Will tells me he couldn’t find me the previous night, even though he kept searching. I feel a prickle of guilt. I should have found him last night and told him to go back to his dormitory.601Please respect copyright.PENANAxZm8Epm6A6
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I’m afraid of what he might think of me, but I still tell him about the classroom and ask for his opinion. I hesitantly tell him Roanna’s idea about the psychiatric hospital.601Please respect copyright.PENANAJuLuxhgNqL
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“It was a lunatic asylum?” he says. “So what is it now?”601Please respect copyright.PENANAtMyXWNbBUD
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“Ha, ha,” I say, leaning against the closest tree to block out the window.601Please respect copyright.PENANAhS6rZdT4mc
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I would prefer to hang out with Will indoors, but he prefers to be outside—even in the rain. He’s a complete nutter, but that’s probably what I love most about him.601Please respect copyright.PENANAwySipYVRF6
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“I wouldn’t worry about the ghosts,” he says, sitting down in front of me.601Please respect copyright.PENANAI4tHwRe01o
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“You didn’t see them, though.” I shudder as the scene flashes before my eyes. “I will never again roll my eyes when someone has a ghost sighting.”601Please respect copyright.PENANAIT8mXa7Isj
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Will closes the space between us and laces his fingers through mine. They feel light and cool. He looks like he’s about to say something but closes his mouth and turns away.601Please respect copyright.PENANA5LjJKl9smt
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“What is it?” I gently squeeze his hand.601Please respect copyright.PENANAzfUEWmBuRi
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He looks at me as if deliberating and finally says, “I have a surprise for you. I wasn’t going to show you until the spring.”601Please respect copyright.PENANAqVaH6S4UMI
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“Oh, what is it?” I say, glad for a distraction and warmed at the thought that Will has something for me. “I suck at being patient. Please tell me.”601Please respect copyright.PENANAkQXaYMlBAC
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He stands without letting go and helps me to my feet, smiling. “How can I refuse? I’ll show you.”601Please respect copyright.PENANARAZgf2I7Rt
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We walk hand-in-hand through the grounds, but none of the other students spares us even a glance. It isn’t that I want attention, but it surprises me that nobody is the least bit curious about the girl Will Poynter is holding hands with.601Please respect copyright.PENANAVBQyZ0RQSX
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He leads me unnoticed to a hidden away corner of the garden and gestures to some flowering shrubs.601Please respect copyright.PENANA5kgB6axOLh
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“Pretty,” I say, stepping toward them and smelling. They don’t smell like much.601Please respect copyright.PENANAJhuxJns0iX
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“Camellias,” he says. “I’ve been growing them for you.”601Please respect copyright.PENANAjWl9u25Vv5
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I stare at him, my eyes filming over. Nobody has ever done anything half as sweet for me. I want to tell him so, but instead, I just say, “Thank you.”601Please respect copyright.PENANAnqtTzWUSGP
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He leans like he’s about to kiss me, but then pulls away at the last moment. The pounding of my pulse fizzles into disappointment. You would think two years is long enough, wouldn’t you?601Please respect copyright.PENANA6YUOowQb3E