The Skylar Experiment : Beginnings

Chapter Twenty-Two - How To Sneak A Boy Out

THERE WAS STILL BLOOD on the floor... The food on the table... And not to mention three mutants in the house. We looked at each other, and for once Luc seemed to almost panic. I moved toward the door.

"Stay here," I whispered despite the uncertainty in my gut.

I got out of the bathroom just as Dad was taking off his jacket. The mini heart attack waiting to happen transformed into confusion as I assessed the clean floorboards, no Devin or Ben in sight, and the absence of the chair Ben had been resting on.

The snacks remained on display. I figured maybe they were tidying up while we were in the bathroom and didn't get to finish. They scurried without warning Luc.

Now, it was my job to sneak him out.

"Hey, kiddo," he greeted. His puzzled expression mirrored mine over the array of snacks. "Did you make yourself a little party mix or something?"

I snatched a brown shawl hanging on the living room chair and slid it on, hiding the scar on my arm.

"I got hungry."

"I can see that!"

He paced into the hallway, ruffling my hair in his path. I hurried to replace my ponytail.

"How was your day?" I asked, facing him.

"Productive. New guy is coming along. You? You've been going out last week and all of a sudden, you've transformed into a hermit. Everything all right at school?"

"I scored an A on my first quiz in bio."

"That's my girl." Dad peered up from his cup of water. "And your new friends? Still nice?"

"It's all fine. You don't have to worry about that."

"Listen, Riles," he said. "I don't think I realized how much time I've been leaving you alone in the house until now, seeing what you're eating... I'm starting to feel like you don't eat cooked meals."

"It's fine, really..."

"I'm going to try coming home earlier, I promise. I'm really sorry. And you should have told me about this."

Half of me was glad to hear him say that even if I could cook basics for myself, the other half couldn't stop thinking of a way to get Luc out of the bathroom. He must be on the verge of kicking the door down.

Dad set his cup on the counter and walked toward the bathroom. I jumped, blocking the door with my arms spread out.

"What are you doing?"

His nose crinkled. "Going to the bathroom, what are you doing?"

"You can't," I blurted out, sweat gathering in my palms.

"What?"

" I just washed it. Completely. With bleach and all. It's not dry yet."

My dad gazed incredulously. "I just need to wash my hands, Suzy Homemaker. And since when do you do bathroom chores?"

Oh, my God, what do I do next?

"I told you it's wet. That includes the handles, so you're going to have to take the one in the basement," I said, mentally crossing my fingers he would let this go.

"You're acting weirder than usual, kid," he said. "I'll be going downstairs."

I threw my head back against the door in relief as he went down the staircase, and I waited almost a full minute before swinging it open. Luc gave the kitchen a circular glance and passed me a clean towel crunched into a ball.

"I put the dirty one inside so you can hide it somewhere until you can wash it," he said, and over his shoulder, the sink was spotless. "Now's my cue?"

I nodded, dropping the bundle in the laundry basket and noting to myself to do the laundry tonight before Dad beat me to it. I walked Luc to the entrance, then stopped him halfway.

"If Devin and Ben left, then who's watching the house?" I asked, thinking it was almost a miracle my father could make it out of the driveway without being attacked.

"I'll stick around until someone replaces me," he told me. "And uh... thanks for Ben."

"Weren't you the one that healed him?"

He shrugged one shoulder. "You let him inside and did all the rest."

I shook my head. This wasn't important to debate at the moment. "Whatever, just go!"

"Riles?" Dad called while coming up. "I know it's late, but are you still hungry? 'Cause I can make some proper spaghetti bolognese if..." He slowed at the landing as his voice trailed off, and I knew the unthinkable was happening. "Who's this?"

✩

Tum tum TUM!

How do you think Dad is going to react in the next chapter? Is Riley going to succeed at covering for Luc? 

Find out tomorrow 😝