Lie to Me (A Touched Trilogy) (32 page)

“Yo, Lily? You still with me?” Phoebe waved her hand in
front of the photo.

I tried to remember what she’d been talking about, something
to do with junior prom. Something that I hadn’t even thought about yet. Maybe I
should think about it. Dylan would want to go. He always wanted to go to those
things, to be in the middle of a crowd and feel their energy. All I felt at
those things was a suffocating sense of dissatisfaction drifting from the girls
and boys who were finding that high school dances were a lot less exciting and
glamorous than movies portrayed. But Dylan would want to go.

The photo wobbled in my hand and I blinked, trying to blend
the Dylan of a year ago with the one I knew today.

“Are you and Nathan in love?” I asked, still staring at the
picture. The question just popped out. I wasn’t even sure why I bothered to
ask. I already knew the answer. Whenever she was with him it radiated off her,
once I’d even managed to transfer a bit of it.

“Yeah, I mean, I guess we are. We’ve never said it, but it’s
there, you know?” She gave one of her usual half smiles.

I wasn’t surprised by the answer. Out of the three of us,
Phoebe always seemed the least likely to exhibit any ‘girly’ emotions.
Although, since she and Nathan started dating she'd been a lot softer, even
more now that they'd gone through the whole time apart thing.

“Do you think that’s strange? Should I tell him?” she asked.

“No, not unless you really want to.” I glanced at her and
tried to smile. She rolled onto her stomach, scrunching one of my pillows under
her chest, while mussing up the comforter with her legs. Visits with Phoebe
tended to end with me having to tidy up either my room or hers.

“How did you tell Dylan?” she asked.

I looked back at the photo.

I had loved him. Once upon a time. A time that was getting
harder to remember each moment I was with him.

When we started dating in seventh grade, he had been sweet
and cute. All of the girls at school had been jealous, well except Phoebe.
Every day, he would share the dessert his mom packed in his lunch with me,
since my dad never thought about that type of thing. He’d walk me home, holding
my hand every step of the way and then stay to help me with my homework.

It was like Phoebe had said. It was there, just never said.
But now, there was nothing. I wanted to feel something for him, but he was
surrounded by pain, anger, sorrow. And nothing I did could heal him. I’d tried
so many times that now I wasn’t even sure I wanted to love him again.

“Lils! Come on, how did you tell Dylan?”

“I didn’t.”

“What?” She nearly fell off the bed when she sat up in
surprise, saving herself by grabbing the headboard and hoisting herself
upright. “You’ve been with him for, well, forever. How could you not have told
him?”

“Almost five years.” Nearly a quarter of my life.

“Whatever. Five years and you never said it? Not even once?”

I shrugged and shoved the photo back in my desk drawer.

“Do you love him?”

“Yes.” It was an automatic answer, one that I felt I should
give. Why else would I stay with him for so long? I’d loved him once, part of
me must still. Right?

“You’re lying.”

“I'm not.”

“Uh, hello? Truth Teller here.” She waved her hands,
gesturing to herself. As if I could forget that lying to Phoebe was pointless.
Since developing her gift just four months ago, she'd taken to testing pretty
much everyone. Up until now, I’d been able to avoid anything that I would want
to lie about.

“Lily, I might not like Dylan, but how could you let him
think that for years? That’s kind of messed up.”

I looked at Phoebe. She blurred, filtered through the tears
welling up in my eyes. She was right. I was messed up.

“Ah, Lils, I’m sorry…” Phoebe got up and awkwardly tried to
wrap an arm around me. I brushed her off and went to my door, holding it open
for her. She walked out into the hall and I quickly shut the door before she
could say anything else.

I flopped onto the bed, then curled into a tight ball,
making myself as small as possible. There must be some love for Dylan left
inside of me, otherwise I wouldn’t be so worried about him. But whatever there
was, vanished a little more each day. Messed up, maybe, but I didn’t want to
hurt Dylan. He was already hurting so much. How could I add to what he was dealing
with?

Knowing Phoebe’s big mouth, I probably only had a few
minutes until Chloe was at my door wanting to share her visions of my life. I
pushed off the bed and checked myself in the mirror. I was a bit paler than
usual, but at least I’d kept in the tears so my eyes wouldn’t be puffy for
hours after. Porcelain skin, Nanna always called it. More like a freckled
window to my soul.

A short knock preceded Chloe’s entrance. She looked mildly
concerned, but it was easy to be calm when you knew everything that was going
to happen.

“Hey,” she said with just a bit too much casualness in her
voice.

“Phoebe has got to be the fastest gossip in town.” I gave a
semi-smile. It wasn’t Chloe’s fault. The two of them were natural snoops. They
just didn't understand that I wasn't much into sharing. Emotions were a private
thing, and most people didn’t want everyone to know everything they felt.
“Despite what I’m sure Phoebe said, I’m fine.”

“Oh, sweetie, you and Dylan are gonna be okay.” She used her
big sister voice granted to her originally by her five minute and thirty-eight
seconds head start on life and now by a seven-inch advantage.

She gave me a more successful hug than Phoebe, and for a
moment, I truly believed what she said. Then reality checked me back in. Nothing
was going to be okay with Dylan and me, because I didn’t want it to be.

“I don’t know what crap Phoebe is feeding you, but you and
Dylan have always been perfect for each other. Just because you haven’t said it
yet, doesn’t mean you won’t.”

“Have you seen anything?” Normally I didn’t ask her about my
future. When we were little, I’d ask all the time, wanting the security of
knowing what would happen, thinking it would give me some control. It didn’t.
It only made me realize how little control I did have, and knowing things I
couldn’t change only made me feel sick. But right now, I wanted something to
hold on to. Even if I didn’t know what I wanted that to be.

“I saw you guys going to junior prom, and homecoming, and
then he'll be here at Christmas. Next year you guys will go to senior prom
together.” She smiled down at me, thinking that was what I wanted to hear. What
would she say if I told her that was the one thing I didn’t want? “Now let’s go
make pizza. Dad won his case and he’s going to want to celebrate.”

I followed her up the stairs, glad to be out of my room,
away from the photo of Dylan.

“Are you sure?” I asked just before we joined Phoebe in the
kitchen.

Chloe’s smile faded. “I saw it, Lils.”

She’d been wrong lately, though. While everyone else came
though spot on for her, Phoebe and Tonya’s futures had been a complete disaster
for Chloe to see. I could only hope she was wrong about mine, too, and I
wondered if that made me more messed up than Phoebe thought.

***Coming Spring 2013***

About the Author

Angela Fristoe grew up in Alberta, Canada. She dreamed of
becoming the next Dian Fossey or Jane Goodall, until she realized she wasn’t
all that keen on the outdoors or animals. Instead, she went into education and
focused on elementary education and helping struggling readers. Her passion for
writing grew gradually after being ignited with The Hunger Game and Twilight
crazes. Angela lives in Colorado with her husband and daughter, continuing to
teach while pursuing her writing career.

You can learn more about Angela on her
website
and her
blog
.

Acknowledgements

When I first started writing, it was a secret I shared only
with one person. My husband, Brandon. Since day one, he has encouraged,
prodded, and harassed me to keep writing, to know what my ultimate goal is, and
to be realistic. Without him keeping me grounded and focused, I probably never
would have finished a single book.

Thank you, Mum and Penny, for being my final revision
sounding board, and Dad for encouraging me to keep going.

Thanks also go to Linda Ulliseit, DelSheree Gladden, Susan
Stec, Apryl Baker, Terri Wood, Maggie Banks, Tess and all of the wonderful
authors and reviewers from TheNextBigWriter.com who have been with me since
word one.