Page 33 of Black Hollow: Awakening

“Nope. Got fired.”

Will stared at his friend in shock.

“What happened?”

Dan shrugged.

“Nothing much,” he said, trying to sound nonchalant, but it was clear it was bothering him. “I’m not needed anymore.”

“Want something to drink?” Will offered, looking at his friend with concern.

“No, thanks.”

Will went to the kitchen for a moment to grab a snack, and when he came back, he told Dan about Norma’s party.

“Feel like coming?”

“No.”

“You sure? She asked about you.”

“Uh-huh.”

“I’m serious. She told me to bring you.”

“That’s great, but I barely know her.”

“You can always get to know her.”

“Mhm.”

“It’ll be fun.”

“For you, sure. After all, it’s your new little group. I’m sure you’ll have a great time.”

Will felt a knot in his stomach.

“What are you talking about?” he asked defensively.

“By the way, you shouldn’t be yelling at Blake in public. One of his fangirls might stab you.”

This time, Danny’s smile was teasing, but genuine. Will smiled back. Apparently, gossip about Alden traveled fast. Good thing he was planning to stay far away from him.

“If you’re not going, I’m not going either,” he declared, intending to prove that Danny’s company was more important to him. “Maybe we can watch something?”

“No, go.” Dan’s tone turned harsh again. “I’ll probably be looking for work on Friday anyway.”

And that’s just how it was.

Things were supposed to be okay, but they weren’t. Not really.

November 15 | Friday

Will was lucky. So damn lucky that he was currently trudging through a thick layer of snow after dark! What happened to that beautiful, sunny October? It had gotten much colder at the start of the week, but Will hadn’t expected Black Hollow to start resembling the North Pole in just a few days.

He huffed, mentally cursing the fact that Norma lived so far from the bus stop, and out in the total boonies, on top of that. Since there were no sidewalks, nothing had been plowed, and while he supposed he should have realized that, Will was completely unprepared. His skinny jeans—he wasn’t going to wear five layers to a party, for crying out loud, especially one where Oscar was going to be—were soaked almost to his knees. Luckily, he’d managed to dig his winter boots out of the basement, though he could still feel the snow that had gotten inside them. On top of that, Will didn’t have a proper winter jacket yet. He thought he’d had one last year but couldn’t find it for the life of him. There was a vague memory of a broken zipper, but he couldn’t recall if it was his jacket or Dan’s. Last winter had been over in the blink of an eye. This year’s wasn’t looking so merciful.

At one point, a loud rustle came from behind some nearby trees. Will jumped, startled by the sound. His heart pounding, he aimed the light from his phone, but to his relief, he didn’t see anything alarming. He smiled to himself. He was near the forest, after all. He’d probably heard a rabbit, a wolf, or…