Impostor by Jill Hathaway Page B

beginning of the year. I told her I paid it already, but she wouldn’t believe me. Russ must have overheard us because he came over and paid Mrs. Nelson. After I checked out the book, he introduced himself to me. And he asked me to go to a movie with him! Do you think Dad will let me go? I know he’s a senior, but . . .”
    “Yeah, he’s a senior, but he’s my age. It’s not that weird. You guys are only two years apart. How about this? Rollins and I will go with you. Maybe we can see the new Scar film.” The words are out of my mouth before I remember the weirdness between Rollins and me. Will the embarrassment of tonight fade before next weekend? I hope so.
    Mattie throws her arms around me. “Really? That would be great.” After a beat, she pulls away and rolls over, facing the wall. “Night,” she says.
    “Night,” I tell her, reaching to turn out the lamp on my bedside table. As I drift off, I think to myself how nice it is that Mattie’s able to confide in me about these sorts of things. Six months ago, we never talked like this. I feel a kinship with her that I’ve never felt before. I wonder if, sometime soon, I might be able to tell her my biggest secret.
     
    A loud clattering wakes me.
    The noise is coming from downstairs.
    Mattie is still fast asleep, so I gently push back the covers and swing my feet onto the floor. The carpet mutes my footsteps as I cross the room. In the hallway, I see that the door to Mattie’s room is closed, but my father’s door is standing wide open. I peek inside, but the bed is empty.
    Another crash startles me.
    It seems to be coming from the living room.
    I tiptoe down the stairs.
    My hands are shaking, my heart ricocheting off my rib cage. What if there’s an intruder? What if my father is fighting with him? I look around for some sort of weapon, but there’s nothing.
    When I reach the landing, I peek around the corner. My father stands with his back to me. He seems to be going through the pictures on the bookshelf, grabbing one after another and throwing them to the floor. There’s a pile of broken glass at his feet.
    He grabs a wedding portrait and flings it down. Jagged pieces bounce off the carpet and land near my feet.
    “Dad?”
    He freezes. Turns slowly in my direction.
    “Dad? What are you doing?”
    He takes a few dazed steps toward me. The look in his eyes is strange, as if he’s not aware of his actions, as if he’s not even there. It reminds me of that day in English class, when I seemed to lose control of my body. It was like I was there, but not really. Like someone else had taken my place.
    “Dad?”
    The cloudy expression clears, and he shakes his head. He makes eye contact with me and seems to recognize my face. “Vee? What the hell? What’s going on?” Bewildered, he looks at the mess on the floor.
    “Um. You were throwing pictures on the floor. Don’t you remember?”
    I can tell from the look on his face that he doesn’t. At all. Suddenly I think I might know who’s behind his strange behavior and my car accident.
    Someone is sliding into us.
    Someone who just happened to show up for the first time in years.
    “Everything okay in here?”
    I turn to find Aunt Lydia standing in the doorway, tying the sash on my father’s robe, concern etched into her features.

Chapter Ten
    O n Monday morning, Rollins shows up to give Mattie and me a ride to school, just like normal. What isn’t normal is the silence in the car. Rollins doesn’t even have the radio on. Mattie, who’s exhausted from tossing and turning all night, rests her head against the window with her eyes closed. The only sound is me flipping through the pages of my math notebook, pretending to study for a nonexistent quiz.
    I peek at Rollins every once in a while. His shoulders seem tense, and his face is like a mask. I wonder what he’s thinking about, if—like me—his mind is set on that terrible moment when I closed my eyes and pouted my lips . . . and he just