∞ONE∞
So here I was, sitting in my room, in our house, in Oregon. Jen, my step mom, just walked in on me reading and told me the news.
"Jamie, your father and I have decided that it is time to move!" This is how it had always been since Mom left and Dad remarried. She couldn't take stress, Period. This was our third time moving in two years.
"okay, When do we leave?"
"Tomorrow"
"Where are we moving?"
"Washington."
"Okay, a little fast don't cha think?" She just smiled and left me alone to read. Okay so now all I had to do was pack, call everyone in my contacts to tell them the news, get my transcripts from the office, and not think about how bad Washington weather would be, that's all. Great! Well it was almost time to go to school anyway. I put my book down and grabbed my jacket, today was going to be cold. I walked down stairs and grabbed a granola bar.
"Okay I'm off to school!" I yelled across my shoulder as I grabbed my keys. I walked out across the grass and opened the door to my shiny, dark-green Volvo; My baby. I loved my car like there was no tomorrow. I had just gotten it for my seventeenth birthday and for the first night I had it, I slept in it. As I slid in I breathed deeply inhaling the little pine tree freshener I had. Of course I hid it under my, I didn't want people to think I was dorky with a mini pine tree hanging from my rearview mirror. I moved away from the curb and drove. I was at Benson High school in just under ten minutes with just enough time to find a place to park. I found a spot near the front of the school and headed for the office. It was warmer inside and I pushed the sleeves of my jacket up.
"Hey Mrs. Carnagee" I said politely, "My family is moving so I have to pick up my transcripts and my parents said I can leave after I get them." I lied.
"Jamie you know I can't let you off without a note or a phone call." I put on my most innocent smile.
"Yes Mrs. Carnagee I know, but I mean its my last day here. I'm going to be gone tomorrow." She eyed me with a disapproving look.
"Okay Miss Evets, I'll let you go this time" She let out a small sigh, "but at least take this paper and have each teacher sign it so they know that you will be gone." She handed me the paper.
"Deal" I walked away smiling knowing that i just got the rest of my day off.
Getting all of the signatures past quickly enough, and on my way out I just left the paper on Carnagee's desk. Freedom at last. I jumped back into my beautiful car and headed for the Jumble Juice shack.
I ordered my favorite iced coffee and sat down with my book. I didn't see him until he had already sat down. I heard a little chuckle and peered over my book. He was staring at me, smiling.
"Um, hi?"
"Hi." I looked around at all the empty tables surrounding me.
"Can I help you?" I asked. He smiled a little wider.
"Yes you can Jamie." I gave him a confused look.
"I'm sorry do I know you?"
"You do now, my name is Paul."
"I mean did I know you before now? How do you know my name?" He didn't look at all familiar.
"Listen to me Jamie" his smile faded, "I don't have time to explain everything right now, but you are in danger." I gawked at him.
"Is this some kind of joke? What are you talking about? And you still didn't answer how you know who I am." My voice was raising a little now.
"Jamie just please listen to me for now, I don't have time to make it clear. I have to leave now. Try to stay out of trouble while I am gone, I will see you later." I heard someone call my name and I turned to look, and when I looked back he was gone. It was Sarah who had called my name. She was my neighbor and one of my best friends. She sat her bag down and said she was going to go get a drink.
"Hey Jamie, why didn't you tell me you were moving? I mean I could have easily gone over and stabbed each one of your car tires so extend your time here" She smiled as she saw my eyes widen.
"Oh I would have killed you with a rust spoon if you even tried" I replied.
"Yeah I know, so what's going on, why didn't you tell me?"
"Sorry Sarah, I just found out myself this morning."
"Oh, I'm sorry" she gave me a small grin, "so let's throw a party tonight before you leave! Come on, my parents are out of town we can all hang out at my house!"
"I don't know Sarah, I doubt Simon would say yes to such short notice." She let out a laugh.
"Jamie, you're leaving TOMORROW, how much shorter can notice get?"
"Okay I'll ask when I get home." That got her to relax. Then I remembered Paul. "Hey Sarah, did you see the guy I was sitting with as you walked in?"
"Uh, no I just saw you sitting here."
"Really? I mean he was sitting right there when you came in" I pointed to the seat she was occupying.
"Nope, sorry didn't see him. Was he hot?" Yeah that's the Sarah I know. I smiled and looked down at my watch.
"Sorry Sarah I'm going to be late, I have to get home and pack." I got up and put my book in my bag. As I was reaching the door I heard her shout at me to answer the question, I just waved over my shoulder. As I drove home I thought about Paul. He was gorgeous now that I had time to think about it. He had dark red hair cut short but not too short, it hung over his forehead just out of reach of his clear blue eyes. But Sarah claimed she hadn't seen him. Was he even real? Was I going insane from moving so much? Yeah! That was defiantly the problem. But what did he mean I was in danger? I decided to give up and work on how I was going to pack my stuff in time to go to Sarah's party. I was walking up the steps when I heard my dad yell from inside.
"What's up Simon?" I had stopped calling Simon Dad when my mother and he split up.
"Oh nothing Hun just dropped a box on my foot." Ouch, must have hurt a bit.
"Okay well Simon do you mind if I go to a party at Sarah's tonight?" I put back on my innocent smile that worked so well," I'll get all my packing done before I go, I promise." He smiled and said he wouldn't mind. I gave him a quick hug and headed upstairs to pack. It didn't take long for me to get everything in order. I my room was bare and I had all of my clothes packed, and then the phone rang. I heard another yell from downstairs and guessed Simon had probably dropped something else on his foot.
"I'll get it Simon" I yelled trying to keep the humor out of my voice. Sarah's voice spoke to me from the phone. She told me that she had gotten at least thirty phone calls from people who were going to show up that night. Wow, I guess short notice doesn't really matter to that many people. I told her that I was done packing and I could come over and help if she wanted me to. She denied me, but said that she would have me pick up some things from the store: chips, soda, pizza etc. I told her I would be at her house in an hour. I hung up the phone and headed down the stairs. As the door slammed behind me I heard Simon yell again. How had he made it this far without permanently hurting himself? I allowed myself to laugh; he was too far away to hear me. As I drove myself to the store in town, I knew tonight was going to be an interesting night. I couldn't keep my mind from wandering to Paul's words. "Try to stay out of trouble while I am gone, I will see you later." What is that supposed to mean? When is later?
I got to Sarah's at eight. There were a few cars starting to pull into her driveway. I knocked on the door and she flung it open grabbing my arm to pull me in. When she got me into the house she frowned.
"Where are the things I asked you to pick up?" I gasped and tried to make myself look shocked. She frowned deeper and I flashed her a sly smile.
"They are in my car." I giggled.
"I hate you" she smiled, and then sent two boys out to get the stuff from my car. She dragged me further into her house and brought me to her indoor pool. I hate her. She grabbed a microphone and told everyone that the party was for me and that they should all say goodbye to me sometime tonight because I wouldn't be at school tomorrow.
"Thanks Sarah, not that I don't love having all of the attention or anything." She grinned and then turned and walked away. I waved at some of the people I knew from school and headed over to get some soda. I didn't really think I would miss anyone much. It was nothing personal; it's just that I had moved so much I didn't really make many friends. I was still thinking about the move when I hear Sarah's voice near my ear.
"Hey Jamie, some guy wants to talk to you on the phone." She handed me the phone and was off again to see if anyone had arrived. I brought the phone to my ear.
"Hello?"
"Go to the backyard"
"Who is this? I'm not going to do anything until I know what you want!"
"Please Jamie, just go to the backyard" I heard the urgency in his voice.
"Paul? Is that you?" I was too late to ask, all I heard was the dial tone. I don't know what made me want to go to the back now, but there was an urgency I felt, like a pull. I got up and told Sarah I would be right back, I had to go meet someone. She told me to be careful and to be back soon. I peered at my watch and found that it had been an hour, the face read nine fifteen. I walked to the door that I knew led to the side of her house, we had used it to sneak in and out many times since I had moved here. When I stepped out I remembered why I had brought a jacket. Too bad I left it inside! Well, I won't be out here very long. I hope. As I rounded the back of the house I saw Paul. He was standing against the house. I gasped under my breath; he was even more gorgeous than I thought. I wasn't able to see his body when he was sitting down in Jumble Juice, he was statuesque. When he saw me round the corner he came to me and spoke in a soft whisper.
"What are you doing?" He sounded angry. Where does he get off talking to me like that! He doesn't even know me! Or well, I don't know him at least!
"What! What do you mean what am I doing? I am at a party that my friend threw for me as a goodbye present!" I matched his tone. A half smile formed on his face, in the moonlight his eyes looked vivid and grey; they twinkled with his almost-smile.
"Why are you smiling? First you were mad and now you are smiling?" my voice was breaking out of the whisper. He pursed his lips together in a fine line.
"Jamie, I told you to stay out of trouble. I told you were in danger. Why didn't you heed my warning? If you're out they will find you." As he spoke I saw something out of the corner of my eye. I was about to turn my head when Paul's hand shot up and stopped me. He brought his mouth to my ear.
"Listen to me carefully" he whispered, "They are here. I know you see them, but don't turn your head. They don't think you know about them yet. Please believe me, I will fill you in later." Something about his please urged me to do what he said, or was it his voice? I couldn't tell.
"Promise me you will fill me in; promise me that once everything is clear you will explain."
"I promise, now please do exactly what I say. Take my hand and I will walk you back to the party, I cannot go in with you but I will meet you again. On our way I have to ask you to keep your eyes straight and not wander." He took my hand and started walking me to the side of the house. His hand felt cool, not very cold but cooler than just standing outside for an hour. When we reached the door he brought his mouth back to my ear.
"Jamie you have to leave the party as soon as you can. I need you to go home and get to your room as fast as you can. I have to go now, try not to get yourself into too much trouble before we meet again." He opened the door and Sarah called to me. By the time I looked back he was gone. I hadn't even felt his hand leave mine. Thank you Sarah, again.
"Sarah, listen something came up. Simon and Jen need me back at the house to help with some stuff" Lying seemed like a second language to me.
"Oh come on can't you just stay a little longer?"
"No sorry Sarah, but hey I promise I'll come by before I leave tomorrow and say goodbye, okay?"
"Fine" she sighed, "ill call you tonight, I want to know about that guy you were talking about earlier. Was that him on the phone?" Before she could ask anymore questions I was walking toward the door. I waved over my shoulder as I reached the door. I don't know why I was still listening to Paul. Why should I trust him? But something inside me said it was the right thing to do. I reached my car and got, as I started it I looked at the clock and realized it had been another hour since I last looked at my watch. Oh how time flies when you're having fun! I parked my car in the driveway and saw the moving van that was not parked alongside the house. When I walked in Simon was on the phone, and he stopped me with his hand. I stood there until he hung up.
"You're home early, what's going on?"
"Oh you know, long day. I think ill go upstairs and make sure everything is ready for tomorrow. Then I guess I'll go to bed." I stooped a little to make it look like I was tired.
"Okay Kiddo. If you're not feeling well about the move we can talk about it." I knew that he wouldn't change his mind about moving so I didn't think I'd bother. Been through it three times, one more shouldn't hurt. Right?
"Nah, I'm okay if you need my just holler." Before he could make me stay any longer I was bounding up the stairs to my room. Once upstairs I pulled of my shoes and sat on my bed. "Okay, so now what?" I was trying to tie things together.
"I can't talk for long." I leaped off my bed and scrambled for the door but he was there before I could reach it. Paul had one hand on the door to keep it closed and one was pressed against my lips to keep me from screaming. I stepped back out of his reach and stared at him.
"What the hell! You scared me half to death!" He smiled and looked into my eyes. Something about those eyes calmed me. They were different from this morning though. They seemed like a strange different color blue than normal. They were vivid and almost glowing.
"I'm sorry" he smiled, "I didn't know it would scare you so much" Then I realized.
"Wait wait wait! How did you know where I lived! How did you get here? Are you stalking me?" I couldn't control myself. He laughed in his throat and his eyes sparkled.
"No I am not stalking you; you just have to trust me for now. I don't have time to explain" The smile faded from his mouth, "I have to go those things you- Ill be back" right as he spoke the words Simon opened my door. Paul was gone.
"Jamie, I just wanted to know if you were sure you are okay?" I smiled the best I could.
"Yes Simon I'm fine. Thank you for asking though" he sighed and closed the door. I walked over to my bed and sat down, and then he was there. Paul was sitting beside me; I jumped again but didn't run to the door. I looked at him, he was smiling again.
"How did you do that?"
"I told you Jamie I don't have time to explain. Those things tonight know where you are. I have to keep them away but they will follow tomorrow when you leave" How did he know this?
"What? They are going to follow? Who are they? What are you talking about?" He took my hand and the coolness rushed over my body. Suddenly I was tired and I couldn't keep my eyes open. "You promised me" I could barley get the words out".
"I know Jamie" he whispered, "in time" Then the darkness took over.
I woke up feeling full of questions. But my light was off and I was in bed. Then it all came to me, Paul had caught me before I fell to the floor. He told me that he had to go and he was sorry about making my sleep. He put me in my bed and placed something around my neck. He sad it was to protect me until I saw him again, it would be soon. I sat up and touched my neck to find a necklace with a charm on it. I couldn't make it out in the dark so I got up and switched on the light. The charm was a triangle with a sideways eight engraved on both sides. I turned the light off again and looked at the clock by my bed. Three in the morning! I decided I should get to sleep; we would be leaving at nine. I closed my eyes again and drifted to sleep. The next thing I knew the sun was blazing on my face and I remembered that I was not only still in my clothes, but also in my jacket. I was burning up! I guess it's time to get up! I looked up at my clock. I had two hours to get all my stuff in the moving truck. I got up and went downstairs to see if anyone else was up. Simon greeted me with a cup of coffee and slid a plate across the table to me. Scrambled eggs and toast, I ate in silence then put my dishes in the sink and brought my cup of coffee into the living room where Jen was.
"Hey Jen, are you both all packed?" The room was bare, as was the rest of the house now that I looked around.
"Yeah, we got everything packed yesterday while you were out" I hadn't realized it since I went straight upstairs last night when I had gotten home.
"Oh okay ill start packing my stuff into the van" I finished my coffee and gave the cup to Simon, and then I walked back upstairs. When I got back to my room all of my boxes were stacked neatly ready to be hauled down to the truck. Paul. I whispered his name to see if he was there, but there was no answer. Then I saw the note on my bed.
Jamie,
Please leave as soon as you can. I'll be waiting for you. Try to be safe.
-Paul
"Well I guess he is real, I don't think my imagination can stack boxes" I still don't understand why he wants me to leave so soon. Oh crap! Sarah! I grabbed my cell phone out of the pocket of my jacket I had thrown on the floor when I got up. There it was starring me in the face. Three missed calls. I guess she really wanted to talk. I dialed her number and hit the cal button. Her voice flowed into my ear.
"Why didn't you call me last night?" she sounded a little upset.
"Sorry Sarah, I must have fallen asleep" Literally!
"Okay well tell me about that guy on the phone last night" Her excitement showed in her voice. I told her that his name was Paul and he was just a friend that I had met earlier that day. I didn't think she could handle the truth; I couldn't even handle the truth. After I was done explaining she said she had to go, her parents were taking her out to breakfast. I hung up and set the phone on my bed. Then I started packing stuff down to the truck. It only took me an hour to get everything into the moving van and Simon said we could leave ahead of schedule. They jumped into the moving van and I slid into the seat of my car ready for my journey. Simon said it would only take a day to get to Mountain view, Oregon. That is where our new house was located. We were off!
We didn't reach Mountain View until twelve in the morning. I was happy when the Van finally parked alongside a beautiful two-story house. I may not talk much to Jen, but I have to say that she does have a good eye for houses. Simon jumped out of the Van and walked over to help Jen out. I walked over to them and grabbed a night bag I had packed from the seat.
"Home sweet home" Simon stated, "this is going to be great!" I was okay with the house. I picked a bedroom upstairs that faced the front. Simon came in behind me to tell me that I was enrolled in School tomorrow, I should get some sleep, and while I was gone tomorrow the movers would help them unpack. Well hey less work for me! The first thing to make me happy! Before he left my room he handed me a map that showed the route to school. I thanked him then shut my door when he left. I laid on the mattress that was brought up for me and closed my eyes. I had a lot to think about I didn't think I would get much sleep. But as soon as I was comfortable, my mind drifted and I was asleep.
"JAMIE!" Simon was in my room and the sun was shining through the window.
"You're going to be late! Your first class is going to start in twenty minutes!" I launched myself out of bed and run to the shower. I took a quick one and changed all in about ten minutes. Crap! Ten minutes to go! I ran down the stairs and grabbed a granola bar on the way out. The map was successful and I got to the school with three minutes to spare. By this time I had thought about it and hoped they would give me a while to get my list of classes and find the first one. I walked into the office and found that it was cooler than outside. I walked up to the front desk to find a little old lady starring back at me through thick glasses.
"Hi I'm the new student. Jamie Evets" I gave her a warm smile. She smiled back. And ruffled through a bunch of papers on the desk until she found the one she wanted.
"Ah yes here we go" she handed me the paper. There are your classes, the first one is down this hall and to the right" she pointed at the door.
"Thank you" I replied. And walked through the door.