Please don't be in, please don't be in, please don't be in – fuck.
I swear my heart literally stops beating for a second or two as the brown wooden door of the Coleman residence swings in to reveal Lucas standing on the other side. For once he doesn't look confused to see me at his house, although he doesn't look entirely happy either. More... resigned? I don't know. He doesn't smile and neither do I, still creeped out from the bowling alley earlier. The way this guy lurks is just so unnerving.
Why were you staring at me?
I want to ask him but have nowhere near enough courage so, instead, I wait for him to talk first.
He sighs eventually, opening the door further for me. "Living room," is all he says before walking off. He heads for the kitchen and I awkwardly step into the house, closing the door behind me.
"Okay, then," I mutter to myself, glancing at the surrounding closed doors and playing the fun game of guess-the-right-one. I opt for the one with the most noise coming from behind it, hearing the muffled sound of a TV. I hesitate for a second or two before taking a deep breath and pushing the door open.
As it turns out, it's the right choice.
I briefly glance around at the cream walls and fairly modern décor before reining my focus in on the five people in the room. Bailey and Alex lie sprawled out on the brown carpet, a pillow under each of their heads as they stare up at Freddy Krueger's burnt face on screen. From the looks of it they're on Dream Child, so they've only managed five out of the nine films. Still, binging five films in a day is pretty hard-core.
The last bit of worry eases in my chest when I see Bailey, happy and healthy as she digs into a bowl of popcorn between her and Alex. She hasn't even noticed me yet.
Bradley and Andrew occupy one of the two grey sofas, also watching the film, and Finn takes the second all for himself, propped on his side as he too watches the screen.
"Hey," Finn grins when he notices me first. The others all look at me as well, Bailey frowning when she sees me stood in the doorway. She pulls her phone out of her pocket to check the time.
"Damn," she mutters when she sees it's getting late, only an hour away from dusk. I've only just finished my date with Dylan, not realising how long we'd been out for. We headed to the park after leaving the bowling alley, just sat chatting like old times until I realised the time. He offered to walk me home but I made my excuses and left, knowing I had to come here and pick Bailey up first.
"Hey," I reply to Finn before looking back at Bailey. "You almost ready?"
"There's only, like, ten minutes left to this film," she replies and I roll my eyes a little.
Having seen the film myself, I'm aware that those ten minutes are actually closer to half an hour. I figure it can't hurt, though, seeing as they are genuinely just having an Elm Street marathon. A part of me has been secretly wondering all day.
Finn scoots slightly to make some room for me to sit and I plonk my ass down on the sofa. His knee knocks mine lightly as he stands up.
"I'm getting a coke," he announces to no one in particular. "You want anything, Jade?"
In all honesty, I am kind of thirsty, and since he's offered...
"A glass of water, please."
"Sure. Bailey?"
"I'm good," she waves his offer off and reaches for more popcorn.
"I'll have a coke," Bradley says and Finn smacks the back of his head as he walks past.
YOU ARE READING
Knife's Edge
Teen FictionWith a drug lord for a father and an addict for a mother, Jade Taylor has been dealt a pretty shabby hand in life. Her childhood was spent in a constant state of fear, her only solace being her two half-sisters, Charlotte and Bailey, who were forced...
