Sweet Deadly Lies (A Dark Academia Mystery) Watty Winner ✔️

Nineteen

Ava was pregnant. As hard as I try to block it, the sentence repeats inside my head. My sister was going to have a baby. Which means, not only did one life end—but two.

My heart stalls in my chest.

A baby. The idea is surreal. I can't even imagine what a life like that would look like.

But it doesn't matter anyway because that reality is never going to happen. Not now, and not ten years from now. Ava will never be a mother. Or a best-selling artist. Or even a high school graduate. She'll never be anything more than a 17-year-old girl whose life ended before it began.

That still doesn't mean she jumped.

Ava had options. She didn't have to raise a child if she didn't want to. She realized that, didn't she? Mr. McKenzie said she felt hopeless so he had to have known. Did he remind her of those choices? Did he make sure my sister understood there were people trained to help?

If only I knew what was going through her head! Ava was a smart girl. She had to know an unplanned pregnancy wasn't the end of the world. Right?

I push myself up from the ground and brush sand from my jeans as the salty ocean air slithers up my sleeves. Ava was kind and compassionate. Sensible. But not weak. Surely she could see beyond the initial shock of her predicament. She wouldn't have just—

...would she?

Mom said, sometimes, people can only take so much. Ava'd been through a lot. So, how much can a person endure before they break?

I don't know what to think. I don't know what to do. All I want is for this ache in my chest to go away. For the swirling chaos in my head to stop.

I grip my hair at the scalp, my hands curling into fists. Fuck Ava. Fuck Mom and Mr. McKenzie. And fuck anyone else who's keeping shit from me. Why does it feel like life takes a sick pleasure in kicking you when you're down? And I'm so fucking tired of trying to pick myself up.

The bonfire burns in the distance, the flames reaching for the star-studded sky.

I don't want to be alone. Not tonight. I need the company of an old friend. With renewed determination, I curve around the cattails, the glow from the fire illuminating my way. More students have made their way to the after-game festivities, some stopping in clusters to talk with friends while others scavenge like vultures around the coolers.

It's the football team. I can tell by their hulking shoulders and overconfident mannerisms. They won their stupid game and now they're on top of the world, ready to make the most of their victorious Friday night. And Ava dated one of them. Maybe even slept with him. My eyes bounce from face to face as I try to pick Stone Carter from the crowd.

Weaving between my school mates, I head for the refreshments, heat from the flames pressing against me as I pass, and elbow my way through the sea of testosterone.

"Leave something for me," I say as I belly up to the cooler next to Eli.

"Hey, slugger! How's the hand?"

"It's fine."

He gives me a good natured grin. "What happened with you and Theo?"

"Misunderstanding," I say for what feels like the hundredth time. "Have you seen Stone?"

Eli scrunches his brows. "Not since we got off the bus. Why's that?"

"No reason."

My gaze roams over the assortment of beer, flavored malt beverages, and spring water jutting out from cubes of ice, until finally they land on what I'm looking for. I reach for a long-necked bottle of vodka and twist the cap, my palm sliding in vain around the metal.