Fated Dreams (Book One In The Affinity series)

by Christina Smith

  After the movie was over, he ordered pizza. When it was delivered, Lucas brought it over and placed it on the coffee table. Sitting down beside me, he handed me a greasy slice. It smelled so good I couldn’t wait to taste it.

  While we ate, we listened to his new CD. Lucas started telling me about some of the situations Andy and Kyle had gotten him into. When he finished a story about the three of them spying on Kyle’s older sister’s slumber party, he leaned back, lifting his fifth piece of pizza.

  “How could you possibly stuff another piece into your stomach?”

  He smiled then took a bite. “It’s a talent. You’d be amazed at how much I can eat.”

  “Why are you so thin?”

  “I work out.” He picked up a napkin and wiped some tomato sauce that had dripped on his jeans.

  I laughed.

  “Why is that funny?”

  “I just can’t picture you lifting weights like those muscle guys that oil up their bodies.”

  “There are other ways to work out, and I don’t do it to get muscles. I like it.”

  “I still can’t see it, though, you’re more the book reading type.” I leaned forward and stacked our plates onto the pizza box.

  He balled up his napkin and threw it on the box. “I can do both.”

  “If you say so.” I stood up with the plates in my hand while Lucas grabbed the rest.

  I followed him into the kitchen, where he threw the pizza box away and then turned to face me. “I’ve had a lot of fun tonight,” he said, taking the dishes out of my hands and placing them in the sink. He backed me up against the kitchen counter. “I love being with you.” He leaned in to gently brush his lips against mine. “After work tomorrow night, do you want to do something?”

  “Sure, why don’t we hang out at my house?” Since my parents wanted to meet him, I figured it was probably best to get it over with.

  His hands moved to the sides of my arms, gently rubbing up and down. “Okay, but only if you let me take you out for dinner first.”

  My heart sped up at the feel of his soft touch. I swallowed hard. “Sounds good…I’m off at seven.”

  He leaned in and kissed me again. “I’ll pick you up at seven thirty at your house then,” he mumbled against my lips. His arms tightened around me as he guided me toward the living room, without taking his lips from mine. We had almost made it to the couch when his phone rang. “Damn! We need to turn our phones off when we do this.” He pulled his cell out of his pocket while I sat down on the couch alone. “Hello.” He paused as he listened. “No thanks, I’m busy…Yes, but I’m not going into details…No, she’s right here…Goodbye, I’m hanging up now.” He growled, turning his phone off.

  “Andy?” I asked, and he nodded.

  “Come on, I’ll show you my room.” He held my hand, leading me down a hallway and through the third door. The room was a tad cluttered, with a wide dresser and a mirror against one wall. His bed was against the opposite one, with shelves above, filled to the brim with books, a few pictures, and a couple of trophies. Like mine, his desk sat under the window. At the end of his bed was a basketball net, hanging on the wall above. Have you read all those?” I asked, pointing to the books.

  He sat on the edge of his bed and glanced over at his shelves. “Yeah, there are some more in the basement.”

  “What are your favorites?” I reached up, pulling a dog-eared copy of Huckleberry Finn.

  “I don’t think I could pick one, but that would be one of them, along with The Catcher in the Rye, Lord of the Flies, and To Kill a Mockingbird.” He reached up and pulled a copy of Frankenstein, playing with the pages. “What about you, I see you reading in the lunch room, what’s your favorite?”

  I sighed, shoving the book back in place. “I have so many, but I’d have to choose the one that started my interest in reading, Anne of Green Gables.”

  He grinned. “That’s a good one too.”

  “I wanted to dye my hair red after I read it,” I admitted.

  He laughed. “I’m sure you’d look beautiful as a redhead.” He placed the book back on the shelf and turned to me. “You’re pretty, no matter what.”

  Blushing, I looked away, unable to face him after his flattery. I spotted the net hanging on the wall. “You shoot hoops in bed?” I asked, changing the subject.

  “When I’m bored.” He watched me as I picked up the ball that was sitting on the floor. It was small, orange, and made out of foam. I threw it at the net, and it went in. He picked it up and handed it back to me.

  “Try it again,” he said, standing up. I lifted my hand to throw the ball, but was suddenly tackled onto the soft mattress.

  “Hey,” I said, laughing, looking up at him. He was lying on top of me, his face hovering just inches from mine. “That’s a foul.”

  He grinned, took the ball from me, and threw it in the net.

  “Oh, so you’re a cheater?”

  “What are you going to do about it?” His smile widened as he stood up, pulling me with him. He started to shoot the ball, and when he lifted his arm, I jumped on him. We landed on the bed, this time with me on top of him. Both of us were laughing, but when I looked into his eyes I stopped; they were no longer filled with laughter. He reached up and pulled my head down to his, for a long, deep kiss.

  The sound of the front door slamming shut scared me. I jumped up quickly, hovering in the corner.

  Lucas chuckled. “Relax,” he said, glancing at the clock. It was eight-thirty. “It’s probably just my mom.” He took my hand. “Come on,” he said, pulling me out of his room.

  We met his mother in the kitchen. I was very nervous, but when she turned her head and saw us, she smiled warmly. Her hair was dark like Lucas’ and Logan’s, but hers was thick and wavy, and it flowed just past her shoulders. She had blue eyes while theirs were hazel. She was very pretty. “Well, you must be Sarah. It’s so nice to finally meet you. Lucas has spoken very highly of you.”

  I blushed, giving Lucas a questioning glance. He quirked a brow at me and shrugged his shoulders. If his mother noticed our silent exchange, she didn’t show it. “Sarah, this is my mom, Karen,” Lucas said, pulling me closer.

  I shook the hand she held out. “Hi, it’s nice to meet you.”

  She let go of my hand as her smile faded. “Sarah, I’m so sorry about what my other son did to you. That boy won’t be seeing the sun outside of work or school until he’s thirty-five.”

  We gaped at her, both wondering how she found out so quickly. “How did you know what happened?” Lucas asked.

  “I have told you both that I have spies everywhere, so you better watch your step. And I don’t reveal my sources,” she said with a smirk.

  Lucas grinned. “Lisa?”

  “Yep. She told me that Logan harassed you.” She nodded to me. “And that you saved the day.” A look of pride shone from her face when she focused on Lucas.

  “Yes, she’s right, but Sarah doesn’t want you to punish him, because she’s afraid he’ll think she was the one who told. She won’t even let her mother do something at school.”

  Karen gave me a look of disapproval. “Sarah, he has to be punished. He can’t treat people the way he does and get away with it. This time there were lots of witnesses.”

  I shook my head. “I wasn’t hurt, and it’s over, I’d just rather forget it.”

  “Well, I’ll discuss it with their father and see what he says. And I’ll make sure Logan knows I didn’t hear about it from either of you.”

  I could see I wasn’t going to convince anyone. “Fine,” I said with a sigh, finally giving in.

  Lucas got us each a bottle of water then pulled me to the table. I sat down on the chair next to him. He handed me my drink just as my phone rang.

  “Hello,” I answered after taking it from my pocket.

  “Hey, are you still with Lucas?” Emma asked.

  “Yes, why?” Lucas was whispering to his mother about the incident, and I was trying to silence him with my eye
s. It wasn’t working.

  “I’m sleeping over at your place tonight whether you like it or not. I’ve been going crazy wondering what’s going on with you.” Lucas looked over at me curiously, obviously finished squealing to his mother.

  “Sure, I’ll meet you around ten.”

  “Are you at his house?”

  “Yes.”

  “I want all the details. I’ll see you later. I’ll have Derrick drop me off there. Can you give me a ride home tomorrow?”

  “Sure.”

  After we said our goodbyes, I hit the end button on my cell.

  “Was that Emma?”

  I nodded. “Can you take me to my car now? I should get home.”

  “Sure,” he said, pulling me off of my chair. “See you later, Mom.”

  Karen smiled at me. “It was so nice to meet you, Sarah. I hope you’ll come back soon?”

  “Of course, it was nice meeting you too.”

  Lucas took my hand and steered me to the front door.

  “Who’s Lisa?” I asked once we were in his car, pulling out of the driveway. He looked confused at my question. “Earlier, when you were talking to your mom, she said her source was Lisa.”

  He smiled. “Oh…Lisa Miller, she’s in the eleventh grade. She’s a hostess at the restaurant, and she knows everything that goes on at school. I have no idea how. This one time, I guess Logan cheated on a math test. Lisa found out and told my mom, and she took his cell phone away for a month. He thought I told her, and he punched me.”

  “He hit you?” I asked, horrified.

  He laughed. “Don’t worry; remember when I said he can’t take me? He walked away with a black eye.” He laughed at my expression; I wasn’t used to violence. “He may act like a tough guy, but I’m the one in the basement using the heavy bag all the time.” He stopped at a red light.

  “A heavy bag?”

  “You know, in boxing, with boxing gloves,” he said, pulling away again.

  “Oh right, I thought that was called a punching bag.” I blinked at him. It didn’t seem like something he’d do. “You hit a heavy bag? Why?”

  “I told you that I work out, that’s how. It’s very therapeutic. I started when I was a kid. It was my dad’s, but I sort of took it over. When I first started, I couldn’t even move the thing. Then when I did manage to get it to budge, it swung back and knocked me over.”

  I thought about it. “Huh…it sounds…interesting.”

  “I’ll show you sometime.” We were at the school parking lot now, and he pulled into the spot beside my car.

  “You mean you want to show off?”

  “Pretty much,” he said, and we both laughed.

  I looked out the window at the school grounds. It was spooky at night with no one else around. He walked me to my car, and after a kiss goodbye, I pulled out of the lot, watching his car as he went the opposite way.

  Twenty minutes later, I lay on my bed at home, replaying my day over and over in my mind. I had such a great time with him, I didn’t want to leave. When we kissed, I felt things I never imagined I could feel.

  Emma walked through the door and bounced onto the bed, ending my reverie. “So, how did your day go?” she asked, grinning wickedly.

  “Fine, how was yours?” I tried not to show any emotion as I leaned over to grab my TV remote from the nightstand.

  She took it out of my hand. “Oh no, you don’t! Spill, I’ve been going crazy.”

  I laughed at her; she was a person who thrived on gossip. She had to know everything that went on with her friends. Usually in my case there wasn’t much to know. “Well, we hung out at his house, ordered pizza, and watched a movie.”

  She looked disappointed. “That’s it?” she asked, her face horror-stricken.

  “Well, I met his mom, she was very nice.”

  “Oh, come on! You know what I mean, did he kiss you?”

  I smiled and brushed the hair out of my face. “Oh, that’s what you wanted to know, why didn’t you say so?” I was literally driving her crazy. She looked like she was about to blow.

  “Okay!” I said, laughing at her. “Yes, he kissed me several times. But that’s all you’re getting.”

  “So, how was it? Is he a keeper?”

  I groaned. “Definitely. We have plans for dinner tomorrow, and hanging out here afterward.”

  We smiled at each other. “Isn’t it cool that we both have boyfriends?” she asked.

  “I don’t know if he’s my boyfriend. It just happened today.”

  “Oh please, you two have been pining for each other for weeks. Believe me, that’s what he is.”

  My phone beeped; I had a text message. I reached for it and read, “Sweet dreams. Lucas.” I was touched at his message until Emma grabbed the phone from me and read it.

  “Oh, he is so your boyfriend.” I laughed as I tossed a pillow at her, which earned a smack in the head from hers.

  Chapter Eleven

  Followed

  I forced my eyes open, regretting the late night. We didn’t get to sleep until about two in the morning. The clock read nine a.m., and I still felt a little groggy. The sky was gray outside my window, which only made me want to stay inside my soft, warm blankets even more.

  “Get up,” Emma said, shaking me. “I’m going to be late, I open the store today.” The store she was referring to was called Pizzazz, a woman’s boutique located next to The Pretzel Pit in the mall.

  “Fine,” I grumbled, climbing out of bed and stumbling to the bathroom.

  “I'll meet you downstairs,” I heard her yell from the hallway.

  “Why the hell is she so perky?” I mumbled to myself as I hopped in the shower.

  The hot water helped clear my head, and my thoughts went to Lucas. Just the image of him in my mind made me breathless and giddy.

  My spirits were still high when I got to work. That must have been the reason I didn’t mind so much when I was assigned the concession stand. It didn’t even bother me when a whiny little girl sneezed on my hand, or that a four-year-old boy knocked a container of popcorn all over me, although I was relieved when the time came to take my break…until Zack walked in.

  I sat at the far table, enjoying my diet soda and dill pickle chips, when he and a few other people I worked with came in discussing one of the movies that was playing.

  “Hey, Sarah,” Zack said, plunking down in the chair next to mine. He smelled of butter and mint.

  “Hey,” I answered, leaning back in my seat, balancing my soda can on my knee.

  “What time are you off?”

  It was hard to hear him over Jack and Chloe, who were arguing behind us about what movie they were going to watch when their shift was over.

  I swallowed the chip I had just stuffed in my mouth. “Seven o’clock.”

  He smiled. “Me too. Do you want to stay and watch a movie with me?”

  Oh God, did he mean like a date? “Sorry, I have plans tonight.” There was a moment of uncomfortable silence. I didn’t know what to say so I stuffed another chip in my mouth; when in doubt, fill your face. He grinned at me, watching Jack and Chloe argue.

  I glanced at the old, dusty white clock on the back wall and stood up to leave, tossing my chip bag in the garbage and can in the recycling. My break was over.

  “Maybe some other time,” I heard him say, just as I was about to step out the door. I was so close. I cursed myself for not walking out sooner, or making up an excuse.

  “Sure,” I said with a wave. I left the break room, regretting my response.

  Around five thirty, I received a text from Lucas: “Finished work, have news on Logan. See u @ 7:30.” What did that mean, news on Logan? Did he think I was the one who told his mother, and was he about to make my life hell at school? I really hoped not. I’d lived like that before at my previous school, and wasn’t interested in being someone else’s target. Logan might not be as bad as Stephanie Brown, but he’d made a few kids in our school miserable, and I hated the idea that I would be
his next victim.

  At seven o’clock, I signed out and headed outside. The lot was empty of people since the movies were still running. While heading toward my car, I dropped my keys. Bending down to pick them up, I heard footsteps, even though I was no longer walking. I stood up and spun around. “Hello?” I called when I didn’t see anyone. I listened for an answer, or something that told me someone was just making their way to their car, but the only response was a distant siren and the hum of the big industrial fan for the theater's heating system. I took another step, and stopped quickly. Again I heard the footsteps. “Hello, is anyone there?” I repeated with a tremor in my voice. Nothing. A shiver of fear ran down my spine as I started running to my car. Now the sounds of heavy footfalls echoed behind me. My heart thudded in my chest.

  Yanking my door open, I stumbled inside and slid the key into the ignition. Once the engine roared to life, I stepped on the gas and drove away as fast as I could.

  Through the rearview mirror, I saw a hooded figure standing where my car had been parked, staring after me. Fear overwhelmed me as I drove. Someone had followed me last week, and now this? Why was this happening, and who was that?

  I glanced down at my hands and saw that they were shaking. I needed time to calm down, so I pulled into the corner store near my house. I couldn’t let my family or Lucas see me like this. Taking a few deep breaths, I slid a CD into the stereo, hoping to take my mind off the hooded man. I sat for a while singing my favorite song, thankful no one I knew saw me sitting at an empty corner store by myself, singing along to the radio. They would think I was nuts.

  When I finally calmed down enough, I was a few minutes late to meet Lucas. I drove fast to my house to try to beat him, but when I pulled up to the driveway, his car was already there, parked out front. Crap. How was I going to explain why I was late? I glanced in the mirror to see if it was obvious that I was shaken up. I was a bit pale, but as long as no one looked too close, I could slip upstairs and splash water on my face.

  “Hey,” I said, stepping into the living room where my parents and Lucas were talking. Lucas turned around, smiling. When he saw my face, his expression changed to concern.