Dark Reality 7-Book Boxed Set

by Jennifer and Christopher Martucci

  ***

  Melissa found Mr. Adams’s English class to be the longest and most grating of all her courses. Though it was fifty minutes, just as all other classes, it dragged on endlessly.

  Typically, the point at which her misery peaked was the precise time the bell would ring to end the session, but not on this day. Instead, twenty minutes into class, Mr. Adams droned on and on but stopped briefly to introduce a new student who had just entered the classroom.

  She recognized him immediately. She had seen him earlier in the hallway before school had started. It would have been impossible to forget him; he was breathtaking. He was better looking than any boy she’d ever seen. Melissa dared not stare at him as others did. She found their gaping to be brazen, rude even. Instead, she focused on her notebook, but couldn’t concentrate. She looked at the words she had just written, but read none of them.

  She glanced up as he passed her desk and took his seat beside her. For a fraction of a moment, they made eye contact. There was no mistaking it this time; she was certain of it. His deep-set sapphire eyes met hers.

  He sat and turned to her unexpectedly.

  “Hi. I’m Gabriel,” he said and waited for a response.

  Melissa did not answer right away. She was too stunned to speak.

  “Your name is?” he asked.

  “Um, Melissa, I’m Melissa Martin,” she fumbled.

  She smiled and felt a familiar sensation of warmth spread across her cheeks. She knew they’d reddened. He smiled back at her, a genuine smile that did not end at his lips but traveled to his eyes and she felt her face blaze. Embarrassed, she immediately turned from him and feigned interest in her study materials, trying desperately to avoid resembling a tomato with hair.

  Gabriel’s gaze lingered. She felt his eyes on her briefly before he lowered them. Straining to see him through a curtain of golden-brown tresses, she stole a quick glance at him. He was scanning the contents of his course textbook. His azure eyes were veiled by dark, thick lashes. He seemed preoccupied so she allowed her gaze to settle in his general direction. She scanned the far wall with him still in her line of vision. She glimpsed at the analog clock mounted on the wall, she looked over notes her instructor had scribbled on the dry-erase board. She tried desperately to remain inconspicuous, but it was almost impossible to keep her eyes averted.

  His profile displayed the contours of his face. The straight line made from the base of his nose to the tip, the gentle indentation of the skin between his nose and upper lip, the ampleness of his lips, the architecture of his high cheekbones, the strength of his jawline, all of it culminated to form perfection. He looked unlike anyone she’d ever seen, like an extraordinarily handsome work of art.

  Without warning, Gabriel lifted his chin and turned back to face her. She froze briefly. Certain that his exceptional looks enabled him to read her mind, her face flushed anew. She feared she resembled a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming vehicle, but did not look away immediately. He looked back at her, puzzlement etching his every feature.

  Her shyness and general lack of confidence colored her skin a deep crimson and left her worrying whether the new student was mocking her. Mercifully, the electronic pealing of a bell signaled the end of third period English. She gathered her belongings as quickly as possible and left.

  Fortunately, fourth period was lunchtime. Embarrassing or awkward interactions would be limited. After what had just taken place, she desperately needed a moment alone to decompress. She intended to navigate the students bustling through the hallway and make a quick exit from the back doors of the school. Fresh air and a brisk walk off campus would clear her head.

  Moving across an area littered with the desks of twenty-five students, some of whom loitered and loafed about, Melissa politely edged her way to the door.

  As she rounded the corner outside the door to Mr. Adams’s English classroom, Gabriel James caught up to her.

  “Hey Melissa!” he called.

  Shocked, she turned to face him. She was powerless to conceal the expression of astonishment on her face. But her surprise was quickly replaced with confusion as Gabriel stood wordlessly before her.

  He shifted from one foot to the other as if searching for something to say. Yet, Melissa dared not speculate that he was nervous around her. After all, he must own a mirror. She found the idea inconceivable, ridiculous; his good looks would likely render every girl to putty in his hands.

  The silence loomed.

  Melissa furrowed her brow as she sensed another red mask settle across her cheeks. She waited for what seemed like eternity for Gabriel to speak. But he did not. He simply stood there.

  She remained, mirroring his behavior, shifting her weight from one leg to the next, unable to simply walk away and leave him standing there. She inhaled sharply, mustering the courage to answer the voice in her head that screamed, urged her to say something, anything, and break the silence. But before her words were formed, Gabriel spoke.

  “Does Mr. Adams always sound like that, or is he sick or something?”

  Melissa paused briefly then laughed aloud.

  Though embarrassed by her outburst, she could not stop herself from laughing. The tense moments, the awkward silence leading up to his question about Mr. Adams instigated it. She did not want Gabriel to think she was mocking him or worse, that she was crazy.

  “No. He’s not sick,” she giggled, wiping tears. “He just has an unusual voice. You’ll get used to it, eventually.”

  “Wow. That’s a nice way of putting it.”

  She laughed again.

  Gabriel remained, smiling at her as she fumbled through her purse for a tissue to blot her eyes. He continued chatting with her, asking about other instructors and courses. As he did so, various girls, many of whom were barely acquainted with Melissa, suddenly stopped to ask her an assortment of questions. She knew they were just excuses to be around Gabriel as most, if not all, were ridiculous questions about homework assignments for classes she was not a student in, foreign language programs she was not affiliated with, and hairstyling tips she did not have. With Gabriel at her side, Melissa was suddenly the most in-demand person at Harbingers High School. Yet as each girl spoke, their eyes remained on Gabriel, not Melissa.

  Gabriel stayed despite looking as though he wanted to flee the pack that had descended on him, circling and stalking him like wolves surrounding wounded prey. He stayed as she addressed absurd questions and deflected others altogether. She tried to stay calm. Her tone was neither sarcastic nor angry and she kept her facial expression neutral. But the more she interacted with her hormonally charged peers, the more obvious their agendas became. She also noticed that Gabriel was uncomfortable.

  Unlike Kevin Anderson who rejoiced in being flanked by groups of adoring girls, Gabriel subtly rejected the advances offered. Melissa watched as many girls flirted overtly. Hair was flipped, bosoms were outthrust, Gabriel’s arms were continually touched, giggling reached excessive levels, and eye contact was prolonged. The display was shameless.

  Unable to endure it a moment longer, Melissa ushered him out of the group claiming she needed to get him to the guidance counselor’s office to iron out conflicts in his course schedule.

  As she shepherded him away from the group, Melissa turned to him and said, “I’m sorry for those girls back there. They’re a little overcharged, hormonally, I mean.”

  She blushed and rolled her eyes at her words, at her awkwardness then continued, “I mean that must have been weird for you. They kind of descended on you like a pack of wolves.”

  She shifted uncomfortably.

  “Anyway, I would have been freaked out if I were you.”

  Gabriel listened intently.

  Melissa composed herself and asked, “So where are you from Gabriel James?”

  “I am from Russia, the Kamchatka Peninsula in the Russian Far East to be exact.”

  “Hu
h. That’s cool. You don’t have an accent or anything, though,” Melissa commented on his absence of foreign inflection.

  “No. I was educated exclusively in English, taught American history. What can I say? My education is all-American.”

  She smiled at him. He smiled in return, effortlessly, openly.

  “Do you speak Russian?” Melissa inquired.

  “Yes, I do, fluently.”

  “Huh. You’re bilingual. Cool.”

  Melissa continued toward the exit doors, but paused in front of the gymnasium and turned to face Gabriel.

  “Hey, are you hungry? I was going for a walk, but I can show you where the cafeteria is,” she asked.

  “I’m not really hungry,” he replied. “Do you mind if I walk with you?”

  She thought about it for a moment, though there was nothing to think about. Of course, she wanted to walk with Gabriel, even though she’d made a fool of herself in front of him a handful of times in the five minutes she’d known him. Who wouldn’t want to walk with him? “Sure. Why not?” she said and smiled. “I just need to drop my books in my locker. Wait here. I’ll be back in just a sec.”

  As she turned around and started toward her locker, Kevin, with his blinding smile and solo dimple fully engaged, was heading toward her.

  Her stomach rolled and churned nervously. He had ignored her in class just moments ago. Melissa doubted she would be so lucky this time as he was looking directly at her. She wondered what ugly words awaited her behind his counterfeit smile.

  To her surprise, however, Kevin spoke pleasantly, as if he simply had not noticed her during class, and the night before had never happened.

  “Hey Melissa!” he called cheerfully.

  Melissa found him remarkably chatty and upbeat given the circumstances.

  “How are you? How’d you sleep?” he asked and wrinkled his nose in exaggerated concern.

  “Not good, Kevin, not good at all,” Melissa responded honestly.

  “Huh. Sorry to hear that. I was thinking that maybe we could go to the kegger together tonight after the bonfire.”

  It was Friday, but not any ordinary Friday. It was the beginning of homecoming weekend. A school-sponsored bonfire was scheduled on campus for that night. The bonfire would be immediately followed by a gathering of popular students in the woods behind the school. They would huddle around a keg of beer for as long as the police stayed away. Inevitably, the police would come and everyone would scatter in varying states of intoxication and attempt to find their way to their cars. Melissa considered it a sad rite of high school students, one that did not interest her in the least. Spending time with Kevin did not interest her either, especially after what had happened the night before.

  “Seriously, Kevin? After last night? I don’t think so.”

  “I was hoping you’d forgiven me for last night.”

  “You never asked me to forgive you.”

  “I’m asking now. Please forgive me. I was a bad boy last night,” Kevin frowned exaggeratedly.

  Then in a voice Melissa deemed positively cloying, he continued, “You just have this effect on me. I don’t know what it is. I’m crazy about you Melissa Martin. But I promise you, I will behave. Just give me another chance. I’ll be a perfect gentleman.”

  Melissa felt sickened by his show of inflated sentiment, but knew better than to start an argument or humiliate him in the hallway of the school he was revered in. She was also pressed for time. Gabriel was waiting for her by the gym. She dared not dream that Gabriel wanted anything more than friendship from her. Surely, a boy as handsome as Gabriel would only date a girl of his caliber. Melissa did not consider herself of that standard.

  “Well, I’ll be at the bonfire with Daniella and Alexandra. Maybe we’ll run into each other” she said offhandedly.

  “That sounds great! I’ll find you there tomorrow! We’ll hang out.”

  She was growing increasingly impatient. Gabriel was waiting for her, and Kevin was not letting the whole bonfire thing go.

  “Fine. I’ll go with Alexandra and Daniella. We’ll talk when I see you there,” she asserted. “But no joking around, we’re just going to hang out and talk, right?”

  Kevin held up three fingers on his right hand in a Boy Scout salute and said, “Scouts honor. I’ll meet you at the bonfire?”

  “Fine, see you later.”