by C. L. Stone
I turned away from Silas to head toward the house. North and Nathan walked nearly arm to arm with me. I wanted to reach for someone’s hand but felt awkward since Silas had claimed me for the night.
“Hey, they’re stealing your girl, Si,” one of the guys said, chuckling. The others around him started giggling, too.
“If I didn’t trust her, I wouldn’t be out with her. Besides, they wouldn’t dare try anything.” He tilted his cup to his mouth, taking a swallow.
North tilted his head to whisper in my ear. “Remind me to kick him later.”
I shared a conspiratorial glance with him.
THE
RAVEN-HAIRED GIRL
Inside the house, the main overhead lights were off. The occasional illuminated lamp shimmered in corners of each room, shedding enough light for people to see where they were walking. The kitchen in the back was lit up, and there were people standing inside it, leaning against or sitting on top of the counters and talking. A round dining room table was topped with more cups, ice buckets, cans of beer and bottles of soda. I wondered where the beer came from, but everyone around had red cups so I couldn’t tell who was drinking what.
There was a front living room with a wide window, and a couple of couches occupied by people. A stereo played rock music loud enough that I wanted to block my ears from the onslaught of guitars and drums. People were trailing back and forth from different rooms. Out of nervousness, I slipped a hand around North’s forearm since he was the closest. I didn’t want to lose him.
He shifted, grasping my hand and squeezing it in his. Still, I fell behind him, partially using his tall figure as a shield as if trying to hide myself from everyone. I didn’t recognize anyone. I wondered if it was because of the poor lighting and being so out of place.
Nathan led the way to a back den. The room had two levels. The upper level had a collection of couches surrounding an entertainment center, also streaming rock music but at a lower volume so people could talk. The lower level of the room had a built-in bar and fridge to one side. There was a soccer table on the lower level in front of a stone fireplace. Most people hung around the bar and the collection of couches. A handful of others stood around the fireplace. Two guys I didn’t know were playing at the soccer table.
North eased over to the table, stopping short enough to give the guys playing room but still hovering to watch. Nathan planted himself next to him. I peeked from around their shoulders.
The guys playing the game slammed the handles into the table, trying to hit the tiny ball into a goal. The guys were big, with bulky shoulders and I imagined they were on the football team. One of them looked up, catching my eye with a curious glance.
The other guy used this distraction to knock the ball into the opposite goal. The distracted one squinted back at the game, groaned, and lifted his hands in the air. “I’m done,” he said, picking up a cup from the corner of the table, taking a drink and walking off.
His friend followed him and the table was abandoned.
“I guess it’s our turn,” Nathan said.
I followed Nathan to one side, feeling awkward about using someone’s game table without asking permission. I felt even more nervous wondering if whoever owned the game table could be watching now.
North took up the other side, collected the tiny soccer ball and dropped it into the middle.
“Grab those, Peanut.” Nathan pointed to the table’s side.
I put my cup down on the corner of the table and gingerly put my hands on a couple of the black plastic handles to control a row of soccer men.
“What did you just call her?” North asked, his face scrunching in confusion.
“Peanut,” Nathan said louder.
“Oh,” North said. “That’s not what I heard over here.” He checked with me, a dark eyebrow lifting. “You let him call you that?”
“Yup,” Nathan replied for me. “She calls me Honey.”
North blinked at this, looking back at me. “You don’t call me that.”
“That’s my nickname. She gave it to me,” Nathan said.
My face radiated. Did they have to talk about this right now? Still, it didn’t seem like anyone was paying attention. Most of the others were engrossed by their own conversations. Was this what a high school party was like? I wasn’t sure what I had imagined, but it just seemed like people clustered and talking like they did in school, only here there was music and the scent of booze. It didn’t seem as terrible as Kota had made me think. I was uncomfortable, but I was with North, Nathan and Silas; I trusted them, so it made it a lot better. I supposed I’d find it more fun if I were outgoing and knew more of the people here. I imagined what it might be like, being like Silas, able to blend in and talk to the group as if I were a part of them.
North grunted, twisting the handle on his soccer men to start the game. I was slow to respond, trying to twist the handles but I barely knocked the ball back in the other direction. North pushed a handle and his soccer men kicked the ball into the goal.
Nathan laughed, then leaned in to whisper. “Do that thing you do and cheat.”
“I know you’re telling her to cheat,” North said, dropping the ball onto the table again.
“I don’t even know what I’m doing,” I said. I had three handles on my side, and wasn’t sure where to place my hands.
“You twist the handles,” North said, demonstrating.
I groaned. It was obvious, but as I twisted the handles right and left, the soccer men moved slowly. I wasn’t a match for North and Nathan, whose men moved faster and with some form of control. I felt completely at a loss. “They don’t move fast enough.”
“Practice and get better,” North said, staring at the ball that was rolling around. He twisted handles, kicking it to my side.
I tried twisting it back, but it wasn’t moving.
“Do this,” Nathan said. He slapped the handle on his side, sending his soccer men spinning.
I tried it, and managed to get one of the men to kick it to his side of the field. North was faster than both of us at this, and easily knocked it back to my side. He hit another goal, then a third and a fourth.
“What do I get when I win?” North asked, his lips twisted into a taunting smile.
I smirked back, waited until he thought he’d lined up another shot. I grabbed the silver end opposite his handle and held it so he couldn’t twist. When he let go, I reversed a spin and sent it shooting out on Nathan’s side. Nathan spun a handle and the ball sailed into the goal.
“You mean if you win,” I said.
Nathan laughed. He hooked an arm around my neck, drawing me in to whisper in my ear. “That’s my Sang.”
I started floating. I kind of liked the soccer table.
North rolled his eyes, putting his hand inside the table to find the ball
When the ball dropped onto the table again, a girl approached, watching the game. She was tall, with raven hair and big brown eyes and I thought she was very pretty. I wondered if she wanted to play, but I was too nervous to ask her to join us. Something inside me told me I didn’t want her to join us, anyway. I wasn’t sure why and I didn’t want to think of the reason.
The guys were feuding it out on their side of the table. I had my hands ready, feeling ugly and awkward under the scrutiny of the pretty girl who was watching. North spun a handle on his side, and the plastic men kicked the ball from one side of the table, all the way to hit the goal before I had a chance to react.
North pumped a fist. Nathan groaned, but grinned and clearly was not too disappointed. He leaned into me. “Don’t worry, Peanut. Next time try to distract him or something.”
I listened to Nathan talking in my ear but my eyes were on North. The girl approached him, cupped her hand over North’s ear and whispered something to him. North stiffened, shook his head, and waved his hand dismissively at the girl. The girl removed her hand, said something else I couldn’t catch but North shook his head again. He nudged her out of the way to
find the ball again, dropping it onto the table in the center. He locked his eyes on my face, the expression icy, focused.
“Ready?” he asked from across the table. The way he did it seemed almost forced. He was tuning out the girl next to him.
The raven-haired girl frowned, turned around and headed back into the throng of the party.
“Did she want to play?” I asked. I felt lighter now that he’d dismissed her, but was sorry if she only wanted a turn and was just asking him for one.
North tilted his head at me. “No,” he replied. He spun the handles on his side, knocking the ball into action.
I held onto the opposite ends to stop his ability to spin the soccer men at the ball. He tried twisting handles to wrench my hold and we soon got into a match that distracted me from what had just happened. I didn’t suppose he would have told me anyway.
Despite my best effort to cheat, North was faster and he often used my own soccer men against me to score.
After ten more rounds, Nathan held up his hands. “Okay, we’re done. I can’t lose any more.”
“Sorry,” I said, releasing a small pout. I’d had fun but it felt like losing was my fault. I couldn’t beat North.
Nathan smirked at me, shaking his head. “Remind me to teach you how to play better sometime.”
“She should be asking me how to play,” North said, coming around the table carrying his cup. “Did I forget to mention that my dad had one of these things? I grew up with one so I had plenty of practice.”
“They have table soccer in Europe?” I asked. I knew he and his dad traveled around Europe before he came to live here and joined the Academy.
“My friends in Spain were wild about it. The French, not so much. The Greeks set the tables on fire if they lost.”
My lips parted. “Greece? Did you ever run into Silas over there?”
“Who do you think talked him into moving out here?” North said. “I told Mr. Blackbourne I wouldn't come over without him.”
The new information sent my mind spinning. North and Silas were friends before the Academy, just like Luke and Nathan and the others were friends before they signed up. Is that how the Academy worked? They focused on groups of kids who were already friends and brought them in together? It made me wonder what kind of school kept tabs on students and who their friends are. And if what Derrick had told me earlier was true, they’d not only brought in the group of friends, but a group of friends they caught stealing. The Academy was very unusual.
I also thought back to what Gabriel had told me. Silas joined them first here in the states, and North didn’t show up until a year later. How did it take so long for both of them to join? Luke said he didn’t know he had a brother before North appeared one night out of the blue. Did that mean Mr. Blackbourne knew before Luke did?
I opened my mouth to ask another question but my arm was nudged.
“Aggele,” Silas collided with me again. “Are you done playing? Come sit with me.”
I nodded, sorry that the moment to ask North more about his past was lost. Still, I hoped this was the time when the guys and I could collect in a corner somewhere, looking somewhat social to blend in, but just talk to each other.
Silas collected my hand, and I picked my cup up from the table. Before I could bring it to my mouth for a sip, North shot a hand between my mouth and the cup lip. My eyes widened and I turned to him, confused.
“Give me that,” he said, taking my cup from me.
“Was that yours?” I asked. “I thought it was mine. Sorry.”
“No,” he said. “I’ll get you another one.”
“Come on,” Silas urged.
I followed behind Silas, looking back at North. Nathan collected his cup and followed North back toward the dining room.
“Hey, Silas,” a familiar voice said. I peeked around his arm. Jay and Rocky sat together on the center couch. The raven-haired girl North had dismissed earlier was perched on the arm of the couch next to Rocky. His arm was wrapped around her waist. Rocky nodded in my direction. “Well, if it isn’t Sang. I thought for sure Silas was bullshitting.”
My spine rippled. I slid a glance at Silas, finding it impossible to ask the many questions I wanted to ask in that moment.
His hand tightened around mine. “Nope. Told you she’d come along.” Someone got up from one of the nearby sofa chairs. Silas slid into it, pulling me along until I was sitting in his lap. He kept one hand on my back, smoothing across the outside of the hoodie and warming. His other hand cupped my knee.
Because of my sideways position and the way he was sitting in the chair, I felt unbalanced, even with his hand at my back. I leaned into him, putting an arm around his shoulder. I planted a hand on his chest.
He shifted slightly, sitting back in the chair, beaming. “Comfortable?”
My heart started to flutter again. I nodded to him.
“Doesn’t she ever talk?” Rocky asked. His aggressive eyes zeroed in on me. “Talk.”
My eyes widened. I glanced at Silas but his look was encouraging me. I didn’t know what to say. “Talk about what?” I asked in a small voice, quiet enough that I wondered if he could hear me over the music.
“Anything,” Rocky said. An eyebrow lifted and an intense sensation swept over me.
The raven-haired girl bent over, saying something to Rocky. Rocky shook his head, waved her off but continued to fix his eyes on me. The girl glared in my direction. I felt myself shrinking into Silas, wanting to squirrel away somewhere else. Maybe I could tell Nathan I was tired and he’d drive me home. I didn’t fit in here. If raven-haired girl wanted the attention, I’d let her have it.
I still couldn’t find anything to say. What did Rocky expect me to talk about? I was about to say I didn’t want to talk, but was saved when North approached, holding another red cup out to me. I took it. “Thank you,” I told him.
“You did a good job out on the field today, North,” Jay said. His bald head nodded toward North. “I had to admit, I didn’t think you could do it. At practice you’re always so slow.”
“I do what I have to,” North said, his expression unreadable to me. He took a sip from his cup.
“I missed the baseball game tonight,” Silas said. “Anyone know the score?”
Silas redirected the conversation. Jay was quiet, like North, but popped in with a sarcastic comment on occasion. Rocky and a couple of the other guys fell into a conversation about the upcoming World Series games.
Nathan and North talked behind me. I yearned to stand up and talk to them instead, but Silas kept his arm around me. It was comfortable to be with him, but I didn’t like the way Rocky kept looking over at me, and the way the girl at his side glared in my direction.
At some point, North sat down on the arm of the chair. This made it easier to hear their conversation. It didn’t matter what they were talking about; their familiar voices were soothing.
My hands reflexively curled around Silas’s hair at his neck as I relaxed. Silas traced a finger along the inside of my knee.
North’s broad back warmed mine.
At some point, Nathan reached out to tug at my hair to get my attention; I figured it was just to let me know he was still there.
The girl’s eyes could have shot daggers with as cold a look as she gave me. It was uncomfortable enough that I didn’t want to sit with Silas any more.
When I felt I could do it without seeming rude to the people talking, I turned around in his lap so I could face the other guys. Silas hooked an arm around my waist, still holding on to me but leaning a little to one side so he could continue the conversation with Rocky.
North inched over, and sat further back on the arm of the chair to give me room. Nathan dragged over a folding chair someone had abandoned, planting it near the sofa and sitting in it backwards.
This was better. We could have been at home talking and had an easier time of it, but if we had to be at a party, at least we looked busy talking like everyone else was doing togeth
er.
“My house tonight?” Nathan asked me.
North shot him a look. “Is that where we’re going after we get out of here?”
Nathan blinked but shrugged. “Might as well. I mean her house is empty because Marie’s out tonight. My house has more stuff to do.”
North nodded. “We might crash there tonight. Shorter distance to the diner from your house than mine.”
A rush of excitement slipped through my skin. “Like another sleepover?”
They both laughed. Silas rumbled underneath me with a chuckle, telling me he’d been listening in. His fingertips smoothed over my thigh.
“We’ll give it another hour and then we’ll get out of here,” North said. “I’m about social life’d out.” North stood, stretching. “I’m going to find the restroom. Sang Baby, come along with me.”
It wasn’t a question. I glanced at Nathan. Nathan nodded at me, silently telling me to do what I was told. This caused me to stiffen again. Something was going on that he didn’t like.
Silas relinquished his hold on me so I could slip off of his lap. I trailed behind North, carrying my water cup with me.
There was a hallway on the other side of the house. The area was quieter, but I sensed hushed voices from beyond the doors. North swung his head back and forth, scanning. He picked a door and tried the handle. Locked. He tried another one. This door opened and he pushed his head inside. He flicked on the light switch, revealing an empty bathroom. He jerked his head toward the opening. “Get in.”
I rushed in, and he followed me inside. It was a guest bathroom, with just a toilet and a sink. The white and blue tile floor was cracked in spots and one of the light bulbs in the fixtures overhead was out.
The door closed behind us and he turned on me. “Just wait here a minute,” he said.
“What’s going on?”
“Rocky hasn’t stopped watching your ass all night. I’m tired of it. I think when we go back out there, we should go back to that front room, or the kitchen.”
