Chapter One
Ginger Valence wandered around the corridor by herself. The hallway was darker than usual due to the storm that was raging outside. She paused at a large window but she could see nothing but swirling drops of rain chasing each other as fast as they could down the glass. She was aware that she should be studying in her dorm or the library but she couldn't focus. Besides, she needed to meet someone here.
Thunder shook the whole building and Ginger jumped. The scarlet red carpet was illuminated by a flash of lightning and Ginger marveled at how dark it was so early on in the day. She glanced at an old grandfather clock in the corner. It was ticking loudly, but was nearly completely drowned out by the sound of the rain. The hands of the clock told her it was only noon. She glanced up and down the hallway, making sure that no one was watching her, before she slipped into a side room and shut the door.
Inside this room, the warm glow of a fire lit up one wall, while a rainbow of candles burned brightly everywhere else. A worn, yet comfortable looking armchair sat before the fire on an emerald green and silver rug. She let her school bag fall to the floor as she slid into the chair's cushions. The crackle of the fire and the smell of burning wood gave her a sense of peace and she leaned back and closed her eyes. Her golden brown hair reflected the warm glow of the fire and she sighed. Opening her eyes, she checked another clock. This one was hanging above the fireplace. It said it was 12:05. Ginger's chocolate brown eyes flickered with impatience. Eric was supposed to be here by now.
Eric and Ginger had been best friends since their first year here. For six years they had been nearly inseparable but when Eric became friends with Leah Shay, their time together had decreased. It saddened Ginger, to think that she felt as if their friendship was fading because of Leah's presence. She shook her head. They were still friends, otherwise, why would Eric have asked her to meet him here, in their secret hiding spot? And it wasn't as if Ginger was jealous of Leah. Leah was a nice person. Ginger fidgeted and shifted uneasily in the chair. She wasn't sure why she was so on edge, but the thought that she was so nervous made her uneasy nerves worse. It's just Eric! She thought.
At hat moment, the door started to creak open slowly and Eric's tall and lanky form slid backwards into the room. He checked the corridor before quickly shutting and locking the door behind him. Ginger jumped up off the chair and faced him. He turned around and gave her one of his lopsided smiles. Ginger smiled back.
"Long time, no see" He said.
"On the contrary, I saw you this morning." Ginger laughed.
"Ah, but that was a long time ago." Eric said thoughtfully.
"One could argue that." Ginger agreed. Eric pulled a chair that had been obscured by a giant lamp in the shape of a tree from a corner and placed it next to the old one already sitting in front of the fire. He sat down and faced her. His slightly dark brown hair fell slightly into his face as he leaned towards her and rested his elbows on his knees. Ginger smiled, but looked away and stared into the fire. This was just like old times. They used to skip a study hall or sneak food up from lunch to sit here and talk. It was their secret hideout, so to speak. They were sixteen now, Eric a month away from being seventeen, but it still felt like their place to hide away from the rest of the world.
Eric, however, stared directly at Ginger. She had turned into a beautiful girl right before his eyes. She had been eleven when they had met and, of course she had been pretty then but, she had really grown into herself. Her chocolate brown eyes found his and he turned away, embarrassed. What would Leah say if she knew? Leah and Eric were close, but Leah wanted more from him than he was really willing to give and in being with Leah, Eric realized that he had, possibly, fallen in love with his best friend, Ginger.
After realizing this, Eric had suddenly become so afraid of being around Ginger that he spent most of his time with Leah, giving both of them the wrong impression. He couldn't understand his decision to stay away from Ginger, but the time apart had seemed to make the two friends tense around the other. Eric wanted more than anything to tell her how he felt, but he didn't know how and with Leah believing he was hers, or would be eventually, he was afraid of hurting someone, including himself.
"In the six long years that I have known you, you have never been this quiet. What are you thinking about?" Ginger's voice cut through his thoughts and brought him back down to earth.
"Well, I…don't know." Eric turned away as he felt his face grow hot.
"Don't lie. I know you better than that. You are the one who wanted to come here. What's on your mind?" Ginger felt his silence creep up on her and it made her worry. She didn't want to lose him as a friend and whatever was bothering him seemed to her to be affecting their friendship. Secretly, she realized how much she missed him, maybe even loved him, although, he probably loved Leah and she was better off just staying out of these things.
Eric turned back to face her as his face cooled slightly. He hoped that the redness in his face could be passed off as a cause of sitting next to the fire. He stared at her a long time before opening his mouth to talk. No words would come and he closed his mouth again. Ginger sat patiently, waiting for him to speak, but inside she was on the edge of her seat, both wanting to know what he had to say and run away from him.
"Ginger, I think that I should tell you something that…well, it's been on my mind for a while." Eric closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Ginger's heart was trying to get out of her chest, it was pounding so hard. She leaned back into the seat, praying that he couldn't sense her nerves, or worse, hear her heart pounding.
"Alright, what is it?" Ginger barely trusted herself to speak. Eric stood, too fidgety to sit any longer. Ginger watched him carefully trying to figure him out.
"I realized something. It was a while ago, though, and I think that I handled it pretty bad. I should have done this a little while ago." Eric muttered.
"Done what?"
"Talk to you. Meet you here .Tell you that I think I love you." Eric stopped, mortified that he had just told her like that. He wouldn't turn around and face her. Ginger stared at his back. She wasn't sure that she had heard right. She didn't know what to say. Instead, she stood and slowly made her way towards her old friend. She set her hand on his back and he turned around to face her. "I saw that going a whole different way. I'm sorry." He muttered.
"Things hardly ever go the way you plan them. However, things don't always go horribly." Ginger smiled at him.
"What are you saying?"
"I miss you. I miss being around you and...I…possibly…feel the same…" Ginger trailed off as she tried to make sense of the words that were leaving her mouth. She was mortified, as she realized that she was speaking the truth.
Instead of replying Eric just stared at her. She was afraid that she had possibly gone too far, but had he not been the one that had admitted it first? Eric held out his arms and wrapped them around her and pulled her close into a hug.
"We always hug…I want to try something new." He whispered. Ginger looked up at him questioningly. Their eyes met and Eric leaned in and kissed her gently on her lips. She smiled and kissed him back. Ginger couldn't think of a better moment than this one.
"Eric?" A voice broke the silence and Ginger and Eric flinched away from each other as if they had been burned. Ginger looked up, shocked to see Leah standing in the doorway. Ginger looked away, feeling too awkward to meet her eyes. Eric looked like a deer in headlights. Leah glanced at Ginger, cleared her throat and returned her gaze to Eric.
"Leah…w-what are you…how did you get…?" Eric stuttered, but stopped. It wasn't worth trying to get answers. He knew that this was all about to explode and he mentally braced himself. The explosion never came. Ginger stayed silent and Leah just stood there.
"Eric, perhaps I should leave. I'm sorry Leah." Ginger made her way to the door, but Eric stopped her.
"Why would you need to leave?" Eric reached for Ginger's hand, but she pulled away. The cozy little room was not longer inviting and Ginger wanted to escape through the cold hallway just outside the door. She had known Leah wanted Eric and she didn't want to interfere. Leah wasn't used to hearing 'no'. Leah was the most beautiful girl in the school. Leah, with her gold hair and green eyes, and tall form was not going to be broken by someone as unimportant as Ginger. And Ginger was aware of this. She wished with all her might that Eric would let her go, but his hand remained around her wrist, begging her to stay.
Leah was beginning to get angry, but she stood like a statue, challenging Ginger with her cold eyes. Ginger shook her head at Eric, frustrated that he couldn't see that Leah needed to talk to him without her in the room.
"Because I think you two need to talk. That's why I need to go."
"No, Ginger. I will go." Leah stared at her. Her voice was calm, but so obviously cold. Ginger noticed a flicker of pain in her eyes but they held more anger than anything else. For a split moment, Ginger thought the anger was for her, but she realized Leah was staring at Eric. "I can't believe you." Leah spat.
"Leah, you don't understand."
"I thought that we were going somewhere!"
"You wouldn't listen to me, Lee. I tried to tell you, but you heard only what you wanted to hear from me."
"So, what are saying? Kissing me was us just being friends?" Ginger looked sideways at Eric, but he stared at Leah, mortified.
"Leah…" He sounded desperate.
"At the midnight party in the Room of Requirement, was that us just being friends? Does she know about that? Huh?"
"What are you talking about?" Ginger blurted out.
"Leah!" Eric was turning red.
"I can take a hint, Eric. I won't get in your way. I hope you two are happy together." With that, Leah turned on her heel and stalked out of the room, slamming the door shut behind her. The lock clicked into place and an eerie silence filled the room. Time seemed to freeze with the heavy tension in the room. Ginger finally released the oxygen in her lungs.
"I'm sorry about that." Eric muttered.
"It's…alright." Ginger said, but she wasn't sure if it was. This dark cloud seemed to pass over her and she had a bad feeling. "I have homework to do." Ginger gently squeezed Eric's hand before stepping into the cold hallway. She turned around and gave Eric a faint smile before she disappeared as fast as she could. She needed to think, but she needed to think alone.
