Page 88 of Juliet's Echo

"When you get home," I yelled after her, "ask Echo about ole slutty Shannon. I heard he knew her really well."

Juliet never looked back.

Mega stared at me like I’d set the entire city on fire, and for the first time since this encounter started, I felt something other than inadequacy.

Because deep down, I knew I took it too far. There was no coming back from what I’d just done.

Juliet

By the time I made it to my vehicle, breathing felt optional. My chest rose and fell too fast, the parking lot blurring around me. If I hadn't made it to the driver's-side door, I probably would've collapsed right there on the pavement.

Yahya and Mega were right behind me, calling my name. Fear escaped with every attempt to get my attention. It wasn't enough to make me want to stop trying to get away because I was scared too. Scared of what I might see on their faces. Scared of what they were about to say.

Using the driver's-side door to steady myself, I spun around and faced Mega so fast he took a step back.

“What the fuck is she talking about?” I signed.

My movements were sharp, aggressive, and angry. My hands shook so badly I was sure I wasn't communicating clearly. But he got the picture.

“Ju,” Mega started.

“No!”

I signed the word so hard that pain shot through my wrist. My vision seemed to be worsening by the second, and I needed to hear his explanation.

“Talk. Use your voice.”

“Look, Ju, I'm not saying what Ava said is true, but—”

Before he could finish, both hands flew to my ears.

The pain that traveled through them was so violent and sharp that I immediately removed my hearing aids and stuffed them into my pockets. The world dulled a little after that. Not completely, but enough to take the edge off.

That word.

But.

The one word capable of ruining an apology and poisoning the sweetest compliment. That word was a nice-nasty objective. A warning label. A soft launch into devastation. And my heart knew that whatever came after my friend using it was going to kill me right here in this parking lot.

Tears rushed forward and spilled down my face. I felt them, but refused to believe I was crying. Crying made emotions real. It made situations real.

And this shit wasn't real.

It couldn't be.

The ground tilted beneath my feet.

No.

No.

No.

Not here.

Not now.

Wrapping my arms around myself, I began shaking my head. The last thing I needed was another episode. Somebody needed to throw a thick blanket over this reality and smother it.