Forest Lake

Chapter 10

Emma POV

My heart was beating impossibly fast.

A huge part of me wanted to burst into tears.

Mason was the last person to hug me, and he was the first person to do it after all these years.

Well, technically, it wasn’t a hug. He pressed me against his chest, wrapping one arm around my shoulders, while he used his other hand to hold mine in a tight grip.

It was the closest thing to a hug in years, so I decided to call it a hug.

I was so shocked that Mason reacted the way he did, that I almost forgot what the girl told us a few moments ago.

Another girl has disappeared?

What the hell is going on?

“Who?” Mason asked the girl, digging his fingers into my shoulder.

I could feel his heart beating really fast.

“Daisy Lee.” the girl said quietly, looking back down at her phone. “She is a junior.”

“How the fuck did they take her?” Mason asked again, making the girl look up at him wide-eyed.

“People are saying that she was walking in the garden and she was taken there.” the girl said quietly.

I looked up at Mason. His jaw was clenched tight, and his eyes were narrowed. He looked terrifying. The girl looked from him to me. She gave me a small smile before turning around and practically running away. I’m guessing that she was scared of Mason. It was hard not to be scared of him when he looked like he did at that moment.

I bit my lip, trying to muster up the courage to say something. I wasn’t even sure if he was aware of how tight he was holding me. I wasn’t even sure he was aware he was holding me at all. I was scared of his reaction when he finally figured that out. Would he push me away? Would he yell at me?

My heart hurt just thinking about him pushing me away. I wanted him to never let me go. I missed him terribly.

I gulped, trying to stop the tears from falling on my cheeks.

Mason looked down at me. His eyes softened, and I almost cried in relief. The softness in his eyes didn’t last long, though. He narrowed his eyes again, unwrapping his arm from around my shoulders.

He didn’t let my hand go, though.

That had to be a good sign, right?

He didn’t yell at me. He didn’t push me away. He kept holding my hand. All good signs.

Right?

Mason started pulling me away.

“Where are we going?” I managed to ask him.

He never responded, but I noticed that he was pulling me toward my dorm room.

“Mason?” I called him, trying to pull my arm out of his grip.

He remained silent, but his grip on my arm tightened.

We arrived at my dorm room, and he knocked on the door loudly. He didn’t wait for Hazel to respond before he barged in.
I heard Hazel gasp and jump up from her desk.

“Emma?” she mumbled my name, staring wide-eyed at Mason.

“She will never leave the room alone.” Mason said sternly. “If she tries to, you will call me immediately. Am I clear, Hazel?”

Hazel glanced at me, confused and a little bit frightened.

“Hazel?” Mason called her. “Did I make myself clear?”