BooksBarbecue
Back Nobody in Particular
Chapters (61)
  1. Copyright Notice
  2. Dedication
  3. AUTHOR’S NOTE
  4. ONE DANNI
  5. TWO ROSE
  6. THREE DANNI
  7. FOUR DANNI
  8. FIVE ROSE
  9. SIX ROSE
  10. SEVEN DANNI
  11. EIGHT ROSE
  12. NINE DANNI
  13. TEN ROSE
  14. ELEVEN ROSE
  15. TWELVE ROSE
  16. THIRTEEN ROSE
  17. FOURTEEN DANNI
  18. FIFTEEN DANNI
  19. SIXTEEN ROSE
  20. SEVENTEEN DANNI
  21. EIGHTEEN ROSE
  22. NINETEEN ROSE
  23. TWENTY DANNI
  24. TWENTY-ONE DANNI
  25. TWENTY-TWO DANNI
  26. TWENTY-THREE ROSE
  27. TWENTY-FOUR ROSE
  28. TWENTY-FIVE DANNI
  29. TWENTY-SIX ROSE
  30. TWENTY-SEVEN DANNI
  31. TWENTY-EIGHT ROSE
  32. TWENTY-NINE ROSE
  33. THIRTY DANNI
  34. THIRTY-ONE DANNI
  35. THIRTY-TWO ROSE
  36. THIRTY-THREE DANNI
  37. THIRTY-FOUR ROSE
  38. THIRTY-FIVE ROSE
  39. THIRTY-SIX DANNI
  40. THIRTY-SEVEN ROSE
  41. THIRTY-EIGHT DANNI
  42. THIRTY-NINE ROSE
  43. FORTY DANNI
  44. FORTY-ONE ROSE
  45. FORTY-TWO DANNI
  46. FORTY-THREE ROSE
  47. FORTY-FOUR DANNI
  48. FORTY-FIVE ROSE
  49. FORTY-SIX ROSE
  50. FORTY-SEVEN DANNI
  51. FORTY-EIGHT ROSE
  52. FORTY-NINE ROSE
  53. FIFTY ROSE
  54. FIFTY-ONE ROSE
  55. FIFTY-TWO DANNI
  56. EPILOGUE ROSE
  57. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  58. Also by Sophie Gonzales
  59. Praise Page
  60. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  61. Newsletter Sign-up

Danni blossoms at my words, and for just a moment, I forget she isn’t mine. When the fact comes crashing back in, it goes down like burning ash.

I’m not entirely certain I’m fine after all.

I’m even less certain when Molly scowls and gets to her feet, dusting off the back of her pants. “I thought we agreed you weren’t going to pressure my friends into taking drugs anymore,” she says to me, turning on her heel before I can respond.

Danni scrambles up, too, looking patently horrified. “You didn’t—nobody pressured me,” she assures me, not that it’s much consolation. “I should…”

“Yes, go,” I urge in a cracking voice, and she disappears into the night.

The rest of us sit in uncomfortable silence. For the life of me, I can’t think of what to say.

TWENTY-SEVEN DANNI

Christmas break in Henland is a full three weeks long, and Rose’s birthday party takes place at the palace the weekend before we go back to school. When Molly and Eleanor come to my house to pick me up, I’m surprised by how much I missed them. We’ve been messaging and stuff, but it isn’t the same, and both of them were away for Christmas—Eleanor with her parents in France, and Molly with her grandparents in Korea. So it’s not like I could visit.

Part of me wonders if that’s why Molly decided to come tonight after all—if she’s missed me, and wanted to hang out. I’m pretty damn sure it’s not because she’s been dying to see Rose, anyway.

While Molly films the room, which seems to be filled mostly with adults, dignitaries and crown-wearing royalty from around the globe, Eleanor tugs me over to an interactive guest book. It’s linked to a projector, I realize, with the birthday messages lit up on a nearby wall. Molly finishes filming and considers the book for a suspiciously long time, like she’s tossing up whether to write something inappropriate in it.

“Don’t you dare,” I tell her. “Everyone will see it.”

She gives me a sheepish smile.

Not far away, mingling in the thick crowd of fancy people, I spot Rose. Rose and Alfie. Everything else fades away as soon as I do.

Rose is wearing a simple, figure-hugging dress that gathers around her waist, with her hair falling in loose curls. She looks perfect, as always. The two of them are standing with Alfie’s parents, cracking up about something. Rose’s arm is snaked tightly around Alfie’s waist. Standing on my tiptoes, I see his fingers brush against her thigh, and I look away, suddenly sick to my stomach.