An unfamiliar panic rises in my throat as I replay the evening.
“Do you mean Derrick?”
He stares at me, face contorting, almost unrecognizable in anger.
“That’s Richie’s son! Your friend. I was making conversation. There was no one else to talk to. Plus, you were busy.”
“Don’t give me your bullshit excuses!”
“But I didn’t do anything. I was just—”
“Shut up!” he roars. “All I asked is for you to be faithful to me, and you do me like this!”
His voice pounds against the walls and I back away, my head spinning. I don’t know what to say except, “I’m sorry.”
“I said stop with the excuses,” he screams in my face, nostrils flaring.
I yelp, falling back onto the carpet, and burst into tears.
Korey shakes his head. “You need to stay in your room. Don’t come out until I tell you.”
Is he grounding me, like a child? “What you mean? I—”
“You leave this room . . . I’m going to make you regret it!”
The depth of his voice stuns me to silence. He storms out, slamming the door shut.
By noon, I’m pacing, the door calling my name.
I have to go to the bathroom.
Korey told me not to leave the room.
But still . . . I have to go to the bathroom.
I’ve been in here for over twelve hours. My mouth is dry. The hot sun and giant windows have turned this room into a sauna.
My cell is dead, and the charger is in the living room. Mom is probably wondering where I’m at. What if she calls Jessica? What will she say?
But still . . . bathroom.
I pace around in a circle, wondering how long. How long he’ll keep me in here, how long he’ll be mad at me, how long I can hold my piss.
Jessica opens the door, takes one look at me, and smirks.
“Your mom called. Want to talk to her?”
I pace in place, staring past her, feeling the cool breeze from the air-conditioning sweep in.
“Is . . . is that OK?” I say, my voice scratchy from sobbing.
“I don’t know. Did you ask him?”
“How do I ask him?”
“How did he say to ask him?”
I pace again. “Jessica, I really need to use the bathroom. But Korey said I can’t leave.”
Jessica rolls her eyes and walks off. She returns with an empty ice bucket, placing it on the floor.
“Here you go. Have fun.”
Sixteen hours.
That’s how long I’ve been in this room. In this outfit. With no food or water. I’m sweating. Hungry. Thirsty. Dizzy. And the half-filled ice bucket in the corner makes me want to vomit.
I met another Korey last night. That’s the only explanation for it. He must turn into a different person when he drinks, like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. I’ve heard of people blacking out while drunk. He’s going to wake up and not remember a thing that happened. He’ll be so apologetic, begging for my forgiveness . . .
Or maybe he had a point. Maybe I shouldn’t have been talking to Derrick. Girlfriends aren’t supposed to make their boyfriends jealous.
But boyfriends shouldn’t lock their girlfriends up like prisoners.
I grip my dead phone. I don’t want to call Mom. Don’t want to hear the I-told-you-so speech. Plus, I can’t keep calling her whenever I have a problem. She’ll keep treating me like a baby, and if I want freedom, I have to work this out on my own.
The door clicks open. Korey stands at the threshold and gives me a once-over. I jump to my feet, heart pounding. Who am I meeting today?
“Get dressed. We’re going for a ride.”
The moment I leave the room, I rush into the bathroom to drain my bladder then drink three bottles of water. Jessica is sitting on the sofa, watching Keeping Up with the Kardashians. She doesn’t turn in my direction. I refuse to acknowledge her either as I carry the ice bucket into the bathroom.
After a shower, feeling brand-new, I glare at Melissa, ready to flush her down the toilet. But maybe it’ll make him happy.
“Ready?” Korey says as I emerge from the bathroom. He stands by the door, smiling. The familiar smile I know. My back muscles loosen.
“Where are we going?”
“I’ve got a surprise for you.”
Chapter 37
Where Fairy Tales End
The LA sunset creates a beautiful pink-and-baby-blue sky, dotted with palm trees. I sit passenger side as Korey zooms down the highway.
“Where are we going?” I ask again.
Korey glances in the rearview and sighs.
“You know . . . you ask a lot of questions. It makes me feel like you don’t trust me.” He glances at me, his voice deadpan. “So? Do you trust me?”
I nod my head like a faithful puppy. “Yes! Yes, you know I do!”
“Then quit all that talking. Enjoy the ride.”
I lean back in my seat as that strange gnawing in my stomach returns, a mixture of fear, hope, and love.
Ten minutes later we pass a sign that makes me shoot up and gasp.
“OMG! Disneyland!”
He smirks. “Told you I’d bring you here one day.”
Korey wears his sunglasses and hoodie to the most magical place on earth. On a Monday evening, with the park near empty, it’s the perfect time to be incognito on Splash Mountain.
Even though I’m at the most magical place on earth, with my dream man, living my dream job, an ache inside me longs for the Littles. I thought my first time at Disney would be with them.
But still, being two kids in a massive playground had its perks. Korey was himself again, and I forced the images of last night out of my mind. Couples fight, then they make up. Mom and Daddy fight. Gab and Jay used to fight all the time.
We walk to a bench, with the perfect angle of the castle, holding a large cotton candy tube, bushes concealing us.
“I haven’t been here in . . . years,” Korey says, a dizzy smile on his face, and wraps an arm around my waist. “Thank you. For reminding me what it’s like to be a kid again.”
There’s a sadness in his eyes that quickly flutters away. A shot of red then blue burst in the sky. Disney is famous for its evening fireworks show.
Korey grabs my hand and pulls me near the water’s edge. He cups my face with both hands, staring down at me, but I can only see myself in the reflection of his glasses.
Or a version of myself, with Melissa on my head.
Slowly, he bends, lays one long kiss on my lips. Even as it happens, I can’t believe it’s real.
Rockets scream around us, but nothing could match the burst of my heart.
As the park closes, we walk into a gift shop. Still on a high, I float over to the Little Mermaid section, picking toy action figures of Ariel and her father. I think of Daddy and smile.
Korey picks up a large stuffed Flounder.
“Yeah, this is perfect,” he mumbles, and takes it to the register.
“Did you have fun today?”
“Mmhmm,” I nod with a yawn, hugging Flounder tight to my chest. “It was the best. Thank you!”
Korey follows me into my room, and I set Flounder on the desk. A reminder of this perfect day.
“Well, good night,” I sigh. “See you—”