Masquerade (3 page)

“
Bitch,” Kimber growled,
standing.

Jenna laughed and flicked a glance at
me. “Freak,” she taunted under her breath then walked
away.

“
She’s evil,” Kimber said,
sitting back down.

“
She’s just jealous you’re
a better cheerleader than she is.”

“
We still on for some
shopping after school?”

“
Sure. I’ll meet you at the
car after the final bell.”

Kimber packed up her uneaten lunch,
looking more shaken than normal. On the way from the lunchroom she
put her hand on my arm. “Hev.”

“
Yeah?”

“
You know you’re not a
freak, right?”

“
I know,” I assured her
with more bravado than I felt.

“
Good. Because if anyone is
a freak around here, it’s her.”

“
You missed Bible
study.”

Mom’s voice startled me,
and I jumped. I looked around guiltily, relieved when I saw she was
talking from the kitchen. How had I not heard her come in? I
grimaced at the book and notebook in front of me, my attention
certainly hadn’t been on homework. Ever since the sky began
darkening, it became harder and harder to not stare at the window
worrying about what might be out there
.
At one point I drifted to sleep,
bored to tears by my chemistry homework, and woke to
a light scraping sound over the glass of the
nearby window. My heart hammered in my chest when I saw a single
sharp claw slowly slide down the glass then pull away only to slam
back into the pane, causing it to vibrate. I jumped up, sending my
chair clattering to the floor, ready to run, when I realized it was
only the branch of a tree. I was an idiot. But knowing that didn’t
make me any less afraid.

I heard the fridge door close, and
something hit the counter. I stifled a groan; please not chicken
again tonight. Somehow my mother had gotten the idea that she
should cook chicken in every way she could think of. So far, none
of her creations tasted good.

“
Sorry,” I said, walking
into the kitchen. “I have a ton of homework, and I’m not feeling
well.” It wasn’t exactly a lie. Shopping with Kimber was
overwhelming and left me with a headache, and the smoothie she’d
insisted I drink was sitting in my stomach like a rock. When Kimber
finally dropped me off, I let myself into the house and was so
grateful to be alone I could have wept. I tried to distract myself
with homework, but it was impossible to focus.

“
You look pale,” Mom
clucked, placing a hand to my forehead. “No fever. Did you eat
today?”

“
Yes.”

“
Well good. Hope you saved
room because I have a new chicken recipe!”

When she turned around I glared at the
chicken on the counter. “Actually I have homework.” I stepped
backward toward the door.

“
I’ll call you when dinner
is ready.”

I went to get my book bag, wondering
how to get out of eating the newest chicken delight. My cell phone
rang, and I reached into my pocket silencing the generic ring.
“Hello?”

“
He sent
flowers.”

“
What kind?”

“
Roses. Pink. They’re too
pretty to throw away.”

I smiled. “He really is
sorry.”

“
Sorry isn’t good enough,”
Kimber’s voice wavered.

I sighed, throwing my book bag onto my
bed. “I guess it isn’t.” But why couldn’t it be?

“
What are you
doing?”

“
Homework and trying to get
out of another chicken dinner.”

“
Want to go grab a Panini
and an iced coffee?”

“
I’m not sure,” I said. I
was still a little on edge from our trip to the mall
earlier.

“
Come on, Hev. If I don’t
get out of here I’ll go crazy looking at these flowers all
night.”

“
I don’t know. Mom might
not let me because I missed Bible study.” For once I might be
grateful of Mom’s strict rules.

“
Leave that to
me.”

Before I could question her plans, she
hung up the phone.

The doorbell rang ten minutes later,
and I heard Kimber’s voice downstairs. I rolled my eyes and went to
see what she was up to.

“
It’s just awful, Mrs.
Montgomery! He broke up with me!” Kimber sobbed at my
mother.

“
Maybe it’s better this
way, dear. You’re too young for a boyfriend.” Mom reached out and
patted Kimber’s shoulder.

I bit my tongue trying not to
laugh.

“
Maybe you’re right,”
Kimber agreed seriously. “Can Heven come have dinner with me? It
would make me feel better.”

“
Why don’t you come in and
have dinner with us? We’re having chicken.”

Kimber stepped into the house glancing
at me. “Chicken sounds wonderful, but I was hoping we could go to
the library too.” She hung her head. “I kind of need help with my
chemistry.”

Mom nodded. “All right then.” Before
turning away she patted Kimber again. “With no boyfriend you’ll
have more time to study.”

Kimber nodded gravely and wiped at her
eyes. When Mom turned away, she grinned. I stifled a
laugh.

“
That was quite the
performance,” I told Kimber once we were in the car.

She grinned. “I knew it would
work.”

At the café on Main Street we settled
into a corner booth with our drinks: a mocha latte for Kimber and a
hot green tea for me. My nerves were already shot from my dream and
our trip to the mall, so I figured the less caffeine I drank, the
better.

“
I’ve decided what to do
about Cole.”

“
You have?”

“
I’m going to give him a
taste of his own medicine.”

“
What do you mean?”
Although I was afraid I already knew.

“
I’m going to make him
jealous.” She nodded, taking a sip of her coffee.

“
Do you really think that’s
a good idea?”

“
It’s perfect.”

“
He’s really sorry, Kimber.
He’s already miserable.”

“
He’s the one who cheated,”
she snapped.

Our Panini’s arrived, and we were
silent for a minute. Kimber picked at her chips, pushing them
around on her plate. “I’m sorry.”

“
Me too. I didn’t mean to
make it sound like he’s innocent.”

“
It really hurts, Hev,” she
whispered, leaning across the table. “He really hurt
me.”

“
I know.” I’d never seen
her so down.

“
Why would he do
that?”

“
He told me that it was a
bet.”

“
What?” she
exclaimed.

“
He said he did it for the
money. He wanted to get you something really nice for your
birthday.”

Kimber laughed without humor. “He
cheated on me…for me?”

I shrugged. I thought it ridiculous
too. I watched her green eyes narrow, and she smiled.

“
Kimber, what are you
thinking?”

She picked up a chip and popped it
into her mouth. “Payback’s a bitch.”

“
You’re serious? You’re
going to kiss another guy to make him jealous?”

“
No.” She sipped her
latte.

“
Then…?”

“
I’m going to
date
someone to make him
jealous.”

“
What? I don’t think that’s
a good idea.”

“
When I’m done, Cole will
never cheat on me again.”

“
So you’re going to forgive
him?”

She sighed, and her green eyes melted.
“Yeah, I love him.” Then her voice rose, and her eyes hardened.
“But he needs to be taught a lesson. One he won’t ever
forget.”

I took a sip of my tea, trying to
figure what I should say. I didn’t think this was a good idea, but
saying so would make her angry. She’d already accused me of
choosing his side over hers. She was my best friend, my only friend
since the accident – well, except for Cole.

“
Who do you plan to make
him jealous with?”

She pursed her lips, thinking. “He has
to be hot, popular, and have a car.”

“
It can’t be one of his
friends,” I cautioned.

“
He has a lot of friends,”
Kimber complained. “Why does he have to be so popular?”

“
Yeah, why couldn’t you be
dating an ugly, clumsy nerd?” I wondered sarcastically.

Kimber laughed. “It would make it
easier.”

We lapsed into silence. I surprised
myself by eating a few bites of my Panini. It was pretty good.
Kimber was staring off behind me, her attention caught by something
or someone. I didn’t turn around; I didn’t want to draw attention
to myself.

“
Too bad he doesn’t go to
our school.”

“
Who?”

“
That guy over there. He
definitely has what it takes to make Cole insane with
jealousy.”

I resisted the urge to turn and see
for myself.

“
He’s totally hot. Look,”
she urged. “I haven’t seen him around before.”

Slowly, I peeked around the back of
the booth. He was standing near the counter, waiting for his coffee
with his back turned. He was tall, well-built without being bulky,
and the back of his head held shaggy, dark blond hair. When I kept
looking Kimber whispered, “Told you.”

Despite my usual need to
keep hidden,
I wished for a fleeting
moment that he would turn around so I could see his face. Then he
did. He looked right at me. The booth vibrated with the force of my
retreat from sight. Butterflies fluttered around in my stomach, and
my hands shook slightly. I pressed my back into the wood of the
booth and willed myself to calm down
.
I looked up at Kimber, embarrassed
over my reaction, but she wasn’t paying any attention to me. She
was waving at him and smiling.

“
Stop it,” I
hissed.

She looked at me, and her smile was
replaced with a frown. “What?”

“
Don’t draw any attention
to us.”

“
Too late,” she whispered.
“He’s heading our way.”

My head swam. He was coming! I didn’t
want him to see me. “I have to go to the bathroom,” I said rushing
out of the booth. It would have been the perfect escape if I hadn’t
run right into him. I bounced off his chest, and his arms came out
to steady me, but I cringed back into my seat, letting my hair fall
around my face. “Sorry,” I mumbled, looking down.

“
No problem.” His voice was
raspy and low. My stomach fluttered again. He was more gorgeous
than anyone I had ever seen. I wanted to look up so badly, but I
wanted him to look at me less.

“
Haven’t seen you around
before,” Kimber said boldly.

“
I’m new in
town.”

“
I figured. I would have
remembered if I had seen you around.”

She was completely wicked. A part of
me was jealous of that wickedness.

“
What’s your name?” he
asked. His voice was unlike anything I’d ever heard
–
yet confusingly
familiar; it filled me with something that I could only long for
these past months: a sense of safety. It was beyond understanding
because, right now, I shouldn’t feel safe. I never felt safe around
anyone new, but his presence was like a blanket to my shivering
insides, whatever he projected reached out and wrapped around me,
keeping my fear at bay.

“
Kimber.”

“
Cool.” he turned to walk
away. I felt the urge to reach out and grab his hand.
Stay.

“
What’s your name?” Kimber
asked.

I inched closer desperate for the
answer.

“
Sam.”

“
Well, Sam, I’m sure I’ll
be seeing you around.”

After he walked away it occurred to me
that my attempt to be invisible worked really well. He never asked
my name, and even though I hadn’t wanted him to notice me (had I?),
I couldn’t help but be slightly disappointed.

I woke again that night to another
frightening, unfinished reminder of the night my life changed
forever. It was too early to get up for the day, and once again, I
was too edgy to lay there, so I paced around my room. It was no
surprise that I found myself at the window, looking down at the
dark yard, my eyes always drawn to the trees and bushes, searching
for someone I felt was there though always just hidden from
sight.

“
I know you’re there,” I
whispered, even though, once again,
I saw
no one
.

Something darted from the edge of the
yard and disappeared around the side of the house. My stomach
clenched. I watched awhile longer, waiting for whatever it was to
come back. It didn’t, and nothing else moved, but I knew my chance
for sleep tonight was gone.