Josie
"I was just joking," I said, my voice brittle and paper-thin.
The corners of my mouth curved into a stiff smile, but it didn't reach my eyes. I could feel it—how unnatural it must've looked. The words sounded like someone else's, like I'd plucked them from the air in a hurry just to cover up the panic still clinging to my skin.
Marcy didn't buy it.
She sat across from me, arms folded, eyes narrowed slightly like she was trying to look right through me. And maybe she was. "You're not joking," she said flatly. "Josie, I saw your face when Michelle walked in earlier. You were terrified. Don't tell me that was just a joke."
I opened my mouth, then shut it again.
The panic was still there, wrapped around my ribs like barbed wire.
"I—I don't know," I said finally, running a hand through my hair, trying not to let it tremble. "Everything makes me scared lately. I must've… mixed things up. It's all been so much."
