy breath.She pulled her own blankets up around her chin. She’d slept in Price’s house last night. The thought was so illegal and illicit that she giggled. She could j

Last Updated : 2025-09-06

Follow Me

He led her down the hall. The right side was open, revealing a landing that looked out over a living area. Kylee kept glancing around, taking in the decor of the natural wood finish, the darkened knots in the flooring. It resembled a rustic log cabin. The ceiling had been removed to reveal the criss-crossing wood of the attic. Rifles decorated the upper wall, and huge antlers hung over the fireplace. A wide television screen at least four times the size of her own was set up in one corner, a variety of leather couches and chairs assembled in front of it.“Is your dad a hunter?” Kylee asked.Price pressed a finger to his lips and gestured to the bathroom. Kylee nodded. Everyone must still be asleep. It wouldn’t do for his dad to know she’d spent the night. Price deposited his change of clothes on the counter.She stepped inside, and Price closed the door behind her. The floral scent almost knocked her over. Kylee poked her head around the

Last Updated : 2025-09-09

Moody Boys

As soon as the door closed, Kylee hopped to her feet. This was her chance to find out who Price really was. She’d expected his room to be more extravagant, judging from the rest of the house. But it was about the same shape and size as her own. He had a standard sliding closet door that looked like it remained perpetually open. Posters of different athletes decorated the walls, and a shelf held various trophies. Kylee stood on her tiptoes and examined them. Baseball, soccer, basketball. Looked like he played everything. Several of them had years from tournaments and championship games imprinted on them.The door creaked open, and Kylee ducked, ready to hide behind the bed if necessary. Price came in, wearing his navy blue swimming trunks and a white t-shirt. Kylee glanced down at what she wore. Blue shorts and a white shirt. They looked identical.“Hey,” he said, tossing a pile of clothes on the bed. “My dad’s up. He said he’ll be re

Last Updated : 2025-09-11

One of Them

Sisko lay at the foot of the stairs. He lifted his head from his paws and wagged his tail at the sight of them. Then he whimpered, stood up, and ran around the corner.“I don’t think your dog likes me either,” Kylee said.Price didn't answer.Lisa stood beside the front door, wearing shorts and flip-flops, jabbering away at the man Kylee assumed was their father. He stood in slacks and a t-shirt, checking his phone. He looked up when they came down the stairs.“There you are,” he said, his eyes focusing on Price’s face. “I thought maybe you’d changed your mind.”“Nah, just getting stuff together.”Kylee followed close behind Price, a bit self-conscious in his blue shorts and white t-shirt. But neither Lisa nor their father looked at her.“Is Lisa coming?” Price asked, giving his sister a gentle shove.“You wish!” she retorted, shoving him back. Her waist-length brown hair fell in disorganized chaos down her back. “No! Dad’s taking me to Jumping Land.”“Well, at least something’s going

Last Updated : 2025-09-19

Maybe We Need Each Other

The bus pulled up, and Price stood. Kylee thought of something, and she wished she could melt into a puddle and disappear. “Price.”“Yeah?” He shouldered his bag.“I don’t have any money.”“Oh. Don’t worry about it. I’ve got you covered.”She bit her lip. She hated to put him out in any way, but if he didn’t pay for her, she wasn’t going. “Are you sure?”“Yeah.” He nodded. “Go on in front of me.”The door was already open, so Kylee climbed up the steps. “Um, he’s paying for me,” she said to the driver, jerking her thumb at Price. He came up behind her, handed the driver some bills, and nodded for her to find a seat.She walked down the aisle of the bus, avoiding backpacks and extended feet from sleepy passengers. She spotted an empty seat in the back and collapsed into it. She gave Price a smile when he s

Last Updated : 2025-09-23

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