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Caitlyn.” Eric’s soft voice was consistent with his tender touch on my arm. “Seriously, if you do ever need someone to talk to, I'm here, okay?"
    I could barely comprehend what he was saying, so I just nodded like an idiot. His smile was sweet and true as he tucked his surfboard under his arm. With a short wave, he headed back towards the ocean. Normally I would have stayed and watched his divine body hit the water, and admire the way his arms moved as he paddled out past the break. But today was not a normal day, so instead, I crossed my arms and headed home.

Chapter 6

    I crawled into bed and stayed there, refusing dinner. I kept my head under the covers when Mom came in to talk to me. She didn’t seem overly fazed. I’d had migraines before and she knew the best cure was sleep and lots of water. She brought me a big glass of ice and a pitcher of water then left me alone.
    Thank goodness! I didn’t want to see her. I didn’t want to look at her face and see her soft expression slip away to reveal something I didn’t want to know.
    I didn’t want to see people differently. I wanted things to go back to normal. Why was this happening to me?
    My plan was to spend the rest of eternity locked in my room, but unfortunately a new day dawned and brought with it a fresh wave of Stella.
    She called my cell relentlessly until I finally picked up. I should have just switched the damn thing off and was annoyed I only thought of that when I answered.
    “Caitlyn.” Her voice was crisp. “I don’t know what the hell was up with you yesterday, but you need to get out and come with me to the beach. We can sit in the sand, watch the guys try to impress us with their sporting skills and you and Chase can sort it out.”
    “I don’t want—"
    “We’re all meeting at Will Rogers Beach. See you in thirty minutes.”
    And she was gone.
    I checked my watch. 11:30 a.m. Stella time meant I had until at least 12:15. I could probably pull that off. I sat up slowly, expecting my headache to kick in the second I moved, but it didn’t. Rubbing my forehead, I blinked a few times and had the fleeting thought that yesterday must have been a nightmare, one I had now woken from.
    This made me feel better and helped me get my body moving. After a shower and a big glass of water, I bounced down the stairs. I was still a little nervous about bumping into Mom. What if she looked different?
    Pausing at the landing, I drew in a slow breath, trailing my hand along the wall as I walked towards the kitchen. She was out on the deck, her feet perched on the table, a magazine in her hands. The wind was ruffling her hair as she sipped her steaming cup of herbal tea.
    “Morning,” I mumbled, taking a seat beside her and pulling her leftover fruit towards me.
    “Hey, sweetie. How are you feeling this morning?”
    Popping a grape into my mouth, I squinted in the sunlight and nodded. “Okay.”
    She ran her hand over my head, smoothing down my drying frizz. I tried to read her expression, but with shades on it was hard to tell what she was thinking. I liked that. I didn’t want to look into her eyes right now.
    “You weren’t drinking on Friday, were you?” Her tone was light, but I could see the tightness of her smile.
    “Mom, really? You have to ask me that?”
    “Well, I don’t want to, but I feel like it’s my parental duty to check.”
    I sighed and reached for some apple. “No, Mother. I was not drinking. I don’t know what brought the headache on, but it’s gone now. I’m heading to the beach with Stella soon.”
    “The fresh air will do you good.” She smiled, lifting her glasses. At first I was afraid to look, but I had to check. Gazing into her eyes, I searched for any trace of falsehood, but what I saw was real. Mom’s expression didn’t waver as she grinned at me. I smiled back feeling relief flood through me. The headache must have just been messing with me. Everything that happened yesterday was just this warped