Facade of Love

Chapter 346 The Boy Left Behind in the Snow

I said okay and hung up without asking more about Alice’s accident.

I had not asked Idris or Mom how Alice got hurt. It was partly because I had my own stuff to deal with and also because I was not exactly close enough to Alice to be fussing over her. For some reason I could not quite put my finger on, I just did not feel comfortable around Alice. It was probably because we were just not close.

The house was quiet, the evening shadows creeping in as I headed back to my room for a bath. After a day spent shivering in the cold, sinking into the warmth of a hot bath was pure bliss. Wrapped in the comfort of my towel, my phone buzzed from where it lay at the foot of my bed. It was Charlie, I answered it to hear his deep voice. “Are you busy?”

I paused. “No. What’s going on?”

I could not see his face and could not guess what was behind his call, so I waited.

His voice was as smooth as ever. “I just noticed it’s snowing outside. I felt like calling you.”

His tone was hard to read, but something told me he was not in the best of spirits.

I tried to lighten the mood. “Snow’s a rare guest in Lake City. It’s pretty magical this year, Isn’t it?”

“Mhm.”

hummed a response, then silence.

Fresh from my bath, sleepiness was setting in, and I wondered what

the call, but what if he needed someone to talk to? He did not have

his voice cut through the silence. “Tired?”

sleepy hum, and I could almost hear the

went dead.

lost, I shrugged it off and set it down to dry

cozied up in bed, phone in hand. I noticed a few new texts

are you

must have been waiting for a reply because soon after, another message

to bug you so late, but I’m at a loss here. Can you try talking some sense into

text made me frown, and I

picked up

for the late call.” Inch’s voice was