I’m not sure what it means exactly, yet it feels like it means something. The prickle is starting to emerge, but it quickly vanishes as Aislin bangs on the door again.#p#分页标题#e#
Alex tosses me his shirt. “Here, put this on.”
I catch it and tug it over my head, the smell of his cologne mixed with the calming scent of him overwhelming me. There’s so much that’s unsaid between us; so much that needs to be said. But I think we might be afraid of the truth in ourselves and each other. As he opens the door so we can walk out, I think about asking him how he feels about me, but in the end, fear owns me and my lips end up staying shut.
Chapter 33
Alex, Aislin, and I split up, Alex heading to town while Aislin and I go out onto the beach. With flashlights in our hands and cell phones in our pockets, Aislin hikes up the left side of the beach and I take the right.
“If you need anything, either scream or call me,” she says as she hurries down the shore, sweeping her flashlight across the sand.
I nod and turn away, aiming the flashlight in front of me as the waves rush over my feet. The moon is glistening down on the water, making it look oily and the stars twinkle so brightly they look like diamonds.
I walk swiftly, shouting out Laylen’s name as I leave my footprints in the sand. I check behind rocks, in the backyard of nearby houses, and I even stare at the water a few times, fearing that’s where he went. Hours go by and dawn arrives, kissing the land with shades of pink and orange, making the ocean blue again.
I’m about to head back to the house when my phone rings. I slip it out of my pocket and answer it.
“Did you find him?” I ask.
“Not yet,” Alex says. “But there are a lot of places he could still be.”
“Have you heard from Aislin?”
“No, but I’m going to call her after I get off the phone with you.”
“Okay, well, I’ll keep looking.”
“Come back to the house first,” he says as I start to head further up the shore. “I don’t like you out alone.”
“I’m not going to sit around and do nothing,” I tell him. “But I’ll come back and check on my mother, then I’m going out again.”
“Then you can come look with me,” he replies with a silent plea in his voice. “I need you… I need you close to me. I can barely concentrate because all I keep thinking about is that something is going to happen to you.” He’s acting strange and I wonder if something’s wrong with him, like maybe he’s found Laylen and it’s bad.
I’m about to tell him I’ll head back, when I hear Aislin call out my name. It sounds like it came from somewhere down the shore behind me so I turn around and head in that direction. “I gotta go. I just heard Aislin call out my name…” I scan the shore with my hand shielding my eyes to block the glare of the sunrise. “She might need my help.”
“Be careful,” he warns as I run up the shore. “And call me back.”
“I will.” I hang up as I reach an assembly of cliffy rocks that the waves crash into. There’s a slender, sandy path that winds between them, disappearing around a corner a ways in.
“Gemma!” Her voice is as clear as day and is coming from inside the rocks. “Gemma, I need your help. I fell off the rocks and I think I might have broken my leg.”
I sigh. “All right, I’m coming!” I put my phone in my back pocket along with my flashlight and dash down the path. Sand seeps between my toes and the echo of the waves shatter against the jagged rocks. The farther I get, the narrower the path becomes until I have to maneuver over sections of the rock that are nearly touching.
“Aislin!” I yell as I grab onto a lip on the rock and hop over it onto the path.
“Back here!” she hollers. “Please hurry. It hurts so badly.”
“I’m coming!” I split my knee open as I climb over a larger rock and then twist my ankle as I dismount onto the path. I hobble up the rest of the path, clutching onto the rock wall, until I reach a dead end.
I glance around at the empty space. “Aislin, where are you!”
“Right here!” He voice floats over my shoulder and I spin around, with my arms out into front of me.
There’s nothing behind me other than rocks and sand. I start to panic, reaching for my pocket and my phone, but something bumps my elbow. The impact lurches me forward and I trip over my feet then stumble to the ground, landing on my hands and knees.
I push up to my feet and quickly turn in a circle with my hands out to the sides of me. “Who’s there?”
“Me,” Aislin says and her voice sounds like it’s everywhere. “I need your help, Gemma.”