The line went silent as Jason heard Collin stuttering silently.

“Not anymore.â€? Collin finally answered.

“That’s not true!â€? Jason yelled and it was Collin’s turn to hang up.

~

I found Jason at a motel and I knocked on his door. He shuffled around before opening the door but he almost shut it in my face.

“You … left your extra room key.â€? I whispered.

Jason growled, “What? How did you know I was here?â€? I could tell he was trying to control his anger. I’d seen that face on Collin.

I looked down at my feet. “I’ve … uh been here before with Collin. Homecoming night.” I stopped that direction. Too much information. “I … I recognized the room key. The … the pattern on it.â€?

I pushed past Jason into the room and he protested but didn’t touch me. His fingers twitched. “Get out of here, Allie.â€?

Either it was the end of the world that I was here or he really wanted to be alone. Either way, I didn’t care. I plopped onto the bed just as something fell out from behind the pillow.