by SM Olivier
Grandpa decided to hide out at the Isaacs’ house for another night. We all hung out together last night and crashed there. Grandpa had invited Mr. Jenkins out for dinner, and they had decided on a whim to go fishing today. Maisie had been so excited to be invited along.
“Yeah?” he said as if he didn’t believe my quick response.
“Yes,” I said on a laugh.
I pulled out my phone to text the guys as the bell for lunch rang.
Me: Don’t go to the cafeteria. We picked up lunch.
I had been eating out more than ever, but Grandpa had continued to scold me for not using my card enough. I tried to explain to him that I needed to save up for college expenses, and he laughed at me. He actually laughed at me, then showed me my college fund. Let’s just say I could go to any of the Ivy League schools and not worry about student loans. Not that I planned to go to any of them.
My phone vibrated in quick succession.
Soulmate: Sweet! See you soon :-*
Crew: Thanks
Oh, Crew, my loquacious one. I wondered why he even bothered having a phone at times, considering he never used it to text or call people. He seemed to always be the person on the receiving end of taking text and calls.
BDSM: Thanks, I hope you got burgers because I’m craving meat and lots of it! ;)
I laughed, knowing that Lindsey’s forced diet had taken a toll on them. We went out to eat last night, and Mr. Isaacs, Paxton, and Golden ate an insane amount of meat. They behaved as if they’d been subjected to the Lindsey Diet for the past year, not just three days.
Zane: I didn’t know you swung that way, Golden Boy ;-P But if you want meat, we won’t be giving it to you. But I’ll make sure to tell Jared you’re ready to experiment.
I hadn't even caught the double entendre. I guess I had been away from Lucas and Madison for too long. I was getting slow. In the past, I would have been one of the first ones to notice that.
“Good one.” I looked over at Zane and smiled. “Jared as in The Jared, the yellman?”
Zane grinned and nodded. “He used to have the biggest crush on Golden. He thought Bailey was just a coverup for the longest time.”
“Wow.” I smiled and shook my head.
I had seen who Jared was currently dating, and he was the exact opposite of Golden—an artsy, very short Asian guy that went to college. They couldn’t be more different.
BDSM: You and Jared wished I would! I’ve caught you staring at my lips before. They’re skilled but there’s no way you can ever talk me into consuming your meat.
Soulmate: Let’s be real, if anyone was the receiver, it would be you, Gold.
I giggled, although I wasn’t certain about that assumption. Golden struck me as a man who was laid back and carefree out of the bedroom, but inside he would be the one demanding control. It was Zane I could see as being the opposite.
Zane: Hahaha got’em
BDSM: You guys believe what you wanna believe but after I make love to Peyton, she’ll let you know how much I love the cream and not the cock.
I let out a surprised burst of laughter, my cheeks heating up as Zane quietly chuckled
next to me. He threw his arm back over my shoulder and pulled me in closer. He kissed the top of my head and smiled down at me.
“Bet ya Golden’s going to try to prove his dominance all through lunch.”
“I don’t make bets I’m going to lose to,” I said impishly as I leaned into him.
He chuckled once more.
We headed through the throngs of people, and I couldn’t help but notice how many people stopped to stare or whisper about me. There was a disadvantage of attending a school this small. Rumors and gossip traveled quickly.
“Ignore them,” Zane said. His face lost all traces of mirth. He looked formidable as he drew himself up to full height. I could see his eyes scanning the crowd as if he dared anyone to do or say anything.
Seriously, I didn’t know what I would have become if it weren’t for these guys. No one else, except Freddy or Heather, really talked to me. Everyone I interacted with was perfunctory. I was surrounded by people who believed the lies Leah spread around, people who wanted to avoid me because they didn’t want to be on the receiving end of Leah’s brand of torture.
“I’m trying,” I told him with a grimace. It sucked how one moment I felt carefree and light, and the next I came crashing back down.
The moment I came into the courtyard, I noticed Leah’s table immediately. It was covered with gift bags, balloons, and cupcakes. I had forgotten that it was Leah’s birthday today. Leah was sitting in the middle of the table, wearing a silver tiara and a pink sash with Beautiful Birthday Babe written in silver across it. From the amount of laughing and jovial atmosphere, you would never know her sister was missing.
I shook my head. To each their own, I figured. But I knew if Madison or Lucas had gone missing, I would be devastated. Celebrating my birthday would be the last thing on my mind. Honestly, I didn’t think I could have returned to school just yet. I would have needed to get ahold of my emotions.
Even though I hadn’t talked to them in some time, I would still be a basketcase. They were the closest things to siblings I ever had. I made a note to myself to call them. Maybe it was time to navigate the road to forgiveness.
They had done me wrong, and they had hurt me, but I couldn’t forget how much they still meant to me. We had years of friendship, and I couldn’t just throw all that away. I couldn’t promise we’d ever be the same again, but I knew without a shadow of a doubt that they missed me.
“What’d you get us?” Paxton asked eagerly as we approached the table.
“Reuben sandwiches with french fries for you and Crew. Fries, extra crispy with ranch for Crew, and with mayo and ketchup for you,” I stated as I pulled out the styrofoam containers. “And a Reuben with no sauerkraut, add coleslaw, no fries, substitute onion rings for Golden.”
“It’s amazing the way you remember the little things,” Paxton teased as he tore open the container. “An extra sandwich!”
I started to laugh at his enthusiasm. You would have thought I bought him a pony or something, the way he grinned at his food.
“Thanks, Angel,” Crew murmured kissing my cheek as he opened his container. I had ordered him an extra sandwich as well.
I smiled, surprised once more by his open display of affection. Slowly but surely, my big avenger was coming around.
“Hey, I only have one sandwich,” Golden mock pouted.
Golden and Zane had a healthy appetite but only on a rare occasion did I see them eat the way Paxton and Crew did. I thought an extra sandwich for Golden would have gone to waste.
Zane laughed. “No worries, I got us some mozzarella sticks to split,” he informed Golden, since he had seen the possibility of Golden complaining.
“That’ll work,” Golden smiled.
I opened my own container of a greek salad with extra feta, light olives, and a grilled chicken breast.
“Why are you eating like a rabbit lately?” Crew frowned as he looked down at my food.
“I have a competition in four days,” I reminded him. “If I continue to eat pizza, fries, pasta, and burgers, I won’t fit in my costume.”
“In the meantime, you dance eight hours a day and do cheer for at least an hour,” Zane added. “Maybe we should start packing you healthy snacks for you to snack on throughout the day to keep up your energy.”
“Yes, Dad,” I teased as I speared a tomato with my fork. At his peeved look, I laughed. “Okay, okay. Wanna go shopping with me after practice before we study? We can buy some healthy stuff for me.”
Zane gave me a crooked smile and nodded. “We can do that. That’s actually not a bad idea. I should start packing snacks, too. Coach has been running us ragged lately.”
“What time are we going shopping?” Paxton asked before popping a fry in his mouth.
“We aren’t,” Zane said carefully. “I asked Peyton to come over and study
after Dance tonight.”
“Like a study date?” Paxton asked with a frown. “Can we do that?”
“I wasn’t aware that there were any rules,” Zane said with a shrug. I could tell he didn’t want to argue with Paxton, but he wasn’t going to save his friend’s feelings either.
“After dance tomorrow, I would like to pick you up and take you furniture shopping,” Golden stated before taking a bite of his sandwich. “Does that work with your schedule?”
I nodded at the bizarre turn on our conversation. You would think we were talking about the weather and not me dating them individually. Up until this point, we all just hung out together. I wasn’t left alone with only one of them for very long.
Sure, Kyler and I went shopping that one day, but it really hadn’t been a date. We kissed and what not, but we had started the day with the intentions of picking out stuff for my house.
“Perfect.” Golden smiled. “I already have the samples of your flooring and paint so we can make sure the furniture compliments it.”
Oddly enough, I trusted Golden to help me pick out beautiful furniture. The longer I knew Golden, the more I realized that he had a terrific sense of style, and an eye for fashion. He was responsible for laying the kids’ clothing out every night on school nights. He also ensured the children were in the appropriate sized clothing. He recycled and donated clothing as needed.
Mam had a twelve-by-twenty room filled with clothing in the basement. Apparently, she liked to hit the stores and shopped online for clothing after the season was over and the apparel went on clearance. She had shown Golden how to do it, and he still did it, for all the children, including Paxton and himself.
Golden showed me the rolling racks and shelves of clothing he continued to maintain with new and gently used items. He told me it started because there were several children that came and left from their household, that a lot of the children came with a grocery bag of all their possessions. Mam made sure they went with a duffle bag full of clothes, books, and a toy when they departed from their house.
It only made me wish I had known her, now more than ever. I didn’t know why Golden still purchased and maintained some of the clothing, but I never asked, though I was sure he had a plan for them. I had a feeling it made him feel closer to the mom who loved him more than his mother ever had.
“What is going on?” Paxton frowned, bringing me back to the discussion on hand. “We’re taking Peyton on dates now? Like, by ourselves?”
“That’s what couples do,” Crew said, clearing his throat. I was surprised he was even inserting himself into the conversation.
“But−” Paxton began.
“But nothing,” Crew said decisively. “If you want some one-on-one time with Peyton, ask her. She has a game on Friday night, her dance competition on Saturday, and we have family dinner with Grandpa on Sunday night, so don’t ask her on those days.”
I really wasn’t surprised that Crew knew my schedule. Zane might be the one who organized everything, and Golden remembered the little details, but Crew always seemed to know exactly where I was and what my plans were at all times.
“How about Thursday?” Paxton asked. “I want to go hiking and show you my favorite spot to take pictures. We can pack dinner and bring our cameras.”
I smiled and nodded. “That would be awesome. I really haven’t had the chance to explore since I got here.”
“Perfect,” Paxton said with a smile.
“What’s your schedule like on Monday?” Crew asked.
I pulled out my phone and opened up my calendar. “Nothing yet.”
“Good.” He nodded. “Keep it open.”
I narrowed my eyes at him, wondering what he had planned, but I knew I wasn’t going to get any answers from him.
●
Crew cursed under his breath as we neared my locker. “Take her to class,” he gently pushed me towards Zane.
“What? Why?” I asked in confusion as I tried to crane my neck around him.
“Just go, Peyton,” Crew growled. “I’ll drop your book off to you for class.”
“No,” I said stubbornly. “If it involves me, I have the right to know.”
I darted around him, and I knew I had surprised him and Zane, because they had no time to react. I weaved through the people strolling through the halls, thankful for my compact size compared to theirs. When I reached my locker, I skidded to a halt in front of it. I held my hand up to my mouth to prevent my nausea from spilling over.
On my locker, someone had attached Baby Boy and Baby Girl mylar balloons and blue and pink latex balloons. Blood-red paint dripped down the front of my locker that was decorated with pacifiers, bottles, teething rings, and diaper paste. I could have been okay with all of that but what truly disturbed me was what hung front and center. It was a naked baby doll, a noose tied around its neck, and the words MURDERER written in red chalk-paint across the torso.
Several people either laughed or skirted around me. A few of them even muttered in hateful reproach that I was a baby killer.
There were three people at the forefront of my mind that could have done this.
I heard Crew mutter a curse as he pulled me into him with one arm, using the other to take his phone out of his pocket.
I understood playful shenanigans, I had been on the receiving end of many of them from Lucas and his dad Mickey. Pranks were funny. I loved formulating plans to get people back. The problem was this wasn’t a prank. This was someone who didn’t care for me. This was bullying with malicious intent.
“Come on, you can share my Calculus book,” Zane said as he drew me to him. “Crew will take care of this.”
“Sorry,” I murmured to Crew as I numbly allowed Zane to guide me away.
Crew stopped his hushed conversation on the phone and grabbed my chin. He lifted it and placed a gentle kiss on my lips. “You did nothing wrong. I’ll see you in English,” he said before, squeezing my hand.
I was too numb to even register his gentle, compassionate behavior towards me.
I was near my classroom when I noticed Renee from dance school sidle up next to me. She was a quiet wallflower, and I’d never heard her speak more than four words at any given time. I had nearly forgotten she went to the same school as me. She was a sophomore, and during the school hours, she always hid behind baggy black, brown, or gray clothing.
No one would believe that she had a delicate beauty to her. First impressions showed a girl that was too skinny by most people’s standards. Her skin was the color of ivory with a smattering of freckles on the bridge of her nose. Her pin-straight black hair was used as a curtain to hide behind. She looked like the typical girl next door. Her most stunning physical feature were her pale blue eyes, but she kept them downcast so often, barely anyone was struck by their beauty.
I saw someone different when she really got lost in the music as she danced. Her eyes showed an inner light few people possessed. Her grace, posture, and poise was second nature to her and demanded your attention. In truth, she was stunning.
She was incredibly talented, but I knew she had no confidence in herself. Honestly, with a little bit of courage, she could be better than me. I wasn’t so self-centered to believe I was the best of the best. I was a fantastic dancer, but I had some flaws. Technically, I had never seen Renee have any weaknesses.
Just yesterday, I’d found out more about her than I had the whole week and a half I had known her. When I was waiting for my afternoon ride, I watched as her dad pulled up and drove off with her. One of the other girls began to talk about her, and I was surprised by her story.
Her mother had passed away a few years ago from cancer, and her father worked two jobs to keep her in dance school. She may have earned a scholarship, but the additional cost of competing could be staggering. The entrance fees, hotel stays, food cost, and costumes added up eventually.
Her father's devotion to her dreams was beyond admirable. He was a busy man, but one could tell he loved his daughter.
He took his lunch break every day at the same time so he could run the thirty minutes into town and take his daughter to school. After school, in between his first and second job, he would pick her up and bring her back to Dance. During his dinner break, he would pick her up again, take her home, and then zip back out to his job. He made a lot of sacrifices for her.
When I’d first found out about this stuff , it made me realize how much she was loved and how much my mother never…cared to even try. I wished my mom had even pretended to care half as much. Then I stopped throwing my pity party and realized Renee had it just as rough as I did, if not harder. She didn’t have the support system I did with the guys. She had only her father. She kept to herself, and Bailey made sure to ostracize and bully her often.
“It was Leah,” Renee said quietly. I had to lean towards her to hear her words. “I was leaving the bathroom when I saw her and her blond friends doing it.”
I nodded. “She was one of the three people I thought it might be,” I said grimly with a sigh.
“Hmm, beautiful?” Zane asked. He hadn’t even noticed that Renee had moved up to my other side.
I stopped momentarily. The other bell wouldn’t ring for at least another minute. “Renee said she saw Leah do it,” I informed him quietly.
Zane frowned and regarded her pensively for a moment. “You’re one of Mom’s girls?”
Renee immediately ducked her head and nodded. “Yes,” she barely mumbled.
Zane looked at me in confusion, but I was unable to explain to him right now. She was painfully shy, but on the floor, sometimes I caught a glimpse of the butterfly that still thought she was a caterpillar.
“Thank you,” he said to her. “Just in case the cameras didn’t pick it up, can you attest to that?”
She nodded with hesitation before she mumbled a goodbye and shuffled off.
“Okay…” Zane said in confusion.
“She’s shy, and any confidence she had was beaten out of her, so to speak, by Bailey and company,” I said with a frown as a plan started to formulate in my head.
