Betwixt

With a frown, Dale nods his head. I notice he doesn't add it to the list as we sneak down the stairs to the parking lot. Ducking behind a Jeep Wrangler, Dale checks the school entrance and windows for any teachers before bobbing up to quickly scan the cars.

"I see Michael's car. Let's check that one first."

We creep around the cars. Bobbing down by his front right bumper, we look for any damage or new paint jobs. There doesn't seem to be any.

"Looks like we can cross him off the list." Dale pulls out his pen and puts a line through the name. Dale goes to stand again but I stop him.

"Let me. At least teachers can't spot me." I stand tall and train my eyes on anything blue. "I see a blue Saturn. Is that on the list?"

"Yes, Terri. Let's go look."

Her car is fine as well.

We spend the next half hour checking every blue car we can find. They all seem totally fine. We slump back in our original spot.

"What's left?" I'm a little disheartened as Dale scans his list.

"Just Nicholas Evans."

"And Adam," I whisper.

"Nicole." Dale warns me.

"I'm sorry, but why isn't car his car here?"

"His mom has it. How many times do we have to have this conversation?"

"She doesn’t, I saw her getting into her own car in Big Bear Village today. And when we first got to school, I saw Adam getting off the bus."

Dale's head whips in the direction of my voice.

"You actually saw him getting off the bus?"

"No, not actually, but he was walking with a bunch of kids who had just gotten off the bus."

"It still doesn't mean it's him."

"No, it doesn't, but if it was... his car would probably be where?"

I can sense Dale's reticence. I don't want to push him, but for all I know those guys are driving to my spot right now.

"Please, Dale. If it's not him, we can rule him out, but shouldn't we at least check?"

He grips his school bag with a tight fist and frowns.

"Will you let me say, I told you so, for the rest of my life?"

"Of course." I grin, but it doesn't last for long.

I'm asking this guy to be suspicious of his friend. From what I know of Dale, he's loyal to a fault. This is going against everything he believes in.

"I can just do it on my own. You go to class."

"It'll take you way too long to walk there." He glances at his paper. "And if Nicholas Evans is the guy I'm thinking of, he lives even further away."

He folds away the paper with a sigh and buries it in his pocket.

"We don't have time to mess around."

"But you can't play hooky. I don't want you to get in trouble."

A soft smile brushes his lips.

"It's okay, Nicky. I can handle trouble."

"But-"

"Let's go."

He crouches from his spot and pulls out his keys. I follow him to his car and we duck inside.

We don't say anything as we make our way to Adam's house. I notice Dale's initial speed is wearing off the closer we get to the Hutton home.

"I might park a block or so away," he mumbles. "We can sneak in around the back."

"Okay." I nod and follow his direction once we park.

Shutting the door quietly, he looks to the ground and starts walking.

"Let's get this over with."

I want to hold his hand as we walk, but they are jammed tight in his pockets. We weave our way into the woods and find a small track that winds back up the hill towards the road. I listen to Dale's reluctant steps.

I shouldn't be making him do this. Adam's his only friend at school... except for Sophie, I guess.

An unsanctioned jealousy rips through me. Squeezing my fingers into fists, I try to block images of Dale holding her hand and kissing her goodnight after youth group. My mind doesn't play fair and the images keep coming back to me. The part I can't take my eyes off is Dale's happy smile. He deserves to be in class right now, acing everything. He deserves a sweet girl like Sophie who will adore him.

What he doesn't deserve is me. If he knew the truth, he wouldn't be doing this.

"Stop."

Dale halts his next step and turns to face me.

"You don't have to do this. You should just go back to school."

"We're here now. I'm not going back."

"But I don't deserve this, Dale."

"Deserve what?"

I open my mouth to tell him, but can't. Instead I feebly utter, "Life."

Dale's face drops with a compassionate frown. I close my eyes against it.

"I don't know what you think you've done to have the right to talk like that, but whether you like it or not, I'm finding you."

He slowly turns back towards Adam's house and keeps walking.

My story rests on the end my tongue, but I can't make myself tell it. Dropping my head, I follow Dale the last few steps of the track and come to rest outside the Hutton's garage.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

I morosely gaze at the wooden structure. I almost don't want to know what's inside. The feeling in my gut is pulsing with strength. What if it's true? Will it crush Dale completely?

I reach for his hand and try to squeeze it, but he moves away before I can. Placing his hands on the high window ledge, he pulls himself up to look in the window, but can't quite see.

"Anything?"

He drops down with a huff.

"No, there's a sheet blocking the window." He musses his curls and flicks them out of his face.

I follow him around to the back door, which he tries to yank open. The door bangs back and forth against a barrier.

"There must be a bolt across the door."

We walk around to the front and he tries lifting the garage door, but it's useless.

"There's no way in. We should just go. There's probably no car in there anyway."

"Then why is there a sheet covering the window?" Dale curses softly and shakes his head. His body goes still and he looks at me. "You could go through the wall."

"What?" I step away from him. "No way!"

"Nicole. You have to."

"No, I don't!" My breaths quicken as I pace around him, knowing he's right. "You want me to put my face through a wall."

"Of course I don't want you to, but I can't see any other way. You've walked through other stuff."

"This is different!"

"How?"

"It's like a thick building wall, not some thin partition or piece of glass. What if I get stuck in the middle!"

Dale shoots me a pitiful frown. "You won't get stuck."

"Yeah, because I'm not doing it."

"Then you have just wasted our morning." He throw his hands up. "I'm not willing to accuse my friend without proof."

"I can't do it."

"Yes you can."

"No, I really can't."

"Nicole. Get your ass through that wall. Do it!"

I step back and cross my arms, firing some pretty decent eye bolts at him. He's looking straight at me, man I wish he could see them.

"For the record," I say quietly as I step towards the garage. "I really don't like you."

"For the record, I really don't care."

"Liar," we both say in unison before breaking into broad smiles.