drawer of her dresser. It hurts, it hurts, it hurts. And the pain had to stop. It just had to. She finally found it.
She sat down on the bed, raised her blue jean shorts up several inches, and made a small cut across the top of her thigh. The blood oozed, and relief washed over her like a cleansing balm to her soul. She stood, then sliced herself again, deeper this time, drawing a line of blood several inches long. Thank you, thank you. Relief. No more thoughts of Tristan. No more regrets. Just relief. She closed her eyes as she stood in the middle of her room, blood dripping down her leg and splashing onto the hardwood floor. She was going to enjoy the moment. One more cut . . . She closed her eyes, breathed deeply.
Less than a minute later, her bedroom door opened, and she locked eyes with Chad. Adrenaline shot through her body like a speeding bullet, her heart beating so hard her chest hurt. Why didn’t I take the time to lock my door?
“Grace! What are you doing? You’re bleeding! What are you doing with that knife?” Chad moved closer to her, his eyes dark and accusing.
Grace froze, her face and ears burning, her body breaking out into a sweat. She’d already lied to her parents about the scars on her arms, telling them she’d had a run-in with a barbwire fence. No lie could fix this.
“Please don’t tell,” she pleaded. “Please, Chad.”
Chad pulled the knife from her hand and wrapped his arms around her as she sobbed.
“Gracie, what have you done? What’s going on?”
Chapter Eleven
It went against Chad’s better judgment—which, he admitted, wasn’t always the best—to keep Grace’s secret, and the only reason he’d agreed was because his sister said she’d never done anything like it before and now knew it was stupid. It had been the result of a phone call from Tristan. If I could get my hands on that guy . . .
Tristan was a scumbag who’d tried to sleep with any girl he could in Houston, and Chad had never wanted Grace around him. She was way better than Tristan, but Grace had been madly in love with him, so he could understand—sort of—why she went all nuts. But cutting herself? That was crazy, and Chad didn’t get it. But he’d been through his own stuff, so who was he to judge? He figured the best he could do was be there for Grace.
Later that evening, he talked to Cindy about it.
“Man, I’m just really worried about her.”
Cindy sat down beside him on his bed. Chad was still surprised that his parents allowed her in his bedroom, but Cindy was the epitome of the perfect high school girl, the one every parent hoped their son would date. Beautiful, classy, straight As, polite, and involved in every civic function available. Right. Cindy sipped from a McDonald’s cup that had more in it than Diet Coke.
“Here, want some?” She pushed the paper cup in his direction, and he had to admit, the rum and Coke tasted good. “Yeah, I’d be worried about Grace too. I mean, I’ve heard of girls doing that, and it’s crazy.” She took the cup back and took a swallow.
Even though Chad thought Grace’s behavior was a little nuts, he didn’t like hearing Cindy say it. “Well, she said she’s not going to do it again.”
Cindy shrugged. “Ya never know. I’ve also heard about girls who go to cutting parties. They have a few drinks and everyone cuts. It’s supposed to be like a high or something.”
Chad recalled the way Grace was crying—so hard that she couldn’t breathe. His sister hadn’t cut herself as recreation. She was devastated. “No, it’s not like that with Grace. She was super upset.”
“Well, I hope no one finds out about this . . .” Cindy cringed. “She’d be ruined in this small town.”
Something about Cindy’s tone left Chad uneasy. “Well, don’t tell anyone then.”
Cindy sipped on her drink, shrugged again, and didn’t look at him.
“Cindy, did you hear me? I told you this in confidence. Don’t tell anyone about Grace.”
“I won’t, but things like this tend to get out.” She flung her hair over her shoulder, the hint of a smile on her face.
Cindy didn’t seem so beautiful in his eyes anymore. “It’s late. I should take you home.”
“It’s not late. It’s only seven o’clock.” Cindy pushed her lips out in a pout, something he used to think was cute. “Oh, I