“I feel so weird.” She ran a hand along her barely exposed stomach, eyeing the unusual amount of cleavage in her reflection. It was still nowhere near my recommended amount.“I feel like you. Especially with these boots on.” She turned to the side, getting the view from behind. “I kinda like it.” She adjusted her hair so the loose waves were even cuter than before.
“That’s my girl!” I clapped her on the back. “You know what I always say: when in doubt, boobies out!”
“Speaking of, you know you’re supposed to put something over that, right?” She pointed to my purple and black bustier.
“And you know I don’t care. I have a bra under it for extra cleavage and support. What more do you want from me? Let’s go already.” I spun and ran from my room, speeding downstairs like someone was chasing me.
Life is chasing me. I’m excited to go to work with Sean. And excited to debut the seductive Aurelia to the world. And so hoping Dennis will pop up at some point or another.
“Wait for me.” Ari’s footsteps were trailing behind.
“Then hurry up. Are you ready yet?” I asked as she finally caught up. “Oh, no! I forgot the laundry.”
“I finished it while you were off in your own little world earlier. You should really pay more attention to what’s going on.” She laughed,patting my cheek as we reached the door. I carried our bags outside before the realization hit that I still haven’t shown her.
“Guess what I got!”
“What’d you get?” She eyed me suspiciously. I was bouncing. She’ll never guess. I should just tell her. I dropped our bags and ran down the driveway, then did a twirl beside my new baby. My new perfect baby. “Emy…” Ari frowned, following me down the walkway. “Did you buy this today?”
“I did!” I clapped before running my hands along the shiny paint. “That’s the other thing I did this morning.”
“You promised you wouldn’t get another motorcycle.”
“Did I?” I furrowed my brows, wondering why she’s making things up. That doesn’t sound like me. “No, I’m pretty sure I’ve been planning to get one for a while. We’ve been looking at them together.”
“No, we haven’t.”
“Yes we have.” I gave her a strange look. “Why’re you being so grumpy? I love her! I haven’t named her yet but I will soon.” I squealed and gave my brand new motorcycle a hug. “I think I’ll sell Tuffy today. Wanna help me find a buyer? We can sell it real quick on the way to the bar.”
“Let’s wait,” Ari said quietly. “We can do it later, okay?”
“What’s wrong?” I asked. It looked like she was about to cry.
“Nothing.” She took my hand and led us away. I waved goodbye to my new baby. “Will you pack our bags? Please.”
“Sure thing, skippy!” I did just that while she got in the driver’s side. I sang the whole way to the condo. We reached it in record time. I carried our bags up the familiar stairs while Ari twirled Sean’s key. She unlocked the door and we walked inside. The room was dark.
“Mateo?” She flicked on a light.
No response.
“Dennis?” I called. Still nothing. I held back an annoyed growl and set our things near the tv, then turned to see Ari watching me like I might crash and die.“Maybe Dennis is taking a nap,” I said. She burst out laughing. “What?”
“Nothing.” She grinned. “He just doesn’t seem like the napping type. Naps are too normal for him. Unless he naps in a cemetery or something. But a normal nap doesn’t sound like him.”
“You never know. I’m gonna go check.” I skipped down the hall to his closed door and knocked.“Dennis?” I called a bit louder. I’m trying to convince myself he might be here, but I already know from the lack of heartbeats that we’re alone. I gave up and trudged back to the living room.“He’s not here. We can go.”
“To the bar?”
“To the bar!” I pulled the door open and ran out, turning off the lights along the way.
Ari locked up before following and then we were off. I tried to follow along with our conversation but my mind was abuzz—mainly on Dennis, trying to figure out where he could be. Maybe off hunting? But he always waits for me so I can join. Or maybe he’s killing someone else. But he never takes this long to kill people. He decides to kill and then they’re dead, so that can’t be it. Or maybe—
“Do you have my fake ID, by any chance?”Ari nudged me. I started and glanced around.“I forgot the one you gave me. I don’t know how you’re still breathing, by the way. You haven’t stopped talking the whole way here.”
“I was talking?”Everything is such a blur of excitement, I didn’t even realize we’re already parked and walking to the bar.
“Nonstop. You didn’t notice?”
