Lost in Hollywood

Mariana Trench

"No fucking way," were Sky's first words, when Yasmine said they needed help, and suggested that they called Demetri.

It felt like such a failure, and Sky didn't want to admit they had failed. After everything this group of girls had been through— and now they couldn't finish the job without a guy's help? It was unbearable. She didn't want to accept it.

But no matter what they tried, the password wasn't working. Maybe Kyler wasn't quite as stupid as they had believed, maybe he did change his password occasionally, or who knew, maybe Devon's cousin had just been full of shit, but whatever the reason, the contents of Kyler's computer were as inaccessible to them as the bottoms of Mariana Trench.

Sky hated to admit that Yasmine was right, but in the end, there was no way around it. She knew that none of them was a tech genius who could hack a computer and break in without a password.

Luckily, they knew such a person, Yasmine pointed out. A person who would be more than willing to help his girlfriend with this computer emergency. And they would be morons not to ask him.

Yas was right, of course, but It didn't mean Sky had to like it. The disappointment was sharp and heavy in her chest, almost more than she could carry. Yes, Demetri was her friend, and yes, Demetri was a good guy, but still— he was just that. A guy. And in this, it mattered. He would never understand the deep, guttural fear and anger Sky had for Kyler, the shame that had tarnished and ruined every part of her life after the incident in the Tattoo Parlor. But what choice did she have? To give up now, that they were so close to getting what they needed, to make Kyler pay?

No fucking way. Sky would rather let Demetri play the hero than let Kyler get away with what he had done.

So finally, she gave in and let Yasmine call Demetri. But when the doorbell rang 15 minutes later, and she rushed downstairs to open the door before Dad could do that, the sight on her doorsteps knocked the air out of her already empty lungs.

Demetri wasn't alone. Next to him, in the darkening night, stood Eli.

"You've gotta be kidding me," Sky groaned, leaning on the doorway, fighting the nauseating feeling that came with the lightheadedness.

The absolute last thing she was prepared to do today, was to deal with Eli. She knew it was something she'd had to do at some point – their talk was long overdue, and ever since his apology at the sports field earlier today, she had felt that moment nearing like an inescapable tidal wave, but she had pushed it off her mind the best she could, knowing she didn't have what it would take, not now, not before she had gotten her revenge on Kyler. Maybe after that, she could think again, feel again, move forward—

But not today.

She let out a tense, annoyed sigh, turning her attention back to Demetri.

"What's wrong with you? He followed you, or what? This wasn't a plus-one invitation."

Demetri grimaced, looking incredibly uncomfortable. "Sky, come on. Yas said you have a computer emergency— I just thought— I mean, Eli can help. You know that. At the computer camp, we used to—"

"I don't care," Sky snapped, making Demetri shut up mid-sentence. "He is not welcome. I have enough going on without this crap, okay?"

"Sky, I just—" Eli rasped. "I just want to help. Just let me take a look at the computer, okay? I swear I'll go once we've fixed it."

Sky's stomach went tight with anxiety, her fingers gripped the doorway. Eli was looking right at her, but she kept avoiding his gaze. Everything in him was so painfully familiar that it carved her chest open, and that was a pain she didn't want to face today. She didn't want to admit that she wanted to look at him, wanted to notice every single detail about him, drink them greedily as if they were holy wine that would burn all the way down. The shape of his lean, muscled body under that loose hoodie, the way he shifted nervously on his feet, his hands deep in his pockets, probably clenched to anxious fists, the hood over his head, hiding the buzz cut he hated so much, but that Sky secretly thought looked pretty good on him.