Alice in Wonderland

Chapter 24

Chapter 24

"Lily?"

I open my eyes, but everything's completely black. I blink my eyes incase it's just my eyes not adjusting, but the darkness doesn't go away. I try to sit up since I'm lying across a hard surface, but my whole body aches like I slept on a bed of bricks.

Light floods me and suddenly I come to my senses. I sit up quickly, ignoring the pains in my body. I can see a figure standing in the doorway, but the light is too bright and I'm too scared to look. I back up into the corner and try to make myself as small as possible.

"What are you doing?" someone asks and I can hear their footsteps coming closer. I shrink away, trying to remember how I came to be hiding in a closet.

"Lily, it's me," someone says, but I can barely hear them over my crying. Why am I crying? My heart is trying to break free from the cage of my ribs and I don't understand why I'm so scared. What is going on? "Look at me."

I don't want to confront whatever's scaring me, but my body looks up without my consent. I blink to adjust to the lack of light and see Josh's face waiting for me to remember where I am. I look around at the walk-in closet, still not completely sure why I'm in here or how I fell asleep. My muscles slowly relax as Josh sighs heavily.

"You all good?" Josh asks and I numbly nod my head. I'm still trying to recall how I got in here, but it doesn't really matter. I'm not at home with my parents, cowering in the closet for whatever reason they convinced me was normal. I'm safe. I don't need to hide.

"Definitely not your brightest idea," Josh stands and offers me a hand and I hesitantly take it. He pulls me to my feet and I fall into him trying to regain control of my muscles. "But befriending Tracy still tops it."

He exits the closet first as I stumble behind him, blinded by the natural light inside my room. Josh is right, hiding in my closet after everything I've been through was not smart. I still expect my parents to pop out of nowhere and drag me away.

"We're leaving for the beach in an hour," Josh informs me, opening my bedroom door. Before he steps out he turns and looks me over. "You sure you're good?"

"Yeah," I mumble. He sighs again and leaves, closing my door behind him. I look around my room, trying to gather my thoughts properly. I guess I have to get ready to leave.

I complete my normal routine in the bathroom, spending far too long under the hot water. I remember my fight with Kyle yesterday, but I don't really know what it means. Did we break up? Did he even try to talk to me after I left his room last night?

I check my phone to see if he texted or called me last night since I locked my door, but there's nothing. A thought pops in my head and I freeze when I realize Josh somehow got through my locked door. Did he break into my room?

The door doesn't look broken, so I ignore the problem. I'm too tired to worry about Josh breaking into my room just to wake me up. I wonder what he thought of me when he saw me cowering in my closet like an idiot. He didn't really seem fazed by it, but he's also very good at covering up his feelings.

I finish getting ready and pack a couple of things I might need in a bag I found in my closet. I put on a bikini under my clothes, but I'm not sure if I'll strut around in it when we get there. If no one says anything I'll just leave my clothes on because I barely feel comfortable wearing shorts and a tank top. I don't think I can walk around in front of strangers wearing the equivalent to underwear.

I want to be excited for the beach, since it was my idea after all, but my fight with Kyle take's over my mind. I wish I did something to fix everything because I hate not knowing what this all means now. He didn't say he wanted to break up with me, but he seemed pretty upset last night. Even after telling me how he felt, he was still upset.