by K. Walker
“I see the blessing,” Simone said and raised her arm as if she were in class.
“What?” I asked and folded my arms. “Enlighten me.”
“They could have been poor relatives,” she beamed.
“True,” Kyla said and pointed at her.
Then they all stared at me like I was being ridiculous and I didn’t know my luck.
“You live with Tyson and Liv Pierce,” Simone stated as if to put it into perspective. “They are like royalty around here. It doesn’t get better than that.”
“Hell, we can barely get through those gates on a regular day, except by invitation to one of their parties,” Annette said, too.
“Hence our need to go to Mia’s,” Kyla added.
I sighed. “I get it. And I don’t get it.”
“That’s because you didn’t grow up here,” Kyla said and shrugged. “It’s just the way it is.”
There was a chorus of yeps after she spoke, right before the bell rang and we had to leave the cafeteria.
“Oh, do you have anything to wear? Because I was thinking of going shopping,” Kyla said to me after the others had gone.
“I hadn’t even thought about it. I’ll just grab something from my closet,” I told her.
She stopped and grabbed my arm. “Please tell me you’re kidding.”
“No, I’m not,” I told her emphatically. “I’m going to get you girls in. I might stay for a short while and go back home to the solitude. Maybe spend some alone time at the pool. I’m not into all of this upscale partying. This isn’t my thing,” I said to her.
“Well, if you’re going to live here, you better get used to it,” she said with a smile, and then she walked off.
Apparently, that was exactly right. I couldn’t be my true self in that place where everyone expected me to be someone else. I felt like I was losing myself. Thankfully, I was able to avoid Tyson and his friends for the rest of the day.
It seemed Liv had been right – I didn’t get the weird looks and the questioning glances like before. I guessed no one really thought I was fucking them – I had let them get to me. Maybe the curious stares had been just that – people getting used to me, or it could have been the trailer park thing.
But Kyla did eventually get me into thinking about what I was going to wear, and when I got home, I wandered over to the closet. I had never been to one of those house parties, so I wasn’t sure what to expect, or what to wear.
What was considered dressing up, or dressing down in this part of town? I remembered what I’d seen Liv wearing last night, and I definitely had nothing like that in my closet. Not among my original things or what Aunt Celine had gotten me.
She’d promised me she would take me shopping – maybe that was a good time to tell her I needed something nice for a party. I reached for my phone.
Quinn: Hi, Aunt Celine. Not to sound needy, but I have a party on Friday, and I have nothing to wear. I was wondering if you’d want us to go on that trip before the weekend.
My heart was racing when I sent the message because it was never something I was used to doing. My mom had worked hard for everything we had, and we had limited stuff, including clothes.
Much of what I had came from a thrift store, or the more inexpensive department stores you would find in a rundown mall or shopping complex. This life was something totally new for me, and I was still easing into it and testing my limits.
Aunt Celine: No problem, sweetheart. I’m glad you’re already making friends. We can go tomorrow after school if you like. I’ll pick you up.
Quinn: That would be great, thanks so much.
Aunt Celine: You’re welcome. And keep your Saturday free – we still have to go car shopping.
Quinn: Okay
I couldn’t even imagine what that meant – car shopping. I never thought I’d own a car any time soon. Not a nice one, anyway. Maybe a used one with over two-hundred thousand miles that I could actually afford after working at department stores or call centers after school.
Or bussing tables at the diner…
I sighed when I thought about the diner, and remembered that was where mom used to work.
I fell back onto the bed and closed my eyes. I wasn’t sure which was worse – opening my eyes and seeing nothing, or closing them and seeing too much.
Her face floated across my mind, and my eyes flew open – open eyes and seeing nothing was definitely better. I sucked in a deep breath and walked over to my little bag in the closet – the one on the top shelf.
I reached inside and took out a small box that contained personal items of hers. I returned to the bed and opened it. The first thing I noticed was the bottle of pills – Prozac. I had gotten them right after mom died, and I was referred to a therapist for grief counseling.
I hadn’t taken much of them, so the bottle was almost full still. I laid the bag on the bed next to me and stared at the small bottle of pills.
I sighed and twisted the cap. It popped, and I took one out, feeling like I desperately needed it. I had just slipped it into my mouth when I felt like someone was watching me. I turned and choked on the pill when I saw Tyson standing outside my door.
His eyes became slits in his head, and the angry lines on his forehead deepened. I didn’t understand until I remembered the bottle in my hand and looked down. He was staring at it.
“Tyson, it’s just…”
“Save it!” he snapped and walked off.
I jumped up off the bed and tried to run him down, but his door closed after him before I could even get to him.
As if things needed to get any worse.
Chapter 12
I didn’t expect to see him standing outside my door the following morning; his green eyes focused on me as I stepped through the door.
“We’re going to be late,” he said and walked off.
“We?” I asked and walked off behind him. “What’s this ‘we’?”
“Don’t make me change my mind,” he said without looking at me.
“Look, Tyson, about last night,” I began as we got to the landing.
“I don’t fucking care,” he snapped and bounded down the steps.
I was so frustrated with him. I felt like flinging my purse at his broad shoulders. Yet, as mad as I was, my eyes wandered to how rigid and firm his body was, at the veins that bulged in his hands, and the tattoos on his upper body and forearms.
And then I caught myself. Why the hell was I admiring Tyson Pierce? Eww!
I knew waiting for Liv might be a mistake, so I was forced to walk behind him, all the way to his car while keeping my eyes off his ass. I was embarrassed by the time I got in.
The one time I glanced over, his jaw was clenched, and he looked angry. I wasn’t sure if it was because he was stuck with taking me to school, or if it was just me. He seemed mad at me from the get-go, and I didn’t get why.
I was trying to keep my eyes busy for the entire time, forgetting about the fact that I was sitting next to an angry stud – even that I had to admit to myself. He really was as hot as the girls had made him out to be, but he was still an asshole.
Pity!
“I hope you don’t plan on going to that party,” he hissed as the car shot down the street, weaving in and out of traffic like we had warped into a version of Grand Theft Auto.
I wrinkled my brows. “Excuse me?”
“You heard me,” he said and flashed me an intense stare. “It’s not your thing.”
“Not my thing?” I snapped angrily. “How would you know what my thing is? You don’t even know me.”
“Have you ever even been to a party like that?” he asked in a very condescending tone.
“That’s not your problem, is it?” I fired back at him. The nerve! Even if I hadn’t decided ongoing, I would now just to spite him. He barely said anything to me, and one of the few times that he did, he was trying to tell me what to do?
The car suddenly jerked forward as he floored the pedal, and I was thrust forward. I
grabbed onto the door and dug my fingers into the leather seat.
“What the hell, Tyson!” I shouted at him. “Why are you driving like that?”
He didn’t answer. The tires careened on the asphalt as he turned onto the school street and zipped his car through the gate. I was more than happy to get out.
“You know,” I said and walked back to him, my fingers pointed up at him. “If this is the way you’re going to be driving, I don’t have to ride with you.”
His eyes narrowed and he bore down on me. “Is that so?”
“Yes,” I said as words failed me, and my throat got dry.
“How else are you going to get here?”
That sounded too much like a threat, even though I was getting my car on the weekend. That would show him. I didn’t betray that fact. I just matched his smirk with a roll of my eyes and walked off.
“Two days in a row,” Lila hissed in my ear as she met me on my way into the building.
“Don’t even get me started.” I pushed the door in and she laughed as she came in after me.
“Are you all set for tonight?” she asked, and she actually bounced in excitement as she did.
“Actually, no. I should be going shopping with my aunt after school today.”
She punched me playfully in the shoulder. “And you were acting like you didn’t want to go.”
“I didn’t, but you all forced me to, and if I’m going to go, then I might as well play the part of a snob,” I grinned and looked over at her.
“That’s my girl.” She bumped my shoulder with her arm and shot me a sly grin.
“Besides, Tyson just told me that I shouldn’t bother going, and what better way to get even a morsel of revenge?” I said as I got to my locker.
“He really said that? Why?”
“Beats me, but I’m not going to try to figure out why Tyson does what he does. I’m ignoring him as much as possible.”
“Hi,” I heard a male voice say from behind me.
I turned and looked into the dark eyes of a looker. “Hi.” I was already suspicious of this six-foot, washboard chest hunk of a schoolboy. Maybe he was a wound-up toy sent by Tyson to test me.
“Name’s Zack,” he said and extended his hand.
I took it. He smiled, flashing pearly whites at me, and my insides danced. “I’m Quinn. It’s nice to meet you.”
“Believe me, the pleasure’s all mine,” he said and rubbed his thumb over the back of my hand. “So, are you going to the party at Mia’s later? It’s a big thing, so please say yes. I could use a date.”
“A date?” I asked and blushed. I had to – he was as fine as hell. His dark hair was swept to one side of his face, and his muscled arms escaped through his tank. He had a denim jacket draped over his shoulder, and his smell – I could easily drink him in all day.
“Yes. You are going, right?”
“I am,” I told him and leaned against the locker.
“It’s a date, then,” he said as our eyes locked. I was so caught up with him and the possibility of a date, and making Tyson squirm at seeing me with a boy having fun that I didn’t even see him until he was right next to me.
“What are you doing?” he asked Zack.
The boy’s eyes narrowed and he folded his arms across his chest. He was about to answer when I stepped between the two of them. “You don’t need to answer him,” I said and cut Tyson a look that could kill.
He didn’t take his eyes off of Zack. “Look, man, I was just asking if she was going to the party,” he explained, like he had to.
“She has a date,” he said flatly.
“Wait a minute,” I said in shock. “What date? I don’t…”
His eyes dipped to mine. “You have a date,” he told me more firmly the second time.
“My bad,” Zack said and backed off.
“No, wait, I don’t have a date,” I shouted after the stud who was walking away from me. “Why did you do that?”
“You don’t need a date if you’re not going, do you?” he sneered and started to back off. Liam winked at me as Tyson met up with them and they walked off.
“Does he want me to have the most miserable senior year ever?” I whined after he was gone. “I can’t even get a date to a stupid party?”
“Sorry, hun,” Lila said sympathetically and shrugged. “I don’t know what to say.”
I sighed and grabbed my supplies from my locker. “This is great. Just great,” I said and walked off. “See you later, Lila,” I turned and waved to her.
I had no idea what Tyson’s problem was. None of what he said or did made any sense at all. First, he said I shouldn’t go, and then he said I had a date, just to scare away an actual date.
And why the hell did Zack just walk away? They are just one bunch of yellow-bellied teenagers who can’t stand up to a damned dick like Tyson—like he was the only one in school who had money. Half the fucking school was floating on paper.
I fumed all the way through the day because it seemed like he’d made it his point of duty to set watch over me—like he wanted me to feel grateful for something. I wasn’t going to fall for it. Nope!
Yet, after the Zack thing, there was either him, or Liam, or Noah, or Jonathan, lurking in the shadows, acting like they and I had an actual agreement – gratefulness for favors. Or they just wanted to make sure no boy in school ever talked to me.
It sucked!
I was still angry when Aunt Celine picked me up. Of course, I couldn’t complain to her. It would only make things worse. It had after I had told her he wouldn’t take me to school on the first day. Now, I was stuck with him.
But at least we had a little fun shopping. It was like being out with an older sister or Mom. There were times when the light hit her face in a way that made me pause and smile. She looked so much like her and she had a few personality quirks that would make me take a second glance.
She got some clothes and accessories for herself too, but she didn’t pinch on what she bought for me. I tried to refuse some of the jewelry, the makeup, which she thought every girl must-have, and the red-bottom boots she insisted I get.
She didn’t hold back, and for the first time since I arrived a week ago, I truly felt like I belonged there. She even took me to a spa to get my hair and nails done, but I absolutely wouldn’t let her go for broke.
She was having more fun than me, but it had turned into an amazing day that allowed us to bond as aunt and niece.
My bed was covered with everything she had gotten me, and I was exhausted. “Remember, we still have to go car shopping tomorrow,” she said as she was leaving my room.
“Are you sure you have any money left?” I laughed.
She did too, in a sweet, carefree, happy sort of way that I envied. I hadn’t laughed like that in a long time. Not in the last couple of weeks, anyway.
But I was looking forward to my own ride. I grinned to myself when I thought about the look on Tyson’s face on Monday morning when he acknowledged I didn’t need him anymore. It was about time I got out from under his thumb because that was exactly where I felt like I was stuck.
My phone rang, and I snatched it up when I saw it was Kyla. “Hey, girl!” I answered and dropped down on the bed.
“Hey, hun. It’s all of us on the line. So, since you were the one with the actual invite, and because it makes sense, we’re riding together.”
“Great!” I said animatedly. “Means I don’t have to get left behind when Tyson decides I can’t go.”
Kyla laughed. “We heard about that. What the hell?”
“Exactly what I thought, but Mia only lives just down the road, so short of locking me in my room, there’s no way he’s stopping me from going.”
“Don’t give him any ideas,” Lila teased.
“You’re right,” I laughed. “But enough about him. We need to get ready. It’s already after six, and I don’t plan on staying out too late.”
“Whatever!” Lila said.
“I’m not play
ing, Lila,” I said and laughed. It had only been a week, but I felt like I had known them a long time. “You know what, I’m the designated driver for tonight, so when I’m ready, we all leave.”
They all laughed. “See you in a few,” Kyla said, and the line went dead.
It was my first over-the-top party at a house that could barely be described as such. I bet it was going to be one hell of a night.
And that called for the perfect outfit – brown ankle boots, military-green mini-skirt ad matching jacket, and a white tank underneath. That should work. My hair flowed down my back, and looked perfect, thanks to Aunt Celine.
The only thing left to do was take a shower.
I was ready in thirty minutes, and just a short time before the girls showed up at the gate honking the horn.
“Have fun,” Aunt Celine called after me as I hurried down the stairs. She was on her way up.
“I will, thanks. Or, maybe not,” I joked, and she laughed.
I skipped to the front and opened the gate for Kyla. Her dark grey Aston Martin circled the courtyard and I climbed in with the other over-eager girls.
“Nice ride!” I said and smiled at everyone.
“Whoo!” Lila hooted. “Let’s get this party started!”
They were super excited, and the contagion rapidly gripped me like a virus. By the time the car rolled through Mia’s gate, I was more than ready to get my groove on.
Chapter 13
The inside of the house was even more spectacular than the outside. My eyes bulged and remained wide-open like I had been struck by lightning, as I witnessed the luxurious furnishing and state-of-the-art everything.
“Awesome, isn’t it?” Annette asked as I gawked at an ivory sculpture situated close to the foyer. It was of a half-naked man, or god, with green garlands draped around his neck – real garlands. I checked. The contrast between the ivory and the green was striking and was the major theme throughout the house.
Every corner of the home was littered with students, and some other persons I didn’t recognize. They could be students, too. I didn’t know everyone at Bridal Creek High – though I doubted why any non-factor students would be invited.
