"Stacey's mom has got it going on. She's all I want, and I've waited for so long!" I sang off-key along with my iPod dock as I cleaned my room, wondering if I sounded as horrendous as I felt every time my voice wobbled on a note.
I twirled elegantly and tried to yank up my bed sheets, hoping that it might be like a scene from a Disney movie where the sheet would float off gracefully and some cute birds would fly through the window to take it away and go wash it for me (all whilst I had a bubble bath). In reality, the sheet got caught on one of the corners of the bed, did not gracefully float at all, and no such birds flew through my opened window.
I grunted from the effort as I tugged at it painfully for a few moments; I had leant back and was throwing all my weight into trying to free the stupid piece of cotton material. It finally released from the corner unexpectedly in mid-pull, causing me to stagger back and smash my side into the corner of my desk, before falling painfully to the ground.
"Owww." I moaned whilst rubbing my hip, which was already throbbing. I lifted up my shirt and saw my skin was red; I had no doubt that a bruise would start forming within the next few minutes.
"What was that thump?" I heard mom screech from downstairs, though not sounding nearly as concerned as a parent should be after hearing an unexplained noise in their house. If anything, she sounded more curious about what could have happened.
We could be torn and out of faith and cold and ashamed and lying naked on the floor and she probably wouldn't notice.
"I dropped some sheets on the floor." I yelled back to her, slowly getting to my feet and collecting said sheet, eying it evilly the whole time.
I say we burn it. Teach it a lesson. Give 'em the old one-two.
"I didn't know sheets made noises when dropped on the floor." She called back, her voice sounding amused. She had obviously guessed what had happened, and from her tone, she was finding it hilarious.
"This one is a hybrid. Its mother was a sheet, but its father was a brick, and it got it's worse features from him. Don't speak about it too much though; it gets upset when you talk about its family." I yelled back again, still rubbing my side and death-staring the sheet.
"Please don't bother yelling back until you think of a comeback that actually makes sense please." Mom shouted, making me scowl. I could hear her laughter coming from somewhere in the house, and it made me narrow my eyes.
Dayum. But even you gotta admit that was a good one.
"Pregnancy changed you!"
Dayum. Even you gotta admit that was a bad one. Step up your game, Aria. Get ya head in the game. What team? Wildcats.
"Can both of you stop screaming? I'm sort of trying to sleep here," Jarrad yelled from his room, his voice sounding both tired and strained.
"Who's the one screaming now, genius?" I grinned triumphantly, leaning against my doorframe and looking out into the empty hallway.
When I say step up your game, I don't mean resort to stupid or childish comebacks and then smile like ax murderer who just killed several people. Gosh, you're an embarrassment to the Wildcats.
"Aria, don't yell at your brother. He was working late last night." Mom obviously likes Jared more than me, something I had always been suspicious of as we grew up… and her taking his side in this incredibly vital argument proved it.
"Maybe I would, if someone actually told me what this job is." I shouted back, fuming slightly at this obvious display of favouritism. Hadn't I always brought her the better birthday and Mother's Day presents? Why wasn't I her favourite by that default? I clearly recall buying her expensive, brand perfume and chocolates days beforehand, whilst Jared put together a bouquet of wildflowers from our backyard five minutes before we gave her the presents.
Yeah, but mothers like all that sentimental stuff… and her getting allergic reactions from the perfume you brought didn't exactly help your case.
"I've told you! Paul's told you! Security!" Jared was starting to sound more annoyed than tired. I could comprehend this; I was even annoying myself at the moment. But I felt like if I gave up, that would make mom and Jared victorious and I would have to go back to cleaning my room – a task I was trying to put off for as long as I possibly could.
Why though? We were having oh-so-much fun breaking our bones because we were pretending we were in a Disney movie with Stacey's Mom as the soundtrack.
"La Push doesn't even need security-ing! I haven't even seen anyone J-walk here before. God!" I would win this argument; maybe I wouldn't be the favourite child, but I sure as hell would be the smartest.
"Aria, security-ing is not a word. I am going to be very disappointed if I find out that I have paid for over a decade of education and you do not even understand the basic concepts of the English language." Mom had definitely boarded the Anti-Aria Express train this morning…
There goes the plan of being the smartest child.
"I am very edumacated." I tripped over my words, scowling when I realised I was literally proving my mother's point.
"Do you know how many children in less fortunate countries I could have sponsored instead of wasting money on bothering to giving you an education?"
I swear my mother's only goal in life was to have as many children as she could – even if over half of them weren't hers.
"I don't need an education, anyway! My goal in life is to run a lemonade stand in Greece."
Such a fine goal in life, a damn fine goal indeed… for someone who wants to end up homeless or in a metal asylum, that is. The hell is wrong with you? My lip jutted out as I realised that my inner voice had also found the station where to board the Anti-Aria Express.
"I hardly think you're allowed to question my job if your main ambition is to end up as a crazy cat lady who runs a stupid lemon stand." Jared called out, sounding amused.
"LemonADE stand, Jared! Not a lemon stand! Who would just sell lemons? How stupid are you? Seriously?" I. Would. Win. This. Argument. I didn't care how illogical my side of this argument was.
"Don't call your brother stupid, Aria. He's not the one who thinks security-ing is a word."
You're right on one point: there's obvious favouritism right there. Not that I blame her, though.
"He called me a crazy cat lady! And now you've basically implied I'm the idiot. That's a good joke, mom." I waved my hands wildly in the air as I tried to express what I was saying, whacking myself across the face with the sheet that I was still holding in the process of doing so.
"Your life is a joke – not even a good one, either." Jared was really starting to get on my nerves. Didn't he know this was a private conversation?
"You're a joke!"
"Aria, don't call your brother a joke. It's offensive and disrespec-"
"ALL OF YOU JUST SHUT UP, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD." I jumped slightly when I heard my dad's voice. If you knew him, you would understand my surprise at his unusually loud voice and annoyed tone. He had always been a very quiet, mild-mannered person, so when he even raised his voice slightly you knew he was almost at boiling point.
And when he was at boiling point, you knew better than to argue back if you valued your life.
I frowned, knowing that I now had no excuse to not finish cleaning my room. Dropping the sheets into my laundry basket, I glared at them for a moment. First they gave me a bruise, and then they started an unnecessary screaming match, which I happened to lose.
Back to singing 'Stacey's Mom' and practicing our dance moves for when we audition for So You Think You Can Dance.
Distantly I heard the doorbell echo along the house, and almost immediately I heard mom's familiar screech of "I'll get it!", obviously ignoring my dad's wishes for all of us to 'shut-up'.
"Bridgette." I heard my dad say warningly to her, although I knew that he would be smiling as he said it. My dad could never stay mad when it came to my mom, although everyone else was a different story.
I still couldn't believe sometimes that my dad had stuck with my mum not only through her pregnancy when they were 17, but for over 17 more years. It made me happy though; their stories had always reminded me of a backwards, modern day fairytale.
Dad had been that shy, geeky type who was unable to hurt a fly – not just because he didn't want to, but because he physically wasn't that strong at all. Mom had been that pretty and rebellious girl that boys had fawned over. One day, she had come across some boys picking on dad up over his intense love for physics and chemistry and every other science known to man. Mom had swooped in and rescued him, as if she were Prince Charming and he was the damsel in distress. Dad must have done something right though, because despite their differences, they had ended up together and stayed that way.
Now that should be a Disney movie.
"Aria?" My head snapped up at my mother's voice. I hadn't realised that I'd been staring at my washing basket the whole time. "There's, uh, someone here for you."
I was immediately suspicious of her tone, because I found I couldn't place it. As I walked down the hallway, I couldn't help but wonder who it could be. Kim was going to an important conference brunch with her two workaholic parents, and to be brutally honest, I didn't really have any other close friends anymore.
The thought that it might be Paul struck me just as I reached the stairs. I froze and breathed in sharply; that would explain why my mom had sounded so strange when she called for me.
I found myself having a slight panic attack at the thought that Paul could be waiting for me. I hadn't spoken to him since I had practically slammed his car door in his face, and as far as I knew, he had made no attempts to contact me either. Although if he had tried to contact me, I most probably wouldn't have responded; I was still annoyed that he was hiding something from me.
You have got to work on getting over grudges. No wonder you have no friends.
Scolding myself for being such a coward, I continued walking to the top of the stairs and peered down.
Looking rather awkward standing with my parents and waiting for me wasn't Paul, but instead…
"Lucas!" I screeched loudly, a huge smile stretched across my face. I raced down the stairs toward him, with my arms flung wide open. Lucas grinned at me, also stretching his arms out, probably expecting a hug.
When I reached him, I neatly avoided his arms, and, still smiling, slapped him cleanly across the face. My parent's mouths dropped open simultaneously as Lucas's head snapped to the side.
"What the hell was that for?" He demanded angrily, glaring down at me as he rubbed his cheek, which was already turning red.
"I have no sympathy for bailers." I told him gravely, reminding him of how he had left me to face Jared's wrath alone after I had gotten the tattoo. He had the decency to hang his head sheepishly and look guilty, which made me smile again. "Now that that's out of my system… give me a hug!" I wrapped my arms around him happily. Whenever Lucas was around, my mood seemed to go right up.
Lucas returned the hug with one arm, his other still rubbing his face. "Sir, have you ever considered that your daughter may possibly be on bath salts, or some other odd substance?" I heard Lucas ask my dad over my shoulder, causing me to snap out of the hug and glare at him.
My parents, however, found this hilarious. My dad grinned at Lucas, causing his crow's feet by his eyes to become more predominant. "I like you," my dad chuckled, in his usual quiet way. "And to be honest… it has crossed my mind before."
I frowned, not being able to decide to be happy that my dad approved of Lucas, or annoyed that his reason of liking him was at my expense.
"Yeah, whatever," I mumbled, grabbing Lucas's hand and pulling him toward the stairs. "We're going in my room, ok?" I called back to my parents, glancing over my shoulder. "And don't worry, I'll leave the door open, yada, yada, yada."
Mom and dad murmured some incoherent words, obviously not caring about my consideration with the door-thing.
"What are you doing here?" I questioned as we walked down the hall on the second floor, my eyebrow raised at him.
"I had nothing to do and wanted to hang out with someone. I realised I hadn't seen you in ages, so I decided to check if you were here." Lucas then put a hand over his heart and feigned hurt. "Why? You don't want me here?"
I rolled my eyes and ushered him into my room. "Of course I do; I was simply wondering. I haven't seen you since you ditched me, after all," I glared at him.
He shifted uncomfortably. "Yeah, about that… I'm so sorry. I just… I just don't do the whole arguing thing, you know? It looked like things were going to get messy, and I don't like to be around fighting or violence or any of that stuff. It freaks me out. I panicked when I heard the yelling, and just ran." He looked up at me, his mouth twisted downwards. "Forgive me?"
My annoyance was now replaced with curiosity. Why didn't Lucas like being around arguing and fighting? Looking back to that day, I now remember how reluctant he had been to even go into the house when we had first heard the yelling. There was a story behind this, I knew it. But I could feel he wasn't ready to share and I wouldn't push him. I knew what it felt like to have people to try and push you into telling them things.
"Of course," I smiled, letting it pass.
For now.
. . .
I zoomed around my room in an attempt to finish cleaning it. Lucas was slouched in my desk chair, his eyes narrowed in concentration as his long fingers twisted a Rubiks Cube.
Sighing, I looked around the room at my progress so far; I had gotten some chores done but I was a long way off of finishing. I looked over at Lucas, resenting him for not doing anything except playing with that damn cube. We had been making conversation as I cleaned, catching up on what had happened in the weeks since we'd seen each other. He'd found my stories about how I freaked out when my mom had gone into labour particularly funny.
"You could help a bit, you know." I jutted out my hip and crossed my arms, pouting at him.
"Babe, if I was supposed to do domestic work… God would have made me a woman." Lucas grinned and looked up at me, still working on the Rubiks Cube.
Did… did he just say that?
My mouth dropped open and my eyes narrowed dangerously. "Well, maybe you ought to take another look into the mirror, babe, because I sure don't see any men around here."
"Really?" Lucas furrowed his eyebrows, pulling out the waistband of his jeans and looking down. My jaw somehow dropped even further, and I immediately felt my cheeks grow hot, especially when Lucas looked up and grinned arrogantly at me. "Because I'm pretty sure I am 100% man," he told me smugly, letting the elastic snap back into place as he looked back down at the Rubiks Cube.
I couldn't help but laugh at his crudeness, shaking my head softly. "You really are a piece of work, aren't you?"
"I think I'm going to vomit."
I spun around to see Jared standing at the door with a sour look on his face. His hair was sticking up messily and he had bags under his eyes, but he looked alert as looked between me and Lucas, frowning deeply.
I felt my mouth go dry at once. Even though mom and dad knew Lucas was here and we weren't doing anything (Lucas was playing with a freaking Rubrics Cube, for God's sake), I still couldn't help feel guilty when Jared looked at me.
"Uh, this is my friend," I said softly, looking at the ground. Jared's gaze looked slightly accusatory, and I found I couldn't meet his eyes. The boring pattern on my carpet that I saw everyday suddenly became very interesting.
I could feel Jared's eyes still on me as he talked to Lucas. "You look familiar," he stated bluntly.
"Well, that was probably because he was there at the Diner that time. Remember when Embry started freaking out?" I fidgeted uncomfortably, not liking the way Jared was frowning at Lucas. "And he also carried me into the house that time after I got the tattoo… remember, Jared?"
Jared shook his head defiantly, his eyes narrowed. "No, that's not it."
Lucas shot me an odd look before turning back to Jared and offering out his hand. "I'm Lucas." He grinned crookedly at Jared, obviously trying to diffuse some of the awkwardness. "Just so you won't know me as 'that-guy-who-corrupted-my-sister-and-let-her-get- a-tattoo'." He laughed, and I chuckled nervously next to him.
You sound like a seal with asthma.
Jared didn't appear to notice Lucas's joke; his face was suddenly frozen in recognition. "You're Lucas Carter, aren't you?" He asked cautiously, almost sounding like he hoped that he was mistaken.
Lucas tilted his head slightly, looking confused. "Yeah, that's me. Have we met before? I'm not that good with faces."
"I'll bet you aren't." Jared suddenly snarled, a dark cloud shadowing over his face. I took a step back in alarm at his sudden change in mood. Lucas looked slightly panicked as well, his easy-going smile gone.
"Listen, dude, I -"
"Get out of my house right now, before I chuck you out myself." Jared interrupted him, giving him a look so deadly that Lucas immediately began backing toward the hallway.
He's running away again. Doesn't have much of a spine, does he?
"Alright, alright," he tried to say soothingly, his hands held up in surrender. "I'm leaving." Lucas's eyes flickered to me, and he looked concerned. "You'll be ok, yeah?" He asked me weakly, and I nodded to show him he didn't need to worry.
"Okay," Lucas murmured, his eyes flickering between me and Jared, who looked like he might attack him at any second. "See you later, Aria." Lucas literally bolted from the room, and I immediately rounded on Jared.
"What the hell was that about?" Jared glared down at me as I yelled in his face, his fists clenched at his sides.
"What the hell was that about?" Jared mimicked roughly. "Do you know who Lucas Carter really is? Do you, Aria? Do you?"
"What kind of riddle-talk is that?" My voice was slowly getting louder and louder. "Do you know who Lucas Carter really is? Do you, Aria? Do you?" I was the one mimicking now, and from the looks of it, Jared didn't find it very amusing.
"He's a bad person, Aria." Jared said loudly, looking straight into my eyes. "He's done bad things Like, real bad things. Like, he should be in jail bad things."
I felt my heart drop. "You're lying," I quickly said, shaking my head. "Lucas isn't like that."
"Really?" Jared raised an eyebrow, almost looking like he felt sorry for me. "But do you really know Lucas, Aria? You didn't meet him that long ago, did you? And it's not like you're the gossip-type, so you don't see or hear the things he does, do you?"
"Even if what you're saying is true, he hasn't acted in any way that would make me think bad of him," I defended. I felt like I couldn't stop being friends with Lucas if I tried.
Jared gritted his teeth in annoyance and looked like he was about ready to strangle me. "Just promise me you won't go near him?"
"What? No!" I spluttered, my fists clenching. Who was Jared to tell me not to speak to Lucas? Although Jared and I had become closer lately, Lucas was perhaps my closest confidant. I couldn't lose him, especially after how he'd been there for me.
"Aria," Jared groaned loudly, "you don't know him like I do, trust me."
My nostrils flared, and my eyes narrowed. "I don't know Lucas? I beg to differ. It was you who didn't even know his name until he told you, after all."
Jared frowned and stepped forward, gripping my shoulders and looking at me intently. "Lucas Carter is bad news, Aria. Real bad news. I know you don't think I know him, but I do. I've known him for longer than you have, and –"
"You know of him, you don't know him." I interrupted stubbornly, jutting my chin out. "There is a difference, Jared."
Jared returned my glare. "Well, you know what they say. You think you know someone, but you could be wrong. Take Paul for example; you thought you knew him before. You thought he was arrogant, you thought he was a bad person, but now that you properly know him, you can't say that he is any of those things, could you?"
"What the hell does Paul have to do with anything?" I said furiously, annoyed that his point was actually logical and made sense. But nonetheless, he was trying to make Paul seem like a saint, when he was clearly bias and Paul was certainly nowhere close.
"Everything!" Jared scowled and let me go. I blinked in confusion at his statement.
So much for that logical argument.
"What is that supposed to mean?" I demanded suspiciously, watching Jared as he buried his head in his hands.
"Nothing," he replied, his voice muffled. "Nothing at all." He looked up and stared at me in obvious disappointment. I immediately started to feel guilty.
Jared was always good with guilt tripping. How else would he always manage to get more cookies from the lunch ladies and be 'star of the week' three weeks out of four in preschool each month?
"Nothing at all," he repeated again, still looking at me in a way that made me feel even more ashamed. "Just… please, Aria. Please say that you'll try to keep your distance from Carter. Just trust me… he's dangerous, and bad news. He's done things that you wouldn't believe, like the time he…" Jared trailed off, whilst I listened curiously.
What was he talking about? What had Lucas done? "Never mind." He shook his head, continuing, "just… for the first time in your life, trust me. Please, Aria."
I felt like I had been backed into a corner. Jared looked so sad and desperate that I knew already I wouldn't be able to say no to him.
But I couldn't lose Lucas.
Lucas was one of the only stable things in my life that I had left. He was like my rock. My funny, sweet rock who was crude and childish and inappropriate and stole Rubiks Cubes from my desk and made me forget about everything when I was talking to him.
But I couldn't let Jared down. Not with him looking at me like that.
So, I did the only thing I felt like I could do… I lied.
"Fine. I promise."
. . .
I frowned at the ceiling from my position on my bedroom floor. I felt guilty for lying to Jared, but what else could I do? Lucas was already one of my closest friends, despite how little we saw each other.
I couldn't lie that what Jared told me about Lucas was unnerving, but he'd never tried to pull any of that on me. And who's to say that all those rumours about him were true?
Who are you trying to convince there?
A loud knock interrupted my thoughts and made me jump. I turned my head to the side to see who was waiting at my door, and instantly scowled.
"Oh. It's you." I say dully, although my heart seemed to be beating faster for some unknown reason. I tried to slow it down whilst turning my head back toward my ceiling.
"Do I have permission to come in?" He asked, sounding hesitant.
"No." I replied quickly, my eyes not moving from the white ceiling. "Please leave and feel free to grab a complimentary mint on your way out."
Mother would be proud of you for being so polite and good-mannered.
I held my breath for a few seconds, biting my lip. I waited to hear retreating footsteps, but instead felt someone slowly lie down next to me on the floor. My head shot to the side and I glared at him, but he ignored me and got comfortable so that he could also look at the ceiling. His arm brushed against mine, and I yanked mine back as tingles shot up and down my arm.
"What do you think you're doing?" I snapped, folding my arms across my stomach (and far away from his).
The corner of his mouth tugs up, and I wanted to hit myself when I found my own mouth starting to move upwards, too. "Lying." He finally answered, putting his arm behind his head. I tried to ignore how good his bicep looked when he did that.
"Can't you lie somewhere else? Maybe not next to me? Maybe not in my room? Maybe not in my house? Hmm?" Looking over at his face again, I saw a familiar smirk.
"Maybe I want to lie in your house, in your room, next to you," is all he says, his eyes still unmoving from the ceiling.
"Well, what if I don't want you here?" I asked harshly.
For the first time since he'd arrived, his smile leaves. "We can't always get what we want," he murmured, a frown flickering across his face.
I got the nagging feeling that we're having two different conservations.
"Considering it's my house we're in, I'm pretty sure this is a situation where I can get what I want," I reasoned, trying to dismiss my previous thought.
He chuckled softly, causing my heart rate to speed up once again. "I'll admit you have a point." He turned suddenly, and looked at me properly for the first time. I found myself getting slightly lightheaded. "But I'm not leaving," he continued.
Once again, I felt like he was talking about something different all together.
I snapped out of my daze and scowl at him. "Paul," I warned.
Paul grinned again, still looking at me. "Aria," he mimics in a high pitched voice, causing me to frown even more.
This boy is gonna be the reason you get frown wrinkles before you reach 18.
"Leave." I commanded, keeping my gaze steady. "Now."
"Do you really want me to leave, Aria?" He asked, looking into my eyes.
I didn't. I really didn't. But I was still angry at how he treated me in the car, and I didn't want to let him off that easy.
"Leave." I repeated. "Now."
"You didn't say please," Paul gave me another grin, before turning his gaze back to the ceiling.
"It's my house; I can choose to say what I want," I reminded him sourly. "And I choose to not say please."
I take it back. Mother would not be proud of you for being so rude and bad-mannered.
Paul laughed, and I could almost feel the deep sound vibrate in my own chest.
"Fine," he replied, still chuckling. "I'll say please then. Aria Ainsley Cameron, will you please grant me, Paul Alen Lahote, permission to stay?" Paul grinned crookedly at me, his eyes crinkling in amusement. My breath got caught in my throat for a second, and I quickly looked away from him.
Go on, let him stay Aria. Come on, say yes. He won't do any harm… and you'll be able to stare at him all day! Win-win, right?
"Okay, you can stay." I allowed. "On one condition, though... you give me an explanation on what happened with you and Jacob."
Paul's grin disappeared and he fidgets nervously for a while. "Pick another condition," he says finally.
"You didn't say please," I mockede in disgust, mimicking his earlier words. "And no. You either tell me or you can leave… your call."
It's silent for a few minutes. Paul's forehead was wrinkled, and he opened and closed his mouth every now and again, as if he wanted to say something but didn't know how. I watched him steadily, waiting for a reply. I had been serious with my words; he needed to tell me or leave.
"I am sorry about how I acted," he slowly tells me, his eyes flickering to mine. "I… I shouldn't have been rude and so… harsh about the whole thing. I'm sorry."
My eyebrows draw together in confusion. "I didn't ask for an apology, Paul. I asked for an explanation. Are you trying to distract me?" I scolded, suddenly furious at him.
His eyes widened slightly, and I know I'd hit the nail on the head. "No!" He denied quickly. I rose an eyebrow at him and he nervously ran a hand through his hair. "Okay, maybe," he amends. "But I also owed you an apology, anyway. Didn't you want an apology?"
"Yes, the apology was nice. I'm glad I didn't have to ask for it first." I acknowledged. "But I also think you just tried to distract me again, yeah?" Paul lowered his eyes sheepishly and his forehead crinkled again. "So are you going to tell me?"
"I just told you that I'm sorry." Paul stressed, frowning deeply. "What else do you want me to say, Aria?" I was more than a bit shocked at his sudden mood swing. He'd been pleasant and relaxed the whole time he's been here (which was shocking itself), but he was now suddenly sounding like he was irritated with my questions.
I turned my head to look at him, only to find him staring at me intently. I bit my lip, studying his light brown eyes. He really did have nice eyes… the colour reminding me of caramel.
He has caramel eyes, you like caramel ice cream sundaes – it's obviously meant to be.
"You're supposed to say why you were rude in the first place." I reminded him pointedly, looking away so I didn't get too distracted by his eyes.
His jaw clenched as he closes his eyes and exhales loudly through his nose. "I can't say." He stressed again, his eyes still closed. I narrowed my own eyes; the amount of times he'd told me that he couldn't tell me something was becoming uncountable.
"You can't, or you won't?" I challenged, looking at his face closely.
"Did I stutter?" Paul replied snappishly. "When I say I can't, I mean I can't."
Taken back at his tone, but determined not to be discouraged by it, I continued to verbally attack him. "Don't talk like that to me; we are still in my house after all," I snapped back at him. "I was just asking, considering it seems like your answer is 'I can't tell you' to every question I ask you."
Paul's eyes shot open during my rant, his forehead still creased. I found myself glaring at him whilst he just stared silently. For the first time, I noticed just how close his face was to mine. I sucked in a quick breath, and instantly began looking for ways to distract myself from that fact.
"Well?" I demanded, still glaring. "Are you going to say anything?"
"You're not what I expected you to be like." He finally says, unexpectedly. My eyebrows rose and my mouth dropped slightly, wondering what he meant by that comment. Paul smiled at my reaction and, if possible, his face moves closer to mine.
"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, feeling more than a little offended. I didn't move away, though. It felt like I was frozen. "And what does that have to do with anything?"
Paul looked at me carefully. "It doesn't have to do with anything. It was just an observation on my part. And what I meant by it was that when I first began getting to know you properly, I expected you to be… just different, I guess. Quieter, uncertain, more… reserved. Less brave. I didn't expect you to be stubborn and so outspoken." I wasn't sure if this was meant to be taken as an insult or a compliment, but I find I can't think too much into it because Paul seemed to be moving even closer.
"Well, uh," I stuttered, sounding feeble as Paul's face got closer and closer. "You know... what they say about, uh, expectations."
"No, what do they say?" Paul asked softly.
I turned my head away, frowning. "You either live up to them or you don't."
"You exceeded mine." My eyes snapped back to Paul's face again. I giggled nervously, my eyes flickering from feature to feature on Paul's face. We were so close that I'd probably gone cross-eyed from the proximity, which definitely wasn't a good look.
Paul chuckled in response to my reaction and I felt his breath on my face. Surprisingly, his breath actually smelt really good, like spearmint gum.
I wasn't sure how we went from arguing to… whatever this was… in such a short time span. What I was sure of, however, was that Paul was leaning in toward me.
In fact, he was leaning in so closely that it was almost like he was going to kiss me, or something. My eyes were now flickering so fast across his face that I probably looked like I was having a seizure. My heart started racing and my mouth felt dry.
"P-Paul?" I say tentatively, trying to clear my throat. "Wh…what are you doing?"
Paul seemed to snap out of something and jerked away from me. I felt strangely sad when he sat up from the floor. I sat up as well, but he's already getting up and edging toward the door.
"I have to go. I just remembered I have to do something," Paul told me hurriedly, his eyes not meeting mine. "Bye, Aria."
"Oh… okay. Goodbye Paul," I quietly say back, but he's already out of my room. I sat motionless on the floor, listening to him walk down the hallway. Resting my face in my hands, I tried to gather my thoughts on what just happened.
What had just happened? The events of the last few minutes just seemed like a blur now
.
So… back to cleaning?
"Why did Paul just bump into me whilst sprinting down your staircase?" My head shot up quickly toward the new voice.
Kim was standing at the doorway of my room, with a pizza box in her hand and a confused expression on her face.
I force a smile at her. "I'm not sure… he must have been over to talk to Jared. Sit." I patted the floor next to me, where Paul had been the minute before.
Kim didn't question me and plonks down, placing the pizza box on the floor. "Really? I thought Jared would have told me," she murmured, still looking confused.
"Why would Jared have told you that Paul was coming over?" I asked. "Just how close are you guys, anyway?"
"Oh," Kim looked down, her face beginning to go red. "Um, well, we aren't really... we're just, uh… erm… yeah…"
My attention was drawn from Kim's blabbering to the pizza box in front of us. I know it sounds bad; I'm meant to be her friend and listening to her, but I'm hungry. Imagine not eating all day (not to mention when you're having the sort of day I'm having), and then having someone bring a pizza into your room.
The smell itself is killing me.
"That's great." I interrupted Kim in the middle of her sentence. "Erm, sorry, but is there a reason you brought a pizza with you?" My eyes don't stray from the box the whole time that I spoke.
Kim chuckles, sounding strangely relieved. "That brunch I went to with my parents was absolutely horrible. They were eating things like caviar and liver, and all this other posh food. I hid in the restroom most of the time to avoid eating anything." She paused to shudder. "Long story short: I nibbled on stale bread rolls whilst everyone talked business, only speaking on occasion when someone spoke about how tall I had gotten." I snorted at this; Kim had the notorious genes that Lexi had suffered from… meaning they were both midgets. Kim mock-glared at me, before continuing, "Anyway, I was absolutely starving when we left."
"So you brought a pizza and came to share it with your best friend?" I asked, grinning at her. When she nodded at me, I wasted no time in pushing open the lid and all but launching for a slice. "Kimberly, I love the way you think."
Kim giggled and reaches for her own slice. We talk about trivial stuff for a few minutes until Kim interrupts. "So, are you going to tell me the real reason Paul was running down your stairs?" She questioned, taking another bite of pizza.
My own mouthful of pizza gets caught painfully in my throat at the unexpected question. "What?" I choked out, my eyes watering slightly.
Kim rolled her eyes. "I'm not stupid. Jared told me that he was going to be catching up on sleep today and that he wasn't going to talk to anyone. He would have warned Paul not to come today, which means the only other person Paul would have been visiting is you."
I wanted to ask her why Jared had told her all that stuff, but I knew that Kim would take this as me trying to change the subject.
And she's right.
"Fine. He came to see me, although I have no idea why."
Kim's eyebrows furrowed. "Then why did you say you didn't know why he was here then?"
I picked at a loose thread on the carpet. "Because."
"Because?" Kim prompted.
"Because something weird happened," I finally say, pulling the thread.
"Which was…?"
"I don't know," I answered truthfully. "One second I was lying on my floor, contemplating the meaning of life, and then he comes in and lies next to me."
"Just like that? Why?"
"I don't know, Kim," I groaned, running my hand through my hair. "But then we started arguing - as usual - and then we were laughing, and then…"
"And then?" Kim leaned forward, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.
"I… I don't know," I admitted. "He just got really close to my face and I went cross eyed and I was like, 'Paul, what are you doing?', and then he just got up and left."
Kim didn't look surprised as she leant back. "You mean it was like he was going to kiss you?"
My eyebrows furrowed as I repeated my new catchphrase. "I don't know. It sort of seemed like it, I guess, but he couldn't have been doing that."
"Why not?"
I sighed and chewed my lip. "Because. Because we're friends. Friends who only became friends a little while ago. And before that, we hated each other."
"What does that have to do with anything?" Kim looked way too amused for my liking.
She definitely knows something.
"It has to do with everything!" I complained. "It means that he couldn't have been doing that. He's only my friend. I must have misread the whole situation wrong and freaked him out."
"Maybe," was all Kim says in reply.
"Maybe?" I repeated incredulously.
"Maybe you should talk to him about it," Kim abruptly says, changing the topic.
I snorted, shaking my head. "Maybe not."
"Why not?"
"I'm not really the confronting type, Kim, if you couldn't tell." I told her, literally shoving another slice of pizza in my mouth.
Where has she been the last couple of years? Doesn't she remember how you never stood up to yourself against Paul?
"You have to talk to him about it sometime, Aria," she tried to tell me reasonably. She picked at her own slice of pizza, making me feel like a pig.
"Why?" I demanded, easing up on the pizza. "Why can't we both pretend nothing happened and leave it at that?"
Kim sighed softly and shook her head. "These things don't work like that. It'll probably be awkward between you two if you don't sort it out. Just go find him and talk to him," she encouraged, smiling at me.
I frowned, putting down the remaining pizza back into the box. "What am I supposed to say to him, Kim?" I say softly, my voice breaking. "I have no experience with this sort of thing. How am I supposed to start? What if he didn't think anything of it, and then I just make it awkward by talking to him?"
"You're over thinking this, Aria," Kim laughed. "Just ask him about it, straight out. It'll only get awkward if you decide to make it awkward."
I looked at her suspiciously. "Who are you and what have you done with Kim Conweller?"
Kim shook her head again and laughed loudly. "She's tied up and under the bed," she joked, eyes shining. "Now… go to talk to Paul this instant and don't come back until you do."
"Now?" I asked, bewildered.
"Now," Kim confirmed, picking up the pizza box and standing up.
"Why now?" I whined, sprawling out on my floor.
"Because the sooner you get this sorted out, the better you'll feel," she explained reasonably, before her voice turned serious. "Now go."
"I don't know where he lives," I say desperately, trying my hardest to put this off.
Kim rolled her eyes. "It's La Push. It's impossible not to know where everyone lives. And I'm sure Jared or your mom would tell you, if you still insist you don't know."
I blinked, knowing she has me beat. "Fine, mother." Kim gave me a look that could have killed, and I flinched in response.
She would make an amazing teacher… or librarian… or army General…
"But as soon as I get back, you're telling me what you're hiding," I told her, laughing at her shocked expression. "Oh, Kimmy. Don't look so surprised. Surely you didn't think you were the only one who could tell when the other is hiding something? There was another reason you came over here with pizza, and I'm going to find out what."
Still laughing at her surprised and sheepish expression, I walked out of my room to try to find mom so that she could tell me where Paul lived.
. . .
My mom had been surprised when I had asked about Paul's house, but I quickly reminded her of the history project we were working on together, even though that assignment had been handed up weeks ago.
I sighed, shoving my hands in my pockets and gazing at his house. It's nice; a bit dull, but nice nonetheless. I kicked at a loose pebble from the driveway with my shoe, a frown playing on my face. I still didn't know whether or not to go through with this. Talking out things had never been a strong point of mine; I preferred to keep my thoughts private, and didn't fancy hearing other people chatter on about their own problems when I had plenty myself.
You'd make a great agony aunt then, wouldn't you?
I shifted from foot to foot, trying to weigh how worth it this visit would be. There was still time to leave and make a run for it, but I could only imagine Kim's reaction when she found out I didn't talk to Paul.
Unfortunately, fate chose my decision for me when I heard a twig snap on my far left. I span around, heart racing, only to see a grinning Paul appearing from the edge of the forest.
Did you also mention he was shirtless?
He spotted me and freezes mid-stride. "Aria?" He called out uncertainly, almost sounding like he was somehow hoping it wasn't me. He squinted his eyes at me and scratched at his chest in a nervous manner.
"Uh… erm…" I spluttered, trying to force myself to look away from his abdominal area - but failing miserably. I was instantly reminded of the night him and Jared broke into my house, where they were also missing shirts. In my daze, I vaguely registered that he had a small birthmark shaped as a triangle near his shoulder.
"You, uh, do know it's like, close to Antarctica freezing out here?" I finally managed to say, sounding as pathetic as I felt.
A smile tugged at the corner of Paul's mouth as he shrugged, obviously over the initial shock of seeing me waiting outside his house. "I can't help it if I'm hot," he says cockily, walking toward me. Although he seemed relaxed now, I noticed his eyes constantly flickering toward the forest.
"I'm sure," I replied dryly, determined to stand my ground although my heart seemed to beat faster with each step he took toward me. "At least your modesty is still in check, I see."
"Modesty?" Paul cocked his head to the side, smiling mischievously. "I don't believe I ever heard of that word before. What is it?" He came to a stop in front of me, and I felt the familiar heat Paul's body seemed to constantly radiate. I wasn't entirely joking about the Antarctica joke – it was freezing, but I guessed he wasn't joking about the hot thing, either.
Well, der. Have you seen them abs? Have you seen them? They could belong to Adonis.
Rolling my eyes, I managed to murmur something along the lines of "very funny" in response to his comment, trying not to let a smile slip through at his playful antics.
I was surprised at how he was acting; it's a massive contrast to when I last saw him. He'd been so eager to get away from me that he'd sprinted down my staircase. Maybe I was wrong to come here and talk to him… what if he really didn't mean anything and I misread the conversation? This would just make it awkward.
That's it; I was leaving, with my dignity still intact.
What dignity? You have a voice in your head and, what's more, you actually listen to it.
"So, why are you here?" Paul asked me, not knowing that he just ruined my plan. "Not that I mind you being here, of course." He continued quickly. "I like seeing you."
I ignored his last comment and opened my mouth to make up a lie about delivering a message from Jared, or to say that I was selling Girl Scout cookies, or something, but my brain had another idea. "Why were you running down my stairs?"
"What?" Paul asks loudly, looking bewildered.
I blushed, looking down at the ground. "I mean, Kim told me she bumped into you on the staircase. She also mentioned that you were running rather fast."
Paul cursed under his breath. "I told you I forgot something. I was in a rush to get back," he explains, not making eye contact.
I breathed in sharply, reading his body language. "I think you're lying, Paul. Why were you running? Why did you leave so suddenly? What happened between us in my room?" The questions were tumbling out of my mouth now, and there was no stopping them. "And don't say nothing happened, because something did."
Paul didn't meet my eyes for a while. When he finally speaks, his words made my blood boil. "What are you talking about, Aria?"
I glared at him and he flinches, but I was so angry that I didn't have any time to feel satisfied by that fact. "You know what, Paul?" I start, knowing that yet another argument was going to occur. "Fine. Don't tell me. Pretend you have no idea what I'm talking about." I started to back away from him, deciding that it was time to leave before I did something I would regret.
"Aria…" Paul started to walk toward me again.
"And you know what else?" There was no filter anymore; I'm just going to say exactly what is on mind. "You can also stop pretending you know me. Go back to what you used to think of me. What was it again? Quiet? Less brave?" I taunted, throwing the words he had said to me back into his face.
"Aria," Paul tried again, his face displaying shock and annoyance.
"Of course you would think that I am just a quiet and scared little girl," I raged, still furious at him. "That's all you ever saw me as when you used to shove my head against the lockers."
"Key words being used to." Paul finally was able to get a word in, and he looked just as furious as I was. I just glared at him, and Paul let out a groan. He rubbed his hand down his face, scowling. "And I've told you a million times how sorry I was for that, Aria! I will always regret what I did to you, okay? There will never be a day I won't hate myself for what I did. But... but I thought that you were going to give me a second chance. I know I don't deserve any more chances, but I'm selfish enough to take whatever I can get, to be honest. But if I knew that having another chance meant you bringing up who I used to be and shoving it in my face every other second, then maybe I shouldn't have bothered."
Hurt pangs in my chest with his last few words, but I tried to hide how I felt. "Why do you even still bother with me then? Huh?" I was yelling at him now.
"Because you're worth it," he yelled back, although his voice softened at the end.
"You didn't always think I was worth it though, did you?" I shot back, even though his words gave me butterflies.
"I always did!" Paul said, grabbing my shoulders. I looked at him through wide eyes, and he sighs. "I always did," he says again, sounding defeated. Paul let go of me and ran his hand across his face again, shaking his head.
"What are you talking about?" I meant for my words to come across as angry - suspicious even - but my voice sounded weak.
Paul looks conflicted for a moment, before his face became decisive. He leant in and took my hands in his, which surprised me so much that I didn't even think about pulling away. "I always thought you were worth it," he tells me sincerely, looking into my eyes. "Do you remember Miss Ailah's class?"
"You mean back in elementary?" I was feeling slightly dazed. "When we were like, five-years-old?"
Paul nodded, smiling slightly. "Yeah. Well, back then, I had a massive crush on this girl." For some reason, I felt a little annoyed at this fact, although this was well over a decade ago. "And she didn't notice me at all," Paul chuckled, even though he looks like he didn't find it funny. "So I used to try to get her attention by, well, picking on the other kids."
"Why?" I blurt out, bewildered. I remembered how Paul used to be back in elementary days… how he always used to push kids off the playground, ruin other student's projects, or brag about the lunch money he took from someone.
He shook his head, still chuckling humourlessly. "I don't even know. I guess I thought that if I showed this girl that I was stronger than everyone else and that I could get whatever I wanted, she'd be interested in me." Seeing my sceptical look, he gave me a genuine smile. "It didn't work, of course. I'm still not sure if she genuinely didn't notice what I was doing, or if she just didn't want anything to do with me. Probably the last one, though." I smiled with him now, still very much aware of hot hands holding mine.
"So I had a crush on a girl for all of elementary, and I had yet to have a conversation with her. When we reached high school though, I thought of a new plan. She had a brother, you see," Paul was looking at me carefully. "And she loved him very much. She didn't really converse with anyone as much as she would with her brother."
A sinking feeling was appearing in my stomach.
"And I thought that if I became friends with her brother, then I would have a gateway to her," Paul explained. "If I became friends with her brother, I would become friends with her, and eventually, something more."
The sinking feeling was becoming more predominant and my mouth had gone dry.
"But it didn't work, of course. Once again, I'm not sure if she didn't notice me or if she just didn't want to. It hurt me, you know. So one day, when she was nearby, I decided to go for that last ditch effort. She was taking something out of her locker, and there was a small girl in our year nearby." He was looking at me so intently now, but I couldn't focus. This story was sounding familiar – a bit too familiar. I wanted to think that I was jumping to the wrong conclusion; that he would suddenly say that he had a crush on, say, Kylie James… but it didn't seem to be going in that direction.
"So, I went up to the small girl and did the usual. Pushed her, called her names, all of that." It looked like Paul was forcing out his words now. "And then the girl came over, and I was so happy. All of these years trying to get her attention was suddenly becoming worth it. I waited for her to say something to me, but she didn't."
My heart started racing. He couldn't be talking about who I think he was talking about. I wanted to ask him, but I felt like I couldn't talk.
"I think you know where I'm going with this," Paul sighed. "She punched me, nothing I didn't deserve. But I felt so... hurt and humiliated… that I started doing things to her that I hate myself for today. I started picking on her; I hurt her. And I did it for years."
I felt like I was going to faint.
"We both know it's you I'm talking about, Aria."
I'd already guessed as much, but there had been a thin sliver of hope that it wasn't me. Hearing him confirm it made me feel even fainter. My mind was spinning from what Paul had just told me. He had literally just told me that he not only bullied me for years, but countless others, just because of some weird schoolyard crush.
"…Aria? Aria! Are you alright?" I blinked; taking in Paul's concerned face. I realised I'd zoned out, and I quickly pull my hands away from his in disgust.
I was most certainly not alright! I'm literally choking on my own spit, for God's sake.
"Are you ok?" He asks again, putting his burning hand on my forehead, as if to check if I had a temperature.
"You did all those things because you liked me?" I screeched loudly, and I swear all the birds in the area squawk in response before taking flight. "What kind of fucking psychopath are you?" I pushed his hand away from me and step back.
"Please don't swear like that," Paul says quietly, looking at his feet. "It doesn't sound right coming from you."
"That's all you have to say? Really? God, I… I can't believe you!" I'm back to being furious. I was so angry at that moment that I felt like I'm going to explode; steam was coming out of my ears. "That's the reason you made my life hell all these years?"
"Isn't it better than having no reason at all?" Paul snapped angrily. "Isn't it? That's why you thought I did those things, yes? Just because I could? Isn't it better to at least have an explanation for what I was doing?"
"No reason is better!" I snapped back. "There is no 'better', Paul. Why can't you see that there is no possible reason that is better when it comes to making someone feel worthless?"
"I know," he stressed, before his voice softens. "God, I know, ok? There's no better reason. I just thought that telling you might bring you some… comfort, I guess. You know, all that closure shit? Obviously I was wrong though, and I'm sorry."
Ignoring his apology, I started to stomp away when an animal noise echoes from inside the forest. If I didn't know any better, I'd say it was a wolf, even though there weren't known to be many around this area. The only other time I heard a wolf was when that week after Lexi had died.
"What in the world…" I mumbled, looking over the forest with appraising eyes. I jumped when a scorching hand grabbed my arm, but my look turns icy when I realise it's Paul.
"You have to get inside," his voice is oddly serious, and he looked alert.
"What? Why?" I demanded, trying to shake his hand off my arm. Paul's grip just got tighter and he started pulling me toward his house. I tried to escape his grip, but he's having none of it. He only lets me go after he's dragged me into his house and into the living room. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" I finally pull free of his grip, sending him daggers.
"I'll be back before you know it, but you have to stay here," Paul says quickly, stepping back toward the door.
"Why?" I demanded.
"I can't tell you," he replied. My eyes narrowed dangerously. Where had I heard that before?
Paul obviously realised what I was thinking, and walked back up to me. "Trust me," he whispered.
My heart stops for a second, but then I laughed. "Trust you?" I ask rudely, feeling guilty at the hurt look on his face.
"Please, Aria?" He asks, looking into my eyes. I felt strangely dazed and knew that I was already going to agree.
Damn those beautiful caramel eyes.
"Fine, I'll stay." I begrudgingly agreed. "But on one condition."
"What?" Paul asks wearily.
"You tell me everything I want to know. No excuses, no exceptions." Paul was frowning, but I continued. "If you don't agree, I'm leaving. You have to promise me, Paul."
Paul looked at me for a long time before eventually sighing. His shoulders droop in defeat, but he slowly nods.
"Promise me." I demanded, waiting for a verbal confirmation.
"I promise you, Aria."
. . .
I stared out the window from Paul's house. It was homier inside than the outside had been. It was small but full of life, with every wall and surface filled with what seemed like thousands of photographs. If I was in a better mood, I would be in hysterics on the floor at all the embarrassing baby photos of Paul. But considering I was in a horrible mood, I couldn't even bring myself to snicker.
And that's saying something. Some of those baby bath pictures are just...
I found myself getting angrier and angrier as I thought about what Paul had said. He'd done all those things because he had a crush on me? What a nutjob.
In fact, why was I even bothering to listen to Paul, especially after what he just told me?
Why should I have to stay here? I already got Paul to promise. I would just tell him that I waited here until my mom picked me up. Technically I would be 'safe'. That way, I could get my way and an explanation.
You're trying to get the best of both worlds, Aria. Greed never ends well.
I initially agreed to his request in a moment of weakness, but that weakness was over now that he was gone.
Deciding that there was no point in staying or listening to Paul, I ignored his warning and went outside. It was so much colder out, and I shivered whilst wrapping my arms around myself.
After starting the walk home, I decided to cut through the forest to get home quicker. There were a number of hiking trails spread all throughout the forest, and some of them are very convenient when you wanted to get somewhere quickly. I wasn't exactly familiar with the forest, but I'd walked a particular trail enough times to feel comfortable in knowing where I'd turn up.
I picked up my walking speed when I got on the trail, finding the forest to be bit eerie. I was always weary of walking alone on the trails, especially after hearing about so many murder and abduction stories, but for some reason I was even more so today.
I started humming the tune to Stacey's Mom to get my mind off of things. It sounded strange to hear my lone humming, so I stopped after a while. It made me sound like I was in some creepy horror movie. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw the sign that indicated the trail was coming to an end soon, excited that I'd soon be home in my warm bed, watching cartoons and eating ice cream.
That's when I noticed that there was a figure of a person standing behind the sign, almost out of view. I immediately froze and almost screamed, considering this person was hiding in the shadows and behind a sign.
This whole thing is screaming serial killer.
The figure stepped into the light, and when I slowly looked up to her face, I almost gasped.
Her hair was long and red with wild curls, and her eyes were so dark I couldn't separate the iris from the pupil. She was paler than most of the people in Forks (and that was saying something), but that didn't hide her extreme beauty.
All her features were symmetrically and stunningly perfect. She looked like she could be a model, despite the plain clothes and wild hair… not only because of her perfect face, but also because of her poised posture and how she seemed to radiate confidence.
"Your hair is very Disney Brave-like," the words tumbled out of my mouth before I could stop them. The woman looked curiously at me, and I blushed red at my previous statement. "Oh, God. I didn't mean that to come across as offensive. I mean, Brave is a good movie – a great movie, even." I twitched – yes, twitched – nervously as she appraised me through narrowed eyes.
"You're interesting," was all she said in reply to my blabbering, her head tilting to the left slightly as she looked me over.
I'm a bit insulted that she has the decency to call us 'interesting' when she's not even wearing any shoes.
I pursed my lips tightly. "Not really," I told her honestly. "I am perhaps one of the most uninteresting, most clichéd people on this planet. You know, I love long walks on the beach, rom-coms, chocolate ice cream… yada, yada, yada. "
Gosh, why are you so embarrassing?
She raised an eyebrow in question, which seemed like a prompt from her for me to start telling her my whole life story on how I became one of the most uninteresting and most clichéd people on this planet.
I'm sure her life story would be way more interesting… hey, you should ask her if she does archery.
Something held me back, though... and not just because this was a complete stranger and therefore a possible candidate for a serial killer.
Something else about her unnerved me, making me want her to know as little about me as possible. A gust of wind blew, and our hair swirled around our faces. I noticed the woman wrinkled her nose, an indescribable mix of disgust and confusion appearing on her face.
"Are you a tourist?" I ask wearily, knowing that I couldn't have possibly missed her before if she lived in La Push or Forks.
The expression disappeared and her lip pulled up into a catty smirk. "I'm here for business," she tells me, still scanning me attentively.
Now I was certain she was lying, or at least to some degree. Who in the world came to the miniscule town of Forks for business? And why was she in the middle of the woods?
"Oh." I said, trying to keep my voice as indifferent as possible. "Who do you work for?" I was playing her bluff, and she knew it. Her smirk – or smile, I couldn't even tell anymore – creeped me out. She looked like Jimmy - the cat that Lexi used to own – when he was about to attack a bird… completely predatory.
"I don't work for anyone, they work for me." She sounded like she was being truthful, but I was having trouble believing her due to the situation we were in. Her actual voice was also too creepy to process. It sounded strange coming from her mouth – that voice sounded like it should belong to a young teenage girl, not an adult woman. "I'm here on a… conference call, of sorts."
I nodded, trying to discreetly move backwards. "Ah, that's interesting. How you liking your trip so far? Forks meeting your standards?" My voice broke on the last word.
I always knew you were going to get us killed one day.
She laughed, and I shivered. Her laugh was all chill and high-pitch and absolutely zero warmth – it definitely wouldn't have made America's Next Top Laugh, that's for sure. "It's been mediocre, but its inhabitants are interesting. I feel like some of them would have great potential as… fellow business partners."
I nodded, still edging backwards; I had a strong desire to run away. "That's good you hear that. A lot of businesses from bigger cities overlook us and write us off, just because we come from a small town."
She walked toward me and I let out a squeak, much to my embarrassment. "Lucky I don't overlook small towns," she flashed another grin, this one different – almost sweet and friendly. I felt a strange urge to gawp at her beauty, replacing the urge to run. "You, I believe, also have this potential."
"Me?" I squeaked again, feeling both surprised and a little flattered at the compliment. She thought that I, Aria Cameron, middle child of the Cameron clan, earner of straight B's (and the occasional D when Chemistry was concerned), and just socially awkward in general, could become successful in the land of whatever she did as a career?
"Oh, yes," she nodded. "You would make a valuable asset to a business such as mine. In fact, maybe you would be interested in doing some… training… for my business, if you'd like?"
My eyes widened. "Like work experience? You seriously think I would be good at that kind of thing?" She nodded, and I feel myself beaming.
I no longer felt scared or unnerved by her; she now seemed perfectly nice and friendly, not to mention she was offering me an escape from this place. How did I ever think she was dangerous and creepy before? "What sort of thing would I have to do for this, uh, training? Would it be hard?" I add, worried at the skills this may require.
She shook her head, eyes wide. "Not at all. In fact," she began, moving so that she is a few steps from me, "it'd all be extremely easy. All we'd have to do is –" She stops suddenly, her head cocked to one side.
She stays frozen for a moment, before smiling sweetly at me. "But I'm yabbering, and it's getting late. You'd want to be getting home, and I've spent too much of my afternoon neglecting my duties to explore the area. I'll be seeing you later," she finishes meaningfully, before spinning on her heels and hastily leaving.
"Wait!" I cried out, confused at the turn in conversation. "What about the work experience? The training? You didn't even get my contact information, you don't even know my name!"
"Like you said, this is a small town," she sang over her shoulder, quickly moving away. "I'm sure we'll run into each other soon." And with those words, she was gone. One moment she was in front of me, the next she wasn't.
My lips puckered in confusion, but I'm distracted by movement out of the corner of my eye. I slowly turned to look over my shoulder. I tried to gasp, but the air catches in my throat.
Hidden partially in the shadows of the trees, stood massive animal silhouettes, all lined up like a battle frontage. But that wasn't what had shocked me. They were large – bigger than a bear or a horse. And they were growling at me; obviously they aren't friendly.
They started to move toward the light, and I gasped again. Whilst they were in the shadows, I thought that they were maybe bears, considering the outline of their general size. But when they moved from the shadows and I could see their features, I realised just how wrong my guess was.
They were wolves.
Giant, horse-size, growling wolves.
I then did something so stupid and girlish that I felt like kicking myself as soon as I did it; I screamed and scurried backwards. But of course, since it was me, my foot got caught on something and I fell –quite painfully – on my butt..
After turning my head back to the direction of the wolves, I looked up to see them racing toward me. My heart stopped and I closed my eyes tightly out of pure fear. I could hear their growls getting closer and closer, and I closed my eyes so tight I started to see colours.
I was going to die. I was going to die. I was going to die.
Wasn't my life meant to flash before my eyes? Where was my movie about my life? Or has my life been so irrevocably boring that my mind can't even pick out and put together the good parts?
A whimpering sound escaped my mouth when I felt gusts of wind flush past me, causing my hair to fly back and goose bumps to appear on my skin. Blood rushed through my ears, leaving me unable to hear for a few moments. And then… silence. No growls. No footsteps. No leaves getting stepped on. No tearing of the flesh. No nothing.
I slowly cracked open one eyelid, and then the other, looking around. My heart had started once again and was beating so fast that all I could feel was thumpthumpthumpthumpthump. I looked around again; no one was there.
No wolves, thank God.
A chill ran down my spine. What had just happened? What about the woman I just met? Would she be ok?
I shook the thought off quickly; judging by the gusts of wind I had felt, those wolves were fast. They would have reached the woman quickly if they were after her, and I would have heard a scream. She must have reached the end of the trail by now anyway, and the wolves were probably chasing a herd of deer or something.
As I was getting up and rubbing my sore backside - which would leave yet another bruise – and as well as trying to see how my ankle had fared, another thought hit me.
My heart went from thumpthumpthumpthumpthump to suddenly stopping again, and I felt air get caught in my throat. I didn't even notice when my ankle gave way and I fell back down to the forest floor.
I think I had just seen what had killed Lexi.
And it was certainly no bear.
. . .
Sorry for the long wait, but does this massive chapter make up for it? Writing all that dialogue almost killed me.
I'm sorry for any horrendous grammar in this chapter, since I am without beta and I am no grammar Nazi myself. I am a mis-user and abuser of the comma, so I am sorry if there were a few places that needed one or there were too many in a sentence.
I'm also sorry that there wasn't much inner voice in this chapter, but I felt like every time I tried to work it in, the chapter stopped flowing.
Thank you for all the people who reviewed, alerted, added this to favourites, or even just took the time to read Voices... it amazes me that anyone would actually want to read my weird drabbles, never mind actually liking them.
Question(s) of the chapter(answer whichever ones you want, if any at all):
- What's your favourite Paul/Aria moment in the whole of Voices?
- When do you think would be the perfect time for them to – eeeek – kiss?
- What do you think Kim is hiding (should be pretty obvious, but oh well)?
- What do you think happened in Lucas's past?
- Who did Aria meet in the woods (should also be pretty obvious)?
- What is your favourite flavour of ice cream?
ALMOST 400 REVIEWS, WOOO! LET'S GO GUYS, WE'RE ALMOST AT ANOTHER MILESTONE (after, what? 2 years?), THIS IS SO EXCITING! LOVE ALL OF YOU, XOXO.