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by Admin

  The princess said, "And you need a Halloween pail or a sheet or something, not this big old thing." She tugged on his bag.

  On cue, spooky sounds began to play. Raylee hurried away and came back with a costume. "Here, try this. At least you'll feel at home in it." It was a large reindeer costume.

  "Ho-ho-ho!" Santa belted out the most boisterous laugh before escaping to a restaurant to change. When he reappeared, all of the kids shouted with glee.

  "Here, I have extras. Take it." Raylee handed him one of her pumpkin pails.

  "Thank you. I'm not used to receiving gifts, but it sure feels nice!"

  The rest of the play, Santa went from house to house, marveling over all of the treats he received. At the finale, he and the kids and the adults who were handing out candy all sang a special song, "Happy Halloween" to Santa as he, in his reindeer suit, pranced around the neighborhood with the kids in tow, his red nose lighting the way.

  The applause was big. The curtain fell. And Ms. Cass congratulated everyone.

  TEN

  Paul was on the way to his car, walking briskly through the rain-drenched parking lot when Raylee called out to him. When he turned, she couldn't help but notice how his eyes lit up, like he was happy to see her.

  "Hey, Raylee, how's it going?"

  "Oh, you know, just trying to wrap the boring concepts around my brain and turn them into something intriguing."

  He laughed. "History is intriguing, you know."

  "If you say so."

  "So, what's up?"

  "You're going to Homecoming, right?"

  He hesitated. Had she touched on a sensitive subject? Or maybe he just didn't care about things like dances.

  "I don't have anyone to go with, but that's okay. I'm not big into dances anyway. I have two left feet and two left hands." He was laughing.

  "Oh." She let out a short chuckle of her own. But, where could she go from here? She planned to invite him to the mall to help her pick out something for the dance, but he'd made it clear he was uninterested in those types of events.

  "You need help in history, don't you?"

  Good. He'd saved the embarrassment of her trying to figure out something else to say. "Yeah. That obvious, huh?"

  "Hey, I get it. I don't care for English. You don't care for history. I'll just have to help you find a way to look at it differently. Maybe you can help me with my perception issue of English too." He winked.

  "Yeah, that works. That sounds pretty good, actually."

  "Awesome. I have some free time this afternoon, if you want to squeeze in a quick session."

  "Really? OK, well, I have to go shopping for my dress around 6:00, so that'd be perfect. Four o'clock good?"

  "On the dot."

  Once she got home, the storm was already traveling inland, the entire sky covered in dark chrome-colored clouds that huddled together in one pregnant mass. A steady rain fell to the ground as she dashed through the front door.

  Her dad was already gone, having left a little while ago on his weekly visit to minister to some sick in-patients down at the local hospital. Her mom was reading from the newspaper in the living room, one leg crossed over the other, her usual calm sitting position.

  "Hey Mom, Paul is coming over to help me with history."

  She glanced up. "Good. Maybe you'll find a new sense of appreciation for it."

  "That's pretty much what Paul said," Raylee responded, amused.

  Once inside her room, Raylee reluctantly parted the curtains to watch the thunderstorm unfold. Hard rain, in thick rushing waves, pounded against the pavement below as lightning snapped across the blackening sky and thunder rocked the house.

  She hastily moved away from the window and backed up to the edge of the bed. She’d always been afraid of storms, the dark, the unknown. To her, storms like this one represented a force that propelled her into a place full of mysterious shadows and looming shapes, the same world where she’d once glimpsed evil in the form of the movie The Exorcist.

  The essence of evil, its ability to creep into someone’s life and take over it, stuck with her as clearly as the grotesque image of the demon-possessed Regan.

  Thunderstorms possessed their own threatening nature, similar to horror movies; lightning prowled through darkness, seeking places to strike while thunder startled the soul of a person, sometimes rumbling so loud that it shook deep inside one’s heart.

  Remembering her grandmother's calmness about storms, she drew in a deep breath, willing herself to calm herself. But this happened to be one of those few times when the storm came perilously close, directly on top of the house, shuddering the frame and shaking into her own bones, until she found no relief, only fear.

  That fear was building right now. Raylee hated herself for it. She felt like a child still.

  She took her Bible from the nightstand. It was a coral colored book with her name set in silver letters on the bottom corner of the cover, a gift from her dad on her eighth birthday. The binding was nearly worn off because of its frequent usage. She picked it up. It smelled like the softness of trees, antiquated vanilla, history, and truth.

  "Raylee!" her mom called. "Paul's here!"

  The fear subsiding, she gently set the Bible back down and made her way downstairs.

  Her dad was home from the hospital and was stirring a pot of chicken stew over the stove. Turning, he greeted Paul.

  "Nice to see you, Paul." With a broad smile, he added, "I hear you have a great challenge before you."

  Puzzled, Paul glanced to Raylee for an explanation.

  "Raylee says that you're going to help her get interested in history. That will not be an easy feat!"

  Raylee moaned. Paul smiled.

  "Who's hungry for an early dinner?" Her dad asked, turning back to the stove. Everyone agreed to a plate.

  Paul got right to work helping Raylee memorize important dates as they ate their stew. Her parents seemed pleased and offered them privacy in the living room as they left to the dining area in the other room.

  "But who cares when these things happened. Why do I have to recite the dates? What will that prove to Mr. Boreman?"

  "Not just dates. Events. Important events."

  Raylee groaned as she reluctantly let Paul take her through the time frames.

  As five-thirty, Paul said bye to everyone and thanked Mr. Johnson for dinner.

  "Drive carefully," he told Paul. He nodded and ran to his car.

  Pushing history effortlessly from her mind, Raylee darted upstairs to clean up her room. Before long, her mom was calling for her. By then, the storm was full-blown.

  "You ready?" her mom called from downstairs.

  Drawing in a deep breath, willing herself to stay calm in spite of the shuddering windows and bright flashes of light, she made her way down to the front hall. Her mom was gathering up the keys as she opened the front door, letting her daughter through first.

  Dashing as a fast as she could through the rain, her entire body tensed up as she followed her mom to their other vehicle, a newer yellow Honda.

  Raylee liked going to the mall, but not when it came to shopping for clothes. Nothing she liked ever fit her right. The thought of browsing for a homecoming dress only sent her nerves on fire.

  Her mom started the car and patted her hand. "It’ll be fine. You’re going to have a wonderful time."

  She managed a weak smile, not wanting to worry her mom. Going with Donald still painted an obscure picture. He said he wanted to go with her, but as friends, and that was good because that's how she felt too. But she couldn't help but wish she was going with someone she liked, and who liked her.

  "I remember going to Homecoming with your dad. It was amazing, Raylee. The spinning lights, the music, the snacks, and the dancing. . .oh, the dancing was the best part of it all. That’s when we met, not knowing that just a few years later we would start our lives together."

  "I know, Mom. Hopefully, I’l
l have a good time too." The lightning flared across the sky in front of them. Raylee's heart skipped.

  "Well, listen, if you don’t, then I promise we will play some Scrabble and watch a movie, your choice, okay? And I’ll make you your favorite, chocolate cream pie."

  Raylee laughed. "You sure know how to persuade a person." And then she instantly cringed when the windshield wipers swept globs of rain off the glass, scraping across the windshield like fingernails on a chalkboard.

  Her mom laughed back and shook her head. "That’s not what I’m doing. I just know you’re going to have a good time. But, in the off chance that I prove to be wrong, I feel compelled to make it up to you, that’s all."

  A few minutes later, they were pulling into the mall’s parking structure. The storm was still raging, black clouds melting together to block out the fading sunlight. Raylee did her best to keep her voice from trembling. "We’ll, let’s just hope I don’t get any pie tonight then."

  "Sounds good."

  Running under umbrellas, they made their way inside of the mall. Raylee didn’t realize her breathing accelerated until she caught her breath as they entered the building.

  The place was packed, filled with couples, singles, and families swarming the center promenade as they wandered into one store or another. There were only two dress shops. They stopped at the first one.

  As they stepped inside, they carefully made their way around as it was filled with moms and daughters scrambling for the perfect dress.

  "Over the shoulder straps? Sleeved?" Raylee’s mom asked.

  "Huh?"

  "Your dress. Which do you prefer? And color too. There's a lot to choose from."

  Raylee shook her head as though coming out of a daze. "Um, I’m not sure." Dress shopping was not exactly her favorite thing to do.

  Her mom motioned to a rack of gowns. "Take a look."

  Reluctantly, she made her way to the discount rack. She didn’t really like getting dressed up; it always made her feel more self-conscious about her smallish figure. Sifting through the hanging dresses, she realized why they were on sale. They were ugly.

  She looked around the store to see displays showcasing some of the fancier gowns. As she crossed over to them, she noticed some students from Silver Canyon High. Too shy to acknowledge them, she kept her head low and hurried to a less populated section where some gold sequined gowns called out to her. But judging by the pear-shaped style, they would only annunciate her tiny frame and give the appearance that her hips seemed to be missing, which was the last thing she wanted to do. Instead, she found a few short-sleeved dresses that she pulled from the rack. As she spun to head over to one of the fitting rooms, she bumped into someone.

  Crystal.

  More beautiful up close, Raylee swallowed out of embarrassment, muttered an apology, and hurried past her, but not before hearing Crystal scoff at her.

  Inside of the fitting room, Raylee took a deep breath and glanced at herself in the mirror.

  Doing her best to stay focused on the task at hand, she shook the concerns away from her mind and slipped the dress on.

  Thunder pounded the ceiling, and Raylee, as ridiculous as it was, ducked. Her hands were shaking; she clasped them together in an attempt to calm herself. She closed her eyes and counted silently. "One-one thousand, two-one thousand, three-one thousand. . .", making it all the way to five seconds before the rumbling sounded in the distance. Raylee breathed in. Exhaled. Opened her eyes. Her hands relaxed.

  The first dress, a shiny pink, announced her small chest. Huffing, she quickly stripped off the dress and tried the next one, but this one sagged off her too-small shoulders, a typical problem she experienced with any kind of clothing.

  Doing her best not to cry, she tried on the iridescent floor-length gown, a turquoise color, inhaling once more with the expectation that this would be another letdown. She took in a second breath, this time because she liked what she saw in the mirror. The gown was gorgeous, and it made her look at least somewhat desirable.

  "Raylee?" her mom called from outside the dressing room. "Let me see."

  She came out and paraded in front of her, cracking a goofy smile as she did.

  "It looks wonderful on you!" she exclaimed.

  "Mom!" Her eyes went wide. "Shhh!" A handful of people turned their heads to look at Raylee. One of them was Crystal. She was the only one glaring.

  Raylee looked back to her mom. "Everyone is staring at me, Mom. Thanks!" she whispered.

  Lowering her voice, her mom said, "I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’ve just never seen you so dressed up before. You look so beautiful, so. . ." She was sniffing and tearing up and smiling all at once.

  "Okay, Mom." She hugged her. "Thank you. I’m going to get dressed now."

  Raylee was starting to feel a thrill about the dance. She was going with Donald, just as friends, but she surprised herself by thinking about Billy, forcing Crystal to the back of her mind.

  When they got home, Raylee dashed upstairs to share news about her dress with Katy.

  "That sounds awesome, Raylee."

  "What about you? What are you wearing?"

  "I'm not going. We have a family reunion to go to up in Oregon, and the plane tickets are non-refundable."

  "Oh, that's too bad."

  "Nah, no one asked my anyway, so it's all good."

  They chatted for a few more minutes, then Raylee said goodnight.

  ELEVEN

  Today was the day. Homecoming was finally here. The banner announcing the candidates for queen had been dangling from the ceiling of their school for so long that Jennifer’s and Gina’s names had all but faded. Interestingly, only the letters in Crystal’s name remained bright and sharp. Her name was pasted in the middle with the other girls' names marked around the now fraying edges. Still, her name remaining seemed symbolic of her destiny, that she'd been chosen to be queen of the dance.

  The Homecoming game, of course, was taking place just before the ball. They were playing against their nastiest rival, Royal High. Realizing she was one of the few students left in the hallway, Raylee headed over to the football field. And saw Crystal up ahead, running to catch up to Ryan. They had broken up, clearly, so it surprised her that she was going out of her way to talk to him. Ryan had been doing everything to stay out of her way ever since the breakup.

  "Hey!" Crystal ran to catch up to him. He was already dressed in his uniform, and when he stopped to face her, Raylee saw that he wasn’t all that glad to see his ex-girlfriend.

  As she walked by them, she caught their conversation.

  "What is it? I have a game. It’s important."

  "I’m sorry, Ryan. For the breakup. But I want you to know that I am here to support you, to cheer you on."

  "I know that. You’re the head cheerleader."

  "No, I mean, me personally."

  "Great. OK. Well, gotta go."

  He abruptly turned and headed toward the field.

  Raylee couldn’t believe it. Ryan was really angry with her. It was strange to see someone angry at Crystal.

  Gina’s hand was suddenly on her friend's shoulder. "Don’t let him make you feel bad, Crystal. He’s just a sore loser."

  Crystal cracked a grin.

  "You seem deep in thought." Gina slung her arm around Crystal and chewed off a bite of red licorice.

  Raylee was just reaching the edge of the bleachers, bumping up her pace a bit to brush past them.

  She started searching for Paul, who planned to meet her, when Crystal and Gina suddenly turned around, and she nearly ran into them. She came to a fast halt. There was no way around them, so she found herself stuck there awkwardly, waiting for them to move.

  Crystal's smile reached her cheeks. She said too loudly, "Oh, yeah. Just thinking about the dance again. How amazing it’s going to be with Billy. He’s so in love with me, Gina."

  "Oh, I know. You guys make such a great couple," Gina added in an extra loud vo
ice.

  Finally, they shifted their position, allowing just enough room for her to get by.

  Raylee hurried past them.

  "Look at her run!" She heard Crystal shout behind her.

  Worry, fear, and a sinking helplessness made her chest grow tight. She found a spot in the middle of the second row of bleachers, one of just a few spots left. Paul should be here any minute.

  Before long, the two girls were heading in her direction once again, though they didn't seem to notice her sitting there.

  "What, is the whole town here or something?" Crystal was saying.

  "Looks like we better win or run away in shame," Gina said.

  "My parents totally splurged on the dance. It’s going be so amazing, Gina."

  "You are so lucky. I wish my parents were like that."

  What a lie! Katy's parents sponsored the dance. The Myers had been generous for the past two years, donating funds from their own businesses to support their school events.

  "Come on, Gina, let’s go show them Vikings who the real winners are." Leading the way, Crystal pasted on a smile, held her head up high, and pranced to the football field.

  Crystal began the cheer. "Victory. Victory will be ours. We’re wild. We’re cats. We’re the Wildcats!"

  Raylee didn't care how good they might be, she was too annoyed with Crystal's blatant lie that her parents paid for the dance.

  She searched all around her.

  Come on, Paul. Where are you?

  With the other cheerleaders, Crystal and Gina huddled, whispering something.

  When they broke from their circle, Crystal was eying someone. Reflexively, Raylee looked to see who it was and was surprised to see Billy talking to the coach. Maybe he was interested in playing varsity next year. She vaguely recalled hearing Ryan comment that he wouldn’t be returning next year, that his focus was turning to the military. Apparently, he was going to join the Marines, which meant that a spot could open up for Billy.

  Steering her gaze to the field, the game just underway, she did her best to keep her attention on the players. The Wildcats were already playing to impress, running with purpose across the field.