Forest Lake

Chapter 51

Emma POV

I finally managed to convince Mason to take a shower and relax a bit.

Seeing him upset broke my heart. He looked so scared and lost, and I just wanted to take it all away. I just wanted him to be happy and safe.

I sighed and stood up. I walked to the door and opened it. My friends were standing outside, talking quietly among themselves.

“Emma!” Hazel exclaimed as soon as she saw me. “Are you okay? Where is Mason?”

“In the shower.” I said as I stepped aside so they could walk past me. “He is okay. A little bit shaken up, but okay.”

Chris closed the door behind him and touched my arm softly.

“Did he hurt you?” he asked me quietly.

My arms did hurt a little bit, but it was nothing serious. Mason didn’t mean to do it.

“I am fine.” I said, giving him a small smile.

Chris nodded and let my arm go. He didn’t move away from me, though. I could feel the warmth of his body and smell his perfume. It made my legs feel like jelly.

“Who do you think left the dress here?” Jax asked, sitting down on Mason’s bed.

I sighed and glanced toward the bathroom door. I could hear the shower running. I guess it was safe to talk to my friends. I didn’t want to say anything to Mason because I didn’t want him to be scared even more. The fear and the desperation I saw in his eyes almost killed me. I needed to protect him. Everything that happened affected him a lot. From me coming to this school, to finding out about what our parents did, to what happened with Mr. Wilson, Mason just had enough. And I wasn’t going to make him worry even more.

“Where is the dress?” I asked, looking back at Hazel.

“In my room.” she responded. “What do I do with it?”

“Maybe it would be beneficial for Mason to burn it.” Jax said. “He would really enjoy watching it burn.”

He couldn’t do that. We needed to give that dress to the police.

I gulped and took a deep breath, preparing for what was to come after my next sentence.

“That was not my dress.” I said quietly, looking at Jax.

His eyes widened. I could hear Hazel gasp. From the corner of my eye, I saw Chris clench his fists.

“What?” Chris asked, gritting his teeth.

“My dress had a small stain on the bottom.” I said quietly. “I was eating a donut and the chocolate fell on the dress and I could never wash it out completely. It wasn’t visible if you didn’t know it was there. But I knew. And each time I saw that dress, my eyes fell on the stain. I did the same when I saw that dress and the stain wasn’t there.”

The silence that followed made me nervous. I started to fidget with my fingers, glancing from Jax to Hazel to Chris repeatedly. They looked confused and shocked. In addition to that, Chris looked murderous.

“Are you sure?” Hazel asked quietly, breaking the tense silence. “You saw it for a second or two. Maybe you missed the stain?”

I didn’t. I looked at the place immediately, like I always do. It wasn’t there.

“I didn’t.” I said, shaking my head. “Unless someone washed it and managed to get the stain out, that wasn’t my dress.”

“Fuck!” Chris shouted, running his hand through his hair.