Page 78 of Crash into me
Foster holds my hand as we walk through the space, water reflections dancing on his statuesque cheekbones. He really is beautiful.
“I want to swim with the sharks!” Sophie shouts, gesturing to their tank.
I shake my head. “No way.” I can’t help but pull her back from the glass, worried one will attack it and jump into the room with us.
I have a fear of them, okay?
“How about we go pet the cute little penguins?” I offer.
She shakes her head. “Shark feeding.” She nods, looking at a sign and grabbing my hand. “Hurry!”
I groan, looking at Foster who has now realized one of my fears. “Let’s go, shark bait.” He grins.
While they’re terrifying, I do have to admit Sophie’s fascination with the sharp toothed monsters is pretty adorable. Her eyes light up as the staff tells us facts and feeds them right in front of us.
All in all, I think we made it a successful Sophie day. We’ve been out all day, and I don’t know who needed the distraction more. We left for the aquarium this morning, and now it’s nearly eight at night.
Foster has run us around the world and made a lot of memories that are starting to worry me. Is he nervous he won’t be able to do this with her again?
After we left the fish, we went to have lunch at a fancy little Italian place where we told them it was Soph’s birthday, and they brought her free cake. Then, we went for ice cream and to a park. Every single time she mentioned she was tired, Foster would think of a more fun place to go and buy her something with sugar.
Now, it’s dark out as we climb into Foster’s Chevelle to drop her off. Sophie smacks her hands on her knees. “Today was perfect!”
I look to Foster and take his hand in mine. “It really was.”
Peeking my head back after a few moments, I see Sophie already snoozing. We drop her off at Rita’s, making sure to take a ridiculously long way around in case we were being followed. Then, Foster takes me towards the dorms.
He leans over the seat. “I know you want to go, but this is one time where I’m putting my foot down.”
The warning from The Keeper is a petrifying reminder of our reality. This is fear like nothing I’ve ever experienced, and he’s walking straight into it. “You have to let me help.”
“I have. You’ve been racing,” Foster reminds me.
“Oh, shit!” I stare at the black screen. “My phones dead. Can I use yours?”
“Here.” He hands it over, and I send a quick call to Rita to make sure they’re all okay. Everyone besides me and Foster are under the assumption that black mold plagues the house, and we’re going to keep it that way. Foster’s staring forward, concentrating on the road, a voided glare radiating from his midnight eyes. Once I hang up, I slide his phone into my pocket.
“I really don’t want you to go,” I admit, turning to Foster.
He shrugs. “I don’t have a choice. I can’t allow anyone to do that.”
“I get it, but there are other ways.”
His hand flies off the steering wheel, but then he collects himself. “What other ways, Freckles?”
“I don’t know.” I’ve struggled trying to come up with one all day.
“I’m just going to talk to whoever is there. I need to get my point across.”
When we park, I place my hand on his leg. “Do you mind walking me up?” I ask.
He’s anxious, ready to go to wherever they are. I need him to calm down, just a little bit. I need to distract him. “I can’t. I’ve gotta go pick up Wes.”
“Fine.” I tighten my lips, stepping out of the car and trudging to my dorm room.
The dorm is dark, with the only light coming from the computer screen in front of Kate’s face. “Hey,” she says in between bites of popcorn.
I know what this is: her monthly visitor. Whenever Kate is going to have her period, she watches Pride and Prejudice and eats her weight in popcorn. I slide next to her bed. “Listen, in a few minutes Foster’s going to come up here for his phone. I need you to not respond, just slide it under the door.”