The Lost Girls

Chapter 4

Heather pounced on me the second I walked through the school doors the next morning. She didn't say a word as she dragged me down the hall and into the girls' washroom, and I wearily steeled myself for the barrage of questions she no doubt already had formulated in her pretty head. A freshman girl was doing her mascara in the mirror when we banged in, but with one look at Heather's face, she quickly packed up her things and hurried out of the washroom. It was a usual effect Heather had on people.

Her face was arranged in a poker face when she turned to me with her hands on her hips. "Spill." She commanded.

I smiled tiredly at her. "Good morning to you too, bestie."

Heather shot me a scathing look. "Zoe."

"Heather."

"Cristian Mathers!" She exclaimed, throwing her hands in the air. "Really, Zoe? Really?"

I rubbed my temple at the force of her outburst. "Whatever Ashley told you, she's got it all wrong."

"Oh, really? So you didn't have dinner with Cristian last night at the Grill then? So you didn't let him walk you to your car last night? Those were all malicious lies?" Heather stared me down with all the scorn of a wrathful goddess, and it was only because I'd been under the brunt of it several times throughout our friendship that I didn't wither up and die.

"Okay, that all happened - "

"Zoe!" Heather wailed.

"Listen to me! He was just being nice, okay? We're not secretly dating or anything like that, no matter how much Ashley insists otherwise." I told her firmly. Ashley probably added in that we made out across the table, or that he'd sprinkled the table with rose petals or something. Both images were so bizarre I almost burst out laughing.

Heather looked like laughing was the last thing on her mind. She glared at me for several more seconds, looking very much like she wanted to whack me with a stick or something, before she sighed heavily."I guess even if you were secretly dating I couldn't be mad." She said sullenly.

"Huh?" I blinked in confusion.

Heather touched my arm, all her disapproval and annoyance melting away to reveal a gentle face. "I thought you guys hadn't talked since the girls went missing." She said slowly and softly.

I bit my lower lip. "I never lied about that. We just started talking a couple days ago, and then yesterday..." I debated on whether or not to tell her about the Ruby lookalike, then decided not to. "I ran into him, and he offered to make me something to eat. That's really it, Heather. I promise."

She searched my face calculatingly, the fluorescent lights in the dingy washroom flickering over her perfect skin. "Okay." She finally sighed. "I believe you. The rest of the school probably won't though. Even if you shout it from the roof tops, they'll want to think you two are getting hot and heavy."

"Heather, gross." I complained.

She laughed at that before sobering up quickly. "I really don't like him." She declared. "He's rude and weird, and he likes stealing things and lighting things on fire, but... well..." She paused. "Well, I guess its good you guys are talking." She smiled encouragingly at me. "As much as I wish I could be here for you, I'll never be to able to understand what happened like he can."

I stared at her, wondering how she'd gotten so kind and insightful without me noticing. I smiled and put an arm around her tiny waist. "You are here for me." I told her softly. "And I'll appreciate that forever, Heather. Plus, Cristian can't help me pick out bras or anything useful like that, so you're irreplaceable."