Chapter Thirty-One
Iheld onto that feeling with an iron grip, especially five minutes in when the door opened and Max led in my new lockdown buddy.
“No,” Vivian snapped. “Absolutely not, Max. I’m serious.”
“And I don’t give a fuck. These are the rules. You didn’t want to be in lockdown, you should’ve thought about that out there.”
I peeked over the rim of the bathtub.
Vivian had planted her feet in the doorway, and she had her arms braced on the frame. “Maybe I’m not being clear. No, that can’t possibly be it, so your ears must be clogged by your ego. I amnotgoing in there!” she shrieked, and then gritted her teeth and fought as Max tried nudging her into the bathroom. “Max, stop it!”
“Vivian, just quit being a brat,” Max growled. “I get it. You’re special and shouldn’t be treated like everyone else. Except you’re not and this is part of this.”
“You’re such a fucking asshole!”
My eyebrows rose because despite Max’s best effort to get her inside, Vivian refused to let go of the doorframe. How she’dgripped it to keep from being pushed inside, I had no idea. I assumed Max wasn’t trying that hard to force her, but still.
Shereallydidn’t want to come in here.
Rolling my eyes and projecting my shit onto her, I called out from the tub. “We’re not allowed to speak to each other, if that helps.”
“This isn’t about you, Quinn,” Vivian growled.
Max shot me a puzzled glance over her head.
I shrugged and rested my head back against the rim of the tub again. Still able to see them if I wanted.
“No, Max. You can’t—” Her words ground out between clenched teeth, and a squeak told me her foot had just hit the tile. “Max, please!”
“What the fuck, V? If you don’t want to play along, then don’t. Say the magic words and you can leave.”
It took me a second to realize he meant our safe words. She could sayI yieldand get out of it, which meant quitting the trial over something like this. It would affect her total score for the Courage Challenge, and her ranking in the next.
“You know I can’t do that, Max!”
“Then get inside.”
She snapped her head in his direction, and light from the bedroom streaked across her face. The icy glare I’d been expecting wasn’t there, and I sat up higher in the tub. My eyes narrowed on her face.
Wide eyes. Sweat at her temples.
Rapid breathing.
Whether Max noticed it or not, I wasn’t sure. He had his eyes fixed over her head, one finger pointing at the shower stall in the back left corner of the bathroom. But I couldn’t tear my eyes away from her face.
Her mouth opened and closed a few times before she snapped her lips together and squeezed her eyes shut. Theloudest alarm bell in my head was that Vivian did all this in front of me. I had no idea what she and Max were like around each other, but an adversary? Knowing I was right there?
But she still didn’t care.
She straightened her spine and forced her shoulders back, and I almost said something to Max. But she spun on her heels, saw my mouth opening, and shot out a warning.
“Don’t.”
Something in her tone overpowered the need to ignore an order from her, so I stayed silent. When Max eyed me, the quizzical look returning now that he refocused on me, I shook my head. Because I genuinely had no idea.
Vivian slammed the shower door so hard the glass rattled.
Max’s brow drew in, but he gestured over his shoulder, attempting to reassure me or himself before he left. “I’m right outside the door, if…”
