A Taste of Bitter

Chapter 9 - And So The Truth Did Not Come

Greyson was out of his seat and storming down the club steps before Jailene could bat an eyelash.

"Greyson!" She called after him incredulously, jumping out of her seat. She quickly slung her purse over her shoulder, glancing back at Eliot waveringly. Should she go after him, or stay and investigate?

With a groan, she turned back to the slightly bemused boy and slammed her hand down on the plastic silver table. "You. Stay." She growled at him pointedly, before racing down the steps after Greyson, pushing past the dancing bodies and through the door, out into the chilly night air.

The ebony sky was starless, and orange street lamps were the only sources of light along the dingy street. Greyson had his hands jammed into the pockets of his hoodie, and was already a few feet away, sticking close to the dark, eampty buildings and shops lining the sidewalk.

Jailene jogged after him. "Greyson, wait up!"

Greyson shook his head as she neared, his expression stormy, his eyes flashing as they passed under a lamp, shedding them in peachy light. "Forget it. I'm done. Thanks for nothing, really."

Jailene latched on to his arm, turning him to face her. "Greyson, calm down-"

He spun on her, his eyes blazing in the dim street lights. "Calm down? Calm down- are you insane? Has the world gone insane?" He tore his arm out of her grasp, and let out a frustrated breath of air, running a hand through his hair out of habit. "Steinbeck, this is- this is too much. Eliot, and you, just- just these ridiculous stories about Arly, and I just- I'm done. I'm done."

He turned away, and this time Jailene did not try to stop him. He continued down the street, his shoulders hunched, and she heard him whisper as he went, "Ridiculous."

Maybe it was something in his expression. The grief in his eyes, the grief etched into every movement of his body. But Jailene knew she had to get to the bottom of this- of what had just happened, and what had happened that night five months before.

Steeling her determination, Jailene spun on her heel and raced back to the Neon Horse, hoping beyond hope that Eliot had done as he'd been told.

***

"So he said it was here? Like, he specifically said it was here?"

Eliot never knew just how much one tiny mouth could be so annoying.

"Yes, like, specifically." He said, in a specifcally girly tone.

Jailene, sitting in the passenger's seat, shot him a dirty look.

It was early Sunday morning, and the sky was a monotone gray, a low drizzle sprinkling down over Venus City, pittering Eliot's car with droplets of water as it zoomed over the bridge, passing by Thea Park and the Coffee House.

Oh, I'm sure the sun is just being shy. A quiet, sarcastic voice echoed in his head, and Eliot couldn't help but give a faint smile, remembering a far different rainy day, at a far different place...

"I just don't think you could possibly have this right." Jailene repeated, for the umpteenth time.

And a far different girl, Eliot thought grumpily, pulled from his reverie. He tore his grumpy gaze momentarily from the road to rest on the girl that was not his best friend.

As a matter of fact, he'd been hoping Greyson might actually believe him- at least to some extent -and come with him, but no. It wasn't meant to be, apparently.

Instead he got Little Miss I'm-A-Know-It-All-Emo-With-Highlights-And-Eyes-That-Can-See-Through-A-Man's-Soul.

Well, at least Eliot discovered Arlese hadn't been lying when she said Jailene Steinbeck's evil glare was like the epitome of a black hole. Dark, destructive, and endless. And, since he was listing, absolutely beastly. It reminded him of an angry lion.