The Vision by Jen Nadol Page B

fascination.
    Enjoy.
    Ryan
    It made me smile.
    â€œHow’s My Guy sound?” Liv asked as I slid into her car, idling outside my apartment building just after seven.
    I grimaced. “Horrible.”
    She laughed. “Yeah, I told Hannah no chick flicks. Zombie Queen II ?”
    â€œMuch better.”
    We were meeting Erin, Hannah, and her friend Pete at the mall. I wasn’t a huge fan of the mall. Shopping was fine, but there were always a lot of people there and lots of people meant more risk of seeing the mark.
    â€œSo my friend knew that guy you asked about,” Liv said, pulling sharply in front of a car on our left so she’d make the light. Liv was a frightening driver. If I ever saw the mark on her, I’d demand she hand over her keys.
    â€œOh yeah?” I said casually. I had to hide a grin, thinking of his note on the books. I didn’t want Liv to read anything into it.
    â€œYeah.”
    I waited. Nothing. “Well?”
    â€œOh!” Liv feigned surprise, looking over at me wide eyed. “You want to hear about him?”
    â€œHa-ha.”
    â€œMy bad,” she said, smiling and weaving through traffic way too fast. “I thought you weren’t into him or anything.”
    â€œI’m not,” I answered, gripping the seat. “But since your friend went to the trouble and all, you might as well tell me.”
    â€œRiiight. Well, for starters, his family owns a funeral parlor.” Liv paused dramatically. “And he works there.”
    â€œUh-huh.”
    â€œYou knew that.” She sounded disappointed.
    â€œYeah, I did.”
    â€œBut I thought you said you worked with him.”
    I had, hadn’t I? “Uh …” I could see that playing out the lie about my job was about to get trickier than just telling her they weren’t hiring. I liked Liv and decided to come clean instead, hoping she’d understand. “I do work with him.”
    She glanced over, frowning. “So … he works at a restaurant too?”
    â€œNo.” I paused for a second, wondering if this was really a good idea. “Actually, I don’t work at a restaurant.”
    â€œYou don’t?”
    I shook my head. “I work at a funeral parlor. The one Ryan’s dad owns.”
    â€œHuh?” Liv looked over, her nose crinkling as she squinted at me. Totally confused. I wished she’d put her eyes back on the road.
    â€œI didn’t tell you guys because I thought you’d think it was gross.”
    â€œIt is gross.”
    â€œYeah, it is kinda,” I admitted. “But it’s good money and it’s actually sort of interesting.”
    â€œUm … once you get past the dead bodies and stuff ?”
    â€œRight.”
    Liv was quiet and I wondered if she was mad, freaked out, or both. Or maybe trying to decide whether to take me home or just drop me by the side of the road. At least it was suburbia. I could definitely get back to the apartment from here.
    â€œLiv?”
    â€œYeah?” She was still frowning, but her voice wasn’t angry.
    â€œI’m sorry I lied. I wasn’t sure how you guys—Hannah and Erin especially—would take it. A restaurant sounded like a more normal job.”
    â€œIt is.” Liv flicked her turn signal. Left, toward the mall. I guess she wasn’t going to dump me off just yet. “I don’t think I’d tell them about your real job.”
    â€œNo, probably not.”
    â€œThey’d think it’s creepy, for sure.”
    â€œBut you don’t?” I asked hopefully.
    â€œNo, it’s creepy all right.” Liv stopped at the light just before the mall and grinned at me. “But where else would I get to hear about dead bodies and hot guys all in the same place?”
    I smiled back, more relieved than I would have guessed. I wasn’t here to make friends, but as I’d learned in Kansas, being in a new place is hard enough.