High School Bites

by Rachael Alcobia

  “Are you okay?”

  My attention snapped to his face and there was a slight delay until his question registered. I’d briefly forgotten there was a face attached to the perfection of Kodi’s body and I found it no less beautiful. Hopefully, he’d think my blush was just the beginnings of a sunburn. Highly unlikely due to the fact that I was in a shaded area, but a girl could hope.

  “I’m fine,” I blurted out while looking behind him. “Where’s your brood?”

  “My what?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.

  “Stephen and Simone. They’re usually attached to you,” I clarified.

  Kodi nodded in understanding before replying, “Stephen wanted to hike, and Simone doesn’t like water.”

  How anyone could dislike water, I would never understand. I looked into his green eyes, made brighter by the water that surrounded him, and watched his face turn into a frown. I began to think my not-so-subtle staring may have been the cause for the look, but then he spoke.

  “Why were you crying?”

  I swallowed and tried to think of a response. The truth? No.

  “I wasn’t.” I could tell immediately that he knew I was lying. His expression said it all.

  “Your eyes are red and puffy. I can also smell the salt from your tears.”

  Him and his damn nose. In that moment I wanted to punch it. The strike would both distract him from his questions, and me from his perfect face. I decided to stick with words.

  “Probably just the salt from the water.”

  “We’re in a freshwater river, not the ocean.”

  I felt my face harden. “Even if I was crying, what makes you think I’d tell you why?”

  He stepped closer and I held my breath as he said, “Because a burden shared, makes the load lighter and easier to carry.”

  I don’t know if it was the words he’d spoken or the way he’d said them, but my tears began falling once again and this time I didn’t bother attempting to hide them. My vision became blurred, so I heard more than saw him move the rest of the way toward me. For a moment, I felt his hands grip my shoulders before pulling me into his arms. The comfort I felt and the heat of his body against mine was too much. My tears fell faster. I cried for myself. I was said. I was angry. I was regretful.

  I suddenly became very aware of the hard, warm body that held me. The strong arms wrapped around my body caused my knees to weaken. Not because they were too tight, but because I knew I could stay in them forever if Fate would allow it. Locking my knees back under control, I straightened back from Kodi and wiped at my eyes before looking down.

  “I’m sorry,” I mumbled. Smooth hands with rough edges titled my chin up and I found myself staring into the greenest eyes I’d ever hope to see. Those eyes were becoming more familiar to me than my own caramel ones.

  “Please tell me what’s wrong,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

  I didn’t know much about the growing connection between us, or if it even really existed outside of my own head. I only knew that I didn’t want to lose it. If I told Kodi that I was going to die, I’d run the risk of doing just that. I was torn between that risk and the sense that I needn’t lie to him. That I could trust him not to hurt me, much like my wolf. And it would hurt me, I realized. Losing Kodi would be painful, and no amount of my medications would ease it. He’d just comforted me and though it meant more to me than he’d ever know, I lied.

  “It’s nothing, don’t worry about it.”

  He frowned. “Meghan, please. I need to know.”

  Now that my brain was working again, I fought to keep my eyes level with his and not on his perfect chest.

  “Why? It has nothing to do with you.”

  As I spoke, I realized that distancing myself from Kodi was exactly what needed to me done. I couldn’t let him get close. I was going to die. It was amazing to me how quickly Kodi could make me forget that. Maybe if I’d agreed to the chemotherapy and radiation treatments, I’d have had more time with him. Which could have made it hurt all the more when I left this earth. The look on his face suggested he was at war with himself. Perhaps it was his turn to weigh different answers. He was either contemplating telling me a lie or, he truly was unsure of why he needed to know my secrets. If I needed to drive him away, telling him the truth might be the way to go now that I thought about it. A memory surfaced as I opened my mouth to tell him the truth about my being sick and that the weird scent, he smelled on me was cancer.

  “Same deal as before, remember?” I gave him a moment to register my words before continuing. “You tell me how you can smell everything, and for that matter, how you launched me out of the pool. Tell me that, and I’ll tell you what’s wrong with me and why I stink.”

  “I never said you stink. It is an odd smell, and it is overshadowed by the scents that make you. Trust me when I say that those scents are far from unpleasant.”

  I didn’t respond, though I felt a flutter in my chest at the compliment. He liked the way I smelled? I watched him consider accepting my offer and I held my breath. Would I finally learn Kodi’s secrets? I still hoped he wasn’t an alien from another planet. Then again, he could be like Superman, and he was an alien. Maybe he was a vampire? Looking up into the glaring sun, I knew that couldn’t be it. Then I realized something. During his conversation in the classroom with his mother, he’d referred to me as a human, never referring to himself as inhuman. Maybe he just spoke oddly. Before I could analyze it further, Kodi cleared his throat and interrupted my thought process. He had made his decision.

  “I’ve got a counter-offer for you. I’ll tell you what you want to know, Homecoming night. If you accompany me as my date,” he said.

  I choked on air and struggled to regain my composure. I had not been expecting that. There was one problem. I didn’t know when Homecoming was or if I’d still be…around. Why on earth would he want to go with me when he could go with Simone? Her exotic dark skin and hair would certainly look better on his arm than I would. I pursed my lips before answering.

  “Fine, but you still don’t get your answers until I get mine.”

  His face looked dangerously close to a pout before he schooled his features and replied, “Fair enough.”

  I remembered that Kodi’s mother had told him early about the camping trip and figured she might have done the same with Homecoming.

  “So, do you happen to know when Homecoming is?” I asked.

  “Yes,” he smiled. “It’s in October, so you have a couple of months to find a dress.”

  I opened my mouth to protest but a whistle rang out and echoed all around us, signaling everyone to return to camp for lunch. We began swimming back to the bank downstream.

  “I don’t do dresses,” I grumbled before paddling faster and pulling ahead of him. He laughed behind me and I loved the sound. I heard the rhythm of his strokes change and he caught up alongside me.

  “Then consider this me adding that as a stipulation to the deal. No dress, no deal.”

  I could have called his bluff but chose instead to increase the speed of my paddling and beat him to the shallows. Grabbing my towel that I had laid across a rock, I wrapped it around my body and headed to my tent to change without looking back. We had wrapped sandwiches and carrot sticks for lunch. I downed a bottle of water along with my food and contemplated whether I wanted to return to the river or to relax in my tent. Sarah and Katie had offered me to join them in hunting for crawfish in the shallows, but I’d politely declined. Walking back to my tent, I searched Kodi and Stephen’s campsite for activity but found none. Had he gone back in the water? Resisting the urge to go and find out, I opened my backpack and pulled out my iPod and my medications. I took my first of two daily doses. Even now I could feel the familiar burn of the acid eating away at my insides. I used the pain as a reminder that I was still here, still alive. It’d been a few weeks since I’d had bad vomiting and I was thankful for that. Tonight, was the last night of camping and I hadn’t yet been able to use the
fire pit in front of my tent. Stuffing my iPod into my jeans pocket, I headed back out of my tent and headed toward Kodi’s. Something on the ground moved and my steps halted. At first, I thought it might have been a leaf blowing on the ground, but closer inspection told me otherwise. I stood frozen in fear as the large spider crawled across the dirt and hoped it would continue on its way. If it were a smaller household spider, I’d have stepped on it, but this fist-sized, brown creature caused my heart to stop in my chest. I hated spiders. Always have, and always would.

  “So, you can sleep with a wolf, but the sight of a spider stops you in your tracks.”

  I jumped at the sound of Kodi’s voice and found him and Stephen approaching me, amused grins in full effect. I turned wary eyes back to the arachnid which was standing still and seemed to be staring at us.

  “How did you know about my wolf?” I barely registered Stephen’s surprised laugh but did notice Kodi’s face freeze. Stephen swatted him on the arm, and he seemed to snap out of it.

  “Our camp is next to yours, we saw him,” Kodi said after clearing his throat. I may have felt suspicion just then, but if I had, it was overshadowed by my paralyzing fear of the largest spider I’d ever seen. Kodi stepped in front of me and I backed a few steps away and moved to the side so that I could see what was transpiring. Kodi bent to kneel only three feet from the spider. The creature reared up on its back legs as if to strike and though I’d never even seen him move, I suddenly had a death grip on Stephen’s jacket sleeve. I don’t know what look Kodi held on his face, but it must have been pretty scary because in the next instant, the spider turned and skittered back toward a group of plants. Rising from the dirt, Kodi stood and walked back to us. His eyes narrowed at my hand where it was still gripping Stephen and I immediately let go of him. A wave of adoration flowed through me as I watched Kodi. He’d stared down a giant spider that had scared the daylights out of me. In that moment, all I wanted to do was touch him and restraining myself from doing so was almost painful. I remembered the feel of his soft skin against my hands and the sensation of being in his arms. It was too bad that wasn’t under better circumstances. His sharp green eyes focused on me and suddenly my inhibitions were non-existent. Stalking toward him, I barely registered his eyes widen in surprise before I pulled him into a hug. His arms immediately wrapped around me and I liked that.

  “Thank you,” I whispered close to his ear. Chills tingled down my spine as he turned his face into my neck and inhaled before softly replying.

  “You’re welcome.”

  Reality chose that moment to bite, and I gently pushed away from him. Looking at him, I could have sworn his eyes were silver but when I blinked, they were grassy green once more. A trick of the light, perhaps. Stephen cleared his throat and it wasn’t until then that I even remembered he was there. Recalling why I was heading to their camp in the first place, I looked back at Kodi.

  “It’s the last night of camp so I was wondering if you would still like to join me at the fire pit next to my tent for a bonfire tonight?”

  “I’m in!” Stephen called out from behind me.

  Kodi laughed, “He’s had a bag of giant marshmallows in his backpack all weekend, waiting for an opportunity to set them on fire and devour them.”

  I laughed and saw Stephen shrug, obviously accepting the assessment. I looked back at Kodi and his grin made my heart melt faster than any candle.

  “We would like that,” Kodi said.

  “Great. See you tonight after dinner,” I said with a smile. Turning, I headed to my tent and didn’t look back as I heard their goodbyes behind me. A bit of nausea rolled through me and it caused me to trip over a rock. Because I didn’t feel well, I decided that a nap would be a good idea. Opening my backpack, I pulled out a medication bottle and popped a pill before settling down. I fell asleep to the sounds of talking students, chirping birds, streaming water. My hopes of sleeping without dreams were dashed when I found myself in the dark next to a fire where Maggie sat on a log, an impatient look on her face.

  “Sit down, we haven’t much time,” she barked at me. I sat, but only because my legs were weak, I told myself.

  “What am I doing here, Maggie?” I asked, feeling weary of these dreams.

  “Your test is coming, Meghan. Do you remember the test I speak of?” The urgency in her voice grew.

  “Yes, I remember,” I said cautiously. The old Irishwoman held a look of fondness for a moment.

  “Meghan, I hope you succeed. You have a fire inside of you that deserves the chance to burn as bright as the sun or moon.”

  I sighed, “Yeah, it’s called acid reflux. Or stomach cancer if you prefer.”

  I liked the lady, I did, but she seemed to have a few screws loose. Maggie shook her head sadly.

  “You have another death chasing you now, dearie.”

  Six

  Her words echoed in my head as I was suddenly falling through darkness. I woke to a rapping on the door of my tent. Checking my watch, I found that it was just before eight o’clock at night. I’d slept over two hours longer than I’d meant to. Rubbing the sleep from my eyes, I got up to unzip the tent and found Kodi. I pulled back the tent flap and was surprised to find the dark of night behind him.

  “Would you like to come in?” I asked.

  A strange look passed on his face before disappearing and he nodded before entering. I bit my lip nervously and I tried to comb my hair with my fingers while he looked around.

  “Nice setup,” said Kodi, as he turned back to face me.

  “Thank you,” I smiled. I worried slightly that he was internally comparing me to Remy the pig due to my clothes on the floor and my sheets and blanket in a tangled mass on my mattress.

  “Sorry to wake you up, but I wanted to see if you were still up for that bonfire.”

  He paused before adding, “And also to make sure you ate something.” It was then that I realized he was holding a paper plate with a cheeseburger with a cob of corn. The burger would make me sick; I knew that from experience. How did I tell him I didn’t want it without upsetting him or spilling the truth? Luckily, I was quick to think of a response.

  “Yeah, like I really need any more food,” I smirked while gesturing to my body with my hands. I was surprised to see a glare emerge on his handsome face.

  “Don’t talk like that.”

  My eyes widened at the anger in his voice and his expression softened.

  “There’s nothing wrong with you,” he said. If he only knew, I thought. Still, my heart swelled at his words. Compliments had always made me uncomfortable.

  “I can’t eat the burger, but I’ll take the corn.”

  “You’re not a vegetarian,” he said matter-of-factly.

  “No, I’m not,” I replied, not elaborating.

  He studied me for a moment before nodding.

  “My mother said you’d say that,” he stated as he pulled something out of his pocket. “So, I nicked a yogurt from the stash for tomorrow’s breakfast.”

  He reached to give me the container and I was stuck between awe and fear. No one besides Jane had ever done anything like that for me before. Fear. He’d said his mother told him that I wouldn’t eat the burger. Did that mean Mrs. Barrett knew? She was part of the faculty but only one other teacher had yet to show signs that they knew. At least she hadn’t told Kodi.

  “Yes, apparently Mom knows something about you that I don’t.” I snapped back to attention and just shrugged in response. “Anyway,” he sighed, “if you’d still like to do the bonfire, I can go gather the wood with Stephen and if not, you’ll have to let him down. I refuse to watch a guy cry over s’mores.” I laughed as I imagined a sobbing Stephen clutching his bag of marshmallows to his chest.

  “Yeah, that sounds great. I’ll go to the main camp and get some water bottles.”

  He smiled at me and said, “Alright, I’ll see you in about twenty?”

  “You got it,” I smiled. He nodded and left the tent. I scrambled out of the joggi
ng pants that I’d put on after swimming and threw on the last clean pair of jeans that I’d packed. Adding my black sweatshirt, I headed out of the tent and zipped it up behind me. The cold was instantaneous, and the bonfire couldn’t happen soon enough. I had only made it a few yards toward the campsite when someone called my name.

  “Meghan?” I turned to find a thin, blonde girl who looked vaguely familiar, but I just couldn’t think of where I’d seen her. She clutched something in her hand and held it out for me to take.

  “I’m supposed to give this to you.”

  I reached out for it and before I could say anything, she quickly ran off once I had the folded piece of paper in my hand. That was strange. I opened it to find words scrawled across the page and began to read.

  Meghan, meet me in the woods straight past our tents. –Kodi

  I tried to think over the sound of my heart pounding in my ears. If he’d wanted to talk to me why hadn’t he done so earlier in my tent? Maybe he wanted to discuss the terms of our deal again. Attempting to maintain a normal, non-suspicious pace, I walked past our tents and on my way into the trees, noting that there wasn’t any wood stocked up near the fire pit. Maybe he simply needed help carrying it? No. He would have asked Stephen unless Stephen was there too. I looked at his and Kodi’s tents and found him balancing marshmallow bags and boxes of graham crackers. Shaking my head and bearing a smile, I stalked deeper into the woods. The further I got, the more the darkness seemed to crowd around me. I felt goose bumps spread along my arms and the back of my neck grew hot. Why was I suddenly so uncomfortable? Kodi always made me feel so secure so I couldn’t fathom why I felt like I shouldn’t be here, like it was wrong. Almost like my nightmare. I heard rustling ahead of me and searched, for signs of Kodi but the night was black, and I could see nothing.