The Webster Grove Series

by Puckett, Tracie

  “Hey,” Calvin said, long and drawn out, as he stood from a table in the far corner. “I went ahead and placed the food order. What took you guys so long?”

  “She was a bit indecisive today, Cal,” I said, taking the empty seat next to an incredibly gorgeous man… a tall, dark, and handsome Cuban-American who answers to the name Alex.

  “Ballsy move,” he whispered as mom joined Calvin and Bridget settled in next to the third Rivera brother, Blake.

  “Would you rather sit by Bridget?” I asked, barely moving my lips and picking up the glass of water in front of me.

  This routine had become all too familiar to the six of us. This was the fifth Saturday in a row that we have met to discuss mom's weekly wedding updates. She felt it was only necessary to keep everyone who would be involved in the ceremony up to date on the latest changes and progressions.

  “We finally decided on a color,” mom started.

  “We did?” I asked, wondering if she had a brain lapse.

  Bridget looked puzzled. “You shot down every suggestion--”

  “Where did you land?” Cal interrupted, probably trying to spare the group from reliving the color scheme argument we had last week.

  “Either baby blue, light yellow, or olive green.”

  “So what you meant to say is that you finally narrowed down the list?” I inquired, taking a drink of water.

  “Right,” Mom nodded.

  “Oh boy,” Blake interjected, rubbing his head.

  While everyone else around the table found these weekly meetings unnecessary, I considered them the best filled time slot of the week. Not only did I get to sit in the same room with a cool, calm, casual version of my sexy English teacher, I also got the occasional honor of sitting next to him and catching a whiff of his breathtaking scent.

  “Are you still set on roses?” I asked the bride and groom.

  “I'd prefer something a little less extravagant, to be honest,” Cal gave his worthless two cents.

  “What's wrong with—”

  “Why not go for a simplistic white daisy?” I interrupted mom. “Daisies are gorgeous, inexpensive, and the perfect flower for a spring ceremony. Plus, it would solve the color scheme problem and leave you with a nice, light yellow.”

  “We're not planning your wedding, Baby,” she snapped. “Roses. The end.”

  Alex's hand found mine under the table. He entwined our fingers and sent me a hang in there look. Yet another reason why I loved these weekly wedding meetings... just being able to touch him, if only for a second.

  “So, Steph,” Blake leaned forward to meet my gaze. “How's the boyfriend sitch?”

  “Well, Blake,” I said, hoping to avoid saying much else. “It's not looking good for you, hon.”

  “Still hot and heavy?”

  I was surprised that it took Blake this long to ask for updates on my relationship status. He'd inquired about me at Christmas and Alex told a tiny white lie to keep him off my back. Little did he know, it only pushed his brother to try harder.

  “Who are you talking about?” Bridget chimed in.

  “Yeah, who?” Mom was interested.

  “Uh-oh,” Blake mumbled. “Did I spoil a secret?”

  “No secret,” I managed to say, feeling my hand tremble in Alex's. “I'm just trying to keep things—”

  “Maybe you should tell them the truth, Steph,” Alex said, shrugging his shoulders. “They're going to find out eventually. You might as well get it over with.”

  My heart began to race. I couldn't believe he was so nonchalant. “Are you serious?”

  “It's Nate,” he said, matter-of-factly. “There. It's in the open now.”

  “What?” Bridget asked, widening her bright, blue eyes. “Steph, are you really dating Nathaniel?”

  I shot a look of hatred at Alex and discreetly pulled my hand from his. “I'm not—”

  “I'm so happy for you guys!” she said, smiling. “Why didn't you tell me?”

  Everyone at the table sat staring with open mouths. “I just thought you'd be mad.”

  “Steph, you're my two best friends! I think this is wonderful news!”

  The truth is, even if I were dating Nate, Bridget probably wouldn't care. She's been so wrapped up in Isaac lately that she's forgotten the rest of the world exists. They'd been on two official dates since she met his father in December and they're seemingly attached to the hip every day at school. There's a lot of underlying irony in this situation; Nate flaked out on Bridget to take Rachel to the dance. Rachel then dumped Nate to ask Isaac out. Isaac nearly laughed in her face at the idea and reminded every girl in school that he only had eyes for Bridge.

  “Seriously, the boy with all the hair?” Mom asked, obviously disgusted.

  “You can't help who you fall in love with, Caroline,” Alex said, retaking my hand under the table.

  “Love?” I turned to meet his gaze.

  “Love.”

  “Back to the wedding,” Cal said, snapping his fingers. He glared at us with a look in his eyes that could only mean one thing; he knew more than he should…

  My phone rang and interrupted the conversation. I pulled it out and checked the screen. Nate.

  “No cell phones during the meeting Baby,” Mom scolded.

  “Sorry.” I pushed a button to ignore the call.

  “Where did we land on the flowers—”

  Calvin was interrupted by the sound of my phone ringing again.

  “I need to take this,” I said, excusing myself.

  I walked away from the group as I answered. “Hello?”

  “What the eff is going on, Steph?” Nate yelled from the other end.

  “What are you—”

  “I just got a text from Bridget congratulating me on finding the girl of my dreams and wishing us nothing but a happy future together—”

  “I can explain--”

  “Whatever you did, fix it,” he yelled before hanging up.

  Sometimes I want to kill Bridget...

  I started to walk back to the table when I felt someone gently grab my wrist. I turned to see Isaac Peyton and his father, Nick.

  “Isaac,” I said. “What a surprise. I was just thinking about you—”

  “Were you?” He smirked and ran his fingers through his golden blonde hair.

  “Well, Bridget and I were—”

  “Is she here?” he asked, trying to hide his blushing cheeks.

  “Yep. Do you want to say hi?”

  He nodded as I showed them to the table. “Steph, you remember my dad Nick?”

  “Yeah,” I looked back and smiled, trying to forget the few awkward moments I'd spent in his father's presence.

  I'm sure Nick meant well, but I always felt like he was a little backward. Our first meeting could have gone better; I tried to make a friendly Thanksgiving gesture while he stared at me with a piercing glare and a creepy grin. Since, I've not been too keen on the idea of being alone with him.

  He pushed the shaggy brunette hair from his forehead and adjusted his glasses. “It's always a pleasure to see you, Steph.”

  “Likewise,” I lied. We reached the table. “Hey guys, look who I bumped into.”

  “Isaac!” Bridget jumped from her seat and threw her arms around his neck.

  “Hi,” he smiled and pecked her cheek. “Dad, you remember my girlfriend Bridget?”

  Girlfriend? I had no idea they had an official title...

  “Oh, dad,” Isaac continued. “This is our English teacher, Mr. Rivera.”

  Alex turned and stood up to shake Nick's hand. The two men glared, each keeping a firm grasp and holding a stare that left everyone feeling uncomfortable. No words were exchanged, but there was a clear message being sent. Neither of th
em liked the other.

  “Caroline,” Bridget called across the table. “Have you met—”

  “Mom,” I snapped, trying to pull her attention away from her compact mirror. “Bridget wants to introduce you to her boyfriend.”

  Mom's eyes met Isaac’s and then shot to Nick. The three of them stared at each other expressionless.

  “We were just heading out,” Nick said, turning to his son. “Ready?”

  “Yeah, see you guys Monday,” Isaac nodded before walking away to catch up with his father.

  Awkward...

  Saturday February 11, 9:30PM

  I pulled the coat tighter to my body as I walked up the front steps and rang the bell. The door swung open and I stood smiling at the most gorgeous man on planet Earth. He was dressed in sweatpants and a hooded sweatshirt; and no matter how casual or laid back, he could never be anything short of perfect.

  “Steph,” he said. “What are you—”

  “I'm freezing—”

  “Come in,” he pulled me in and closed the door behind me. “Is everything okay?”

  “I couldn't sleep.”

  “It's only 9:30 on a Saturday night. Most kids your age still have hours ahead of them—”

  “I couldn't quit thinking about something you said at the restaurant.”

  “About?”

  “Not being able to help who you fall in love with.” I took a deep breath. “Did I read too much into that?”

  He shook his head and moved toward the kitchen. “Can I get you something to drink?”

  “I'm not thirsty. I just wanted to ask you—”

  “A snack?”

  “Not hungry either. Will you please—”

  “Does your mom know where you are?” he asked, turning back.

  “She's staying over at Calvin's tonight,” I said. “Will you stop for a minute and—”

  “Steph,” he interrupted me again. “I can't tell you what you want to hear, okay?”

  “...Did you change your mind?”

  He wore his trademark smirk and held back a laugh. “No.”

  “Then?”

  “Ugh, Steph,” he started. “It's hard for me to watch you come into my classroom every day and sit down with the rest of the students and pretend you're just another person.”

  “But I am—”

  “And to see you walk down the hall with Isaac and Nate, laughing about God only knows what—”

  “They're my friends—”

  “And not being able to dress up, pick you up, and take you out on a proper date.” He ran his fingers through his dark hair and stared at me. “It's not easy.”

  “I agree. But your job is at stake and you yourself said you wanted to wait—”

  “Because it's the smart—”

  “And legal—”

  “And legal thing to do...”

  We stared at each other from across the room for a few long moments, both understanding the consequences of whatever was going on between us.

  “I guess I'll go,” I said, moving back toward the door.

  “Goodnight Steph.”

  “Yeah. Night”

  Chapter Two

  Tuesday February 14

  “Hey beautiful.” He rested his chin on my shoulder as I shoved a book into the locker. “Happy Valentine’s Day.”

  “Good morning, Nate,” I said, gently pushing him back. “Where were you yesterday?”

  “Lazy day—”

  “Nice.”

  I hadn't had the chance to talk to Nate since his phone call Saturday night at Calvera's. Sunday he wouldn't answer my thousand attempts to reach him and yesterday he never showed up for class. In many ways he was the perfect (fake) boyfriend… unreliable in every sense of the word.

  “I've been trying to—”

  “Listen,” he said. “I kinda got the full story from Bridget about your dinner on Saturday. I apologize for blowing up on you. I sorta felt a little—”

  “Bombarded?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Sorry,” I said, honestly. “I didn't know what to do.”

  “It's cool.” He put his arm around me. “I guess I just have to pretend I'm dating the hottest chick in school. It won't be easy, but I'm up to the task.”

  I rolled my eyes and smiled as we turned and walked into Mr. Rivera's class.

  “Mr. Bryan,” our teacher snapped. “I'll remind you one time and one time only that PDA is strictly against school policies.”

  “Mr. Rivera,” Nate said slowly with a coy smile. “Would you like me to remind you of some of the strict school policies?” The two stared at one another for a few long moments before Nate turned to take his seat. “That's what I thought.”

  The rest of the class filed in seconds later. Bridget and Isaac walked in, hand-in-hand and whispering sweet nothings. I watched as Alex considered reprimanding the second couple for public display of affection. Probably to save himself from another snarky comment, this time from Isaac, he chose to ignore their closeness and lowered his head.

  As the days passed, I was increasingly impressed with the change in Bridget's demeanor. A few months ago, she'd gone from lovesick puppy to heartbroken drama queen. Weeks later she met Isaac and bounced back to her normal, chipper self. It was remarkable to see how quickly she'd taken to him. Her new love affair is great, don't get me wrong. But having Nate in our circle again is the true silver lining. I'd missed him too much.

  Once the chairs were full, our teacher stood from his desk with a cardboard box and held it up. “Cupid candy grams.”

  “Cupid candy what-now?” I asked.

  “It's a Valentines fundraiser the juniors do each year to raise money for prom,” Bridget said.

  “The students can buy them anywhere— cafeteria, hallway, gym class. They're a dollar a piece and you get to write a little message on the back of a card,” Nate continued. “You drop them off with the person's first period teacher and then they're handed out on the 14th.”

  “Oh,” I mumbled, disappointed that I'd lost an opportunity to send a cute, candy-filled message to all of my friends.

  “Okay,” Mr. Rivera dropped a box on an empty desk in the front row. “Let's get through this as quickly as possible. If you hear your name come pick up your grams.” He read the names as he picked up each decorated bag. “Mr. Bryan, Miss Canter, Miss Wright, Mr. Hughes, Miss Diaz, Mr. Coleman, and Miss Smith.” He set the box aside as the seven students jumped from their seats to claim a handful of friend-sent gifts.

  Admittedly, I was more than a little stunned that he hadn't called my name. While I know I'm not the most popular girl in school, I had a hard time believing that Bridget, Nate, and Isaac neglected to remember me when they sent out their wishes.

  “Ghijk,” Isaac whispered behind me. “I guess we're both losers.”

  “You didn't get any either?”

  “Nope,” he shook his perfectly groomed, blonde hair.

  Bridget carried six candy grams back to her desk; five from Isaac and one from Nate. Rachel sat across the room counting hers; from what I could tell, she had more than Bridget.

  “Who sent those?” I asked Nate.

  “I got one from Bridge, one from Rachel, and two from the weird chick in Spanish class.”

  Bridget stared at the empty desk in front of Isaac. “Where are yours?”

  “I didn't get any—”

  “Well, that can't be right,” she said. “I dropped off a ton for you last week. And Steph, I sent some for you too.”

  “Likewise,” Nate chimed in. “I bought at least—”

  “Quiet down, guys,” Mr. Rivera said, turning to the blackboard. “Let's put those away. We have a lot to get through today.”

  Even with a gun to
my head I couldn't recall the information covered into today's lecture. I stared at a blank sheet of paper in front of me for the whole period. I tried not to show my hurt, disappointment, or appear too pitiful.

  The bell finally rang and everyone jumped to their feet and scurried away.

  “Mr. Peyton, Miss Ghijk,” our teacher said. “I'll need you two to stay after for a moment.”

  The rest of the class cleared out. Nate and Bridget waited at the door as Isaac and I met Mr. Rivera at his desk. He bent over and pulled two identically large boxes, each overflowing with decorated bags, from beside his filing cabinet.

  “I can keep these for you until the end of the day,” he said.

  “What is it?” Isaac asked.

  “Candy grams. Apparently the two of you have made quite the impression on your fellow classmates.”

  “A whole box?” I whispered, staring in front of me.

  “A whole box, Miss Ghijk,” he assured me. “I know this is a lot to lug around, so find me after the final bell to pick them up.”

  “Awesome,” Isaac said, plucking a bag from his box. “Just one to cure the munchies.”

  “One for you, Steph?” Mr. Rivera asked.

  “Nope,” I said. “I can wait...”

  “Alright, get going. Don't be late for second period.”

  Isaac and I exchanged wide eyes as we walked out of the room.

  “What were you saying about us being losers?” I asked him with a grin.

  “I stand corrected.”

  Tuesday February 14 2:25PM

  The final bell of the day had already dismissed the students from class. I walked down the hallway and headed toward the English classroom, ready to claim the box of Cupid Candy Grams.

  Nate ran up behind me and put his arm around my shoulder. “Need an escort, sweetie?”

  “Knock it off,” I playfully shoved him into a set of lockers.

  He regained his composure and caught up with me once again. “I'm just trying to hold up appearances—”

  “Well stop,” I grinned. “There's no one else around.”

  We ran into Isaac as we turned the next corner. “Going to get your candy?”