Achingly sitting upright, I looked up to see the familiar surroundings. I was in my bedroom. My first thought would have naturally been, how did I get up here? if not for the bigger question how did I get up there? The canopy of my bed hung just below the ceiling, and I’d awoken mere inches from it. I’d been…floating.
“Kat?”
I jumped at the voice, and my nerves didn’t relax much as I realized it was my mom.
Heels clacked up the hall before she knocked on my door. “Kat?”
“Y-yeah?”
She didn’t wait for an invite as she twisted the knob and waltzed into the room. “You’ve got a lot of explaining to do-” Mom paused, looking down at me confusedly as I still rested on the floor. “What is going on?”
Holy crap! How long had I been floating like that? Had she seen me?
“Where have you been?” she yowled.
“W-what?” I turned to look at the alarm clock on my nightstand, seeing it was six o’clock.
“You were supposed to meet me at the country club after school let out. Why didn’t you answer your phone? You know how many times I called?” Her voice ticked up to a whole other level with each new sentence. “I called all of your friends, and none of them knew where you were either! You know how scared I was?”
“I’m sorry…”
“And after all the trouble I went through to get you that appointment with Mrs. Marin.” Mom rubbed her temples aggravatingly. “We needed this. With everything that happened with Blaine-”
She stopped herself, taking a moment to catch her breath.
“I know none of this is your fault, but the accident has left a lot of scorched earth for us around here. Mrs. Ryder has a lot of sway in Mystic Harbor, and we need to do everything we can to get back on her good side. Right now, we’re all the town’s pariahs, and especially with your father’s business, we can’t have that kind of rep.”
Against all better judgment, I rolled my eyes. I couldn’t help it. I was in the midst of a nervous breakdown, and all she could think about was her reputation. The gesture didn’t go ignored. Mom heaved a sigh and muttered something about going to Mrs. Banisters’s.
“And don’t forget that your father’s coming home tomorrow. He’ll be taking your car into the shop to get an oil change in the morning.” As quickly as she came, she was out the door.
Crap.
I’d completely spaced out on that tiny detail, and that put a wrinkle in my plans. Having made a mad dash out of school, I didn’t have any of my things. No books, no homework, no purse, no phone. And the last proved the most problematic.
I knew I couldn’t wait another thirteen hours until getting back to school. My cell only had a third of its charge left when I’d checked it this morning, so the damn thing would be long dead by the time I got to it tomorrow. And I couldn’t go without that lifeline, especially if I wasn’t going to have the car. For how increasingly shitty I felt, a call to the hospital seemed inevitable.
Asides from the anxiety attack still stirring in my chest, I thankfully didn’t feel too bad. If I hauled ass, I could get to the school before it closed for the night. Climbing off the floor, I ambled my way to my closet to get changed. Last thing I needed was more strange looks from fellow classmates when I waltzed back into Belleview still wearing my gym uniform. And I shuddered at the thought of lying in bed with the sweaty clothes, but it was a hygienic issue I’d have to wrestle with later. I started peeling off my shirt, expecting to feel the cotton athletic wear. Instead, my fingers grappled at loose polyester. I looked down at the hamper in the corner, and sure enough, the black and purple gym clothes rested at the top of the container.
Spinning around on my heels, I retreated from the closet to the mirror beside my dresser. I was now donned in one of my off the shoulder sweaters and a comfortable pair of black leggings. Given that I’d passed out in the foyer, I doubted my ability to make it upstairs, much less change my outfit. But this was coming from the girl who’d swear she was just levitating above her bed a minute ago…
Surely, I was going mad.
The lights suddenly dimmed. Lightning crackled outside, flashing white into my room from the open window shades. My mind immediately snapped back to the dream, and my stomach coiled. Not a moment later, rain began pelting the windows, urging me to throw on a pair of knee-high flat boots. They were always perfect for a rainy day, managing to keep my legs and feet dry while also giving me good traction on slick grounds. I then instinctively searched for my purse, realizing a few seconds past having a blonde moment that it, too, was still in my locker.