Half truth

“I knew this was a bad idea.” I shook my head, walking a little further down the porch, pulling far away enough that he had no choice but to drop his arms.

“Mae.” He exhaled loudly and reached for me again. I took another step back. “We can be friends. Forget I said anything.”

I looked at him. I knew him so well, too well, to believe he’d want to talk and just leave it at that. From the way he was looking at me, I knew he still wanted me, and the only thing I wanted was the comfort his arms brought, and the ease I felt around him, not because I was in love with him, but because I had been once. I seemed to be so far from that girl though. Too much had happened.

“Do you mind if I go inside and grab a beer?” Travis asked.

“Not at all.” I sat down on the white swing. “I’ll be right here.”

He looked at me one last time before he disappeared inside. I sat down on the swing and leaned my head back, closing my eyes as I kicked my foot away from the porch and let myself swing.

“That looks comfy.” It was Hailey.

“It is.” I kept my eyes closed.

“Mind if I join you?”

I shrugged and finally opened my eyes to meet hers as she took a seat. Her toga covered a lot more than mine. I’d never seen her with her hair up in a bun like that.

“How shitty is this party?” She rested her head beside mine.

“It’s not bad.” I smiled.

“I haven’t gone inside yet. I just got here.” She tapped the porch with the front of her foot and started swinging us. “Did you know that approximately ten thousand people go missing each year here?”

“I didn’t realize it was that many, no.” I eyed her. She looked like she was high on something. Not that I knew Hailey to do drugs, but who knew anymore. “Where did that piece of information come from?”

“I was researching something earlier and it came up.”

“What were you researching?”

“Just . . . things.” She closed her eyes. “I guess there’s a club for girls to hire sugar daddies.”

“Oh?” My heart beat faster.

“I was using my mom’s computer and saw she’d marked the tab. Probably research for a story.”

“What did the website say?”

“It was catered towards students who needed money and mentorships, but everything was so . . . I don’t know.” Her eyes popped open. She looked at me in a haze. Maybe mine, maybe hers. My head was spi

“Did you ask your mom about it?”

“Actually, I did. She said Lana had told her about it. I guess she wanted to write a story on it for the paper. It’s weird that she’d disappear while investigating that and secret societies, isn’t it?”

“I guess.” My heart continued hammering.

“This is why these secret groups need to be brought to light. Secrets can be dangerous, you know?”

My palm itched. I nodded in agreement. Secrets can be dangerous.

“Remind me again why you’re so obsessed with this particular society?”

“If the two things are linked, they could be human traffickers for all we know.”

“Oh my God.” My heart pounded. “I doubt it. Wouldn’t they have been caught?”

I wanted to tell her that was ridiculous, but what the hell did I know, though? I couldn’t exactly scratch that off the list of things that may be going on. Could my father be involved in something like that? I wanted to shout no way, but if he was really sleeping with Lana, his friend’s daughter, his son’s friend, a girl not much older than his own daughter, I couldn’t be sure of anything. I felt sick.

“Not necessarily. I don’t doubt it at all.” She looked away from me. “Have you had any more run-ins with Fitz, the man, and his little crew?”

“Um. A couple. Why?”

“Because he’s watching you like a hawk right now.”

I tore my gaze from hers and looked beyond the rail of the balcony. My heart galloped when my eyes met his. Even in the dark, I knew he was looking right at me. I didn’t know how Hailey knew that, though. I looked at her again.

“He could be looking at you, you know.”

“Yeah, right.” She scoffed. “I tried that once, nothing came of it. Even when he’s drunk and comes by the bar and I think I just might get somewhere, I don’t. The guy has a fort built around his feelings.”

I glanced in his direction again. Not too long ago, I used to think that about him. Now I wasn’t so sure. Logan was the kind of guy who was used to people making assumptions about him. Maybe that was why he was always quiet and brooding in front of people he didn’t know. Maybe he was trying to figure out what version of himself we wanted him to play. I liked to think that he was himself in front of me. My heart skipped a beat at the thought. The screen door opened with a squeak beside us and shut with a thump. Hailey and I turned our heads to see Travis coming back with a beer in one hand and a red cup in another.

“Oh, you’ve got company.” He handed me the red cup. The whiskey didn’t even burn my throat as I took a sip. “I was worried I’d taken too long. I’m Travis.”

“Hailey,” she responded. “I haven’t seen you around.”

“The campus has its own zip code. You know everyone on it?”

Hailey laughed. “Nah, but I’d remember you.”

“Some people are worth remembering, am I right?” Travis chuckled.

I rolled my eyes and kicked my foot to start the swing again.

“Definitely,” she agreed.

He was trying to make me jealous and it wasn’t going to work. Either way, I didn’t feel like sitting there while he flirted with Hailey, so I stopped swinging and stood.

“Going to the bathroom. See you later, Hailey.” I smiled at her as I brushed past Travis. “You’re welcome to take a seat beside her and continue your conversation while I’m gone.”

I didn’t wait for a response, instead, I actually did head to the bathroom, closed the door behind me and dragged the shower curtain open to make sure no one was there. Once I knew I was in the clear, I sat on the edge of the tub, kicking my leg up and leaning on the tile behind me with a sigh. I lifted the red cup to my mouth and took a sip. At least I had this.