I should’ve known talking about him wouldn’t last long.
I just wonder what he’s hiding.
“Yeah, sure,” I say.
But what I really want is for Tristan to open up to me. I want him to tell me what happened to his brother.
“Did you know I was driving the car the night my brother died?” I ask Tristan. “He was teaching me how to drive. He told the cops he was the one driving. And then he died on the side of the road.”
“I didn’t know that,” he says, now looking at me.
“I never told the cops. Or my family,” I say. “I don’t want to tell them. They will hate me if they know. My brother died because of me.”
“Why was your brother teaching you how to drive?”
“Because my dad was too busy. So was Alik and Dimitri. They were going to uni,” I say. “And mum didn’t want to teach me. Teaching Dimitri nearly gave her a heart attack. She refused to teach any of the rest of it.”
He frowns. “Your brother, who was barely older than you, was teaching you how to drive. That’s sad.”
“It was always that way. Eduard and I stuck together,” I say. “We had to.”
“Who finished teaching you?” he asks.
“Nobody. I can’t drive,” I admit.
“You can’t turn seventeen and not know how to drive,” he says. “I’ll teach you.”
I shake my head. “No way. I never plan on getting behind the wheel of a car again.”
“Come on, Katerina. You have to,” Tristan says. “You can’t go your whole life never driving.”
“I’ll walk and take public transportation.”
“The public transportation system in America isn’t that good,” he says. “What are you going to do when you have kids someday? How will they get to school? Or soccer practice? Or ballet, or whatever else they do.”
“I don’t know. I suppose I’ll learn at some point. I’m just not ready yet.”
“Too bad,” he says. “I’m teaching you right now.”
“I don’t know…”
“New Hope is the best place to learn. It’s a small town,” he says. “There are only two stop lights. You’re lucky. I had to learn to learn to drive in New York.”
“New York? Why?” I ask.
“I flew in from Switzerland for Christmas the year I turned sixteen. My dad was working in New York, so that’s where my family had Christmas. Him and my big brothers took me out driving everyday. There was a crazy snow storm that week too. It was really scary. I hated every minute of it,” he says. “But then when I went back to Switzerland, I was glad for it. I was the only one of my friends that could drive in the snow.”
“I’ll let you teach me. But maybe not in your car,” I say. “Your car looks expensive. I can call my dad. Maybe he can get me a car.”
“I have insurance,” he says. “Besides, you’ve seen my family’s house. I can afford to buy a new car if you crash mine. Ask your dad to buy you a car after you learn.”
“You would never forgive me if I crashed your car.”
“Yes I would. I want a new car anyway. If you crash it, you’ll be doing me a favor. But trust me, you won’t crash it. You were learning from somebody who had just got his license. I’ve been driving for almost five years. And I’ve been trained by professionals.”
“I want to go to spy school,” I say.
“I bet you could’ve been accepted there,” he says. “All my siblings, aside from my youngest sister, went.”
“Wait. You’re telling me there is an actual spy school?”
“Sort of,” he says. “There is a special school I went to. I started there my freshman year. I took a lot of awesome classes—computer hacking, dance, music, French…”
“Je parle français,” I say. “Just a little bit. From my summers in London. We used to spend time in France.”
“I took the class. I didn’t pass it,” he says, laughing. “I was more into the training aspect. I spent way too much free time training.”
“I can tell.”
He grins. “Let’s go drive.”
I hesitantly follow him.
I have a really bad feeling about this.
Sounds awesome.
I get in the driver’s seat of Tristan’s car, holding the key in my hand.
I feel so powerful sitting here.
“Do you know how to drive a manual?” Tristan asks, now looking nervous.
“Yeah,” I answer. “You have to take a driver’s test on a car with a manual transmission in Russia. My family has never even owned an automatic.”
“Okay,” he says. “So you’re comfortable shifting?”
“Yes. I was pretty comfortable when I wrecked my brother’s car,” I say. “I had drove several times by that point.”
“So just start the car and we will go,” he says.
I push in the clutch and start the car. I slowly pull forward. My palms are sweaty and I grip the steering wheel tighter than necessary with my left hand. I slowly speed up, changing gears when necessary. After shifting a few gears, I can see Tristan visibly relax beside me.
“Most American teenagers learn to drive on an automatic car,” Tristan says.
“Was you worried I’d tear up your transmission?”
“A little,” he admits. “You’re a good driver. A little tense, but you’ll relax the more you do it.”
I keep my eyes on the road. He tells me where to turn. I look at least three times before going. I don’t want to pull out in front of anybody again.
And I don’t have a panic attack.
Tristan lets me drive for about thirty minutes and then we go back to the school. I park his car. It’s a little crooked. He laughs.
“Okay, so we have to work on the parking, but other than that, you’re great,” he says. “Whenever you want to get you license, tell me and I’ll take you for the test. You have to have six months of driving with a permit before you get your license. But I can take you out driving.”
“Really? You’d do that?” I ask.
“Yeah,” he says.
“Is it weird that you’re teaching me how to drive?”
He shrugs. “Maybe. I suppose someday it’ll be an interesting story to tell our kids.”
My face warms at his comment. “I’m getting out of the car now.”
I hear him laugh as I get out. He soon follows me.
“Too soon?” he asks, as we walk towards my dorm.
We walk into the student lounge, and I see Jade in the corner alone. She’s reading a book.
“Do you think she has any friends?” I ask Tristan, watching her from across the room.
“I never see her with anybody,” he says. “But certainly she has some friends.”
“It must be hard. Since her mum is the dean of the school.”
“Maybe you should talk to her.”
“Maybe,” I say. “I’ll go see what she’s up to. Do you mind?”
“Go ahead. I’ll watch from over here,” he says.
“Okay,” I say, then walk towards Jade. She notices me walk up this time and she closes her book.
“Hey, Katerina.”
“Hey,” I say. “What are you up to?”
“Just reading,” she says. “My mom said she talked to you.”
My face grows warm. “Oh, yeah. She did. But only because I was caught kissing Tristan in the hallway at school.”
She laughs. “I heard that rumor. I thought you were dating the president’s son.”
I take a seat beside her on the couch. “I was. Sort of. But, I like Tristan a lot. I didn’t think he would be interested in me.”
“Why not?” Jade asks. “You’re, like, the most popular girl in the school, and definitely the prettiest.”
I guess she doesn’t know that Tristan is my bodyguard.
“Have you met Alik yet?” I ask her, changing the subject from me.
“Your friend that threatened to rip the tongue out of anybody who gossips about you?”
“That’s the one,” I say. “But he’s not a friend. He’s my brother.”
“Mom didn’t tell me!” she says. “Wait, I thought he was older. Like, twenty or something. Isn’t he in college?”
“He was. Alik came here for… reasons,” I say.
“What reasons?”
“Ask your mum.”
“My mom won’t tell me anything,” she says, rolling her eyes. “She thinks I’m a kid, but I’m not. I just turned fifteen.”
“When was your birthday?” I ask.
“October 21,” she answers.
“Happy late birthday. If I would’ve known we could’ve done something. Maybe we still can. I think Alik, Tristan and I are going to get Russian food for dinner. Want to come with us?” I ask.
“I can’t,” she says, sighing. “I don’t have permission to leave campus. My mom won’t let me.”
“I can ask her,” I say. “I’m sure she won’t mind you going with us.”
“Naw, that’s okay. I know she’d say no. It’s a school night,” she says. “Maybe some weekend.”
“Okay.”
“I can’t believe you chose Tristan over Damon, though,” she says. “Damon is the hottest guy in our school.”
I grin at her.
I completely disagree, but she’s allowed to have her own opinion. Damon is closer to her age.
“Maybe I could introduce you to him,” I offer, to be a good cousin.
“You’d do that?” she asks, her eyes widening in surprise. “I thought he hated you now.”
“No. We’re still really good friends,” I say.
“I’d like to be introduced to him,” she says. “Maybe when we go eat Russian food he can come with us.”
“Okay. Deal,” I say. “You free Saturday at lunch?”
“Yes! I’ll ask mom, but I’m sure she’ll give me permission!”
“Sounds awesome,” I say.
She’s so excited.
Hopefully I can convince Damon to go.
I love that about you.
After we get back from eating Russian food, Tristan has a Russian lesson he wants to do, so I hang out with Alik. I want to talk with Damon anyway without Tristan around. I want to ask him if he’ll go to Jade’s birthday lunch, and I have a better chance of him saying yes if the guy I turned him down for isn’t there.
When we walk to his dorm room, he isn’t there. I send him a quick text.
Me: Where are you? I want to talk.
Damon: Soccer field party.
Me: On a Monday night?
Damon: There is one out here every night.
Me: Okay. Be right there.
“You okay with going to the soccer field tonight?” I ask Alik.
“Are you kidding?” he asks. “You’re hanging out with Damon, right? So I can hang out with Vanessa.”
“Yeah. I’m going to talk to Damon,” I say, as we walk towards the exit of the building. I should have known he’d be okay with going to the party. I still feel bad for the poor girl. He’s going to break her heart.
I wonder if I should text Tristan and tell him I’m going to the field, but knowing him, he would cut his Russian lesson short to come. I don’t want him to do that. He can’t spend all of his time protecting me. That’s not fair to him. So I’ll tell him tomorrow and hope he’s not mad.
When we get on the field, I walk up to Damon, and Alik ditches me to hang out with Vanessa.
“Hey,” I say to Damon as I walk up to him.
“Hey,” he says. “Where’s your… well, Tristan?”
“He’s got Russian lessons tonight. I wanted to talk to you, and Alik wants to hang out with Vanessa,” I say.
“What did you want to talk about?” Damon asks.
“Are you busy Saturday?”
“Not that I know of.”
“Well, I’m taking my cousin Jade out for her birthday,” I tell him. “She just turned fifteen. And I told her you’d come with us. So I’m hoping you will. Please.”
“As much as I want to say no, I just can’t when you ask,” he says. “Fine, I’ll go with you.”
“Awesome,” I say. “We’re going to this epic Russian restaurant. Do you like Russian food?”
“Yeah,” he answers. “Since I’m going with you, will you answer some questions for me?”
“I can try,” I say, hesitantly.
I wonder what kind of questions he’s going to ask me.
“Did you like me?” he asks.
“Yes. I told you I did and I meant it,” I answer.
“Why did you choose him over me?”
“I’m sorry, Damon. I never meant to choose him over you. I really did like you and I thought we’d date. But I spent so much time with Tristan. I didn’t realize that I had fallen in love with him until after I agreed to date you,” I say. “I never meant to hurt you and I’m sorry that I did. I like you a lot.”
“Okay,” he says. “Why do you like him more?”
“I don’t know,” I answer, honestly. “We just have a lot in common. He understands me in a way that nobody else can. He’s suffered loss too. To be honest, if I had met you a year ago, when my brother was still alive, you and I would be perfect for each other. That’s why I like you so much. You remind me of the girl I used to be. But I’m not her anymore. When my brother died, it changed me.”
“I bet I would’ve liked that you.”
I nod. “I wish my brother were still alive. You would’ve liked him. He was… less like Alik.”
Damon laughs. “Alik is kind of great. I like him. He makes me wish I had a sibling.”
“I don’t know what I would do without my brothers,” I say.
One of Damon’s bodyguards leans over and whispers something to him. Damon nods, and a few of his bodyguards walk towards the woods.
“What’s going on?” I ask.
“Nothing to worry about,” he says. “They’re just making rounds. Better safe than sorry.”
“Yeah,” I say, but not completely comfortable with being left here with Rafael and only one other bodyguard.
“Tristan said he took you out for a driving lesson,” Damon says.
“Yeah. I was completely terrified. But we didn’t die,” I say. “I think he was impressed that I could drive a stick shift.”
“We usually drive automatics here.”
“That’s just lazy,” I say, shaking my head. “This is why everybody thinks Americans are lazy.”
He laughs. “I can’t disagree with you.”
The bodyguard beside Damon, who has his phone in his hand, grabs Damon’s arm.
“Sir, we have to get you to safety,” he tells Damon.
Damon grabs my hand and pulls me with him, away from the party.
Everything in me is telling me to turn around. It’s telling me that I should go back and find Alik. That I should go find Tristan. Anything but go with them. But I have to stay with Damon. I have to make sure he’s okay.
There is a car nearby. It’s running, the doors open, waiting for us. Damon gets in the backseat first and slides over to make room for me.
“Deja vu,” he says, obviously thinking about the last time we were running away from the school.
Hopefully nobody gets blown up this time.
The door is shut beside me and Rafael gets in the passenger seat beside Damon’s other bodyguard. I don’t like being this close to Rafael without Tristan, but I know that Damon’s other bodyguard is trained well and will protect us if it comes down to it.
“What’s going on, Matthews?” Damon asks, as the car races from the school.
The guy driving doesn’t answer.
I look at Damon, who now looks scared.
“What’s going on?” Damon asks, now demanding an answer.
“Zatknis’, idiot amerikanskiy,” Matthews, the guy in the driver’s seat says, in perfect Russian.
Shut up, you American idiot, is what he said.
Damon reaches over and grabs my hand.
>
We’re about to die.
“My father will find me. And he will kill you,” I threaten them, speaking Russian.
“Your father can’t find your mother. What makes you think he’ll be able to find you?” Rafael says to me, his voice full of hate.
“Leave Damon out of this. I’m the one you want,” I say.
“Two for price of one,” Rafael says, in a perfect American accent. Him and Matthews laugh hard, like it’s the funniest joke they’ve ever heard.
I feel my phone vibrating in my pocket, but I don’t dare reach for it. I know that Tristan is able to track my signal. He will find us. I know he will. Let’s just hope these losers forget that I’m carrying a cellphone.
“It’ll be okay,” I tell Damon, who looks like he’s about to freak out.
“I know,” he says, but I can tell he doesn’t believe it. He’s just saying it for my benefit.
“I’m going to fight,” I whisper, low enough that only he can hear.
He smiles. “I love that about you.”
Damon doesn’t let go of my hand.
I hate that I’m the reason he’s here, but I’m also glad I’m not alone. If I had to be kidnapped with somebody, I’m glad it’s him.
Episode four, Wish, is coming soon!
Letter from Scarlett
Hey! Thank you so much for reading Fame. I still have two more episodes left in this season, and a lot more planned for this school and these characters. I hope that you continue to read and enjoy them!
If you did enjoy this book, it would mean a lot to me if you left a review wherever you picked this up.
For more information on this series, be sure to check out my blog https://scarletthaven.wordpress.com!
—Scarlett Haven
More books by Scarlett
New Hope Academy Series:
Luck (Episode 1)
Fate (Episode 2)
Fame (Episode 3)
Wish (Episode 4—coming soon)
Fame (New Hope Academy Book 3) Page 8
