Rufescent

Chapter 16

I had not seen Kate since the party on Friday. I had not tried to contact her and she hadn't tried to reach out to me either. Ever since that first fight we had weeks ago, I felt like we were on the rocks. I knew it was true by the way she looked me when she noticed me approach the lockers. 

She stood by her locker on her phone, like she usually did and for a second I thought things would be okay. Our eyes met and she pinned me with an ice cold glare.  Kate slammed her locker and walked in the other direction muttering the word 'slut' under her breath, thinking I wouldn't be able to hear it.

 Boy was she wrong. 

I knew I was in the wrong this time, I should have told her I was coming to the party but it wasn't really on my list of priorities. As my best friend for years now, she should know that I would not just ditch her like that on purpose, but then again, Kate had been acting strange lately. I would not apologize. I knew I was wrong, but I refused. If she wanted to lash out and act like a baby because of something so small and petty, let her.

Thomas was missing, and presumably dead somewhere. He was my only source of information, the only way I could get answers to all these questions. I remembered how I had felt when I first found out about the killings, how fearful I was. How angry and hurt I had been, not just for myself but for the whole pack. But now, I merely mourned the loss of an information source, and nothing more. Maybe I did resent them for being cold blooded killers. 

Maybe. 

Though, I had to admit that often, I felt an anger stir within me that I felt would drive me down a similar path, but I had no idea where it rooted from, only that it was there. 

Sometimes, it all seemed a little ridiculous to me. How I was try so hard to live a normal life while all this stuff was happening around me. At least time I had to spend less time in that house and as soon as Susan moved in I would be spending every possible moment out of that house, taking every possible opportunity to not be there. But I knew that it would be unavoidable, so I dreaded it with all my heart. 

I could run away.

Don't be stupid. 

Fine.

I had just picked up Travis's scent when the bell rang for class. I guess it would just have to wait until lunch time to show him the picture I had found. I didn't know how he would react, maybe he already knew? Maybe they had moved before they were killed. Maybe it happened here. I don't know.

I shook off the thought and walked into class. I stared out the widow because paying attention in class was not something I was keen on. In the classes that we had together, Kate did not speak to me and I didn't even look at her. Maybe I was only making things worst, but maybe I didn't care. If Kate was going to be this whiney and dramatic about every little hiccup in their friendship then they were better off how it was. 

It was lunch at last and my eyes were trained for Travis but I couldn't see him anywhere. I bumped into Kenneth in the hallway, I deliberated handing him the picture and having him deliver it to Travis but I ruled against. Kenneth also didn't seem like he had time for me anymore. He barely greeted me in the hall, simply nodded his head and walk straight passed me. I get that I turned him down and maybe I had hurt his feeling by hooking up with his brother but still, I didn't understand why he was being this cold to me. I made my way towards the cafeteria where students grouped together in their little cliques to find some sort of joy in their shared interests. 

Bitter much?

Shut the fuck up much?

I sat at a table, a good distance away from some girls revising for a math test. I pushed my food around with my fork and sniffed the air catching Travis's scent. He was in the building but where could he be? I let my hearing wander from outside the cafeteria down the halls of the school but I couldn't hear his voice or anything of the sort.