The next morning, Darcy woke up to the smell of aftershave, musky cologne, and cigarette smoke. Her eyes flashed open. Did she bring Billy home last night?
Darcy sat up straight on the couch, Billy's leather jacket pooling in her lap. She scanned her living room, her kitchen, and her dining room, but there was no sign that Billy had stayed over. She sighed, running her fingers through her messy curls.
Cold hands. Hot water. Flickering lights...then what else? How had Billy brought her home last night? She stood up from the couch, stretching before moving over to the telephone. She flipped through the Hawkin's telephone directory and scanned the pages until she found the Hargroves. She dialed their home number, her fingers nervously toying with the telephone cord as she waited for someone to pick up.
A young teenage girl's voice answered the phone—his sister maybe. Hopefully. "Hello?"
Darcy cleared her throat. "Hi, um, is this the Hargroves?"
"Yeah?"
"Is, um, Billy there right now? Is he okay?"
"He's at his lifeguarding job right now. If you want to leave a message, just tell him yourself."
Darcy glanced at the clock. It was already 10:37 in the morning. "Oh. I just have something of his to drop off, and I don't want to interrupt him at work. Could I just swing by and leave it over there?"
There was a moment of hesitation before the girl answered. "I guess. See you in a bit."
Darcy arrived at the Hargroves' house sixteen minutes later, Billy's leather jacket in her hands. So what if she had worn it the entire drive over just one last time? It was perfectly oversized, and it was real leather, not that faux crap. She straightened herself and rang the doorbell, expecting one of his parents to answer. Instead, a short girl with long red hair and a splash of freckles answered the door. Her eyes widened in surprise at the sight of Darcy. "Can I help you?"
"Here." Darcy handed the girl Billy's leather jacket. "Could you please tell him I dropped it off when he gets back?"
The red-haired girl swallowed, taking Billy's jacket from Darcy's hands. "Is-Is that all?"
Darcy raised a brow. "Yeah. I don't think he left any more of his belongings with me."
Behind the red-haired girl, a girl about the same age with short brown hair stood a little ways away in the house, watching Darcy with a curious expression. Another one of Billy's sisters? He didn't mention any siblings during their dinner at Dell'Amante. Darcy turned back to the red-haired girl.
"I should probably get going. Tell him I said thank you for our date and that I stopped by." Without waiting for a response, Darcy turned on her heel and left, a fuzzy feeling in her head beginning to form.
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Max shut the door behind her after Darcy climbed into her car and pulled out of the driveway. She leaned against the door while taking a few deep breaths. "Do you think she knows? About us searching her house?"
El shook her head. "No. She doesn't know at all. But she doesn't remember most of her date with Billy."
Max's brows furrowed in thought. "What do you mean? Do you think she took someone else?"
El shook her head again. "No. She doesn't know what she's keeping."
