I walked into the house late that day. The sun was already setting, giving the sky that nice gold tint. The house was still empty, but I had expected that. Mom's days were getting longer now, since business is picking up.
I walked over to the kitchen and dropped my books on the table. The house was too quiet for my liking, so I decided to turn the news on. I was a little anxious to see who the kid was that I had found earlier. I had been crying so much that I hadn't even looked at his face.
The hum of the T.V filled the room. Walking back into the kitchen, I opened the refrigerator door as an automatic response. I knew that I should eat, the paramedics had even said that once I got home I should eat, just in case I start to go into stock.
There was nothing in there, so I looked in the cupboard. I sat down and started looking through my homework. I reached for the pen that I had stashed in my pocket.
Reaching into my pocket, I not only found my pen, but also a piece of folded paper. I unfolded the paper to see a delicate scroll printed on it. The writing was like nothing I had ever seen. It was elegant, much neater than mine.
Raya,
I do wonder what you do in your spare time. There is something about you that I am drawn too. I do not wish to be drawn so, but I am a selfish creature, intent on getting anything that I want. And right now, I am afraid, what I want is you.
Please reply. Leave a note in your locker, and I will get it.
I looked at the note curiously. Someone, liked…me? Other than Cyrus? I wondered how it was, and why they had not said anything sooner. I grabbed a piece of paper and began writing my reply.
I am very curious as to who you are. And thank you for reassuring me that you are not Cyrus. How will you get my reply if it is in my locker? Can you tell me what you look like, or at least give me a hint as to who you are? How well do we know each other?
Raya
I Folded the paper and looked at the window. There were lights outside of the house. I rinsed my dish and walked into the den to look out the window. Mom's red corvette was parked in the front, but I could see that she was not alone.
I sat on the couch, trying not to look like I knew she was home. I turned to the news as she walked in, her guest right behind her. It wasn't until she walked into the dent that I saw that it wasn't just one guest that was with her, but four.
I felt butterflies in my stomach when I saw her; The dark haired beauty with the deep emerald green eyes, standing there in the doorway. My mom looked at me and smiled.
"Hi honey," she said.
"Hey…mom" my voice shook.
My eyes darted around the room. There were two figures behind the dark haired girl, both of whom I could not see. The man standing next to my mom was tall and Blond. He also had the deep emerald green eyes that I was starting to get used to.
"Honey," my mom began, "This is Dr. Stone. He works at the hospital with me."
The Dr. raised his hand in protest, "Please, call me Terran."
I stared at him, and he must of thought I was rude. I now knew where the kids had gotten their looks from. He was handsome, better than any movie star I had ever seen.
"Hello….I'm Raya." I finally muttered.
He smiled, "Hello Raya." His voice was almost as seductive as someone else's I knew, someone that I was sure was in this room at this very moment.
He turned towards the others. The two that had been concealed by shadow, now stepped into the light. My heart jumped when I saw his oh to perfect face.
"These are my foster children. Desiree, Jasper and Adian." He pointed to each one as he said their names, " Jasper and you I believe, share a couple of classes."
I nodded my head, unable to take my eyes off of Jasper. Here he was standing in the middle of my hallway looking back at me. A smile played on his lips as he watched me. I could see out of the corner of my eye that Adian was also watching me, but with a different look in his eyes.
Adian was different from Jasper and Desiree. Instead of the dark hair that they possessed, he had blond hair, just like the Terran. He was tall, but had a heavier build than Jasper. I guessed that it was mostly muscle. His eyes were the same deep emerald green though. He had a playful face, and looked like he was joker of the family.
My mom smiled, happy to see that we were somewhat getting along.
"So," she said, breaking the silence, "How about a game of monopoly?"
"Shall we all go into the kitchen then?" Terran said, gesturing for my mom to go.
She took the lead, and he followed, Desiree close behind. Adrian took a look at me, and hurried after her, leaving me and Jasper alone.
My eyes darted instantly to his face. His eyes sparkled in the light. I could see that something was bothering him.
I was the first to take a step, but immediately stopped when he moved towards me. His eyes grew hard and cautious. He moved closer to me, never looking away. I could feel my heart start to beat faster, and cursed myself. The smile faded as he moved.
"This isn't right…." His voice was darker than usual.
"What?" I asked, not really wanting to know.
His eyes glowed, and suddenly the smile returned to his lips. His green eyes penetrated me, and at that instant, it felt as if he could read my thoughts.
"You and your mom are--"
"JASPER! RAYA! aren't you coming?" my mom's voice called from the other room.
I looked at him. He stepped aside and gestured for me to go first. He grabbed my arm as I walked by and pulled me close to him. I could feel his breath on my hair.
"Another time then, I suppose…." He released his grip.
I continued into the kitchen, Jasper close on my heels. I took the seat closest to the wall. My mom was over by the stove cooking. It surprised me that she even knew how to cook. Usually, I was the one who did all the cooking. She had never really learned how to cook, dad always did most of that, but she had always insisted that I learn no matter what. And when he disappeared, there I was, now being the only one in the house who could cook.
I could see out of the corner of my eye, that Aidan was talking to Jasper. He kept glancing my way and grinning. His teeth were too white, like he was from a whitening ad. Jasper rose his hand slowly, and then grabbed his brother's shirt. He said something low, and by the looks of it, Aidan became afraid.
He slowly backed off of Jasper and leaned towards Desiree. She sat there, with her arms crossed, surveying the kitchen. She seemed to like what she saw, because she wasn't making any faces at the poor décor my mother had picked out.
Aidan soon became bored with her and caught my eye. He grinned sheepishly and made his way over to me, chair in hand. He sat down on the chair, his back to Jasper.
"So," he began with a sigh, "What grade are you in?"
I turned to him and smiled, "grade 11. how bout you?"
Of course I already knew the answer. I was just trying to be polite and make small talk. I glanced behind Aidan for a second. I could see that Jasper had now hunched into a pouting position, glaring into Aidan's back. It was like the look of Death, like he truly wanted his brother to die.
His eyes met mine, and at once they became kind. He smiled at me, and I couldn't help the feeling of butterflies in my stomach. I quickly moved my head to the side. My hair covered my face, and I could feel my face turning red.
"Same grade as you, actually."
I looked up at Aidan. I had forgotten that he was there at that moment. He grinned.
"Same as Desiree?" I asked. That one I didn't know.
"Nah, she's in grade 12. She'll be graduating this year."
I nodded my head. So she was the older of the siblings.
"How old are you? I know it's kind of a obvious question, but some people are younger than they appear no matter what grade they are in." he smiled.
"Seventeen. I will be eighteen in a couple of months," I smiled back, it seemed like the right thing to do, "And yourself?"
He laughed, like he was sharing an inside joke with himself, "Just turned seventeen. Jasper over there is gonna be eighteen next September and Desiree will be nineteen by June."
I could see that Jasper was now glaring more intensely at Aidan's back. His eyes were no longer their emerald color, but a deep black. He shifted uncomfortably in his chair. Not wanting to meet his eyes again and be sent into a daze, I turned my glance over to Desiree.
She was still sitting in the same position. This time though, her eyes were concentrated on me. Her gaze seemed to penetrate right through me, like she could read my mind. She wore a blank expression.
Jasper suddenly stood up and walked out of the room. We all stared after him. Aidan stood to go after him, but Desiree raised her hand in protest. He quickly sat back down and pointed his gaze right at me, along with Desiree.
I sighed and made my way to the living room where he had headed off to. When I arrived in the room, he was sitting on the sofa staring at the blank T.V. I made my way over, and sat as far away from him as possible.
"Is something wrong?" I murmered.
His eyes tore away from the T.V and looked right into mine. I could feel butterflies fluttering in my stomach. His eyes were no longer the deep black that they were in the kitchen, but the emerald green that they were when he was in a good mood.
He shook his head, "No, it's just that it's weird being around a normal family..."
"Oh. but my family is not normal...my mother can burn water and I am just about the most clumsy person you will ever meet."
He laughed, "Well, more normal than mine..."
"What do you mean by that? your family seems normal."
He leaned over towards me. His face was now just inches from mine. His gaze locked into mine as a smile played on his lips. I could feel my heart beat faster, as my face turned red. I could smell the sweet aroma coming from him. It was the smell of ginger, and something else that I didn't reconize.
"Things aren't always what they seem..." and with that he was on the other side of the couch again.
I could feel myself breathe easier now, and the color quickly drained from my face. I stared at him, wondering all the while, why he had such an effect on me.
I could hear laughter coming from the kitchen. Jasper looked in that direction and then at me.
"Shall we?" He stood.
I soon followed, noticing that he was quite a bit taller than I was. As we entered the kitchen, I could feel everyone watching us. I resumed my place over by the wall.
Mom smiled when she saw we were back and instantly handed the dog character to me. She handed the horse to Jasper and rolled the dice.
We all took turns rolling the dice to see who would play first. Of course with my luck I ended up being last to play. Aidan was first, followed by Jasper , Desiree, Terran , mom and then me.
When my turn came, I rolled the dice and landed on chance. I picked a card up and read aloud:
"Get out of jail free..." I rolled my eyes.
Aidan grabbed the dice and threw them across the table. He moved, then Jasper, then Desiree and so on. I could feel myself slipping into boredom. Glancing over at Aidan, I could see that he was having a blast. Desiree had gotten out of her quiet mopy self and looked as if she was enjoying it. Mom and Terran laughed the whole way through, but Jasper was the one who caught my eye.
He sat there in a bit of a slouch, watching me. His eyes went up and down me, like they were searching for something. He didn't seem at all interested in the game. When his eyes reached mine, he smiled, and I could feel at that moment that my face was turning red and my heart started beating faster and faster.
I tried to look away, but his gaze was mesmerizing; it held me in place, making me become weak. I didn't want him to look away, to keep me there forever.
He suddenly turned his head towards the hallway. In seconds, the doorbell rang and mom had jumped to her feet.
A few seconds later, mom came into the room holding a letter. She sat down and looked over the envelope, turning it over a couple of times. After a while, she looked up at me with worried eyes and handed it to me.
I took it and examined the document. I could feel everyone watching me, anixously waiting for me to open it. I slowly tore the top off, and lifted the folded paper inside of it. I unfolded the plain paper, and read the delicate scroll. After a second, I gasped and covered my mouth in sadness.
The paper dropped out of my hands. I had completely forgotten about earlier. Mom instantly grabbed the fallen letter and started reading outloud;
"To those who have not heard of the terrible tradgedy that occured earlier at the White Lake High School, please be informed that Mr. Cody Osment was found dead at 3:56 p.m by an annonymos young lady." She paused and looked up at Terran.
"We send our condolences out to the Osment family and to all those who were close to Cody. He will be dearly missed as he was student body president and a good friend to all those around him."
I looked over at Jasper who was quietly talking to Aidan. It looked like he was giving Aidan shit, but he was denying it. Aidan threw his arms into the air with an angry look on his face. I wanted to know what they were talking about, but their voices were to low for me to hear.
Terran reached across the table and placed an arm on my mothers shoulder. She smiled gently at him. His eyes were kind and filled with sadness and regret. Terran turned to look at me.
"Did you know him?"
I shook my head, "Ya, since kindergarten."
My eyes wandered the room till they met Jasper's. He watched me, studying my every move. His eyes were filled with regret and sadness.
The rest of the evening went by in a blur. Aidan told us all jokes, some that were even funny. After a while I had completely forgotten about Cody.
All the while Aidan had kept his eyes on me, while mine were locked with Jasper's. He never laughed, just smiled. Every once in a while he broke eye contact with me to look at Aidan, but it never lasted long.
For the first time in years, I was having fun. Real fun. Not the kind that you have when your with your friends and your out somewhere. No, it was so much better than that.
