I now remembered why I didn't want to go to school today. I was riding with Ian in his car. I wish that I had a more elaborate outfit on right noiw then my regular Levi's and ie green T-shirt. Very self consciously, I flipped most of my hair over my shoulder to create a thin veil between us. He seemed to know what mood I was in. There was a very grim smile on his perfect face. I focused on not hyperventilating on the way there.
" Are you alright?' He asked me once we were half of the way there. His voice was teasing. But I blushed anyway.
" Uh...no," I said in a whisper.
" Why?" Now he seemed genuinely curious. I wondered how I said because you are waaay out of my league and here I am in your car. And after what happened yesterday, now I am even more confused then ever around you to a boy. Hi lips tugged at the corners.
" Because of a huge history test today," I muttered as a jerk knee reaction. I knew that I probally didn't look very good today. My hair was most likely to be lanky and stringy, dark blue circles forming under my eyes. I was exhausted. I had to stay with Annie for the entire night and she cried at night because she was terrified of the dark. Myf ace felt drawn and I was close from breaking down and crying. I was tired though and didn't pay attention to what was going on until I noticed that we were pulling over.
" What. where are we going?' I asked. I didn't know this neighborhood. The houses were high, like four or five stories high with large meadow gardens and Victorian style houses.
" I am picking up Camilla,' He told me," And then I'll drop her off in the afternoon." I felt like a huge weight had just suddenly dropped on my face, right on my face. The same suffocating weight pressed down on my shoulders like when mom and dad had ignored me as a child. The world revolved briefly and everything had a grey tilt to them before I got control of myself. My head sank.
" I-I'll just walk to school,' I muttered, reaching a hand to the door handle. He was faster and his long pale fingers were wrapped around mine suddenly. He recoiled like I had just electriculed him.
" Why? Three people in a care isn't a lot." He said in a soft voice. I almost melted into butter right then.
" I...I can seriously walk. I'm fine. I need air,' It was a pretty pathetic excuse but it was better then being in a car with Camilla, who would no doubt be flaunting her relationship with the Sterlings in front of my face. Camilla was walking across her lawn towards the car. Okay, so she always did look good. Right now she was wearing a leather skirt and black tights and a hot pink shirt ripped at the sleeves and restitched. She had on leather boots and a friendly, flirtatious smile on her face. It was suddenly too much for me to bare. Not caring if I was rude or not, I opened the door and nearly spilled out when Camilla opened it at the same time.
' Um..sorry. I was use to sitting up front. I'll sit in the back if...,'
" No, I was about to walk anyway,' I said in a whisper, slid under her arm and hit the floor running. I slowed down after a few blocks. My breathing slowed and my sanity came back to hit me in the face. I was so stupid. I had just alked out on Ian Sterling! I had to be the dumbest person in the world! But the air did feel nice on my skin. It was a clear mountain air and it felt good to my flushed face.
After a while of walking, I found the school. It looked like I had gotten here before Ian and Camilla.
" Hey, Alyssa!" Ruby said, waving her arms at me. She was wearing a lime green dress today and a velvet belt." So..how did it go with Ian?"
" Horrible. He picked up Camilla half way here and I ran on foot." I shrugged like it was no big deal when actually, my heart was thumping very hard in my chest. Ruby tutted.
" Honestly, Alyssa, if you stayed then you could have gotten him or something!" She said critically.
" I don't want to," I said uncomfortablely. I tweaked the zipper of my jacket and unzipped it.
" Come on then, we still have a few minutes before we have first period,' Ruby began but I froze. My hands roamed around my bag trying to find it bout it wasn't there. Where was it? " What is it?" Ruby asked impaitently.
" My sketch book. It-it's not here!" I said hystericly." I can't find it! Where is it?"
" Calm down! Where was the lst place you had it?" Ruby asked. I thought for a second.
" I really don't know," I admited glumly.
" You are hopeless,' She sighed. I nodded in agreement. I was too moody to talk about such drivel things like this. We dispatched to our first periods and I was, one again, the first person in the room.
" Hey, have you heard?' Tia asked.
" Heard what?"
" Oh you know, that Camilla and Ian are dating,' She said as though it ws obvious. My world revolved briefly and I nearly passed out. No, wait...Ian didn't know me. He wasn't mine. I didn't care about him at all.
' Oh...okay. But he only came to school yesterday,' I portested. Tia gave a small smile and shook her head in disgust.
" That girl moves fast. She didn't even give him time to respond properly before she began to squeal. I only heard it because she was in my chemistry class."
" You speak like you don't like her?' I said in confusion. I thought that everybody liked Camilla. She twirled a short piece of brown hair betwenn her fingers.
" Well, she is a little too sweet and perfect for any one girl. And I really don't like people who think that they are all that," She shrugged,' Btuw hat does one girl's opinion count as?" It counted as a lot, I wanted to tell her but I only nodded. I was still tring to warp my head around my missing notebook. Then the three Sterlings and Camilla came in the room. Camilla was clinging to Ian's arm like she wanted everybody to know that he was hers. How could we not? They sat down in the fornt of th clas like role models. Classes passed in a blur.
By third period, I realized that I had most of my classes with Tia. She sat with me and Ruby during third period. To my immense suprise and relief, they got along great. Unfortunately, third period was art class.
" I thought that you likd third period?" Tia said, leaning across the aisle to talk to me.
" Yes...but we are getting new seats today and almost nobody in tis class likes me."
' Thanks, I feel so loved,' Ruby said and Tia laughed. I gave a grudging smile that instantly sobered when the teacher began to call out names. I only heard occasional phrases." Ruby and Tia.' Was the only other one that I heard. Then:" Alyssa and Ian.' I mouthed wordlessly at the art teacher.
Tia gave me a small smile and Ruby winked at me. Somebody slid in the chair next to me. I didn't need to turn around to know who it was. I was already feeling dizzy. I shook my head and stared at the blank canvas in front of me. I used burned charcoal for today. No colors, just black and white. I began with a few simple strokes and a few lines. With fifteen minutes to spare, I finally found out what I had drawn. A romance scene out of a movies. That type that makes you feel the romance going on between the two people, not just see it. The girl had long hair and a serene expression on her face. She leaned against a model type boy. Th landscape was a few fof the moutains an the dirt road. There as certain wistfulness in my eyes.
" That's beautiful," My art teacher said from behind me and I jumped," You have a real talent for this, Alyssa."
I blushed and muttered a ," Thanks," Quietly under my breath.
" Is it for somebody special?' When I looked confused, she continued," Your boyfriend?" I turend a bright shade of red, a twisted shade of maroon.
" I-I don't..I don't have a ..,' I stammered.
" She doesn't have a boyfriend." Tia said smoothly." None of the boys here have caught her eye yet." She put an awful lot of emphasis on that last word. I shot her a look. The teacher moved on to comment on somebody's measly drawing.
" What was up with that?" I demanded. I could tell taht my face was still a very bright shade of red.'
" Because it's clear that you will like somebody." Ruby put in." Before the winder dance, maybe.' The dance was two months away. And I don't date. I thought that she of all people would know that. But something caught my attention. Ian was peering curiously at my picture.
" What?" I asked in embarrassment. Inconspicuously, I slid it under my arm." It's not bad,' I said defensively. He flashed a quick, breathtaking smile.
" Oh, I know," He said smoothly beofre turning away again. I turned away as quickly as I could and focused on not hyperventilating. It was just a smile. Tia grinned at my expression, as did Ruby. At long last, the bell rang. At that moment, I had never head a sweeter sound. I was out of the chair in seconds but Ian was still faster. He had somehow already reached the door frame before I even reached it.
Ruby and Tia and I went to the lunch room together. I found an isolated little corner where I could sit later on. I threw my books over there so I could get the table. But now I didn't have an appetite anymore. I just bought a bottle of iced tea and a bag of chips ad waited patiently for them both to finish their purchases.
" Ohmygosh!" Ruby gasped and nearly dropped her limanode bottle. I jumped about a mile in the air and looked at her with annoyance.
" What is it? You nearly gave me a heart attack? What, is the devil attacking?" I asked sarcasticly.
" A hot devil, if you want to think about it like that.' Tia said in a voice unlike herself." Hey, if you can, steal him away from the witch queen, okay?" That was when I turned around. It was Ian and he was walking towards me. Me! I felt strangely lightheaded. Oh my gosh, I think I forgot how to breath. I inhaled deeply so I didn't faint. Tia and Ruby stepped way from me. I shoot a frantic look at them both.
" Alyssa, I take it that this is yours?" Ian was right infront of me. I jumped again, my heart hammering like a hummingbird. How'd he get here so fast.
' Hey my sketchbook!" I blushed.' I guess I must have left it in your car this morning. I'm sorry."
" No worries,' He said smoothly,' The pictures were very imaginative to look at.' It took me a second to realize what he had meant.
" Hey! Those were personal, some of them." I hissed. He looked back at me, amused, still breathtaking.
" Like this one?" It was the one of him. I blushed furiously and reached a hand out to grab it but he held it out of arms reach.
" What?' I hissed.
" You'll get it in the afternoon, if you come to my car without throwing a hissy fit," He told me calmly.
" Is there a point of arguing with you?' I sighed, defeated. Why couldn't he go away?
' Not really, no,' He admitted," Just be at the football field in the afternoon. e do have to pick you my brothers." He turned away without another word. Camilla glared at me behind my shoulder. I sat down at the table and nearly choked on my gulp of tea. It was incredible hard to swallow. Almost like a solid.
" You rode in his car this morning?" Tia asked.
" Kinda" I swirled the bottle cp around on my pinkie finger," But half way, I jumped out of the car because he Had to pick up Camilla.' Tia hissed and I looked up in suprise.
" She has her own car but one of her friends works at the hospital and probably found out so she called Ian," Ruby mused.
" I really don't car either way,' I said much to both of their surprise,' Ian is a boy. It's not like I like him." They both shot me a look and I blushed.' Okay, a cute boy but still only a boy." I could feel venomous looks burning holes on my back and I tood up. I didn't like people paying much attention to me." Look...I'm gonna go outside, okay?"
They both didn't look suprised to hear me say that. Ruby nodded and Tia said,' Fourth period starts in fifteen minutes.' I nodded and left. The looks followed me all the way outside. The school was just a bunch of small buildings connected by outside paths and glass domes. The people in this town were so rich, they flaunted their money around like it was another breath of air they could spare. The football field was at the other side of the building and I liked to go there sometimes, just to cool off or to pla soccer. I liked soccer. I wasn't the best at it but it kept me from feeling like a failure. My brother still creamed me though.
Today, it was a little too cold to be outside. The air was a little too icy to make it seem like spring was just around the corner. I was glad I had my jacket. For its solitary warmth, as much as it could provide anyway. The football field was, in my opinion, too gran and too big with too many seats and too many teams. But the cool ungrowing grass was good to my feet and the merciful quiet of the air was oddly comfortable. I rounded the cornerand was met with a very confusing sight. I blinked a couple of times to be sure that I wasn't seeing things. Then, I reeled back and ran back to the cafeteria. Hands grabbed me from behind though and pinned me down. The breath flew from my throat and the suffocating feeling of not breathing came into my mind.
I tried to crawl away towards safety. The thing grabbed my leg so hard I heard a pop. But I shhok my leg so hard the blood flow there might have stopped. It let go, though and I rounded the corner to watch the fight in peace. There was a somethign standing in the football field with Trevor. Bloodied an with most of its arm ripped out of its socket. The wildest expression of pain an fury was etched on her face. A girl. Her hands were clawed at her side and she lurched forward with fury.A killer. Oh gosh, she was a killer. I wanted to yell at Trevor to go away but the sound stuck to my throat.
Then, Trevor was gone. He was very fast. I couldn't see him anymore. A foot came out of nowhere and threw her back. I got painfully to my feet and ran away. I didn't want to see anymore. My legs nearly collapsed under me as I got to class. What had just happened?
What exactly were the Sterlings?
Yayy! Another chapter done! I would appreciate some comments. They help motivate me to write more, just in the passing.
Thanks to Lady Cascada for reviewing. I really appreciate it! I'll update as soon as possible, though.