“Nah. Deuce never jumps at the ball, but yesterday he yelped and was under my feet cowering. He’d moved so fast I didn’t have time to react.”
“He was scared?”
“Yeah. I never did figure out what spooked him.” Kenny opened his back door, tossed his crutches into the backseat, then leaned on the open door for support. “He’s usually fearless.”
I set his backpack beside the crutches. “Well, hopefully you’re not out too many games.”
“Thanks for helping.” His smile was sheepish. “Didn’t want the guys to think I couldn’t handle it by myself.”
I grinned. “Now I know why Mrs. Kearney asked me to help you. What story did you tell your team?”
Kenny laughed. “They think I fell off a ladder helping my dad paint the house trim. And uh, can you keep that between us?”
I gave a conspiratorial smile. “No problem. Do you have someone to help you tomorrow?”
“I’m good. Most of my books are in my backpack now. I’ll just borrow while I’m at school.”
“If you change your mind, let me know.” After I left Kenny, I headed out to my car—which I’d parked in the back parking lot since I’d run late for school this morning. If I’d only known construction crews would be doing roadwork, I’d have taken another street and only screeched in five minutes before the bell instead of one minute after.
I was halfway across the main parking lot when Lainey called my name. “Nara, wait up.”
Pushing my teal sunglasses up my nose, I slowed.
Lainey fell into step beside me, her brow furrowed. “What’s up with you?”
“Nothing’s up. I just need to get some chores and homework done before I have to be back for the game.”
Lainey grabbed my arm and pulled me to a halt. “I’m your best friend, Nara. I can tell something’s wrong. You spent the entire study hall avoiding me.”
I kept my tone neutral. “I had to study for my Trig test.”
Lainey’s brown gaze zeroed in. “Since when have you ever had to study?”
As far as she knew, that was true. I’d told Lainey I have a photographic memory, and that was as close to the truth as I was ever going to tell her.
Huffing at my silence, she continued, “You’ve heard the rumors going around about that guy, Nara. What’s his name? Eli?”
“Ethan.”
“Whatever. He’s bad news. I don’t think you should get tangled up with someone like that.”
It’s not like anything was going on, yet I had to admit, Ethan was definitely intriguing. Plus, he’d been nothing but nice to me. “I actually was studying. Not that I really think you care who I spend time with, or who I like. That didn’t stop you from going after Jared.”
The color quickly faded from Lainey’s face. “Who—”
“Told me?” I stared her down. “Sophia. And she enjoyed every second of it.”
Lainey’s face pinched and her eyes watered. “Sophia can be so vicious sometimes. I never wanted to hurt you. Jared started flirting with me, not the other way around. Then he called me and…well, it all happened so fast. I swear I was going to tell you.”
Yeah, right. I shrugged. “Whatever. I’ve got to go.”
When I started to walk away, she called after me, “Are you mad?”
Her voice hitched, but I didn’t turn around. It wasn’t so much that I was mad…okay, it stung a little—actually, a lot—but Lainey was supposed to be my best friend. She should’ve had the guts to tell me herself. “See you at the game.”
I tried not to think about Lainey’s migration away from our friendship as I shoved my key in the car’s ignition and turned. Nothing happened. Could it be the battery? I reached for the radio button and turned it on. Silence. Glancing at the headlight switch, I groaned when I saw it was still in the On position. It had been foggy when I drove to school. I thought I’d turned them off, but apparently not. “We bought you for your dependability!” I accused, glaring at the unlit instrument display panel.
The parking lot was empty, except for a couple of cars. I did not need this. Stress built inside me. Why hadn’t I dreamed last night? I would’ve made sure I turned my lights off. I had very little time to get home and get my stuff done, which now included studying, before I had to leave for the game at six. Out of desperation, I turned the ignition once more, willing the engine to start. When it didn’t, I banged on the steering wheel and yelled, “Come on!” at the same time a car drove up beside mine.
A blond guy leaned out the passenger side window. “Need some help?”
I rolled my window down. “Do you have any jumper cables? I think my battery’s dead.” I tried to remember his name as I stepped out of my car. I’d seen him in my lunch period, though I didn’t recognize the dark-headed guy driving.
The guy behind the steering wheel shook his head. “No, but I can give you a lift if you don’t live too far from here. Then your parents can bring you back and jump your car. They always have emergency junk like that.”
“My mom’s not home. Thanks anyway.” I started to dial my aunt’s number.
“You’re Nara, right? Do you have cables at home?”
“Yeah,” I said, punching the End button.
“We don’t mind bringing you back to jump your car.” The blond guy pushed his beefy frame from the car and opened the back passenger door for me with a friendly smile.
I chewed on the inside of my cheek. I didn’t really know these guys, but it was nice of them to offer. Plus, I only lived a couple miles from the school. Aunt Sage would take at least thirty minutes to get here. I really needed the extra time, especially now that I had to come back and jump-start my dead battery. “What are your names?” I asked as I leaned into my car to retrieve my backpack from the passenger seat.
Just when I’d tugged on the strap, another car drove up, the engine loud and rumbling. When wheels ground to a halt in front of my car, I glanced through my windshield to see Ethan roll down his passenger window. “Everything okay, Nara?”
Shutting my car door, I tugged my backpack over my shoulder. “I think my battery’s dead.”
Ethan eyed the two guys. “I can take you home. It’s on my way.”
The blond guy said, “Dude, we’ve already offered her a lift.”
I glanced his way and raised my eyebrows at the slight edge in his voice. Ethan’s jaw flexed as if he were clenching and unclenching his teeth. What was with guys and their need to “one up” each other? It didn’t matter if they were jocks, geeks, emo or even just intense, quiet loner guys, apparently they all operated on the same basic instinct. Testosterone.
A black bird made a gronk-gronk-gronk sound from its perch on one of the parking lot lights. It almost sounded like “Trust your gut”.
Ethan might be new, but I felt like I knew him better than the two boys who’d offered a ride, and I still didn’t even know their names.
Locking my car door, I told them, “Since Ethan’s heading in my direction, I’ll catch a ride with him. Thanks for the offer though.”
“Whatev,” the blond said with a shrug, but he looked pissed at Ethan before he got into the car.
As I opened Ethan’s passenger door, he grabbed the stack of school books from the seat and tossed them into the back. A spiral bound notebook dropped out of his hand into the front seat and flipped open, revealing an amazing drawing of a long-horned demon-like creature. I slid my shades down so I could see the detailed artwork. Sheer evil reflected on a demon’s snarled face and blood dripped from its razor sharp teeth. When I saw what looked like a human foot grasped in the creature’s clawed hand, I thought of that image I’d seen flash in my mind while I was talking to Ethan. It wasn’t the same, but I still glanced nervously after the other guys’ car pulling out of the school lot.
Ethan quickly tossed the notebook in the back along with his other stuff. “Get in, Nara.”
His gaze was focused, his voice so calm that a shiver passed through me. My instincts had chosen
him and I would trust them. Pushing my glasses back up my nose, I climbed inside.
He put the car in gear. “Which way to your house?”
I blinked. He’d talked like he knew which direction I lived in. Apparently, he’d said it for the blond guy’s benefit. Trust your gut, Nara. While I gave him directions to my neighborhood, I noticed his car smelled faintly of pine and I instantly sought the hanging air freshener thingy. I smiled when I finally spied the cardboard pine tree on the floor at my feet. Ethan was an interesting throwback in many ways. Well, except for his music. An MP3 player was docked in its station in the console.
As we drove off, Ethan said, “Those two are dangerous. Don’t trust anything they say, and whatever you do, stay away from them.”
The guys didn’t appear to know Ethan, yet Ethan didn’t casually say “they’re trouble” or “they’re a couple of jerks”. He’d said something very specific. Those two are dangerous. At least that explained why he lied to them. “How do you know them?”
Ethan gunned his car onto the main road, tires squealing. His hand cinched around the steering wheel. “Let’s just say I’ve seen them in action.”
“What did you see them do?”
“Trust me, Nara. Just promise, okay?”
Ethan appeared on edge, like he needed to hear me answer “yes”. “I promise,” I quickly said, then waited for him to tell me what he’d seen, but he kept his gaze on the road.
After a couple minutes, his shoulders relaxed and the deep brackets around his mouth disappeared. As he turned onto my street, he said casually, “I think it’s cool that Inara means shining or illumination.”
“You looked up my name?” I said as I pointed out my house. Ethan had this knack for leaving me breathless and teetering. Like a chair tilted on two legs, I was never sure if I was going to topple over or land on solid ground. I realized I liked this unsettled feeling of exploring the unknown. At least with Ethan.
Pulling into my driveway, he nodded. “It also means ‘ray of light’. I like that one better.”
Completely floored, I just stared. I’d never heard that meaning for my name, and it sounded like he’d just given me a compliment. I think. “I, um—”
“Do you have some cables?”
“What?” My mind was still spinning as his car idled in my driveway.
He gestured to the garage door. “Jumper cables.”
“Oh, right! Cables.” I opened the car door and scooted out. “Be right back.”
He probably thinks I’m a total dork. I punched in the code to open the door, then grabbed the cables off the top of the utility shelf.
“What year is your car?” I asked once I’d climbed back into his rumbling Mustang.
“Old enough to know better.”
“But she does it anyway,” I finished with a grin.
He tapped the dashboard. “It’s a ’69. She might need a new topcoat, but her engine’s pristine and she’s dependable. I plan to drive her ’til the wheels fall off.”
When he put his hand on the headrest behind me and turned to back out of the driveway, the faded scar on the side of his neck, just below his jaw, caught my attention. What had happened to him?
“Have you always lived in Blue Ridge?” I asked, hoping he’d share something about himself.
He pressed on the gas, moving down the street. “No, I’m originally from Chicago, then we lived in Michigan for a couple of years. This small college town took some getting used to, but I like it now.”
I nodded. “I love living in the valley with the mountains all around us. I also like that it only takes twenty minutes to get from one side of town to the other, but yeah, I wish we had midnight movies and a big shopping mall. Those are definite downsides in Blue Ridge. What made you decide to move here?”
Flicking on his blinker, he turned out of my neighborhood. “My brother asked if I wanted to live with him.” He shrugged like it was no big deal. “So I moved.”
What would that be like, not living with a parent? “How much older is your brother?”
“Samson’s five years older.”
“Samson’s an unusual name, too.” I smiled and wondered if the brothers looked anything alike.
“Yeah, he’s the strong one.”
Even though his comment carried an ironic, self-deprecating edge, it also held affection. He and his brother must be close. But it seemed strange his parents let him move in with a sibling only a few years older. We’d entered the school’s parking lot, and I was a little disappointed the trip was so short. I was finally getting to know a little about him. “So, you didn’t like Michigan?”
A guarded look shuttered his face. “My parents like it. Samson thought I could use a change of scenery for my last few years of school.”
Samson thought. Not, my parents thought. It was as if his parents didn’t have any say-so in his life. Or, my heart sank at the other possibility…they didn’t care. Mom might keep me at arm’s-length, but I couldn’t imagine both my parents completely ditching me. “Now that you’re here, do you plan to go to college in Virginia?”
He slid to a hard stop, his hood facing my car. “Do I look like the college type?”
Wary blue eyes cut into me. He definitely had an edgy vibe, not to mention the rumors about him. Getting expelled from school never looked good on a college application, yet he’d been smarter than me when we studied for Trig. I shrugged and gave a half smile. “I dunno. What does a college kid look like these days?”
Ethan’s expression shuttered as he grabbed the cables from my hands. “Not like me.”
Chapter Five
As the dreamless days continued, things went from bad to worse. During the game against Westland, our biggest rivals, my goalkeeping went beyond epic fail. I’d never let so many balls zoom past, nor had I acquired as many bruises from trying so hard to stop them. Needless to say, my incredibly competitive Coach (though he’d deny it if you said so) was the silent kind of livid and none of my teammates spoke to me. We’d just lost our season’s winning streak. And it was completely my fault.
When the game was over, Miranda walked up to Coach. “I think now’s as good a time as any. I’d like to recommend Sophia start training as goalie tomorrow.” Glancing my way, she continued, “We can’t possibly do any worse.”
Coach patted her shoulder and mumbled something about being Captain and sportsmanship before he lumbered over to me. Resting his crossed arms over a middle-aged paunch, his bushy gray eyebrows drew together in concern. “Hey, Nara. You’ve had a rough couple of games. I think Miranda’s suggestion to train Sophia makes sense. You’ve obviously been under some pressure the past few days. You and Sophia can switch out to give her more training and that’ll give you more time to practice on the field too.”
“I understand, Coach.” I tried my best to keep from showing how upset I was, but I doubt it worked. I felt defeated.
Miranda waited until Coach was out of hearing range. “What is your deal, Nara? Coach’s trying to save your feelings, but I’ll tell you straight up. Now that you won’t be playing goalie exclusively, you’d better pull your weight on the field or I’ll make sure you ride the bench full time.”
“You’re not the coach,” I shot back.
“I can make it happen!” Glaring at me, she stomped off to the parking lot, where she stopped to announce something to several of our teammates as they changed out of their soccer gear near their cars. The girls kept glancing my way, then chatting with her. The entire scenario made my stomach knot.
Now this? On top of my troubles with Lainey? I’d felt Lainey pulling away, even though I’d tried to ignore it. I blamed myself partially, since I’d kept to myself the past few days and then didn’t respond during her lame attempt at a pep talk right after the game was over. It’s not like I could’ve gotten a word in edgewise with Jared hovering in the background, saying, “Come on, Lane. We’ve gotta go,” every two seconds. I didn’t think Lainey really wanted to talk to me anyway. She certain
ly didn’t wave Jared away. Instead, she’d shrugged, then took off with him.
So far I’d stumbled through three consecutive days of not knowing what was coming. Three! Grades and soccer were suffering and now my relationships were, too. I was like that wooden tower game, suddenly minus the key piece. Had every aspect of my life, even down to my friendships, been held together by a wedge piece with the words “Nara’s sight” etched into it? It stung too much to even consider the possibility.
My gift had never helped improve my relationship with my mom, but now that I’d lost my ability to see ahead, everything else I could depend on felt like it was falling apart. Leaning against the goalpost, I sniffed back tears, wishing…
I wasn’t really sure what to wish for, my dreams to return or to never dream about my future again.
***
A week later, as soon as school let out, I headed over to the Central Virginia Animal Shelter. Volunteering at CVAS was a welcome change. Lately my life had been nothing but practice and studying. Rinse. Repeat. I’d had one dream all week, where nothing interesting happened, except a thin girl walking around the halls with a back brace. I’d only noticed because the crowds spread like the red sea the first day she came to school in the odd contraption.
When I walked in the main door, Sally put both feet down, stopping her office roller chair from being hauled around the lobby area by CVAS’s mascot, a lab mix, named Roscoe. “Hey, Nara. Thanks for coming. I’m so glad you could fill in at the last minute.”
“We didn’t have a soccer game this week, which gave me a free day. I’m glad you called.” Hearing my voice, Roscoe abandoned his rope tug-of-war game with Sally. As his hundred and twenty pounds of pent-up, wiggly excitement bounded toward me, I braced for impact. Instead of jumping up, Roscoe stopped a foot away and slammed his rear to the ground, panting expectantly. I squatted and gave him a big hug. “Look at you! All manners now, huh boy? Did you miss me?” A thick wet tongue slobbered up the side of my face. I snickered and rubbed my nose in his thick brown fur. “Okay, maybe not all manners. I missed you too.”
Dark Roses: Eight Paranormal Romance Novels Page 60
