by Leen Elle
Nodding dumbly, I left the room. When I returned for the second time, Raylin was halfway through her second assignment. I sat down next to her, picking up my own set of assignments. A few muttered curses and random scribbling of numbers from me later, Raylin threw an eraser at me.
"What?" I snapped, feeling most disgruntled that I was injured by a girl twice in less than two hours. Rolling her eyes, she proceeded to explain to me the difference between differentiation and integration between constant accusations that I was sleeping during lessons. I'm not saying she's wrong, though. She drilled me through half of an assignment before finally deciding that I had grasped the basics of Calculus.
"There. Let's hope you get an A for these assignments." She tossed the pencil down between my lap and looked up. My mouth went dry as I realized the close proximity we were in. While she had been teaching me Calculus, we had inched closer and closer to each other, until our knees were touching and her face was a mere inch away from mine. I stared unwaveringly at her luscious black lashes framing her gray eyes and her soft lips, holding my breath. Just as I was about to snap from the tension and lean in to kiss her, she broke the eye contact, sliding off the bed in one fluid motion.
"It's getting quite late. I need to go to the book house. I told Maria I would go there today. I have to go. I hope you get well soon. I… I…" she spoke quickly, gathering up her papers and sorting them out. "Goodbye."
"Wait, Raylin," I managed to utter before she escaped through the door. She turned back with an inquiring look. "Erm, nothing. Thanks for coming 'round."
As she disappeared downstairs and out the front door, I moaned softly in disappointment and fell back against my bed. The bottom of my bed sank downwards as someone sat down. That someone gave me a good poke in the leg.
"Melvin, I'm really not in the mood to deal with your immaturity now."
"Your words cut me real deep that I really feel like crying. Way to go, bro. You just chased away the girl you're after."
"I'm not after her."
"You're in love with her."
"Hell no, it's called lust, little brother. Lust."
"Sure…" He drawled sarcastically in response.
"You're one to talk, kiddo. How's it going with Rayne?"
"Ah… About that, well…"
"See? I proved my point," I gave him a swift kick in the butt. "Now get out of my room and go do your homework."
"What if I don't?" I propped myself up on my elbows to give him a glare. He shrugged and held his hands up in surrender, inching out of my room.
"Clear my wastepaper basket for me, will you?" Silence. "Mel?" At least he was gone. Just what was Raylin to me, and what was I to her? In a casual conversation with Rayne yesterday when she came over to meet Melvin, she had mentioned that her sister had never had a male friend. It turns out that I'm the first male friend she has had. Every minute I spent with her was fun, but I could sense that things between us were beginning to change.
Losing control over my emotions when she is around is one thing, but to have to deal with hyperactive testerone was another. To add on to that, the fact that she looked beautiful all the time did not help at all. I still haven't come to terms with my feelings about her. Confusion would be a good way to describe the state my feelings were in, though. Both of us knew for sure that love was out of the question, had we not made that clear since the very first time we met? Yet, unlike what I told Melvin, it was not all about lust anymore.
Yes, I do like her gorgeous features, and her perfect figure, but as time passed by, I found myself liking her witty retorts to my teasing. Conversations with her did not seem tense, clipped and formal anymore. In fact, they were friendly, warm, almost free of the coat of frost. It was as though she was showing me a side which she only reserved for her sister and her three best friends.
My vibrating cellphone shook me from my reverie. What in the name of Hell was Melvin calling me for?
"Melvin, we're in the same house. It won't kill you to come to the door and talk to me."
"Bro, we're in the same house. I would dearly like to go to your room to, but you kicked me away, remember?" That rendered me speechless as I wondered when my younger brother became such a smartass. "Anyway, bro, I just called to tell you that I'm going out with Sam to the arcade."
"Wait…"
"Before you say it, I have done my homework. It's lying on top of my bed if you want to check it. Bye, my loving brother, I'll see you later for dinner!" He hung up after a cheery farewell. Smartass.
Perhaps I really should continue with my assignments instead of thinking about things that distract me. Picking up a pencil, I set to work.
RAYLIN
I got into my car, revving up the engine and driving off to the book house. I turned the radio on, hoping against hope that some music would calm my frazzled nerves and scrambled thoughts. Clearly, nothing helped. A certain black-haired, blue-eyed, aloof guy with multiple piercings and a talent for drawing was the source of my problems. I groaned out loud. When did I, Raylin Lachey, ever let a member of the male population affect me so much?
When I have no idea which direction our friendship was going.
That was the main reason why I had always been against friendships with guys. I never knew what to make of our relationship. A regular friendship would mean condescending smiles and polite nods. A closer friendship would cue me dropping my defenses gradually. I would end up discarding any traces of my usual frostiness, instead switching to warmer tones, something which scared me immensely. I am so used to being in total control of my life, that any single thing out of place worries me. It irked me to think that I would lose control over anything at all, to know that I am not as perfect as I convinced myself to think I was.
I pulled up before the bookhouse, getting out of the car and locking it. Just then, a familiar looking man drove past in a white Mercedes. I could barely just make out the shape of a woman in the seat next to him.
What the fuck was he doing here?
Chapter 12
I'mperfect
"Love has features which pierce all hearts, he wears a bandage which conceals the faults of those beloved. He has wings, he comes quickly and flies away the same." – Voltaire
RAYLIN
It felt surreal seeing him again, but then again, it was probably my mind working overtime. It had been nothing but pure hallucination on my part, I was sure. I shrugged off my thoughts and smiled at Maria before prompting her to take a break at the back. As I gave the glass a good wipedown, someone approached the counter.
"Excuse me, can I order a frappucino with extra whipped cream and a vanilla latte?" I straightened to see a smiling guy with warm brown eyes. Nodding, I indicated that he should take a seat while I prepared his orders. I watched him out of the corner of my eye as he made his way back to his seat. Sandy noticed my gaze and teased gently, "What a cutie, huh?"
I would have given her playful swat on the arm if I was Belinda, but being Raylin, all I did was to roll my eyes and pick up the drinks. He was sitting at one of the tables with a girl opposite him. While he was talking animatedly with huge hand gestures, she sat stoically in her seat with her slim legs crossed and her expression stony. I mindlessly wondered if she was even listening to the poor guy talk. I set the drinks down on the table and waited for the guy to take out his wallet. My eyes met the girl's and I did a mental double take at how similar her eyes were to the guy's. It was then that I noticed the same dark blonde hair and lean physique.
"Siblings?" I enquired casually, accepting the payment from the guy, giving him a subtle once over. One thing different about him was that he did not possess the hunky or suave looks that girls went gaga over. Instead, he was, as Calista would say, 'insanely cute', with his slightly wavy hair and warm smile. There was no doubt he was a hit with most girls too. He grinned cheekily, "So you noticed something similar about us. We're twins, actually."
I raised an eyebrow skeptically. They had similar features, enough to be sibli
ngs but not identical enough to be twins. Then, the girl spoke for the first time, her tone impatient and rude, "We're fraternal twins, you idiot. You must be another one of those air-heads living in this town." My blood boiled at her ridiculous insult. Nobody insulted me and got away with it.
Before I could snap anything back in return, her brother chastised her with a frustrated, "Jacelyn!" Turning to me, he adopted an apologetic look, "I'm sorry, we just moved here and she has been really cranky recently. I'm Jerome."
"Raylin," I acknowledged his apology with a curt nod before turning around to leave.
"Wait! Are you allowed to take a short break? Do you think you could sit down for a moment and tell us where the nicest places to hang out are?" Jerome touched my arm, earning a glare. He removed his hand swiftly and gestured to the extra seat hopefully. I contemplated rolling my eyes and walking away but then again, it would be an extremely rude thing to do to new citizens – whether they were first class bitches or not. Instead, I nodded and replaced the tray at the counter. The bookhouse had only a few customers scattered around the place and Sandy assured me that she could handle any new ones on her own. I lowered myself into the seat and eyed the both of them calmly.
"The mall's a good place to start. Or the cinema," I told them. "Y'know, there really isn't much to see here. It's no different from other towns. You've no entertainment except cafes and malls. Or parties, if you're the hardcore partying type."
The twins exchanged an excited glance. Clearly, the last idea appealed to them. Being the kind soul I was today, I offered to let them know if any new parties were being organized. Jacelyn frowned, "Right, and your puny brain didn't think that maybe the hosts would be angry at us for crashing the party."
"Ha!" I scoffed, her insult rolling right off me this time. It took one to know another, after all. "Those parties are so filled with people that nobody would notice if a couple more new kids appeared. I'm going back to work now. Come over to the counter if you need to order anything else."
I busied myself with cleaning up the place as usual, until Sandy called me from the counter. She pointed at my cellphone which was ringing away merrily. Surprise, surprise. My mother was calling me. Her voice sounded different – choked, and tired. There was something important that I needed to know, she said. Could I please come home now, she asked. Maria had heard my part of the short conversation and shooed me out of the bookhouse.
It wasn't long before I was outside my house, staring in horror at the white Mercedes parked in our driveway. It had certainly been anything but a simple hallucination. A little voice in my head was fervently praying that it was all a nightmare and I would wake up at exactly 8am to prepare for school. I parked my car in record time, practically sprinting to the front door and throwing it open. Three people were sitting on the sofa in the living room – one of them my mother, who shot me a thankful look.
I scowled at the other two occupants in the room, glaring at the all too familiar figure standing before me. The tousled black hair and cold gray eyes, both achingly similar to mine, and yet so different. The other woman sitting next to him was a willowy blonde with startling blue eyes. She was not young, but she had certainly looked after herself well.
"What are you doing here?" My lips curled in distaste.
"Raylin dear, is that an appropriate way to greet your father?" He gave a bemused smirk. My fingers curled into fists as rage boiled deep within me. I suppressed the urge to wipe that smirk off his face with a well-placed punch. "I haven't seen you in years, and look how beautiful you have become."
"Way to state the obvious, stranger. You haven't seen me in years and you know why. I have no father. My father ceased to exist in my memories the day he walked out the door and left three broken females in the house to fend for themselves," I hissed, my tone icy cool, but my heart pounding with adrenaline and apprehension. I had prayed that my voice would not waver as I spoke. "What do you want?"
"Raylin, he wants shared custody of you and your sister," my mother's tired voice broke the silence that had settled after my mini tirade. "He's back in town with his new wife."
The aforementioned new wife looked up from her nails and gave me a little finger wave. "Hello sweetheart. I'm Roxy. You can come shopping with me and my daughter anytime you want."
"You look and sound like a chunk of meat way past its prime and trying to spruce herself up with a cute teenage name," I sneered. I was surprised at my own rudeness and childish comeback. "By the way, that purple dress does nothing for your skin tone and blonde hair."
A flash of annoyance crossed her face. I half-expected her to fly into a rage and scream at me like the bitch she was, but instead, she turned to Darren, the man who called himself my father, and whined. I kept my jaw clamped shut even though it almost fell open in amazement. An adult whining for attention? Now I've seen it all. My mother spoke again, "You and Rayne will be having dinner with your father next Monday evening."
Before I could say anything, the douchebag turned to my mother and told her rather pleasantly, "Nice to see you again, Emily. We'll take our leave now. Take care." With that, he got up with Roxy in tow, making their grand exit. I wisely kept my mouth shut and settled with meeting his eyes in a fierce glare until he broke eye contact. When the door closed behind them, my mother got up from the couch to approach me.
"Raylin…" She reached out to take my arm, her tone pleading.
"Don't touch me," I snapped, losing my cool. "I don't suppose objecting to the dinner would make much difference, would it? Fine, I'll go just to make you happy. But don't expect me to be polite to him."
"Raylin, I know you don't want to talk to me. You have every right to be angry at me," she said in a whisper just loud enough for me to hear as I started to walk up the stairs. I stopped in my tracks, but refused to turn and face her. "But I married your father for a reason. I loved him then, and I still love him now, even if he walked out on me and broke my heart. That's why I didn't kick him out of the house; that's why I didn't say what you said to him. Do you understand, darling?"
"Love isn't an excuse, mother." I replied softly, before continuing up the steps. Despite my reply, my mother's words had set me thinking. I grabbed my clothes and walked into the bathroom. I had to have a talk with Rayne when she returned from the library.
VIPER
"Viper!" I turned to see Sierra with her boyfriend. We nodded at each other in acknowledgement before I returned my attention to Sierra. "Have you seen what happened to Raylin's locker?" Noticing a trace of concern on the younger girl's face, I shook my head. She tilted her chin in the direction of the aforementioned locker where a crowd was gathered. Bidding the couple goodbye, I made my way over, only to see in ugly black letters "YOU'RE NOT AS PERFECT AS YOU THINK." I frowned – what was that sentence supposed to mean? It became apparent that I had voiced my thoughts out loud when a girl beside me squealed in excitement.
"You mean you haven't heard? Raylin's father came back!" She looked up at me and blinked rapidly with her powder-coated eyelids.
"So?" I was genuinely perplexed. In what way was that an interesting phenomenon? "It's not like it has anything to do with us."
"But don't you realize?" She chirruped again, a gleeful smile making its way across her face. "Everyone thought she had a perfect family and all. She acts so cold and uppity like she's better than us all…"
"This gives us the perfect opportunity to get back at her!" Squealing Girl's friend joined the conversation. I was about to scoff at their ridiculous opinions when there was a panicked whisper, "They're here!" Suddenly, the crowd parted to reveal Raylin and her friends. I glanced at the girl and her companion who were trying to melt into the rest of the crowd, remarking drily, "And for someone who wants to get back at her, you're still scared of her."
Raylin's face was impressively impassive as she scanned the damage done to her locker. Leila placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. Raylin turned back to give her a small smile before walking on, her scrutinizing ga
ze passing through everyone in the crowd. When her eyes met mine, I realized that it was almost impossible to tell what she was thinking behind those cool gray pools. The four of them sailed past the crowd and into the principal's office as though it was a natural occurrence. Immediately, the hush that had settled at their appearance was broken and excited whispering began. Again, the whispering stopped when the four Queens exited the principal's office a little while later. The bell rang and the students started pushing past each other to get to class.
"I wonder how she's feeling now," a soft voice by my side spoke. I looked down to see Sierra's worried face.
"She'll be fine," I told her reassuringly. I hope. It was quite heartwarming seeing Sierra's concern. As she gave me a slight smile and left with her boyfriend, I trudged through the crowd and finally managed to enter my class unscathed.
The teacher began his lesson as promptly as I fell asleep. It wasn't my fault that his voice was as good as a lullaby. I felt a hand rap on my head, jerking awake in surprise. The teacher was scowling down at me, "Somebody wants to see you." He pointed to the door where a Grade 9 boy blanched when he saw me. I quirked an eyebrow. I was anything but scary in my hazy sleep-induced state. I slung my bag over my shoulder and sauntered out of the class. The boy tried to say something but seemed to blanch even more.
"A… Are you Mason Gray?" He swallowed nervously.
"Viper," I said automatically, before acknowledging his question. "Yes, I'm Mason Gray."
"MadamPincewantstoseeyou," he spat out his words in a hurry. I raised my eyebrows again, "Try again. And enunciate."
"Madam Pince wants to see you!" He practically exclaimed.
"Okay." He bolted. Funny kid, I smirked to myself. It wasn't long before I found myself outside her office, knocking on her door. I waited for permission to enter her office patiently, playing with my lip ring. There was a faint, "Enter." from behind the door. Pushing the door open, I slipped into the office, noticing that there was not only her but two other students in the room. I gave them a customary glance before looking at the principal. "Have a seat, Viper."
