Chapter 32

Earthquake

I can remember days
Things weren't always this way
I used to make you smile
If only for a while
But now you can't get through
There's no way I can lose
I know some days are hard
But don't you make mine too

Cos I can't stand it when you come home and we just fight for hours
But I won't show it no I'll just hold my breath and keep it quiet

I woke up wrapped in Josh's arms and wished it could be this way every morning. I turned to Josh's clock, realizing, not only had we slept all afternoon, but through the night as well. I felt, more than saw Josh waking up next to me. He groaned softly before sighing contentedly, and whispering in my ear "Thank you Reed, that was the best sleep I've had in weeks, no, scratch that, the best sleep I've ever had," Kissing me gently. Yes, this was blissful, I could definitely do this every day for the rest of my life, and I don't think I would ever get tired of it. "I wish it could always be like this." Josh whispered, mirroring my thoughts. I sighed in agreement, wishing we could stay that way, but knowing deep down, that we couldn't, that eventually, we would be missed, and it would arouse suspicion Josh and I really didn't need. At least it was Saturday, so we could spend the day together before Noelle's dreadful party. I left Josh's room to go change, hoping beyond all hope that all of the Billings girls would already be at breakfast. I wanted to sneak in and act like I had been there all night. The last thing I needed was another secret for Noelle to hold over my head. Chances are, Noelle already knows, she is my roommate after all. I shuddered at the thought.

Luckily enough for me, almost all of the Billings girls were already at breakfast, and the rest of them were still in their rooms getting ready, I passed no one in the halls or the elevator getting to my room. Not a soul noticed me slip silently into my room, I was almost afraid to go in, having the irrational fear that Noelle was in there prepared to threaten me into doing her bidding. Thankfully, I was alone in the room, afraid for nothing, though my heart continued to pound. Surprisingly, I noticed Noelle's bed looked as though it hadn't been slept in. Nothing had moved from the day before. Maybe I was safe, yet, I thought, even if Noelle hadn't been here last night, she might very well know that I wasn't either. I had no doubt in my mind that I wasn't yet in the clear.

I changed, and was getting ready to meet Josh when Noelle waltzed in. She immediately went red, quickly replacing it with her cool façade, but I knew she knew I had seen it. Noelle had definitely not slept in her own bed last night. Noelle and I stared at each other both of us waiting for the other to break the silence, when Noelle spoke up at last. "Shouldn't you be at breakfast?" she asked.

Unfortunately for her, I had anticipated this "Shouldn't you?" I shot back.

"I was there, where were you?" I knew I had to blatantly lie, to call her out on hers, I just hoped I wasn't wrong.

"No you weren't, you weren't here last night either." I hoped I was convincing.

Noelle faltered, I knew I had caught her, I just hoped I hadn't exposed myself in the process. I was right, and I guess she couldn't tell I was bluffing; living with her must cause her to rub off on me.

"I knew it. You were with Dash, weren't you?" I wanted to get her to admit it to me, to show I wasn't going to be easy to push around.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I was." She was nervous, and trying desperately to hide it, but failing miserably. She knew she had been caught, and she could get expelled for it, but so could I, Noelle somehow didn't know that though, so much for all knowing Noelle.

"Don't worry, your secret's safe with me, for now." I added ominously, though I had no intention of telling anyone, it might just bring my secret out and I was much more likely to get kicked out for it than Noelle. Besides, I liked dash well enough, and turning Noelle in would mean turning him in as well.

"I knew I was right to invite you to join us Reed." Noelle sighed, she tried not to let it show, but I could tell she was relieved. Inviting, that's one way to put it, personally I prefer to call it blackmail, or initiation by force, but I didn't feel like fighting with Noelle, but if helping each other out is what Billings stood for, these girls might not be quite as bad as I'd thought. They're manipulative and demanding sure, but deep down, they really cared about people, okay, so maybe just each other, but it's more than I once thought, and now that I was one of them, I had people to rely on other than Josh and Constance it might be nice. I was finally starting to warm up to the idea of being one of them, just a little bit.

When Noelle and I finally walked into the cafeteria, Josh was sitting where he usually did these days, at the end of the table that the Billings girls and most of the Ketlar boys sat at, but today, rather than sitting right at the end of the table, I decided to move in, just a little, if I'm going to be living with these people, there's no harm in trying to get to know them a little better. Noelle even abandoned her seat near the head of the table, next to the other seniors to sit next to me, therefore bringing Dash, and a few other seniors, including Lily, over closer to our end of the table. For the first time I truly felt like I belonged at this table, and I didn't feel as strange as I thought I might have, it actually felt kind of nice. I wasn't even close to being able to trust these people, but maybe I could still learn to like them, or at the very least, not hate them anymore.

Josh seemed to notice my change in attitude towards the Billings girls. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Josh giving me an inquisitive look, he looked almost scared and I could hear him fidgeting under the table. I reached under the table and grabbed Josh's hand in an attempt to calm him, it was a long shot but it worked, to an extent.

I breathed a sigh of relief. There was only one nagging thought at the back of my mind preventing a peaceful bliss this morning, and we all knew there was no way I would feel anything close to bliss tonight, what if I did become friends with the Billings girls? Would Josh's opinion of me change We had already fought about them on more than one occasion, but if that was the case, as much as I hated to admit it, I didn't know if Josh was worth giving up the chance of being friends with my housemates. The rest of my life at Easton would be so much easier if I were friends with them. Could I let Josh stop that? The worst thing was, I wasn't sure. I tried with all my might to chase these thoughts out of my mind, focusing on all the chatter around me. Though to most, today would seem no different than any other day as soon as I actually started paying attention, I could tell something was off. They were talking about Thomas, it put everyone on edge.

"The police have no leads, that's fucked." Dash said holding the local paper. I couldn't help but agree with him. There was no way any even mediocre team of investigators could have no ideas as to who killed a teenage boy, and a rich one at that. Either these cops were completely incompetent or just disregarding the case. I knew the latter would not be true, even though Thomas' parents were messed up and hardly cared, the public certainly did. Easton's main gate was covered by a swarm of journalists. There was no getting in or out of Easton for now.

"Do you think the police know Thomas was dealing?" Noelle asked

Josh cleared his throat "Probably not. If there was one thing Thomas knew how to do, it was cover his tracks."

"Well somebody should tell them." Noelle said in an extremely casual tone, as if suggesting that we should study in the library instead of our room.

Noelle received quite a few skeptical looks. "Come on, what does he care? It's not like they can arrest him."

Everyone remained silent. Noelle was getting just a touch too morbid for me.

"I'm serious, if that freak show he was always working with had anything to do with it, he should be brought in and questioned. Unless you all want him to get away with it." Though I hadn't known for sure Thomas was dealing, I felt like it was somehow wrong to turn him in now. Why hadn't one of them turned him in before if they knew he was dealing? I looked at Josh and saw my own worry mirrored in him.

Needless to say, the conversation fizzled out and dissolved into numerous small ones, but I felt once again completely uncomfortable around the Billings girls.