Chapter Two:
My breath was heavy as I hopped off my bike and set it against the wall in our
mansion's garage. Sweat rolled off of my skin,
gluing my shirt to my back. Mary Anne and I had just gone bike riding around
Stoneybrook all morning and now it was two o' clock
in the afternoon. Dawn Schafer (Mary Anne's step sister and other best friend)
and Charlie were flying in from California tonight.
I needed to shower and get ready to go to the airport. I opened the door and was
greeted by the cold air conditioning and I realized
just how hot and humid it had gotten outside and it was only the second day of
summer. Pulling off my hat and ponytail, I let my
hair hang down. Over the year, I had grown it out so that now it was half way
down my back and with just the slightest wave in
it.
Pulling my sweatshirt over my head, I tied it around my waist and examined my
figure in the mirror. I'm still the shortest girl in
school. My body body was still slim and muscular, but my chest had started to
grow over the first few months of ninth grade, so
that now I was a 36B. Not exactly the biggest bust size in the world, but still
pretty pleasing, besides, mom buys me these bras
that actually make my breasts look bigger.
Suddenly, another figure appeared on the stairs in the mirror. I let out a
scream and scrambled for my sweatshirt. The person
on the stairs let out an embarrassed groaned and turned around, shielding his
eyes in embarrassment.
"CARY?!" I exclaimed, when I finally found my voice. "What are you doing here?"
"Sam...Sam is borrowing my PS2. We were just playing a few games on it in his
room." Cary replied to the wall.
I cringed as I pulled my shirt back on. I don't usually strip around the house.
But it was just so hot and I knew that no one was
home. Well, THOUGHT. Watson and mom had taken all the kids to the plant nursery
to pick out some new flowers for the
garden. And who cared if my lazy leech of a brother saw me?
Instead of saying anything to Cary, I stomped past him on the stairs and up to
my room. I shut the door carefully behind
me and leaned against it. My face was all red, I just knew it. My heart pounded
deep in my chest and I heard footsteps outside
in the hallway. I heard Sam asking Cary how to use the attack button and some
more talk about videogames. Thankfully, Cary
mentioned nothing about that episode downstairs. Sighing resignedly, I headed
for my bathroom and stripped fully, not bothering
to look at myself and stepped into my the shower and turned the water on.
After I had shampooed and conditioned my hair, I turned the shower head off and
wrapped myself in a towel. Stepping back into
my bedroom, I rummaged through my drawer and pulled out a blue tank top and
jeans. After I put on my bra and panties, I popped
one of my new CDs into my player and listened to it as I finished dressing.
Grabbing my black thong sandals out of my closet I
slipped them on and started to brush my hair. Suddenly there was a knock on the
door and I froze. There was another sharp
knock on the door, more impatient this time.
"Um...coming." I called as I headed for the door.
Taking a deep breath, I pulled on the doorknob and saw Sam standing in front of
me.
"Oh." I said, letting out a breath I had been holding. "What do you want?"
"Nothing." He replied. "Mom just called, she said that you should get ready.
We're heading for the airport in a couple of hours."
"Okay." I said. I tried to shut the door, but Sam held it open.
"Hey, one more thing." He told me.
"What?" I asked, sighing exasperatedly.
"Cary's downstairs. He needs to ask you something." Sam replied.
He turned around and started to his room.
"Hey, Sam, wait." I said, stepping out. "What does he want?"
"How should I know?" He asked. "Maybe he wants to ask you out."
I frowned more at Sam's 'like-that-would-ever-happen' tone than the idea of Cary
asking me out. But just hearing that from
someone else's lips made me feel weird.
Shaking my head, I started down to the formal living room. "You're such an
idiot, Sam!"
Upon entering the living room, I saw Cary sitting on the armchair that Watson
usually sits in. I hadn't seen much of him the past
year, Cary was a writer. A pretty good one. He was more or less hanging out with
a bunch of people just like him. Maybe in the
library or some other secluded place. Or else cracking jokes and laughing at the
people around him.
I leaned against the door frame and said in a gruff voice, "What do you want,
Retlin?"
Cary turned around and gave me a one of his trademark goofy grins. The one where
his eyebrows lifted and arched so high into
his forehead and made me--and everyone else--feel like they were under a
microscope.
"Hey Thomas!" He greeted. "Long time, no see, huh?"
"Yeah, I guess so." I replied, feeling awkward. Not only had Cary seen a parts
of me that no one but girls in the locker room
had seen, he somehow made me feel even smaller than I was. It had always been
that way, ever since the day Cary's family
moved into the neighborhood.
"So what is it that you need?" I asked as I sat down on the couch across from
him.
"Well, it's my parents who thought of it." Cary said. "See, they know that you
have--used to have a baby-sitting club. They're
going to visit my uncle and aunt in Darien tomorrow."
"Uh-huh." I said, not quite sure what he was getting at. "And what does that
have to do with me?"
"I'm getting there." Cary said, looking at me strangely, his grin more
infuriating than ever before. "I have to go to piano practice
on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I need you to watch my two younger brothers for two
hours on those days. My parents said they'll
pay you for it."
I sighed with relief. Was that all? Piece of cake.
"Oh, well, no problem." I replied. "How long are they going to visit your
relatives?"
"For the first five weeks of summer--that's not too much trouble for a retired
veteran such as yourself, is it Kristy?" Cary asked,
smirking, his eyebrow cutting even higher on his forehead.
"It'll be a piece of cake." I told him, snapping my fingers to elaborate.
"Not chocolate, I hope." Cary replied. "Ben's allergic to it."
Rolling my eyes, I picked up the TV's remote and started to flip through the
channels.
"So, do we have a deal?" He asked.
"Sure." I said. "What time are your lessons on Tuesdays and Thursdays?"
"Ten o' clock in the morning every time." Cary replied instantly. "Ends at
noon."
"Great." I said, without looking at him.
"You know where I live?" Cary asked, knowing full well that I did. In eighth
grade, he and I were assigned a project in our
English class to write a biography on each others lives. We each went to each
other's houses and interviewed our family members.
"I don't think it'll be TOO hard, Cary." I said.
"Great." He slapped my back hard and I just managed not to groan.
"Hey Sam, I'm leaving now!" Cary shouted up the stairs to Sam. "You're only
borrowing it for a week."
"Kay." Sam replied listlessly.
Cary suppressed a laugh, shook his head, then turned around and headed for the
door.
"Thanks for leaving." I called like a good archrival should.
"Thanks for the show." Cary shot back wickedly.
I felt a hot blush flood my cheeks and I slowly peeked over the top of the
couch. Cary was right behind me, grinning at me
like the idiot that he was. I frowned deeply.
"You're looking really good, Kristy." He teased. "Not nearly as scuzzy as I
remember."
I repressed the urge to stammer and held my nose in the air snootily. "I WISH I
could say the the same for YOU."
Cary let out a loud laugh, totally unaffected my comment. "See you later," He
walked to the door and opened it. Before he left,
he turned back and winked at me slyly. "I'd be careful about what I say, Kristy.
You work for me now." He deepened his already
low voice and said, "I OWN you."
I scoffed a laugh and shook my head as Cary shut the door and headed down the
steps of our veranda and down the driveway.
He took a right at the end of the drive and cut through the wooded area in the
back of my house. The woods in back run right
past Cary's so he wouldn't need to walk as far as if he'd taken the road. What a
jerk...cool, but a jerk.
My breath was heavy as I hopped off my bike and set it against the wall in our
mansion's garage. Sweat rolled off of my skin,
gluing my shirt to my back. Mary Anne and I had just gone bike riding around
Stoneybrook all morning and now it was two o' clock
in the afternoon. Dawn Schafer (Mary Anne's step sister and other best friend)
and Charlie were flying in from California tonight.
I needed to shower and get ready to go to the airport. I opened the door and was
greeted by the cold air conditioning and I realized
just how hot and humid it had gotten outside and it was only the second day of
summer. Pulling off my hat and ponytail, I let my
hair hang down. Over the year, I had grown it out so that now it was half way
down my back and with just the slightest wave in
it.
Pulling my sweatshirt over my head, I tied it around my waist and examined my
figure in the mirror. I'm still the shortest girl in
school. My body body was still slim and muscular, but my chest had started to
grow over the first few months of ninth grade, so
that now I was a 36B. Not exactly the biggest bust size in the world, but still
pretty pleasing, besides, mom buys me these bras
that actually make my breasts look bigger.
Suddenly, another figure appeared on the stairs in the mirror. I let out a
scream and scrambled for my sweatshirt. The person
on the stairs let out an embarrassed groaned and turned around, shielding his
eyes in embarrassment.
"CARY?!" I exclaimed, when I finally found my voice. "What are you doing here?"
"Sam...Sam is borrowing my PS2. We were just playing a few games on it in his
room." Cary replied to the wall.
I cringed as I pulled my shirt back on. I don't usually strip around the house.
But it was just so hot and I knew that no one was
home. Well, THOUGHT. Watson and mom had taken all the kids to the plant nursery
to pick out some new flowers for the
garden. And who cared if my lazy leech of a brother saw me?
Instead of saying anything to Cary, I stomped past him on the stairs and up to
my room. I shut the door carefully behind
me and leaned against it. My face was all red, I just knew it. My heart pounded
deep in my chest and I heard footsteps outside
in the hallway. I heard Sam asking Cary how to use the attack button and some
more talk about videogames. Thankfully, Cary
mentioned nothing about that episode downstairs. Sighing resignedly, I headed
for my bathroom and stripped fully, not bothering
to look at myself and stepped into my the shower and turned the water on.
After I had shampooed and conditioned my hair, I turned the shower head off and
wrapped myself in a towel. Stepping back into
my bedroom, I rummaged through my drawer and pulled out a blue tank top and
jeans. After I put on my bra and panties, I popped
one of my new CDs into my player and listened to it as I finished dressing.
Grabbing my black thong sandals out of my closet I
slipped them on and started to brush my hair. Suddenly there was a knock on the
door and I froze. There was another sharp
knock on the door, more impatient this time.
"Um...coming." I called as I headed for the door.
Taking a deep breath, I pulled on the doorknob and saw Sam standing in front of
me.
"Oh." I said, letting out a breath I had been holding. "What do you want?"
"Nothing." He replied. "Mom just called, she said that you should get ready.
We're heading for the airport in a couple of hours."
"Okay." I said. I tried to shut the door, but Sam held it open.
"Hey, one more thing." He told me.
"What?" I asked, sighing exasperatedly.
"Cary's downstairs. He needs to ask you something." Sam replied.
He turned around and started to his room.
"Hey, Sam, wait." I said, stepping out. "What does he want?"
"How should I know?" He asked. "Maybe he wants to ask you out."
I frowned more at Sam's 'like-that-would-ever-happen' tone than the idea of Cary
asking me out. But just hearing that from
someone else's lips made me feel weird.
Shaking my head, I started down to the formal living room. "You're such an
idiot, Sam!"
Upon entering the living room, I saw Cary sitting on the armchair that Watson
usually sits in. I hadn't seen much of him the past
year, Cary was a writer. A pretty good one. He was more or less hanging out with
a bunch of people just like him. Maybe in the
library or some other secluded place. Or else cracking jokes and laughing at the
people around him.
I leaned against the door frame and said in a gruff voice, "What do you want,
Retlin?"
Cary turned around and gave me a one of his trademark goofy grins. The one where
his eyebrows lifted and arched so high into
his forehead and made me--and everyone else--feel like they were under a
microscope.
"Hey Thomas!" He greeted. "Long time, no see, huh?"
"Yeah, I guess so." I replied, feeling awkward. Not only had Cary seen a parts
of me that no one but girls in the locker room
had seen, he somehow made me feel even smaller than I was. It had always been
that way, ever since the day Cary's family
moved into the neighborhood.
"So what is it that you need?" I asked as I sat down on the couch across from
him.
"Well, it's my parents who thought of it." Cary said. "See, they know that you
have--used to have a baby-sitting club. They're
going to visit my uncle and aunt in Darien tomorrow."
"Uh-huh." I said, not quite sure what he was getting at. "And what does that
have to do with me?"
"I'm getting there." Cary said, looking at me strangely, his grin more
infuriating than ever before. "I have to go to piano practice
on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I need you to watch my two younger brothers for two
hours on those days. My parents said they'll
pay you for it."
I sighed with relief. Was that all? Piece of cake.
"Oh, well, no problem." I replied. "How long are they going to visit your
relatives?"
"For the first five weeks of summer--that's not too much trouble for a retired
veteran such as yourself, is it Kristy?" Cary asked,
smirking, his eyebrow cutting even higher on his forehead.
"It'll be a piece of cake." I told him, snapping my fingers to elaborate.
"Not chocolate, I hope." Cary replied. "Ben's allergic to it."
Rolling my eyes, I picked up the TV's remote and started to flip through the
channels.
"So, do we have a deal?" He asked.
"Sure." I said. "What time are your lessons on Tuesdays and Thursdays?"
"Ten o' clock in the morning every time." Cary replied instantly. "Ends at
noon."
"Great." I said, without looking at him.
"You know where I live?" Cary asked, knowing full well that I did. In eighth
grade, he and I were assigned a project in our
English class to write a biography on each others lives. We each went to each
other's houses and interviewed our family members.
"I don't think it'll be TOO hard, Cary." I said.
"Great." He slapped my back hard and I just managed not to groan.
"Hey Sam, I'm leaving now!" Cary shouted up the stairs to Sam. "You're only
borrowing it for a week."
"Kay." Sam replied listlessly.
Cary suppressed a laugh, shook his head, then turned around and headed for the
door.
"Thanks for leaving." I called like a good archrival should.
"Thanks for the show." Cary shot back wickedly.
I felt a hot blush flood my cheeks and I slowly peeked over the top of the
couch. Cary was right behind me, grinning at me
like the idiot that he was. I frowned deeply.
"You're looking really good, Kristy." He teased. "Not nearly as scuzzy as I
remember."
I repressed the urge to stammer and held my nose in the air snootily. "I WISH I
could say the the same for YOU."
Cary let out a loud laugh, totally unaffected my comment. "See you later," He
walked to the door and opened it. Before he left,
he turned back and winked at me slyly. "I'd be careful about what I say, Kristy.
You work for me now." He deepened his already
low voice and said, "I OWN you."
I scoffed a laugh and shook my head as Cary shut the door and headed down the
steps of our veranda and down the driveway.
He took a right at the end of the drive and cut through the wooded area in the
back of my house. The woods in back run right
past Cary's so he wouldn't need to walk as far as if he'd taken the road. What a
jerk...cool, but a jerk.