“Anyway,” Foxe goes on. “I’m on the mend, so I don’t know why we’re even talking about me. You’re the one in danger. Everyone there thinks your family is cursed, and students go missing at Avernia like it’s the trendy thing to do. The school acts like they’re not even aware it’s happening.”
“How can that be possible if it’s such a high number?” I ask. “People would notice if their roommates just stopped showing up.”
“Good question. Chemical brainwashing? Maybe the tap water is laced with something.”
I give him a look. “You’re listening to too many true crime podcasts.”
“Or maybe I’m listening to the correct amount and have been enlightened.”
Someone snorts from the doorway, and I tense up, glancing over my laptop to see Aurora and Asher standing there. She’s got one hand on the doorknob, the key still wedged in the lock, and Asher walks past her, making an immediate beeline for my food.
“What are you doing here?” I ask.
Asher bends down, stealing a fry and plopping it in his mouth. “Looking for my girlfriend. Thought maybe she’d come to see you, but now I have a bad feeling she’s doing lake cleanup.”
“It’s, like, twelve degrees out,” Aurora says, snatching the key from the door and coming inside.
“When has that ever stopped Lucy from trying to save the planet?” he replies around chewing.
My face scrunches up. “Don’t talk with your mouth full, you troll.”
Foxe grins, straightening. His entire demeanor changes with his best friend’s presence, and I pretend it doesn’t sting a little that I wasn’t able to cheer him up.
“Ash-tree, my pride and joy! You haven’t called me in…” Foxe sits forward, checking something off-screen, and returns with his phone in hand. “Exactly fourteen hours.”
“Jesus Christ.” Asher steals another fry, dragging it through my ketchup. “Do you just sit around counting the minutes?”
“I always miss your shining, sparkling personality when it’s gone.”
“God, you really are a fucking golden retriever.”
“I’d prefer something a little more formidable. A husky, even, would work. At least they’re musically inclined.”
Aurora slams her wardrobe shut, keeping her back to us. I glance at Asher, feeling a small twinge of guilt knowing these two have a history and tend to avoid interacting in front of others.
Given Foxe’s current predicament, I imagine things are even more strained than they used to be.
“Rory?” Foxe calls, pursing his lips as he pretends to search for her. “That you, cupcake? I’d recognize the way you slam a door anywhere.”
She scoffs, dumping an armful of Japanese skincare products onto her desk. “Well, I’ve slammed enough in your face that I’d be surprised if that wasn’t the case.”
Foxe’s grin widens, though I swear it still looks off. When we were growing up, nothing bothered him. He was like a punching bag that always snapped back into place no matter how many beatings it took, and he took many from my angry brother.
There’s this sentiment that people don’t change. Seconds ago, Foxe basically just said the same thing. Years back, I might have agreed, but looking at my cousin now, I’m just not so sure.
Maybe people don’t change for no reason. But they definitely don’t stay the same forever.
“What were you all talking about anyway?” Asher asks, perching on the edge of my mattress. “Foxe’s supposed enlightenment?”
“Supposed,” Foxe repeats, confirming. “We were just discussing the possibility that your school’s student body has been brainwashed.”
“So casual lunch conversation.”
I shift, curling my arms around my middle. “Don’t you think it’s odd that people die or go missing so often, and the school’s just operating like it’s business as usual?”
Asher shrugs. “Odd? Maybe a little. But given how they believe in curses and other supernatural phenomena, it wouldn’t surprise me if Avernia just thinks it’s all part of the Fury Hill experience. A little death to round out their college careers. They do have an entire student organization named after the fucking thing.” He pauses, considering, then points a finger at me. “Donotgo poking your head around for answers.”
“You’re not the boss of me,little bro.”
