What? I hissed silently to myself in fear and frustration. What the hell was she saying? Apparently, the folk proverbs were gonna screw with my mind worse that year than the others before, or maybe I was just being too jumpy. Whatever. I heard the word ‘hunger’ and I was suddenly starving.
I set my school books in neat stacks atop my bed, carefully tucked The Elemental Basics into my bag, and moseyed out into the kitchen.
“Time to start cooking,” she declared with a smile.
“Oh.” It was difficult to hide my disappointed tone. “I thought you meant dinner was already prepared.” I leaned on the edge of the counter and watched as she scooped handfuls of vegetables out of a wicker basket, straight from her garden, no doubt.
“No, I said, you’ll go hungry if you don’t help.” Her eyes twinkled and there was no judgment or underlying threat, just the simple fact that I was expected to assist if I expected to eat.
She gestured to the bell peppers and I took the rather obvious hint. I rinsed them then grabbed a cutting board from the drawer. “Soup?” I needed to know how I should cut them.
“Yes! How did you guess?” she asked almost suspiciously before grinning. “Cut them any way you like, dear. It’s only us eating, and I prefer a mishmash of textures and sizes anyway. Don’t you?”
“Sure,” I agreed hesitantly as I grabbed a knife from the wooden block and began slicing.
“So how was your first day of school?”
“Not bad,” I muttered as my knife broke through the emerald skin. A flash of Cade’s smiling green eyes popped into my mind, and I pulled my lips in to keep from smiling.
“The teachers and students were nice? How much work do you have to make up from the first month you missed?” She was slicing and dicing like a maniac. She obviously prepared her own food often.
I glanced at my own stack of vegetables. I was halfway through one pepper; Marge was already on her second potato. She was removing skins, something I didn’t have to worry about, and was still more than doubling my progress. “Yeah, everyone was nice enough, and the teachers all decided I could just pick up right where I started, no back work, so that’s nice, too.”
“It sure is!” she agreed in a slightly breathy tone that suggested this was the best news she’d heard in a long time. “It always amazes me when human beings actually show that they’re capable of kindness! A small body may harbor a great soul, after all.”
I grinned, perplexed as usual, and made the final cut on my first pepper.
“Radishes next,” she chirped as I dropped the tiny green jewels into the community pot.
“You don’t want me to finish all three peppers?” I asked, unsure.
A kind, sympathetic smile eased across her features. “No dear, I’d like to eat tonight.”
It dawned on me, then, that Aunt Marge had a humorous side. She was totally ripping on me! I laughed out loud and began rinsing a radish. “Yes ma’am!” Her laugh wove in with mine and we giggled longer than necessary as we continued the slaughter of the veggies.
It was the first real moment Marge and I had ever had. Maybe I’d never let her in before. Maybe she’d never tried. I didn’t know, but figured it was probably because I was getting older and she was beginning to see me as an equal instead of a needy child.
It’s odd how those invisible age-landmarks work. One minute you’re a misunderstood teen with something to prove and the next, you’re suddenly a grownup with a respectable opinion. I guessed that was my pivotal moment in time, where I could actually feel that shift in the scale. Happiness puffed in my chest at the thought.
“All right,” Marge yielded after we’d chopped almost everything. “Go ahead and finish off the peppers. Your skills have improved before my very eyes! I think we might yet eat in time.”
I laughed out loud and grabbed the second pepper. “Thanks, Aunt Marge. I’m grateful for that left-handed compliment.” She winked and I changed the subject. “So, do you know of any houses around that would’ve been for sale or for rent?”
Frowning, she added water to the pot and replied, “No, dear. I keep to myself out here in the woods. I don’t know a single other soul’s dealings. Why do you ask?”
“A friend of mine mentioned that she was moving into the area this coming weekend. I was just curious as to where they might be living.”
She nodded and stirred the soup. “No, no, I keep to myself. The tediousness of the solitude is peaceful and comforting.”
I got the impression that she didn’t really want to discuss it further, not that there was much else to mention. I decided immediately that I wasn’t going to ask her for a ride, no matter how far it was. It just felt too pushy of me. Marge seemed to need the seclusion in order to maintain whatever balance she had going on. I understood that, a little too completely.
And that scared the shit out of me.
I loved Aunt Marge, for what it was worth, but I realized then, in stark clarity, that I didn’t want to end up like her: alone, secluded, withering.
The decision to make friends suddenly turned into a ferocious, flaming desire. I couldn’t just give it a try and wait for the heads or tails. I had to make damn sure that it absolutely happened. There would be no trying, no waiting for chance. Of this I was now undeniably certain.
We ate dinner in agreeable silence. The soup ended up being delicious, and just as mismatched as Aunt Marge had hoped.
I helped tidy up, and as I washed the dishes, a contented smile held tightly to my lips. Things were most definitely going to change for me. One way or another, come hell or high water, things would change. Maybe, just maybe, this deployment wouldn’t be so unbearable after all.
Tomorrow was going to be incredibly interesting.
Chapter Five
Thursday morning, I walked through the front doors of Center Allegheny High like I owned the damn place. I made eye contact, and smiled brightly, and waved…at everyone. My feet moved with grace and determination. My shoulders were squared and my breathing was carefully controlled. One step at a time, down the hallways, up the stairs to the second floor. Smile and wave, step and breathe.
By the time I made it to my locker, I was exhausted. Playing the part was complicated. It went against everything I’d ever strived to achieve.
I decoded my lock and sucked in a long, silent breath. Little Miss Sunshine herself, Loren Marlowe was apparently my locker buddy to the right—as if having David on the left wasn’t bad enough.
“Good morning, Loren,” I sang sweetly through gritted teeth.
She raised an eyebrow and glared at me, but never uttered a word. She looked kinda rough, like she hadn’t slept the previous night or something.
I turned to my left. “Good morning to you, too, David.” Like a deer in the headlights, he gaped at me.
Well, damn. If I’d have known how easy it was to shut people the hell up, I might’ve tried this ‘talking to people’ thing years ago!
Loren slammed her locker shut, snapping my attention back to her. “I don’t know what the hell you’re up to, Valerie, but I can assure you, I’m not in the mood for it. Why don’t you just do us all a favor and crawl back into your little hidey hole, okay?” She brushed past me brusquely and strode into homeroom.
I didn’t even have time to process a retort before she was gone, and I was left wondering if the new and improved Valerie was even supposed to retaliate.
But screw that! I hadn’t been a pushover when I was a hermit, and I’d be damned if I turned into one now. Of course, I wasn’t going to burst into homeroom and immediately start a fight or anything. Chalk one up for her because she had won that round. Next time though…
I dug out my calculus, chemistry, and World Events notebooks, then strolled into Mrs. McConnell’s room.
The bug-eyed, gaping-mouthed surprise that immediately consumed my features couldn’t have been avoided. Of course Mrs. McConnell had students with last names ranging from J to M, of course she did, but he’d been in the offic
e during homeroom the day before. How was I to know that Cade Landston would be sitting directly across a narrow aisle from me?
It took a grotesque amount of courage and determination to not immediately slink back into my old pro-loner ways. At least I remembered that Cade was off limits in my little popularity contest. So, I flashed him a bedazzling smile as I sat, but didn’t say a word. Quickly, I diverted my attention elsewhere.
But ‘elsewhere’ was slightly terrifying. Apparently, charismatic Valerie was much more of an eye magnet than measly new girl Valerie had been. I forced the most natural smile I could muster before dropping my gaze to my notebooks, rearranging and fiddling with them to try to buy more time, time to collect myself and refresh my determination to be more social. To prove my non-bitchiness, if you will, and to avoid ending up like dear Aunt Marge.
A storm was building outside. All the light was slowly being sucked from the room, as if swallowed through the windows by a horrible mass of charcoal-colored clouds. Thunder snapped and crackled, and rain began tapping softly against the glass.
I glanced from the darkened window to Cade, a frown creasing my brow. He, too, had deep, sleepless wells under his strained green eyes, but he didn’t angle those eyes even one degree in my direction. Slowly, I turned back to my books.
I couldn’t understand the connection.
She was staring at me. I could feel her gaze lasering into my forehead, burning into my conscious mind. I snapped my eyes to hers, pale baby blue versus bright lake blue. Loren had never radiated such hateful waves in my direction before; it was almost physically searing my skin.
The room flashed as lightning struck somewhere in the distance. Immediately after, we were engulfed in darkness as the power cut off. Squeals, gasps, and rushing whispers echoed through the classroom. The school was old and outdated and the generator was unhurried to activate the dim backup lights. The room was in various states of panic, and still her stare burned into my head.
“What the hell is your problem, Loren?” I blurted out in frustration.
“You know what my problem is,” she whispered vehemently.
Mrs. McConnell stood then, attempting to put out our metaphorical flames with her bare hands. “All right, calm down everyone. It’s just a thunderstorm, okay? Though I can see it’s putting some of you in a sour mood. Just relax and wait silently for the bell, okay? Faces forward or heads down, just no more staring contests.”
Loren drug her eyes from mine and slowly turned back around in her chair. This was most definitely not over. Whatever I’d done to piss her off, this was just the tip of the hypothetical iceberg of fury.
The backup lights slowly began to glow, brighter and brighter, as the bell faintly sounded.
Sharon fell in step beside me again. “Don’t mind her, she’s just—”
“Jealous?” I interjected sarcastically.
Her lips puckered distastefully and with a dark glare, she stomped down the opposite end of the hallway.
Great. So maybe it was not going to be a good day to prove my congeniality. My tongue roved harshly over my teeth in frustration. Smile, I reminded myself acerbically as I trudged down the hall toward my first class.
Calculus—because the day apparently hadn’t started off bad enough.
I spoke to no one. I just couldn’t bring myself to join in and toss petty gossip around like a rag doll. Frankly, it was much easier to cave in and keep to myself than it was to battle it out and force myself to speak to half of those people.
Then, Advanced Chemistry—because life must have truly hated me.
Holden had actually gone ahead and convinced Mrs. Caldwell to make us partners. I didn’t realize it until the last half of class, when she sent us to the lab. The horrific shock bubbling just under my skin had to have been noticeable.
“Beautiful morning isn’t it, Valerie?” Holden asked with a smile and a contented sigh.
The backup lights were still on, but even with their weak light, it was nearly black. The storm was raging on relentlessly. There were probably only a few hours left on that archaic generator before the building permanently blacked out.
“Oh yes,” I purred scornfully. “Beautiful morning! Lovely weather, don’t you think?”
“Lovely,” he agreed in an equally mocking tone as he lit our Bunsen burner.
I eyed him clinically. “Why did you do this, Holden? Why force this on yourself, let alone me?”
He scoffed and wiggled his gloves on. “First of all, regardless of your indifference, I actually do think we could be good together. I want a chance to see that happen.” He then slid a pair of goggles over his coffee-colored eyes. “But the real reason,” he began as he tossed me my own goggles, “is because I asked Mrs. Caldwell to partner us right after class. Yesterday.”
“So it was already done. Done before you ever even spoke to me,” I stated more than questioned.
He had the decency to look a little contrite as he nodded his head. “Would you put your goggles on so I can start heating this vial, please?”
I popped the eyewear into place just in time to catch Avenelle staring at me as she whispered in Benjamin’s ear. He chuckled and nodded his agreement, though he never took his eyes off his textbook.
Unbelievable. “Something to share, Avvie?” I asked her as sweetly as I could muster in my agitated state.
“You’re cute together,” she determined in her typically bored tone. “You and Holden.”
Holden glanced over the rim of his goggles as he dropped a thin tube into the vial of water. “We’re cute together?” he repeated, stressing the word ‘cute’ rather disagreeably.
“We’re not together,” I added, more emphatically.
“You know what I mean,” Avvie said to Holden with a dust of her hand. “You complement each other very well. You just look like you…I don’t know, fit.”
I glanced at Holden, eyeing him carefully. He was my polar opposite, and if opposites attract, I guess I could see where she was coming from. I was fair and he was stereotypically tall, dark, and handsome. Boasting chestnut hair, coffee eyes, and a slightly sun-kissed complexion, he was, unfortunately, exceptional—of course, his all-too-keen awareness of that fact was a total turnoff. Furthermore, he was no Cade…but then again, who was?
Suddenly, he was staring at me as I stared at him. “Oh, you don’t have to tell me, Avenelle. I was just saying the exact same thing to Valerie yesterday.” He dropped a thermometer into the thin vial and waited.
My eyes darted away from his and onto Avvie, who was stealing an excited glance with Benjamin. “I think you should totally date him, Valerie,” she opined dully. “He’s obviously interested in you—”
“Obviously,” I interposed quickly.
“—and he’s a great guy—”
“Totally great.” I nodded seriously.
“—and you’d make such an amazing couple. You two would totally rule the school.”
Rule. The. School. What was this, a political campaign? And seriously, what was it about gossip that stirred the heartstrings of almost every breathing person in that building? This was none of their business! None of anyone’s business. It wasn’t even my business, really, because it wasn’t even happening!
“We could rule the school,” Holden added with a wink, in a tone that was completely saturated in sarcasm. I got the feeling he was sacrificing them for his greater good. He carefully removed the tiny tube from the boiling water and recorded the temperature. “And I’m a great guy; you heard the girl. You really can’t afford to pass me up.”
It was so utterly odd to hear him currently mocking words that mirrored his own ridiculous blathering of just the day before. So which was it? Was he brazenly pompous or possibly a little modest? Was he playing us all, or was he making lighthearted fun of himself?
I rolled my eyes and sighed. “I don’t want to rule the school, you guys. And I don’t need a boyfriend. I just want to make some friends for once.”
“I can help
you with that,” Holden added with an encouraging smile.
“No thank you, Holden.”
He brushed a finger against my hand. The curling sensation that crawled across my skin was discomforting, mostly because I couldn’t decide if I liked it or not. “Anywhere you want to go, anyone you want to meet, I’ll make it happen. You just have to let me.”
“How about Tahiti to meet Leonardo DiCaprio?” I asked with a smirk as I pulled my hand away.
He grinned and dropped his head to the side. “You know what I mean, Valerie. Locally,” he specified. “I can help you make friends locally.”
I smiled tiredly and reiterated, “No thank you, Holden.”
The bell sounded off and I was ready to leave, but he asked me to wait a minute. I should’ve just scurried off, but curiosity got the best of me. The rest of the room filtered out, including Mrs. Caldwell, who took to monitoring the hallways.
“Listen.” He sighed as he observed the empty room around us. “I’m tired of pretending that I’m this conceited asshole who doesn’t give a shit about anything, you know? And”—he swallowed and took a step closer—“what I said to you yesterday, about being a…”
“A bitch,” I filled in mercifully.
He squeezed a tight smile. “Yes. I didn’t mean that, and I’m sorry. I just want you to get to know the real me.”
I blinked. “The real you? This sounds like…a mind game.”
He shook his head fervently. “No games, I swear. I understand that it might take you a little while to warm up this, but please, don’t write me off completely, okay? Give me a chance.”
Frowning, I searched his eyes for any hint of a lie. “I don’t know what you want from me, Holden, and I certainly don’t know what I have to give. But…” I slung my bag across my shoulder and straightened up a bit. “I can at least offer you a chance to be my friend.”
The smile that spread across his lips was catching. “I’d love that. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” I said with a tiny grin. I started to turn, but he grabbed my hand and brought it to his lips before I could walk away. Utterly stunned, I could do nothing but gape at him.
The Essential Elements: Boxed Set Page 4
