I hope you enjoy this exclusive bonus chapter written in Addie's point-of-view! I was very excited to finally write from the perspective of such a beloved character for so many fans. The events in this bonus chapter would be going on simultaneously with Chapter 31 of Insomnia from Parker's point of view. I think it adds a different perspective of what Addie has been dealing with before we see her when Parker wakes up in the hospital. I hope you like reading it as much as I liked writing it!
—J.R. Johansson
ADDIE
Addie rocked back and forth on her feet, pushing the doorbell for what felt like the millionth time. Pressing it again for a full ten seconds, she finally sighed, pulled her phone out of her pocket and called Finn.
"Ahoy!" Finn said, brightly.
"I'm telling you, he's not here." She reached out and rapped on the door hard with her knuckles a few extra times for added emphasis.
"He's there, Addie."
She could hear Finn opening some kind of food wrapper in the background and listened as he talked around a big crunching bite of his snack.
"Where else would he go? Just wait and I'll come by as soon as Mom or Dad get home with the car."
Tucking the phone against her shoulder, Addie rubbed her hands together, trying to warm them against the biting cold in the air. She didn't want to wait. She'd walked here right after her swim practice so her hair was still damp and she was already tired of waiting.
She could hang out until Finn could get here, but what was the plan then? They could both come and knock on the door until Parker finally decided to let them in? Addie was a big fan of making plans, but only when they achieved something.
Her eyes settled on the small gnome statue in the garden near the front porch and she froze, a small smile spreading across her face. "I have an idea. I'll call you back."
Addie was already hanging up when Finn replied, "Finally! Somebody else has an idea. I don't know why everyone is always waiting around for me to..."
Click
She slid the phone into her pocket and shot a quick glance around the neighborhood. Someone could be watching her from inside a house and she wouldn't be able to see them...other than that possibility, the area seemed pretty empty. Addie walked quickly over to the gnome, picked it up, pulled out the plastic plug that covered the hole in the bottom, and shook it until the key she knew they kept hidden inside finally fell out and into her palm. Placing the gnome back in its spot in the garden, she jogged back to the front door and slipped the key into the lock.
Addie hesitated, remembering how she told Parker it was a violation of her privacy to be in her head and watching her dreams without her permission. Where did 'breaking into his house because he was avoiding her' fall on Addie's own personal morality scale? With a quick shake of her head, she gritted her teeth and pushed the door open. It didn't matter. He couldn't just keep hiding.
"Hello?" She walked in and closed the door softly behind her. Parker's house was so quiet. It always made Addie feel uncomfortable. In their house, with Finn, quiet wasn't a thing that existed. She raised her voice louder this time. "Parker? It's Addie. Are you home?"
There was no response. Addie walked toward Parker's room, pretty sure that she'd been right and the house was empty, but if she was going to go so far as to break into a boy's house to make him talk to her...she was at least going to be damn thorough about it.
YOU ARE READING
Insomnia
Mystery / Thriller"It's been four years since I slept, and I suspect it is killing me." Instead of sleeping, Parker Chipp spends each night trapped in the dream of the last person he's made eye contact with. Every night he is crushed by other people's fear and pain...
