I examined the vial, turning it over and over in my hand. “Of course I do. And so do you. Our mothers got us these when we were little to help us fall asleep easier.” Concern filling me, I bit my lip. “Maybe we should stop by Victor’s, Anamae. His dad should be home.”

“Oh no, you don’t,” she said. “You’re not pushing your crazy off on me. I’m not the one who dreamed up a boyfriend.”

Something jarred inside me at her words.

“What did you say?” I asked.

“Mr. Midnight,” Anamae said, drawing the last syllable out.

I didn’t remember doing it, but I must have told her about the boy in my dreams. Anamae smiled when a glimmer of comprehension showed in my expression. But the feeling passed as soon as it had come.

She tapped her cell, but I wasn’t up to seeing or talking to Victor.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“Texting Victor,” Anamae said. “He saw the guy. Maybe he can help you remember who he was.”

A memory drifted into my mind. The defeated look on Victor’s face when we broke up. “Don’t,” I said, putting my hand on her cell.

“Why not?” Anamae asked. “If Victor met him, that means he exists. If James is here and has done something to make you forget him, that can’t be a good thing. What’s to stop him from taking you away?”

The fear in her tone finally penetrated my shell, and my mouth went dry. “Take me where?”

Anamae stared at me for a long minute. She tapped a few more seconds on her cell before flashing a smile. “Forget it. You’re right. I don’t know what I was thinking. Mr. Midnight is just a boy in a dream. I guess I’m a little keyed up about prom. I’ll feel better once we get on the road. Are you ready?”

I nodded, still confused by what the whole thing had been about. After I picked my wallet and house key, we in the car heading out of Woodvine.

The ride to Asheville was quiet. I focused on the passing scenery as we drove. Trees, trunks, leaves—they all became a blur of green until we neared the shiny new section of the guardrail. Anamae and I joined hands as we drove past the spot where we’d gone off the road after she’d hit a deer. The first few times I’d driven by the point of impact, I’d been overcome with panic. Now, the simple gesture of our joining hands calmed my fear, removed it from me, and stuck it in the margins.