She looked up. “I have no idea, but you’re practically quivering, so it must be good.”
“I don’t know if it’s good or not. That’s what I need you to tell me.” I paused for effect. “Do you remember a girl who used to live here named Carmen?”
A huge smile lit up her face. “Carmen! Yes. She was here? Where is she?”
“She already left, but we ran into each other while I was trying to get my drink.”
“Wow, I’m so happy she’s back! We were all super sad when her dad made them move away for his job. But her sendoff party was a blast.”
I felt a twinge of jealousy at the excitement in her voice but pushed it away. “So, this is good news, then.”
“Oh yeah, this is great! You’ll like her. She’s so sweet and fun. And once you are friends, she’ll always have your back. Nobody dared cross her.”
For some reason, my heart sank. It sounded a lot like how people described Jill, the “perfectly sweet until adults weren’t around then horribly mean vampire” who tortured me when I was at vampire University.
“Okay, cool.” I forced a smile and sat down, popping the top off my drink as I did. Thirstily, I took a deep gulp and immediately knew I’d made a mistake. As soon as I swallowed, I hiccupped. Loud. Harper giggled and I laughed. I was still laughing when I hiccupped again, followed by a huge burp. Harper hid her face in her hands, but her shoulders shook as she silently cracked up.
“Shh, stop it!” I tried to whisper. At the sight of her losing it, though, I unleashed an almost maniacal fit of laughter. Heads started turning toward us as we lost ourselves in hysteria. It was awful. The harder I laughed, the more I hiccupped, each one followed by a ferocious burp. My face burned as more people gawked, yet I couldn’t stop. I tried looking away from Harper, but we were well past the point of quelling the insanity. Laugh-hiccup-burp. Over and over. I heard whispering and a few others laughing in sympathy. I wanted to die.
“I… can’t… stop… hiccup-burp… laugh… hiccup-burp… ing.”
Harper howled, tears streaking down her face.
Someone, I don’t know who, yelled, “Would y’all cut it out? Some of us are trying to work here!”
I hollered back. “I’m… hiccup-burp… try… hiccup-burp… ing!” I took a huge breath and held it, praying the age-old trick would work. But nope. It kept going, on and on. Harper was slumped down in her seat, halfway onto the floor, in that silent laugh that leaves you unable to breathe. In the midst of laughing and hiccupping and burping, I started to worry about her. But she finally gasped in a mouthful of air and dragged herself back into her chair, just as I saw the girl from the front desk heading our way.
“Excuse me. I hate to be a downer, but the librarian can hear you all the way in her office. She told me you’ll have to leave if you can’t calm down.” She looked apologetic.
“I’m… trying.” I glanced at Harper helplessly, though all she could do was wave her hands in a surrender motion, still in the throes of her fit.
“Well, I don’t mind really, but the librarian says—”
“Yeah, I… got it.” Laugh-hiccup-burp.
She backed away from me like I was contagious and retreated to safety behind her desk.
I closed my eyes and held my breath for as long as I could. To my huge relief, I didn’t hiccup, so I slowly let it out, pausing every few seconds to make sure it didn’t trigger anything. Just as I thought I was safe, a monstrous air bubble escaped my throat. It sounded like a dying frog and I clapped my hands over my mouth in shock. That was all it took. Harper screamed with laughter, the group of girls at the next table glared at us, and I saw Information Desk Girl heading our way again.
I signaled to Harper to gather her stuff while I swept all mine into my backpack in one motion. She was wobbly getting up, still laughing, so I grabbed her arm and hauled her along with me, burp-hiccupping the entire way. My face was on fire and I realized the humiliation would only get worse when I had to face these same kids at school the next day.
Why me?
We burst out the front doors and into the dazzling sunlight. I threw my hand over my eyes, surprised at how bright it was. The rain had moved out, leaving colder temperatures and a damp feeling to the air. We struggled into our coats before walking to the car. Halfway there, I realized I wasn’t hiccupping anymore. Harper was still giggling.
“Sade, I’m sorry. I just lost it.”
I shoved my bag into the back seat and looked at her over the roof. “It’s okay. I lost it, too. I can’t believe this happened. Why does this stuff always happen to me?” I shook my head in disgust and climbed into the front seat. Harper slid in and slammed her door shut.
“I don’t know, but at least nobody can say you’re boring.”
“Is that supposed to make me feel better?”
“Yes.”
I pulled out of the parking lot and headed home. “Tomorrow is gonna suck. All those kids… and I made zero progress on my paper.”
“We have another week before it’s due. We’ll come back when it’s not busy and I’ll help you hammer it out. It shouldn’t be too hard with both of us working on it.”
I sighed. “What would I do without you?”
She grinned at me. “I have no idea.”
CHAPTER SIX
I hesitated on the sidewalk, feeling like it was my first day of school all over again.
“Hurry up. We’ll be late.”
“I don’t know if I want to do this.” I dragged my feet up the school’s front steps, doing my best to slow Harper down.
“You don’t have a choice.”
“I can drop out.”
She stared at me with one eyebrow cocked. I tried to hold my ground, but there was no fighting that look. “Okay, okay, I’m hurrying.”
“It’s not that bad. There were only a few people in the library. It’s not like the whole school saw it.”
“Have you even been paying attention the last few months? News travels like wildfire around here. I swear, if I dropped my pencil right now, they’d all know about it before I even made it to first period.”
She tugged on my arm, pulling me through the front doors and down the hallway. “First of all, you’re exaggerating. And second of all, even if you’re right, it’s only because people like you. They’re interested in you. That’s a good thing.”
“Is it?” It was a rhetorical question.
“Besides,” she continued, “it was funny. Play it up. Make it like you totally meant to do it or something. Like it was a joke. People will eat it up.”
“You really haven’t been paying attention.”
“Girl, stop it. You were nearly Homecoming Queen. People like you. Everyone has moments they aren’t proud of. Get over it.”
Instead of being offended, I was hopeful. Something about Harper always made me feel better. “All right, I’m over it. Happy?”
“Yes.”
By now we were at the top of the stairs, where we normally parted for the morning. I’d been so busy listening to her, I hadn’t noticed if anybody was looking at me funny. I glanced around. There was a group of about ten girls gathered around a locker toward the end of the hall. Another group made up of mainly guys were huddled on the other side of the hall, staring and whispering at someone in the middle of the throng. I caught a flash of dark, wavy hair and immediately knew who it was.
“I think Carmen has made her grand entrance.”
Harper jerked her head toward the direction I was looking. “Awesome! I gotta go say hi.” She smoothed the front of her gray skirt and ran a hand around the waistband to make sure her shirt was tucked in. “You coming?”
I already had all the books I needed for the morning, but I could see Cam waiting by my locker. “No, you go ahead. I’m sure I’ll see her later. I want to talk to Cam before the bell rings.”
“Okay, see ya!” She shot off down the hall and when people saw her coming, they immediately parted. Two golden girls of the school reuniti
ng apparently counted as something akin to a high school royal event. Once again, jealousy tried to gnaw its way through my stomach.
I trudged up to Cam, hoping he couldn’t see what I was feeling. I didn’t want anyone knowing I was intimidated by Carmen’s return. Not even him. I came to a stop in front of him and he leaned down to give me a soft kiss. As usual, I melted, briefly forgetting about everything.
We separated when the bell rang. Hooking our fingers together, we walked through the crowd to class.
“Hey, Cam?”
“Hey, Sadie?”
I nudged his arm in exasperation. “Did you ever know Carmen?”
“Carmen Mathinson?”
“I don’t know her last name. She used to go to school here, but moved away. She’s back now.”
His eyes lit up. “Oh yeah? Cool.”
Him too? What’s so damn special about this girl? “Well, people are, like, freaking out about her return. Why?”
“She was a super cool person. Being friends with her opened up doors, ya know?”
“No, I don’t know. What does that mean?”
We reached our classroom and made it inside before Mrs. Moody shut the door. “I’ll tell you later,” he whispered, taking his seat behind me. I sighed. I didn’t want to wait, but it didn’t seem like I had a choice. I pulled a spiral notebook out and prepared to copy the daily assignment written on the board. Mrs. Moody started talking, but I tuned out. My mind churned over Carmen and the way everyone acted like her arrival was the Second Coming.
I didn’t hear a word of the lecture and when the bell rang an hour later, I spun around to prod Cam some more about his bizarre statement. “What do you mean by her friendship opens doors?”
He looked at me, puzzled. “You’re seriously still stuck on that question?”
“Well, yeah. I don’t understand why the whole school seems to treat her like royalty.”
He shrugged, standing and slinging his backpack over his shoulder. “She has a way about her that pulls people in.”
I eyed him carefully as we walked to the door. “Did she ever pull you in?”
He stopped and looked over my head for a brief second. “Not really.” His voice was evasive, like he was downplaying something. Suspicion flickered to life inside me.
“She did, didn’t she?” I didn’t want to sound accusatory and didn’t want to be the jealous girlfriend. I hated the edge in my voice. But there was something about this girl that made me illogical.
“C’mon, Sadie. It was nothing like what you’re thinking.” I stared at him, silently waiting, until he finally gave in. “You know a lot of kids don’t like me much. I’m too scary or something.” Sarcasm oozed from him. “But Carmen never seemed to mind that I’m different and I think it’s because of her that nobody bothered me much about it.” His voice rang with sincerity, relaxing me a bit. “I promise, you have nothing to worry about.” He brushed my forehead with his lips, the feather-like sensation shooting shivers down to my toes. I sighed. He was right. I didn’t need to be jealous.
“I believe you. I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me.” I gave his hand a squeeze. “Forgive me?”
“Forgiven. Now I have to get to class. And you need to scoot before you’re late.”
“Okay. Have a good rest of the morning. I…” We hadn’t actually said the L word yet, but it seemed my newfound jealousy had done one good thing. I realized how much I truly cared about him. And how devastated I’d be if I ever lost him.
“I know. I do, too.”
My heart leapt, but before I could say anything else, the bell rang and the hall emptied.
“Crap! We’re late.” I blew him a kiss as I raced toward the stairs. “See ya at lunch!” I yelled over my shoulder.
My heart pounded as I hurried toward Biology. I wasn’t that worried about getting into trouble with Coach Anderson. It was more the idea of arriving late with Kitty and Becca smirking at me that I hated. They’d been insufferable since The Night. I reached the door and skidded to a halt inside. Heads swiveled and twenty pairs of eyes stared at me. No, make that twenty-one. Sitting at the table with Kitty and Becca was Carmen, a faint smile on her face. My stomach dropped. What was she doing in here? She was a senior. Seniors didn’t take sophomore Biology.
Coach Anderson waved for me to take my seat. Slowly, everyone lost interest in me and turned back to what they were doing. I plopped down next to Trina and tried to catch my breath.
“What are we doing?” I whispered.
“He’s introducing the next unit we’re studying. Page 203 in our book.”
I turned to the indicated section and tried to concentrate on what Coach Anderson was saying. But my eyes kept drifting over to Carmen. She was wearing skinny jeans, a white cowl-neck sweater, and high-heeled boots. She looked like she belonged in the pages of a New York fashion magazine. Not in Biology class in Jefferson, Texas. Even Kitty looked dull and uninteresting compared to her. As if she could feel me looking at her, she turned and gave me a smile. It was friendly, but somehow, I didn’t trust it. What was it about her that bothered me so much?
“Sadie?” Trina nudged me and I realized Coach Anderson was talking to me.
“Um, yes? Sorry, I wasn’t listening.”
“Could you please read paragraph three for us?”
“Oh… yeah. Um… The study of cell biology discusses—”
“Sadie, we’re on page 205.”
My cheeks grew hot as I realized everyone was looking at me again. I flipped the pages, trying to locate where we were. Trina pointed to a paragraph, and I hurriedly started again. “The nucleus of the cell is…” I finished the paragraph, my heart beating fast the whole time. I breathed a sigh of relief when Coach Anderson called on someone else to continue and slumped down on my stool, covering my eyes with my hands.
Trina looked at me with sympathy. “You okay?”
“Yeah. Not the way I wanted to start my day, though.”
“Eh, nobody really cares. Don’t worry about it.”
I nodded to show I appreciated her attempt to cheer me up. I drifted in my thoughts until class was over. I was the first out of my seat, barreling through the door, fully determined to get as far away from Carmen as possible without incident. Boone waved at me as I shot past him. Without slowing down, I waved back, shouting, “Can’t stop. Late!”
***
There were only two more classes left for the day. I was congratulating myself on avoiding any more sightings of Carmen when I turned the corner and discovered a mini-mob by the Chemistry lab rooms. There she was, holding court in the center of the group, smiling and nodding and giving hugs to anyone who came close. I was annoyed, but like a rubbernecker passing a car accident, I stopped and couldn’t look away. She was like a super strong magnet, demanding attention in the most charming way possible. It was infuriating.
I was so busy ogling her, I didn’t notice the guy standing at the edge of the small crowd until he moved. An irritable shift of the shoulders hinted at a focused mind unhappy with the chaos surrounding him. As if she could sense his mood and knew what was bothering him, Carmen reached over and placed a gentle hand on his arm. Be patient, the gesture seemed to say.
The hairs on the back of my neck prickled. Their familiarity with one another unnerved me, mainly because he was obviously new to the school, too. That and the fact that Harper never mentioned a brother when she was giving me the backstory on Carmen. I studied him from beneath my eyelashes while I pretended to search for something in my bag. He looked a few years older, a senior probably. With Carmen. I didn’t pay too much attention to the senior cool crowd, but I knew he’d stand out from even the most popular guys in school with his good looks. He had dark brown hair streaked with lighter caramel strands, cut in a timeless way that seemed it would forever be in style. His eye color matched his hair, which I found odd. Chiseled cheekbones and a strong jaw that reminded me of pictures of ancient Roman statues completed the look of a guy who could probab
ly get any girl he wanted by simply looking at her.
A teacher came down the hall, reminding everyone of the time, and we all scattered like roaches. The uneasiness I’d been carrying since that morning doubled. Another new player in the picture for me to worry about. Two people who clearly had a connection that gave me creepy goose bumps. Two people new to town since The Night. Or at least, laying low until now. The memory of the dark figure in the hospital parking lot ghosted in front of my eyes. Hallway Guy had the same build. Was this who Kade warned me about?
Harper was waiting for me outside the gym doors. She took one look at my face and frowned. “What happened?”
What was I supposed to say? Hey, you forgot to mention your long-lost best friend’s brother, and oh by the way, I think he’s the one who blew up the stands? Seconds ticked by as she waited for me to answer. I searched frantically for something to say without sounding bitchy.
“Um, I hit a snag in the hallway. Carmen was… saying hi to some people, and I had trouble getting around the group.”
She looked me up and down slowly before settling her gaze directly on my face. “You’re a terrible liar.” Her voice was flat.
My heart beat faster, hating that I was tiptoeing around the subject. We’d held no secrets between us since the big reveal that she was a human who liked blood and I was a vampire who’d rather eat an omelet than touch people juice. But it was because I treasured our friendship so much that I felt cautious. Just as I was about to give in and confess my suspicions, Ms. Kimberly poked her bouncy ponytailed head out the double doors.
“You two are late. Get in here now.”
“Talk later,” I mouthed to Harper. She nodded with a determined expression. She’d hold me to it.
We changed with lightning speed since the rest of the class was waiting for us. It was volleyball day. Cringing, I waited for Ms. Kimberly to assign the teams. Not that it mattered which group I was paired with. All the girls had realized how terrible I was at basically everything, so most of them pretended I wasn’t even there. I was grateful for it, but it made me feel guilty, too. There were only a few girls—friends of Kitty or Angie—who liked to take advantage of my nonexistent skills and purposely aim the ball right at me. Nine times out of ten, someone on my team would save me from it, but it was hard to imagine they weren’t getting tired of the liability I brought.
Caught Between Worlds (The In-Betweens Book 3) Page 7
