Free Frayed by Kara Terzis

me.
    Golden trees stood proudly, leaves fluttering to the ground. And right there, nestled deep in the trees, was a wooden cabin with a thatched roof. Under any other circumstance, it would have looked cute. “Welcome to our humble abode,” Amanda said dryly.
    This was where they hung out? I looked at the four girls.
    Amanda regarded me coolly, the barest hint of amusement glittering in her eyes. May stood more toward the truck, looking at me warily. Abbey and Riley stood beside each other, gazes fixed on me as though they were daring me to run.
    My hand flexed into a fist, nails biting into my palm.
    I spoke, my voice scratchy with fear. “You told me you wanted to talk. So talk.”
    Amanda offered a smile that didn’t touch her eyes. They remained as hard as the stones that littered the ground beneath her feet.
    “Looks like you were right, May. She’s not gonna run.” She jerked her head to the cabin resting between the trees. “We’ll talk in there, all right?”
    I nodded, reluctantly following her through the trees. A minute later, Amanda had locked all five of us in the cabin. I didn’t like this. Not one bit. I felt too trapped, suffocated.
    The cabin looked no larger from the inside. It was empty except for a desk pushed up against the wall, one chair, and a wastebasket in the corner filled with candy wrappers and cigarette packs. As if on cue, Abbey pulled something from her pocket and a hissing sound rent the air as she lit her cigarette and took a drag.
    May wrinkled her nose. She looked pointedly at Abbey. “In here? Gross.”
    She moved to one of the windows and yanked it open. A rush of cool air swept in, but the sharp, stale scent of smoke lingered. My stomach clenched.
    Riley snatched the cigarettes from Abbey’s grip and lit one herself, her amber eyes and cropped hair gleaming in the sudden flare of the lighter. She saw me looking and said, “Want one?”
    I shook my head.
    Amanda yanked the pack from Riley, rolling her eyes and taking out a cigarette. “We are so not wasting these on her,” she said as though I wasn’t standing beside her. “They were such a bitch to get this time around.”
    Amanda puffed a cloud of smoke into my face, and I recoiled.
    “That’ll kill you one day, you know,” I told her daringly.
    She just laughed. “Yeah, I know that, genius. But you never know. I could be dead tomorrow morning anyway. Could be choked to death and thrown into a lake in the middle of fucking nowhere. I’m not worried about this.”
    “That’s not funny,” I hissed, anger licking at my insides, hot and ready to spill over. Amanda just shrugged. She flicked ash from the cigarette into the air, a trail of coiling smoke drifting through the cabin. She arched a brow at me as if she couldn’t understand why I was getting so worked up. She turned to Riley and said, “Go on then. Tell her.”
    “Amanda, I’m not so sure this is a good idea…” It was May who’d spoken. I’d almost forgotten she was here. She’d just melted into the shadows, letting the others take over. Vulnerability and uncertainty pinched her features.
    Amanda rounded on her, eyes glinting. “You got a better one?”
    I flinched at the harshness of her voice. I expected May to recoil like I would have, but instead, she held her ground. She was tougher than me. Her forest-green eyes sharpened as she stared Amanda down. Jackson and May both had the same determination, I thought as I watched the two girls, and I almost felt a smile curve at my lips.
    Almost.
    But then I remembered I was supposed to be at school right now. And what was everyone going to think when they found me missing? It wasn’t like me to cut school or do anything outside the rules. At least, up until last week.
    Finally, May relented. She graced Amanda with a tight nod—a sign of begrudging acceptance—before turning her back to the others in rebellion.
    Amanda turned to Riley, who was now appraising me with an expression that told me she