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H o l l o w s I n
T I M E
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Jameson couldn't take his eyes off me. I knew what he was thinking. Somehow. Even though I thought he ripped himself away from me, the tears in our fabric are tainted with what we once knew. But I didn't love him. And he, evidently, didn't love me. I've never seen an angel blessed with a satanic sheen.

"Sky," He was already done before he started. "What are you thinking?" He tried to keep the storm out of his voice, but it was already raining when we had reconnected.

Silence followed. I stared at him. He stared back.

"Are you trying to lose weight?" Jameson's face was contorted with some sort of pain. You show what you want to hide. And you hide what you need to show.

"Sky," Every time he said my name, something in my stomach shifted. Like a broken guitar string. He took a step forward.

"You don't need to lose any weight." He told me. I knew this. Of course I did. "You need to put on the weight." He continued. And there it was. What I thought I saw was impossible. A flash of concern. Then—gone.

Or was it?

"You don't need to be beautiful by body," I stared. "Because you're beautiful by mind." I blinked. "And heart." Ah, heart. Something he wished he owned.

"I'm not trying to lose weight." I deflected. Jameson didn't show any signs of disagreement, or agreement.

"Good. Because you don't need to. You'll always be beautiful to me. But not when you're in pain." Somehow, that didn't really flatter me.

I scoffed. "So you think that I'm ugly because I went through something catastrophic, because I'm scarred now. Sorry, did I ruin your fifteen year old daydream?" I quipped, tongue as sharp as a knife.

Jameson opened his mouth to talk, a frown between his brows. But I interrupted him.

"Well, that's your own fault. Should've tried harder to save her." I snapped, emotionless and heated in our argument.

I spun around dramatically, half expecting my hair to whirl around with me. Then I remembered—I cut it. It still waved in the wind, but it wasn't the same.

I shook it off and plucked my phone from the bed sheets, turning it on to be bombarded by texts from the girls. Whilst I was gone, my phone still received texts from the girls, and so, whilst I read about what they did in the year without me, we texted over a separate group chat—one with Bria in it.

'Yeah meet in twenty'

'Saph we agreed in ten'

'Sandwich can't count'

'Bria, you coming?'

There was a pause in my notifications. I looked over to my wall, wondering what was happening behind the thick bricks of privacy.

'Is Skyie cominggggg'

I read Cassie's message and bit my nail. Did they make plans without me?

'I'm not sure'

Neither was I. Then I heard the floorboards creak. Jameson was still in my presence. And I couldn't bare to be even five feet away from him right now.

So I swallowed any regrets and sent a text.

'Where are you going?'

'Just some dinner on the rooftop aye'

I frowned at Saph's response. Bria still hadn't said anything. Then I received two texts at the same time.

'Sandwich you're annoying'

'Sky, we're just having a girls night with some films and dinner, not on the rooftop'

'Okay' I responded. Then added. 'Where are you meeting? When?' Bria was still silent.

'We're meeting in the lunch hall once Mel picks up the pizza, in around ten minutes or more'

I briefly knew that 'Mel' was Avery's Guardian, I just didn't know if her first name was Amelia, or Melanie, or Melrose, or some other name I hadn't thought of.

'Yeah we want to see the end of summer fireworks toooo'

'Try not to throw one at someone this time Cass'

'That wasn't me, it was FELICIA'

I ignored the messages that keep streaming through as I gnawed on my lip, looking over to my cupboard to think of a suitable outfit. The weather outside was cooling down, but it was still mildly warm. I didn't want to get hot. But I also didn't want to show too much skin—too much bone.

I threw the cupboard doors open and began my search. I found a floor length, thin, beige coloured dress. I locked myself into the bathroom to change.

Once clothed, I stared at myself in the mirror. The low cut revealed my currently non-existent boobs. So I floated out of the bathroom and sifted through my drawers—then I found a push-up bra.

Once it was on, I looked slightly more healthy. My collarbone stuck out like a sore thumb, and my wrist bones peeked out of the long sleeves. There was a slit in the dress going up to my legs, but they didn't look disgusting, not like they would in tight jeans. The tie around the dress cinched in my already small waist. The dress, overall, gave the impression that I had the most gorgeous figure, when I knew that, really, underneath, I was a stack of bones attached in the wrong order.

I unlocked the bathroom door. The door between Jameson's room and mine was wide open, and he was standing there, like he had been doing recently since I had returned.

I pulled on some pumps, and decorated my bare neck with necklaces. My phone buzzed profusely as I spritzed myself with one of my old perfumes. The bottle was hidden behind the bin on my floor, and had maybe been knocked off my vanity.

I picked up my phone and composed a text.

'I'm coming' I sent as I picked up my brush and shaped my fresh head of hair until I was satisfied with how it looked. A text came through immediately after I sent mine and I picked up my phone to check it, but then Jameson shifted, walking into my room.

"Going somewhere?" He raised his eyebrow at me, his eyes trailing over my frame, soaking in my body in my new attire.

I looked away. "Just with the girls."

"To the fireworks?" My head rose and I eyed him suspiciously.

Jameson shifted under my gaze. "Because you need a ticket." He told me. My stomach sank. Oh.

"And I think they're sold out." Jameson kept adding salt to my wound. He was always adding salt to my wounds. I sighed, placing my phone down onto the surface of my vanity, taking my eyes off Jameson.

"I have one." He spoke up suddenly and I frowned, turning to see him fish through his jean pocket until he produced a small strip of paper, holding it out in his palm to me.

"Here." He offered. I stared at it. "I booked to go ages ago, but I'm not interested anymore." He explained, keeping his palm upright, the ticket lain in the centre.

"You're not coming?" I asked, bewildered that he was setting me free with just one small strip of paper.

He shrugged. "Not unless you want me to," I saw the truth in his eyes. He wanted me to want him to come. "Even if I did I'd just be sitting inside, since I wouldn't have a ticket." He brushed it all off so easily, making me wonder if there was some ulterior motive.

I reached over the distance between us, going in for the ticket. My fingers brushed the surface of his skin and I watched as his thumb twitched. But I couldn't grasp the ticket without placing my palm in Jameson hand; I'd have to brush it off his hand. Somehow, I knew that Jameson had done this intentionally, but I didn't say anything. Our palms met and daggers sliced up and down my skin at the touch.

I jerked away once I had the ticket. Jameson didn't move.

I picked my phone up from the vanity and brushed past him to pick up a small shoulder bag from where it hung on the door. I put my ticket into my bag, securing it with the zip.

Everything was still for a moment. Everything was silent for a moment.

I looked up to see Jameson already looking over at me. With my hand on the door handle, I moved locks of my blonde hair from out of my face.

He watched as I performed the small movement. Then, after his eyes had trailed over my head of hair, his eyes looked into mine. He was a good distance away from me.

I twisted the door handle. "Thank you." Was the last thing I said before I left. Why did I thank him? Was a ticket really worth my gratitude? Stupid 'big heart'. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

I finally checked my phone, scrolling down to finally read the text that I had received after confirming I was coming.

It was from Bria.

'I'm coming'

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A bit fishy if you ask me

This damn can of tuna

Can I have that can

-cannot

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Next update: Wednesday
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CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE SPOILER:

Staying in the present, we follow Sky as she meets up with her friends for some good ol' times.

But does our newest member of the squad stir up any more suspicion?

And will the immense loads of humour distract you from seeing small hints into future plots?

We will see.