Beautiful Dangerous Love- Teen Sampler by Alicia Kat Dillman

  ***

  Since I’d first seen Tracy, it was like the rest of her family was stalking me. I’d seen her sisters and her former boyfriend more in the past two days than ever before. Or maybe I was just more aware of them. They all had the same hollow, haunted look in their eyes. Everyone had seen them on television, pleading for information about who had hit Tracy. It had been all over the local news for weeks, but had faded gradually into the background. Their parents had scraped together enough money for a small reward, but it hadn’t enticed anyone to come forward.

  I wanted to reach out and tell them that Tracy was with them, and that she was in a good place. That she had come to terms with what had happened to her. I wanted to, but I couldn’t. Even though Beth was also a senior, I had had practically zero contact with her. Missy was a freshman, and we had art together, but that was the extent of it. I figured I’d start with Missy.

  That afternoon, I threw caution to the wind. Tracy had been hanging out with me for the past hour, so I was feeling the pressure. Not that she said or did anything, but her presence was like a flashing neon sign.

  “Hi,” I said to Missy as we both cleaned our brushes at the sink in the art room.

  “Hi,” she said, looking down. One of her brushes fell on the floor and I bent to pick it up.

  “Thanks,” she said as I handed it back. It was the perfect conversation opening. I wanted to ask Tracy to give me some sort of tip, but she was silent, standing next to Missy and looking at her in a way that made my chest ache.

  “You’re welcome. I know this is going to sound weird, and you’ve probably been asked a hundred times, but how are you doing?” She looked up at me, stunned. Her brown eyes were wide, and I could see she had Tracy’s nose.

  “How do you think?” she snapped, then blushed and went back to the sink.

  I joined her again. “Yeah, I figured. I know you don’t know me, but if you ever want to talk about it, I’m a pretty good listener.” Instead of sounding concerned and comforting, I sounded like a creeper.

  Missy coughed and shook the water off the paintbrushes. “Um, thanks. I need to get to class,” she said, throwing her brushes in the jar and grabbing her bag. She must have thought I was nuts. Tracy took her place beside me.

  You tried. She’s just really shy, that’s all. And blunt. You’re going to have more luck with Beth. Stay away from Jeremy.

  I hadn’t even tried the boyfriend yet. It would just be too awkward. So far my mission to help had been a disaster. They should have picked someone less socially awkward. Anyone but me.