𝐓𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐎𝐛𝐬𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 | 18+

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟐𝟖

𝐄𝐋𝐎𝐈𝐒𝐄 𝐏𝐎𝐕

• • •

⋆༺𓆩☠︎︎𓆪༻⋆

Alex's car smelled faintly of pine air freshener, but the tension inside made it hard to breathe. The engine hummed beneath us, but no one had made a move to drive yet. I sat in the back, arms crossed, glaring out the window as the argument continued to bounce back and forth between us.

"This is a stupid idea," Claire said for what felt like the hundredth time, her voice rising in frustration. She was sitting in the passenger seat, spinning around to look at me. "We should go back to court. We're wasting time."

"I agree with her," Rowan chimed in from next to me, his voice calm but edged with worry. "We're going to get caught if we try this."

Alex slammed his hands on the steering wheel, his patience wearing thin. "We're not going to get caught if we're smart about this. Stop being paranoid."

"I'm not paranoid," Rowan shot back, his tone tight. "I'm being realistic. This whole thing sounds reckless."

I didn't want to hear it. My head was pounding, and every minute felt like it stretched too long. We were running out of time.

"It's not reckless," I snapped, finally speaking up. "It's necessary. Do you really want to sit in that courtroom and watch Brooke go down for something she didn't do? We need that drive."

Claire turned to face me fully, her eyes wide with disbelief. "Eloise, we don't even know what's on that stupid drive! What if it's nothing?"

My heart thudded painfully in my chest. "What if it's everything?"

Alex glanced in the rearview mirror at me, his jaw clenched. He'd been the only one who seemed on board from the start, but even he looked like he was starting to have second thoughts.

Rowan let out a frustrated sigh. "Look, I get it. We all want answers, but storming into the school locker room? This isn't a movie, Eloise."

I bit my lip, my gaze flicking out the window. The courthouse was only a few blocks away, and part of me wondered if we should just turn back, but then Darius's voice cut through my spiraling thoughts.

"Yeah, Eloise. Why don't you all just go back, sit around, and wait for the truth to magically fall into your lap?" His tone was dripping with sarcasm. "Great plan, really."

I clenched my fists, trying to drown him out. "We can't go back," I muttered more to myself than anyone else, but Alex caught it.

He turned around in his seat to face me. "Why not? What's really going on, Eloise?"

For a second, I felt the weight of his gaze, and I wasn't sure if I could keep up the facade. How was I supposed to explain the pressure clawing at my chest, the desperation to not let anyone down, the need to finally do something right?

"We just can't, okay?" I said, my voice tight.

"Maybe she's afraid to face the fact that she might be wrong," Darius whispered mockingly. "Maybe deep down, she knows this is all going to backfire."

I sucked in a breath, my frustration boiling over. "I'm not wrong!" I shouted, my voice bouncing around the cramped space of the car. "I know what I'm doing. We're doing this."

Silence settled over us for a moment, everyone staring at me like I'd lost it. Maybe I had. Maybe I was losing my grip. But I couldn't turn back now. I couldn't let Brooke go down for this.