Total pages in book: 139
Estimated words: 127146 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 636(@200wpm)___ 509(@250wpm)___ 424(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 127146 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 636(@200wpm)___ 509(@250wpm)___ 424(@300wpm)
She can't do her own grocery shopping at the moment and can't go to work, yet she keeps insisting it's just a bug, a flu, and it'll pass.
We've both seen this before, and I understand her not wanting to face the facts, but I'm exhausted and heartsick.
I'm brushing away tears as I enter my suite on campus. It does feel good to be by myself for a moment or at least be able to go into my own room and worry about something else for a bit.
My roommate jumps up and rushes out of her room the second I shut the door behind me. "Where the hell have you been? We're going to be late."
She's got her hair in rollers, and her makeup is already in place.
I tip my chin toward her. "If this thing is supposed to be a hunt, aren't you worried about your face melting off by the end?"
She smiles. “Hell no, I have a bulletproof setting spray. Now get in there and get ready."
My shoulders fall away from my ears, dragging me down. I no longer have the strength to stay upright. "I don't know, Jack. I'm pretty tired. I should probably stay home."
She narrows her eyes and starts tugging pins out of her hair. "Um...excuse me...did you forget about the twenty-five-thousand-dollar prize you want to nail down?"
I head into my room, dropping my overnight bag on the floor and throwing myself back onto the bed. "I may need that money, but what are the odds I'll actually win it? I'm probably just kidding myself."
Something on my desk catches my eye. I lift my head to stare at it, then scoot off the end of the bed to pick up the black envelope, wound with a red ribbon. "What the fuck?"
I rip open the thick, rich paper and spread a cardstock invitation. The details are pretty sparse, only an address and a time. At the bottom is a scribbled note requesting I wear the envelope's ribbon.
Fucking hell. I have no doubt it's that asshole jock who is asking this from me, and…fuck him. I'm not about to hand myself up on a platter for him to toy with.
I toss the invitation and the ribbon on the desk and sigh. Even if there’s only a slim chance of winning the prize, I have to try. For my mother. Or else I’ll never be able to say I tried everything.
Instead of climbing back into bed and staying there for a year, I go to my closet and pull out some clothing. "Jack, what do I wear to this damn thing?"
She comes flouncing in, brushing her curls with her fingers. "Um...something you move in easily, and something dark to make it harder to see you, if that's what you want." She winks and readjusts her boobs inside her neon pink minidress.
I pick up a slinky black dress, with pockets of course, and lay it out with some fresh underwear. I need a hot shower first. Maybe it'll get me in the mood to go out.
News flash: I'm almost more exhausted after the shower. This is stupid. I'm going to end up lost and walking around in circles. The only thing I'm coming home with is fucking poison ivy.
Oh well, at the very least, I can't let Jackie go alone, so...I really have no choice.
It only takes a few minutes to dress and slip a few essentials into my dress pockets. I lotion up, then twist my hair into a messy bun on top of my head. My glasses go on last, and I step into the kitchen of our suite. "Are you almost ready?"
A minute later, Jack steps out of her room, looking like she's going to a club, not anything even remotely outdoors. "Uh...you sure you want to wear that?"
She glances down at the bright pink minidress. "What's wrong with it?"
"Doesn't it, like, defeat the purpose?"
She smirks, grabs her small crossbody bag, and opens the door to leave. "I guess that depends on your purpose, huh?" With a thwack, she smacks my ass on the way out the door. It earns her a squeal from me as I scurry out into the hall toward the stairs.
It doesn't take very long to cross the campus toward the address. We reach an iron fence, where a man in a suit is posted. As we pull up, he motions at me to open my window. I hold a finger up to ask him to give me a second and lean down to crank the handle to roll down the window in my old-ass car.
Once we show our invitations, he waves us in while he speaks to someone on a radio.
I pull up the driveway, looking for parking. When I see the house, my jaw drops. "Holy shit. I've always wanted to know what was up here, but I never imagined it was this."