And so began Jack and I's birthday road trip. I never expected to hear German opera music in my life, but it sounded from the speakers now—courtesy of Jack. The unfamiliar rhythm and words I didn't understand filled the car, intensifying the silence between us.

"So," I said as I drove. "How was it with your family earlier?"

He didn't respond. Only stared out the window, the rose I'd given him still in his hand.

"They were really okay with you coming on a hike this late? My family was actually happy I'm spending my birthday with you. Talia even let me borrow the car."

Again, no response. Not even a smile or a wince. Everything about him... as stoic and blank as Anika Clark.

I was used to his silence, but I couldn't read him at all. I had no clue about the thoughts that were inevitably racing through his head. Racing... He'd had a meltdown at the race with Seth, Eli, and the frat boys I thought had wrecked my shop until Penelope showed up to take the spotlight. He, like now, had been completely still. Blank. Frozen like the blankets of snow covering everything as the altitude increased.

For a moment, I zoned out and watched the scenery. The forested mountains that'd remain unchanging long after I was gone. Even now, snow was still a new sight to me. Nothing like the mountains I'd known in Hawai'i, where you could climb so high and instead of snow, saw the endless, sparkling ocean all around you.

I wondered how much snow Jack had seen in Germany. Were there mountains there, too? I knew jack shit—pun intended—about European geography. And in our silence, for some reason, I couldn't bring myself to ask. We pulled apart like the two mountains on either side of the road.

"Jack," I said, bringing myself back to reality. "Honestly, you didn't have to come."

Silence again. A silence I wasn't sure would end this time. He didn't even pull out his phone.

I sighed. "You're kind of reckless, you know that? But later on if you get mad at me, don't act like I forced you here."

So much for our birthday celebration. Why did Jack come if he was going to act like this? Was he here to be my babysitter so I wouldn't get myself into trouble? I didn't even want him to if he wasn't going to have fun while he was at it. But then again, Jack's idea of fun consisted of getting drunk in his room and talking about rocks.

Not even the scenery made me feel better. Feel... since when had I gotten so used to that?

An hour passed. An excruciating silence in which I detached from my body and paid attention only to the road ahead, ignoring the unnatural feeling in the back of my throat. No. No crying. Not over something like this. Not over Jack. Not on my birthday.

Finally, we arrived at the trailhead, which was located pretty far up in the mountains. Trees covered the epic view, and we'd have to make the hike up to see it.

A layer of snow covered the deserted parking lot. People rarely went hiking this time of year. I wasn't sure if the park itself was closed. My shoes would get wet. I hadn't fully prepared at all. Except for the pepper spray in my pocket.

And my fingers as they typed out the text:

To Sociopath #2:

I'm here.

A little exclamation mark appeared by the text.

Failed to send.

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A normal hike. A normal birthday. The easy trail lined with barren trees, covered with white in a picture-perfect winter wonderland. Fluffy snow crushed under my feet. Good thing it hadn't turned to ice yet, though my shoes were definitely getting wet. The higher altitude led to a sharp drop in temperature, but at least Jack and I came prepared for that with hooded jackets.

Sometimes I got so used to Seattle weather I forgot it snowed pretty much everywhere else in Washington. We found long sticks to help us on the trek upward. Even Jack couldn't deny the untouched beauty around us, like we were in the middle of a still, silent snow globe. His lips parted as he stared at the branches above us, the sun glowing dimly behind the clouds in the sky.

"You don't do this often, do you?" I asked.

Jack shook his head. The closest thing to a response he'd given me in over two hours.

We walked further, and the winter wonderland opened into a clearing in the trees. Finally, we saw the view of the world below, roads and power lines and mountains shrouded in clouds. I'm sure it looked so different in the summer. No wonder Greta and Dad always went on hikes.

I walked closer to the edge of the ledge. My feet shuffled the snow, and flecks drifted down. But after the ledge, it wasn't as much of a fall as you would think. Less of a sharp drop and more of a gradual, hilly incline all the way to the bottom.

On one side: the view. On the other side: tall, rocky cliffside. We passed by a stream, following the sound until it led to a small waterfall. And then... the tunnels. I remembered how this hike was known for its abandoned railroad tracks, now covered in snow. But the tall, gray tunnels remained. I peeked inside one of them, staring into the total darkness, almost expecting Penelope's green eyes to blink back at me. But there was nothing. Jack stood behind me, not daring to go in.

For a second, he grabbed my hand. Only to pull me back from going further.

When I turned, I noticed him reach for something in his pocket.

Until we heard it: "Ro-my!"

A distant voice. Jack and I locked eyes, and emotion finally flickered through his face: fear. He'd been hesitant to go into the tunnel before, but now he went and hid inside it.

"Are you sure?" I whispered.

In the dim, fading light—the sun would be down in less than an hour—he nodded.

I stepped away from the tunnel.

"Ro-my!"

Slowly, Penelope emerged from the trees shielding the rest of the trail. Slowly, she walked toward where I stood. Wind chilled me to the bone. But I suddenly felt as warm as summer once I saw her: wearing nothing but basketball shorts and a white t-shirt.

The girl was shivering. Both of us must've looked so small in comparison to the tunnels, the cliff, the endless blankets of white.

She grinned widely. "I d-didn't t-think you would c-come!"

I crossed my arms over my chest. "Surprised I found you. No cellphone service up here, I guess. Did you know it's my birthday?"

"I d-didn't forget."

"I came for my present."

"Let's catch up first. There's so much I haven't t-told you."

"Where's the money at, P?"

"That's the thing! The m-money... it's ours in the f-future." She pointed toward the cliffside. "I set up an altar up there at the t-top of the world. We need to cast a spell. I'll win the beauty p-pageant... you'll get your flower shop back. And we'll both be rich!"

I remembered her and Anika's "spells" I half-heartedly participated in, trying not to laugh at how seriously they took it. In the privacy of their bunk beds, they built temporary magical altars out of stolen lunch trays, kitchen herbs, and trinkets from the other girls—the gears of an old watch, a tube of lipgloss, an empty tampon applicator.

What would their spells look like now?

"You're telling me your grand plan was for me come and cast a spell with you?" I asked.

Penelope wrapped her arms around herself, looking much smaller in the cold—nothing like the maniacal laughter, the-world-revolves-around-me Penelope from the race.

"It c-could be like b-b-before," she said.

I felt for the pepper spray in my pocket. "Where's Anika?"

Her expression changed as fast as the flick of a switch. The shivering stopped. She went still. But her eyes radiated an anger I recognized all too well. The anger of all the times anyone saw straight through her act.

"Anika isn't here anymore," she said.

Anika Clark. Bleeding out on the snow. Irises rolled back as the whites of her eyes stared up at the sky.

What did you do to her?

I stepped back, shaking away the image, my voice almost stuttering when I asked, "Where is she?"

"Anika isn't here anymore." Penelope's shoulders started shaking as she stared out at the view. "At the d-dress boutique she told me she's had a f-falling out with the d-devil. But now she's having a falling out with me! I wanted her t-to come t-t-t-today. I wanted you to c-come. I know the altar I built will be perfect for tonight."

"You're going to freeze to death."

"I'm so g-glad you came."

What was Jack thinking of all this? Could he hear? I resisted the urge to turn around and look at the tunnels.

"Where's Anika?" I asked.

Penelope's head snapped toward me. "Anika left! She wants nothing to do with me! She says I'm an empty vessel for negative forces. She says she's met the archangels in her visions and they're telling her she's on the wrong path. She says she finally understands Jesus! I don't know what happened... did she join a church group with those religious freaks in juvie?! Now she's thinking she's a modern day saint!"

This was way more interesting than the money. But then again, since when could I believe Penelope about anything? Had all the demon stuff truly taken a toll on Anika? Had it scared her enough to convert into Christianity? Or was she just tired of Penelope's bullshit?

"Maybe she's just done with all your fake stories and lies," I said.

"Everything is true!" Penelope shrieked. "Anika calls me crazy but she's the one wanting to find a convent! A nun, Romy! Anika wants to get her GED and become a nun! She says I'm privileged. She can't get away with as much as I can. She doesn't want those demons to keep following her around... the demons from when she stabbed her uncle! We've been trying so hard to send them after him... We were supposed to kill him, do you remember that?"

Her eyes were wide, hopeful. I stared numbly at her shivering body, her fingertips turning white.

"We don't need her," Penelope whispered.

"We?"

"I don't want you to leave me like she did!"

"You seem quite sad for a sociopath."

"So what..."

She wasn't here to kill me. To sacrifice me. She was here for me to join her. To fill the emptiness in her heart.

And that was the first time I saw Penelope for what she truly was.

A lonely girl.

She trained her gaze on something behind me. I turned, adrenaline shooting through my spine, and saw Jack's head peeking out from the tunnel.

Penelope screamed, "I didn't say you could bring visitors!"

I scoffed. "I'm sorry I didn't want to be murdered out here all by myse—"

"I didn't say you could bring visitors!"

Jack emerged from the pitch black tunnel. The fear I'd seen in his eyes before... gone. He put down his hood, almost looking menacing.

"Your little guard dog!" Penelope laughed. But then she stopped. Shivered. And the conversation we had at the jail cell played through my head:

"He's your partner in crime. Your dual opposite. Like me and Anika."

"Well, you'll sure be keeping her company once you're in juvie again."

"Do you think she misses me?"

"For her sake, I would hope not."

But, unlike Anika, Jack had not left me. For whatever reason, Jack had followed me through the snow all the way up here.

Maybe I'd never be the spiritual type, but I knew the same thought was going through Penelope's mind. And she knew I knew. It was as if I could telepathically feel her turn green with envy.

She pushed me into the snow. "You bitch!"

Great. Now not only my shoes, but my ass would get all wet.

"Better that than what you want me to be," I said, looking up at her. "You're so sad Anika doesn't want to be your little witchy girlfriend. So sad she'll join a convent and find someone who will make her forget all about you. It's fine to be sad, P. But don't take it out on me. I have nothing to do with it. I've been the third wheel since the day I met you two."

But my words meant nothing to someone who didn't want to hear them. Penelope consequently attacked me, pinning me to the ground.

"What are you going to do?" I asked. "Sacrifice me on your altar?"

She wrapped her freezing hands around my neck. She gritted her teeth, the blood vessels in her eyes turning red as tears welled and dripped down her cheeks. I was still so detached from my body I didn't feel a thing. No excitement. No adrenaline. Which made me laugh while she choked me. Laugh like the old version of Penelope, emptiness making her soar above her own humanity.

It was actually the most reassuring thing in the world to know Penelope had shed a tear before I did.

Not even she was immune from feeling.

Maybe not even Anika. Because if Anika was truly dead inside, why would she have left? How would she have known that she wanted more?

With all the force I could muster, I pushed back against Penelope. We ended up rolling against the snow, closer and closer to the small ledge overlooking the snowy hills below.

From the corner of my eye, I noticed Jack coming toward us.

I took the pepper spray from my pocket. But Penelope was so close to me that if I used it now, I'd get sprayed, too.

So I threw it in Jack's direction instead.

Penelope looked up. She released my throbbing neck, lunging in his direction.

He aimed the pepper spray right at her face. She shrieked. But the wind blew some of the stream away, making it land on her neck instead. Instead of stopping, she lunged at him again.

Everything stopped. Blurred.

"Get back!" I screamed at Jack.

I felt like every version of me had brutally, finally attached themselves back to my body, filling me with an avalanche of every feeling I'd forgotten, but it was too late.

With all the force she could muster, Penelope put her hands on Jack's chest and pushed him.

And he went falling off the ledge. 

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A/N: So right now there's a heat wave in the Pacific Northwest. I'm out here with two fans blowing directly on me trying to finish this chapter with Romy and Jack in the snow and Penelope halfway to hypothermia... 

If you thought my other cliffhangers were bad, I'm sure this one blows them all out of the water 😂 I apologize in advance for any distress caused by this chapter. Nowadays I write thrillers so I'm always finding a way to put in action even into my coming of age books, and I hope you liked it! I honestly had so much fun writing this and shedding light on the evolution of Romy + Penelope + Anika. Do you think Anika is better off without Penelope? And what do you think Jack was thinking about that whole mess?! Any predictions for the coming chapters? 

The "hike" Jack and Romy went on in this chapter is actually inspired by a real place! Here are some pictures from last summer when I went. 

There's the view and then the type of tunnel Jack was hiding in. 

Be sure to vote, comment, and add to your reading lists if you're excited to know what happens next. 

Thank you for reading ❤️