Of the Trees(31)

Laney spent every afternoon after school with her new boyfriend. Sometimes, Cassie would see them on her way home, hand in hand at the edge of the cemetery, disappearing into the woods, and sometimes she wouldn’t. Laney wouldn’t answer her texts for ages and even when their classes combined and they ate lunch together, Laney was distracted. Between her and Ryan, Cassie wasn’t sure with whom she was getting more irritated.

Ryan hadn’t said a word about the other day, not one single thing. Cassie got to school early the day following the graffiti incident, riding in with her father and letting him walk her into school. Ryan had been down the hall, already at his locker and getting his books out. She walked up to him, a smile tugging at her lip, and he blinked over at her and grinned. But when she got to him, he had pat her on the back, referred to her as “buddy,” and then stammered that he had to meet up with Jon. She could have kicked his locker in frustration.

It wasn’t until lunch that day when he asked her if she needed a ride to the dance and hope had flared in her chest, that she was finally crushed for good. Just as Cassie said yes, she would love a ride, he had beamed, replying that he and Jon would pick her up around eight.

He and Jon. Together. Cassie felt a lurch in her stomach when he said it, mumbled that she would be waiting, and then booked it to the nearest bathroom.

A pair of red eyes were waiting for her on the door of the stall.

She took a deep breath and resigned herself to the fact that he wanted to be friends still, that maybe this was his way of trying to not make things more awkward, and that she had to let it go at that. Still, it stung.

With the way the week was going, with Laney distracted and weird and Ryan overly-friendly and polite, Cassie wasn’t sure why she was surprised to find the notice on the gym door canceling class, but she was.

“Butterfly infestation?” she asked, her tone incredulous as she stared at the paper notice taped to the closed door.

“Right?” Collin barked through a laugh, shaking his head. He was a freshman that Cassie knew from her neighborhood. He was on the basketball team, tall but gangly and young. Still, he stood a head taller than her, and he was able to peer into the high window of the gym door. Even on her tiptoes, Cassie still couldn’t see through. “That’s freaking insane, isn’t it?”

“Yeah,” Cassie confirmed, still trying to angle her sight into the gym. Collin noticed her struggle and smirked down at her, nodding back to the window.

“Need a lift?” he asked. Cassie laughed, but stepped in front of him, letting him wrap his arms around her stomach and lift her up to the window. Butterflies, none like she had ever seen before, flit around the gym. The back doors were thrown wide open, but none of the creatures seemed interested in leaving. They floated, blue and purple and white, like flower petals in a gentle stream, soundless in flight, swarming about in the thousands.

“Incredible,” she whispered, and she felt Collin nod from behind her. She patted his arm, and he lowered her to the ground in acknowledgment. “How did they get there?”

“Not sure,” he answered, shrugging. “I hope they get them out in time for the dance, though.”

Cassie grinned over at him. “Hot date?”

“Might have,” he murmured, blushing a bit. A throat clear behind her and Cassie turned to see Ryan watching her with a quizzical expression, his jaw set as though he was clenching his teeth. She sighed, rolled her eyes, and turned away from him.

If he wanted to be upset because she let a freshman lift her up so she could see an incredible butterfly infestation, then fine. At this point, she wasn’t sure if she wanted the butterflies out in time for the dance or not. Maybe it would be easier for her if they just stayed there for good.





Cassie wasn’t lucky enough to have the butterflies remain. Someone had thought to bring in large fans and essentially sweep the butterflies through the door. It worked, apparently, because the dance was still on. Cassie smoothed her blue satin dress out, letting her hands flutter down the planes of fabric that floated from her waist. She smiled wistfully in the mirror in her front hall, thinking it was too bad to waste such a pretty dress on two boys who held no interest in her. She pulled an ornate mask from the drawer of the hall table, running her fingers through the feathers sprouting from the top.

The dance’s theme was still Masquerade, and though she figured a lot of people would interpret that as Costume Party, she was glad she went with the subtly of her mask. It was small, covering her eyes, cheeks, and the bridge of her nose. The base material was soft, black velvet. There was gem-like beading in a swirl of colors that ran over her cheeks and around her eyes. The beads were multi-colored, but mostly blue, which brought out not only her dress but the flecks of blue in her otherwise gray eyes. She had swept her auburn hair up and off her neck, piling it high and over the velvet tie that she used to secure her mask. She had just finished setting it in place when there was a knock at the door.

Ryan inhaled sharply when she swung the door open. She regarded him, one eyebrow rising slowly behind her mask. He wore a navy blue suit with a royal blue shirt underneath. His tie was loose, and Cassie had to resist the urge to offer to tie it for him. She saw his mask, a simple black disguise, hanging from his front pocket. He swallowed heavily before speaking.

“You look great,” he said, moving toward her and offering to help with her coat. His fingers were warm as they brushed the base of her neck and Cassie felt a shard of regret slip through her core that she had somehow unintentionally lost what she thought they had been building toward. “Jon’s already in the car.”