Page 89 of No Need to Run

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Violet: Sweet dreams.

I set my phone down and close my eyes.

Big mistake.

She’s even harder to forget in the dark.

I feel her soft, warm lips beneath mine all over again. Only this time, our hands roam. The fire burns hotter, consuming me.

I dip my hand beneath her purple sweater and?—

Crash.

My eyes fly open.

I exhale sharply, sit up, and turn on my lamp. Broken glass glitters in the yellow light spilling from it.

A pair of yellowish-green eyes lock with mine.

Mr. Pickles sits on my desk, looking unbearably pleased with himself.

“Yeah. No,” I mutter to myself. “We’re not doing this.”

His ears twitch, and his tail flicks once.

I slide my feet into a pair of slippers and stand. “You made a mess.”

Mr. Pickles just stares at me, defiant.

Then his head turns toward my window, then back to me. “Meow.”

“No. You’re not going outside.”

His tail thumps. He looks angrier.

“Oh, I get it. You’re mad Violet left.” I crouch down, picking up the pieces and throwing them in the trash.

“Meow.”

Judging by his expression, that’s exactly what he means.

“She had to go home.”

His ears flatten against his head.

“I don’t make the rules.”

“Meow.”

His tail thumps harder like he doesn’t believe me.

“I can’t bring her back here.”

I check the floor once more to make sure I got all the pieces, then stand, facing my brother’s bratty cat.

“And I’m not calling her.”

Mr. Pickles jumps onto my nightstand.

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