Darren’s bright red BMW pulled up in front of me, interrupting my thoughts. I had been concentrating on last night to avoid thinking about what this ride to school would be like. Carlos, who had been smiling when I first looked up, frowned when our eyes met. Darren, on the other hand, was beaming at me, smiling that easy smile of his as he stepped out of the car. The car he was driving because he had sold his truck… for me.
“Things must be really good with your mom if you’re headed back to school already.”
I smiled despite myself. “Yeah, Dr. Roberts says that there’s not much to do now but wait. He’s certain that she’ll make a full recovery.”
Darren winked. “It’s a miracle.”
He swung his arm around me and I wormed my way out of it. He looked confused. “What’s wrong?”
Darren had a right to know that I had feelings for someone else, but I wasn’t sure how to tell him yet. I sucked at giving bad news. “I… I fell. I hurt my shoulder. It’s still a little sore.”
“Oh, sucks.”
Guilt swirled inside of me.
The car was quiet as we passed the sign welcoming us to the other side of Brighton. Reading Carlos’ mind, which I now decided had been what happened, had apparently made me his enemy for life. He refused to speak, even when Darren asked him a question. Darren didn’t seem surprised by this, just annoyed. Me, I did my best to keep my thoughts away from Tristan. It just felt wrong for me to fantasize about his next visit when I was sitting in Darren’s car. Poor Darren had attempted to initiate a conversation several times, but had given up at this point. I honestly didn’t know what to say. The need to explain myself remained on the tip of my tongue but I could never make myself say the words—or any other words for that matter. When I stole a glance in his direction, I could see him trying to make sense of my weirdness. I felt awful.
We pulled up in front of the school and he sighed, telling me that he’d see me at lunch. There was hurt in his voice as he spoke and well, that was just too much. I reached across the seat and wrapped my arms around him. Despite what I felt for Tristan, I did care for Darren. A lot. From the first day he met me, he had done nothing but be there when I needed him. He had held my hand the morning of my welcome party, when my nerves threatened to get the best of me. He had been my first friend here, and the truest. He had given me rides to school and had come to see me at the clinic. He had gathered up cards from everyone and brought them by to lift my spirits. Even now, he was keeping my dangerous secret, even though I knew it went against what he believed.
He had given me my first kiss.
I felt a stirring in my heart as I remembered how amazing that kiss had been. I had to disassociate with Darren. And quick too—I could definitely picture myself falling for him. Well, more than I already had.
He waved as he pulled off, and part of me wondered if I was crazy for wanting to turn him away. Those women in the bathroom last night couldn’t possibly understand the connection Tristan and I had, but they were right to a certain extent, and my high school experiences before Brighton confirmed it—boys like Darren just weren’t interested in girls like me. For a second, I considered London’s accusation, that he was only interested in my title. I quickly dismissed it. The way he would look at me sometimes, you couldn’t possibly fake that.
********************
Taylor was about to break every one of my ribs. That’s how hard she was hugging me in the entrance of the second period Literature class we shared.
“Oh, it’s so good to have you back!” she exclaimed. “Is your momma okay?”
“Y-yeah,” I managed. “She’s d-doing a lot b-better. T-Taylor… I can’t breathe!”
“Oh,” she said, letting me go. “Sorry.”
The late bell rung and I stepped into the classroom. Taylor led me to her table. A couple of Asian boys were already seated and they each said hello. The taller of the two had a knowing smile, and gave me an extra nod, which I assumed was to let me know that he knew who I was. Taylor explained that the teacher was a big fan of group activities and that this would be our group for the rest of the semester. The name card folded beside the empty chair said so.
Taylor introduced me to the boys. “Ana, I want you to meet Kevin and Christopher.”
“Christopher?” groaned the boy who I supposed was a warlock. “I told you to call me Chris.”
“Well, I think Christopher is cute,” Taylor returned.
“And he thinks you’re cute,” Kevin interjected, chuckling. He was stocky and wore sunglasses up over his forehead.
Chris looked mortified. “Dude, what the hell?”
It reminded me of Carlos teasing Darren on my first ride to school, and again I thought about the mind reading that followed. I made a mental note to ask London if she could teach me how to use it.
Taylor gave me a big-eyed smile and I could tell she felt exactly the same way about him. For now though, she pretended not to hear Kevin. Chris looked relieved.
The teacher made me introduce myself to the class after he took roll—during which I’d been very much tempted to say “witch princess who enjoys the company of vampires.” After that, he gave us the entire period to work on the group presentations that were due next week.
Chris slid over a sheet of paper. “That’s your part.”
“You guys are finished already?” I asked.
“Oh we gets it dones over here,” Kevin piped in a high pitched cartoon voice that he seemed very proud of. He slid his shades down and crossed his arms. I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Seriously,” Chris said. “I am embarrassed to know you right now.”
That made us all laugh, especially Taylor. Okay, so she was definitely into him. It felt kind of nice to see that I wasn’t the only one catching the love bug.
“Christopher and I signed up for the school paper,” Taylor answered. About ten of us meet every day after school, but until we choose an editor, there’s not really much to do so the two of us just started on the project.”
“Just you and Chris?” I asked.
She nodded, unsuccessfully fighting a smile.
“Alone?” I followed.
Taylor’s eyes got big again, and her cheeks flushed.
I flicked my eyes to Kevin, and I could see that he knew where I was going with this. Unfortunately, he lacked any kind of subtlety.
“Naked?” he added.
There was a collective groan around the table, which got our teacher’s attention. We quickly pretended to be working.
I sat with my literature group at lunch, too. And Darren. He had deserted his place at the popular table to come sit with me, and that only made me feel that much worse. He was really trying to make this work.
The boys seemed intimidated to have him sitting with us. I didn’t expect it out of Chris, but when Darren asked if his name was Christian, despite Chris’ trying out for the football team this year, I remembered that living in the same part of town doesn’t make you friends. Thankfully, Taylor’s bubbly personality rarely wavered.
“Sooo, since you and my best friend are dating, does that mean you’d agree to do a preseason interview?” She dropped her voice low, even though she was well aware that the rest of us could still hear her. “It’s always a good idea to butter up the best friend, keeps us from talking about you when you’re not around. Plus, we’re more likely to have your back when you screw up. And let’s face it, boys always screw up.”
It warmed me to hear that Taylor had adopted me as her best friend so quickly. But to say that Darren and I were dating? Where had that come from? Then I remembered our kiss.
“Uh, sure,” said Darren. The fact that he hadn’t denied it made me feel uncomfortable again. Not because I couldn’t picture it, but because I knew that it was going to be that much harder to “kinda sorta break off” our “kinda sorta boyfriend/girlfriend” thing. There was also the fact that a part of me didn’t want to.
Taylor smiled again. “Hey, you know what story
I really want to cover in the paper?”
“What?” asked Chris, his eyes filled with more than just curiosity.
“Okay, so I was watching the History channel with my daddy yesterday—he’s a history professor so he’s kind of obsessed with that channel—anyway, they had the most interesting special on Massachusetts and its history of witches! Of course, everybody knows about Salem and the witch trials and everything, but did you know that witches supposedly inhabited this area as well?”
Complete silence; from the witch and two warlocks, anyway. Kevin just said “cool.”
Thankfully, something on the other side of the lunchroom was drawing a lot of attention and Taylor’s witch conversation was dropped as we all leaned over to see what was going on. Britney, one of the girls who had been texting about me in Mrs. Moorer’s class the other day, ran by us in hysterics, shouting, “London is unbelievable!” to a table of girls next to us.
“Unbelievable” was exactly the word I would have used as well. London emerged from the crowd wearing shorts every bit as short as the ones she had worn to the club last night. At first I thought that might be what had everyone so worked up—though I couldn’t understand why that would freak the girls out so much—and then I saw him. Aiden was just a few steps behind her, looking almost absurdly handsome now that he was in the light of day—in a “kill you where you stand” kinda way. Then most girls my age liked their boys dangerous. And he certainly fit the part. Not once did he smile, and when some freshman tried to steal their spotlight by running up to London, Aiden shot him a look so frightening that the boy fell over backwards.
They passed right by our table and though London overlooked me completely, as we’d discussed, she stared directly into Darren’s eyes. I could see that her entrance bothered him a little. Aiden ignored Darren, though his eyes widened at how close the two of us were sitting. They took up a small table near the wall and promptly shut out the rest of the world.
“What are you doing?” I thought to myself. I hoped that she could hear my thoughts given the distance.
“Nothing,” she replied casually. “Just getting ready to eat lunch with my boyfriend.”
“You know what I mean! Why did you bring him here? You said yourself he has trouble with the urges. What if someone sets him off?”
“Look,” she thought, the voice she projected into my head tinged with anger. “Last night was a breakthrough for him. He can handle it. Besides, he’s a student now. Mr. Bonderman made it possible. Not that the dirt bag had a choice.”
I remembered now why I had been so afraid of London before. She definitely had a mean streak.
Next, she turned it on me.
“Maybe, instead of worrying about my guy, you should focus on your two. You can’t have them both you know…”
That one stung. I could see on her face that she knew it too.
“I’m sorry… That wasn’t fair.”
I didn’t answer.
The sounding of the bell meant that lunch was over. Clearly, Darren was still having a hard time with London’s show, and that bothered me, even though I knew it shouldn’t. I said goodbye to Taylor and found myself slightly annoyed when Darren decided to walk me to class.
“She just did it to one up us, you know? That’s how her mind works. I could care less, but I’m sure you’re probably upset.”
“Not at all,” I said, letting my irritation show in my voice.
“Oh,” he said catching on. “There’s actually a reason I wanted to walk you to class. Well, two reasons really. First, Dr. Roberts wants you to come by after school. I’ve got practice but I’ve already arranged for Taylor to take you.”
I thought about that for a moment, but decided that it was fine. I’d just have to make up a reason why she couldn’t come back to my mother’s room. “Okay.”
“And also, I wanted to know if you’d be willing to be my date for your mother’s birthday party.”
Surprise lit up my face. “Her birthday’s in two weeks. I’m not sure if she’ll have recovered that soon…”
Darren nodded and pulled out his cell phone. He dialed some numbers and then held it up to his ear. “Dr. Roberts, do you think Ana’s mom will have recovered in two weeks?”
His face dropped. “Oh,” he said sadly. “I understand.” He handed me the phone.
I glanced up at him, confused, before speaking into the phone. “Hello?”
“Ana?” said the voice on the other end.
My entire body stiffened and a smile ripped across Darren’s face. It took a couple of seconds before I was able to reply. “Mom?”
Chapter 22
Warning
Again, sitting through Mrs. Moorer’s class was agony. I couldn’t get out of there fast enough. That said, I was glad that she didn’t seem too bothered by what happened the last time I was here—especially since, she had been right about Tristan. Still, she didn’t meet my eyes when I entered the classroom or when she called the roll. The small, still functional part of my brain that wasn’t totally consumed with wanting to leave wondered if she hadn’t ever stopped believing that Tristan had been a vampire. Even if the council had ruled it to be impossible.
Finally, it was time to go, and I ran non-stop to the student lot where Taylor’s Jeep was parked. She wasn’t there when I arrived, but a quick scan of the campus revealed that she was nearby, walking and talking with Chris on the paved walkway leading away from the gym.
I pretended not to see the quick little hug they gave one another before Taylor unlocked the Jeep. She kept looking over at me to see if I would say anything, but I kept quiet. At least until she pulled out of the school.
“So, Chris is nice.” I said.
She glanced at me, trying her best to keep a straight face. “Yeah.”
“Do you like him?”
“Of course. He’s a good friend.” She nodded to emphasize the point.
“I don’t usually hug my friends.”
“Ana…we’re just friends. It’s not like we’ve kissed or anything. Not like you and Darren.”
I’m sure she thought that that would throw me—or at least change the subject. But I was committed to hearing what I wanted to hear. Feeling what I’d felt with Tristan made me want everyone to have that same experience.
“You mean you haven’t kissed yet,” I corrected.
She giggled. “But soon I hope.”
“I knew it!”
She burst into laughter. “But we’re kinda different, you know.”
“How so?”
I half expected her to say that she wasn’t a witch. “Well, I’m white. That’s kind of a big deal back home. What do you think?”
“I think that if you like someone, then you should give it a chance. I mean, it’s the 21st century.”
She didn’t say anything, but I could tell that she took comfort in those words.
It was hard to ignore the knot in my stomach as we approached the clinic. Taylor’s budding romance had kept me distracted for a time, but now the moment was here. What would I say to her? Would she be angry to be here? She tried so desperately to keep me away from Brighton. Would she want to leave? The questions raced around my head, and when we stopped, my hands were shaking.
“Are you alright?” Taylor asked.
“Oh yeah,” I said, stuffing my hands into my pockets. “I’m fine.”
Taylor asked if she could meet my mother, and I told her that I would have to see how she was doing. To my surprise, I found her and Dr. Roberts both sitting in the waiting room. I rushed over and wrapped my arms around her. Tears followed, as I thought about how close I’d come to losing her.
“I am so glad you’re alright!” I said, releasing her finally. My mother still looked pale, much lighter than her normal complexion. She also had large rings beneath her eyes, but considering how far she’d come, I couldn’t have wished for anything more.
“I hear I have you to thank for that,” my mother replied in a hoarse voice.
&nb
sp; I glanced up at Dr. Roberts and he nodded. So she did know what I’d done.
“Who’s your friend,” he asked quickly. Now he was asking me a question with his eyes.
“Oh, this is my best friend, Taylor. She’s from New Brighton,” I said, hoping he understood my meaning—Taylor wasn’t a witch. From the change in his demeanor, I could see that he had. He leaned down and whispered in my mother‘s ear. She nodded that she understood too. Taylor, on the other hand, now looked uncomfortable. She told us that it was nice to meet everyone and then quickly left. I started to go after her, but just then, my mother said something to me that took hold of my entire attention. “Ana, we have a lot to talk about.”
“Yeah, we do.”
Turns out, I couldn’t have asked for a better visit. She told me that she knew about my being a conjurer and that it was the reason she’d taken me from Brighton. I told her how we had discovered it when I brought her back to health and that only three other people knew about it. Three people I trusted—even if London was a bit unpredictable at times. She still had some concerns but didn’t hound me. Next, we found ourselves talking about my future. I told her that I wanted to stay here in Brighton, and a long silence followed, but in the end, she didn’t fight me on that either. She said that if I wanted to stay, then she would too. That’s when I told her about her birthday party.
Grey Eyes (Book One, The Forever Trilogy) Page 16
