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If only I’d thought to grab a fork

I set the cake down besidein place, then said, "I’ed "It’s okay"

"No, it’s not I was being jerky, and I suck I’y accepted"

She grinned back, slowing fros a bit "Good" She waved me toward her "Co I was almost done, but I can squeeze in anotherdead"

I busted out with a sharp laugh "Seriously? You think I’ "Fine We’ll poalk But I tell you, exercise is the best thing when you’re feeling like hell You breathe in the air and your heart gets pu Knohat Idowning an entire chocolate cake in one sitting Of course I didn’t knohat she ht, but I don’t think so"

"Okay" She touched her neck with two fingers, glanced at her atch, and slowed down the jogging to walking in place After a few seconds, she stopped ether, then rested both palht out behind her, and stretched

"So, are we doing Confessional on Saturday? I really think we should If you want, I can host, I just have to get all of Nick’s landscaping crap out ofyet another h I couldn’t tell which one "Did I tell you about the solar ay lights he bought when Dunlop’s went out of business? Two freaking thousand of theht a year"

I stared down at the chocolate cake by my side Was I really so insecure that I couldn’t snarf a little cake just because Peach was a health nut? I was just about to pick it up when I heard wood creaking, and looked up to check where the swing hooks were attached to the porch ceiling Jeez You know it’s bad when your house starts ht

"Anyway, of course, he ran out of roouess where the extras ended - ow!"

I jolted at the thunk sound Peach pulled back fro her shoulder, then bent over and picked up what looked like a pale wooden li it up and twirling it in her hand She glanced up at the tree "This isn’t a walnut treeis it?" She stepped back, staring up into the branches of the tree

"No It’s an oak," I said, and then I heard it againthat creaking I got off the swing, and the creaking continued I looked up at the tree, and saw in the light of the streetla oddly around one branch Then, out of thin air, another walnut appeared and flen straight at Peach, who jumped out of the way at the lastwalnuts at me?"

I shook my head, then looked up and down the street; it was quiet, almost ominously so, and the hair on my arms shot up

"Peach, co to keep ain, louder this ti now, and the gray sh s at me Jeez, Liv, I said I was sorr - ow!" A walnut bounced off her head, and she looked up into the branches of the three "What the hell? Is there a bird or so to freeze where she was, then said slowly, "Liv, is your tree s violence, and the s between theet up here!" I yelled, but Peach just stood there, staring up into the branches, duest umbrella from the holder by the front door, then shot it open as I ran down the front steps to grab Peach I got her ar us in the back and legs as we ran back onto the safety of the porch We stood there, hands clasped together, staring in disbelief as hundreds of walnuts crashed down onto round with unnatural force as they hit After a few moments, it stopped as suddenly as it had started, and the smoke that had surrounded the branches of my tree seemed to be sucked back into it in a whoosh

Peach was stock-still for a long time, her eyes wide and herwith your tree, Liv," she said, her voice shaky I recognized the feeling, that sense of shock as you tried to reconcile so you know about how the world works

"Yes, there’s definitely soave her my umbrella, which was pockmarked and beaten to a point where I was pretty sure it would never close again It would get her next door, though, and once she was gone, I could try to figure out what had just happened

"Why don’t you go on houy"

"Sure" She blinked twice, as if she was still trying to process what had happened, and then flipped the dented umbrella up over her head "Let me knohat you want to do for Confessional on Saturday I really think we should allyou knowget together" Her voice shook a little bit, and I patted her shoulder

"Everything’s okay," I said,"Go on home"

"Okay" She nodded like a child, and then held the battered u my oak tree a wide berth as she walked past it toward her house A e blurp sound, like a pop played backward on a sound syste one by one, into quickly dissipating puffs of gray smoke

Blurp-blurp-blurp Gone

I stood onto ic, that ic Betty and I had This was ic intended to harm, maim, or kill

Possibly, intended to kill ht, and had just started for the front door when so in the corner of my eye made me tense up I twirled around, and there in the pool of streetlaht at the end of our lane, stood a wo freely around her face in the light breeze

"Millie?" I whispered There was no way she could have heard ht as soon as I spoke her name I darted down my porch steps and ran down the road after her Either she hadn’t been trying to elude me, or she wasn’t used to the bloodred spike heels she earing, but I caught up to her before she’d gone half a block

"Mill!" I grabbed her arm and turned her to face me "Mill, what’s? Wow"

Her eyes were ht out the fullness of her mouth Even her nails were perfectlymy eyes at her

"Millie?"

She snized her again "Yes, Liv, it’s od" I took a step back to survey her "Holy crap, Mill"

She gave a little half-twirl, like a shy little girl, and her dress swirled around her legs "It was tie Do you like it?"

Do I like it? I’d heard stories about woht and subsequently lost their friends through jealousy, and my mind went to that as I checked out Millie There was no doubt; she was beautiful The dress was perfect for her slightly thicker fra she wore over her shoulders added an extra sexy ele But did I like it?

No I wanted to, but sout just wouldn’t let me

I met her eye and smiled "You look incredible"

She nodded, barely able to contain her exuberance "I do, don’t I?"

"Yeah" I hesitated a moment, then motioned back toward my street "Hey, did you just see what I just saw over there?"

She blinked, twice "What?"

"Um" I wasn’t sure how to explain it in a way that wouldn’t sound co "Peach, under the tree in front of my house All the walnuts fell on her at once It wasreally weird"

She worked her face into a frown, but there was a glint in her eye she couldn’t hide Millie wasn’t a great liar anyway, but at the moment, she was even worse than usual

"No," she said, her voice going high with feigned innocence "I didn’t see a thing"

And that’s when it hit ic Maybe she was so froic had been tied up there

Maybe I’m not alone

I took a step closer and touched Millie’s shoulder

"Mill, has anything strange happened to you lately? Like, ym sock at you that s happen?"

So about, or so about it, anyway I felt the hope rise within ave aof the shoulder "I have no idea what you’re talking about"

"I don’t care if it sounds crazy," I said "Whatever you want to tellfor her to tell e had happened to her, too That ere in it together

That I wasn’t alone

"All I know, Liv," she said, "is that the tree in front of your house is an oak, not a walnut"

I pulled back fro about the cold enjoyment in her eyes that worriedbefore me who I’d known since I was six years old, the same Millie who had helped me stuff my first bra, who had helpedher loss as much as I did But in a lot of ways, it also wasn’t Millie It was New Millie, and I wasn’t entirely sure how I felt about her

"Okay," I said after aConfessional at ?"

A deep twinkle shone from her dark eyes "Oh, yes," she said "I’ll be there With bells on"