Sidekick (7 page)

The doorbell rings once more and we both startle. I grab the doorknob and pull. It’s Garret
and
Keira. Izzy said Keira’s Mom was driving her. Why are they together? Did Garret somehow find her number? Coincidence. It has to be.

Chapter Eight

“Here we are!” Keira steps through the door. I don’t know what it is about this girl in pajamas, but she looks freaking hot in her tight blue pants and a white tank that should be illegal.

“Hey, Russ.” Garret follows her in.

“Hey.” So they did come together. It’s been one week and he’s already got a foothold. I shut the door behind them and then shove my hands into my pockets along with my feelings.

“Told you, right next door,” Garret says.

Keira smiles, but there’s an edge to it. “I guess I really don’t know the difference between sky blue and sea green.”

Garret chuckles. “Like I said, color blind.” He turns to me. “She thought my house was yours.”

“Oh.” I try to hide my relief with a laugh. “They look pretty similar in the dark.”

“
Everything
looks the same here, and it’s so…country. I miss Kyoto,” Keira says as she hooks her arm with mine. A lump forms in my throat. Not exactly what I was expecting when she came in with Garret, but I’m not complaining. “So are you gonna show me your place?”

“Sure.” I take her through the downstairs, trying not to act as confused as I am. “This is the kitchen.”

“Huge.” She runs her hand along the counter. “It’s like the size of our entire place in Japan. I’m still not used to how big stuff is in America, people included.”

I put my elbows on the counter as she stares at the pictures on our fridge. “How did you end up there, anyway? Your mom obviously can’t be Japanese.”

She smiles. “What gave it away? My utter whiteness?”

I laugh. “Seriously, I’m curious.”

The smile is gone. “My dad left her when she found out she was pregnant. She met a charming Japanese businessman online, and off she went. They were married in a month.”

I raise my eyebrows. “That’s…fast.”

“She’s kind of incapable of making a good decision.” She folds her arms, her confident exterior broken. “Can we not talk about this?”

“Of course, sorry, I didn’t mean—”

“Don’t worry about it.” She heads back to the living room, and I follow slightly behind. Here I thought she was all strong and tough, but now I get the sense that there’s a lot of crap she keeps hidden. It only makes me want to get to know her more, to understand what happened to make her look so broken. But I have a feeling it’s not something I should force out of her.

Colin is sprawled out on the loveseat, cleaning his glasses. Trent sits in my recliner, drawing. And, to my surprise, Daphne and Garret are talking, both leaning on the wall and laughing. They stop when they see us.

“Enjoy the tour?” Garret sits on the couch.

“Immensely.” Keira plops down beside Garret, her smile faker than ever. “I’m willing to bet you jocks have never seen a stitch of anime in your lives.”

“You’re really gonna hold that against us, huh.” Garret leans toward her. “It’s not exactly fair—I’m not judging you.”

Keira rolls her eyes. “Oh, c’mon. You thought I was some Navy brat living in Okinawa the second I said Japan. Admit it.”

He laughs. “Uh, no. Did you think I was some California surfer?”

Garret’s about to go into full flirtation mode, which means I won’t get a word in if I don’t act now. I sit next to Keira before I chicken out. “You really can’t judge us. I watch anime all the time.”

She scrunches her face. “No way.”

“It’s true.” Daphne sits next to me. “It all started with Ultramon.”

Everyone groans. Ultramon is one of those shows with a thousand different monsters that fight for no reason. Like Pokémon, Digimon, Bakugan, and all the other clones of the genre. They inevitably end up as card games—otherwise known as huge, worthless money sinks.

But Izzy loved Ultramon, and she got Daphne into it, too. I just happened to be in the room doing homework, hoping Daphne would help me with math. Yeah, she was in seventh grade, but she’s a freaking math genius. Thought I may as well use it to my advantage. By the time Colin and Trent joined, they’d realized it was a lame kid show. So even though it’s the embarrassing origin of Izzy’s little anime group, we try not to remember that.

“My brother Tucker loves Ultramon,” Garret says. “Is that what we’re watching?”

“Hell, no!” Trent stares at him, incredulous.

“What, is your brother seven?” Keira asks.

“Actually, yeah, he is.” Garret slumps. “Okay, you’re right. I’ve never seen any anime.”

Keira snorts, but pats his knee. “That’s all right, we’ll teach you how to actually be cool.” She turns to me. “Okay, Russ. Test time.”

“What?” I can barely think with her pretty pink lips so close. “Test?”

“Five favorite series. Go.”

“Oh, ummm…” I hadn’t really thought of it before. And now that I’m running through all the series I’ve watched with Izzy, I’m starting to see why my sister thinks I belong with them. I haven’t been entirely honest with myself about my anime interests. “I loved
Bleach
, and
Evangelion
is a total classic. It’s kind of old, but
Cowboy Bebop
was awesome. Same with
Escaflowne.
Hmm, one more…I’m gonna go with
Attack on Titan,
though it’s obvious it’s amazing.”

Keira breaks out this stunning smile.

“What?”

“You pass,” she says. “Old school taste, but good taste.”

I picked some older shows just so she’d know I hadn’t only watched what’s currently popular. Still, her approval is the most rewarding thing in the world.

Izzy’s feet pound down the stairs, and she appears in all her whacky glory. Today it’s a pair of Hello Kitty footie pajamas with a giant red bow on her head to match. She’s painted her nose yellow and drawn whiskers on her face. “Okay! Welcome, newbies!”

She immediately launches into her summary of what happened in the episodes we watched last week, and her recitation rivals that of Haruhi Suzumiya herself. After she finishes, she grabs the timer on the table and turns it. “You have ten minutes to get snacks. No talking until we break to pee.”

As Izzy bounds off to the kitchen, Keira blinks rapidly. “Wow, is she always such a drill sergeant?”

“On anime night?” Trent says without looking up from his sketchbook. “Yes. And there are punishments for disobeying.”

“If you talk during the episode, you have to fight Daphne,” Colin says.

“And she will kick your ass.” I stand up, planning to grab at least two Strawberry Fantas and chips. My stomach growls. Maybe a Hot Pocket if I have time.

“Seriously?” Keira sizes up Daphne, as if she doesn’t believe me.

“Dead serious. It’s all the freaky Judo stuff, using your opponent’s momentum against them.”

“Yes, that’s the exact name for it. Freaky Judo stuff.” Daphne smiles wickedly, and I know she’s about to embarrass me. “Actually…”

“Daph…don’t say it. I’ll tell Keira your last name if—”

Her eyes flare with anger. “Russ, don’t make me kill you.”

“Oh, here we go.” Colin grabs a pillow as a shield. Trent holds up his notebook.

“Whoa. Is her last name really that bad?” Keira perks up. Either she’s oblivious to the tension in the room or it’s just making her all the more curious. “What is it?”

Daphne’s arms flex. “None of your—”

“Semens,” Garret says. “Daphne Semens.”

The room goes deathly silent. I’d completely forgotten Garret doesn’t know the punishment for saying her last name out loud. All eyes are on Daphne. She glares at Garr. He is so dead.

“Wow,” Keira finally says. “That’s rough.”

For the smallest moment, Daphne looks like she’s about to cry. But then she hardens and punches my shoulder. It hurts. A lot.

“Hey!” I rub the spot. “What was that for? I didn’t say it!”

“You brought it up!” She shoves me. “Do I have to repeat what I did to you during the final episode of
Inuyasha?
I seem to remember you whimpering like a baby after I—”

“Stop!” My face burns as I involuntarily wince at the memory. She’s referring to the one and only time I said her last name out loud—the night that ended with an icepack on my crotch. “Okay! Sorry! I’m man enough to admit you beat me up, so please spare the details.”

She softens the littlest bit and doesn’t say more.

“As you can see, Keira,” Colin says, his legs crossed tighter than necessary, “I strongly recommend not messing with Daphne.”

Daphne folds her arms behind her head, totally satisfied with herself. “Yeah, I’m Izzy’s bouncer.”

We settle in with our snacks just as Izzy’s timer goes off. That very second, she presses play and sits next to Colin. Then we watch, and watch. Except half the time I’m wondering if anything’s going to happen with Garret and Keira. So far, Garret hasn’t even dared rest his hand behind her on the couch. Maybe he’s off his game. He has to feel out of place here with The Dork Squad.

At the first break, they rag on him when he asks about the teardrops and squiggly lines above the characters’ heads. He doesn’t talk much after that.

They pass out fast tonight. It’s barely three. Garret’s watching the TV intently, but he has his head in one hand like it will fall off if he doesn’t hold it up. He may be a noob, but he does seem determined to like anime. Trent’s snoring in the recliner. Daphne’s head crashed into my shoulder a little while ago and I don’t have the heart to move it. Besides, it looks like Keira might be headed the same direction.

Her head bobs forward, and she snaps it back up. Then she leans it back against the couch and closes her eyes. Ever so slowly, her face inches diagonally toward my shoulder. My skin tingles with anticipation. Then her cheek presses against me and I can’t breathe.

Tonight
rocks.

Izzy turns off the TV when the episode ends, since most everyone’s asleep. She closes her eyes and stuffs a pillow behind her head. I’m not moving for anything, even if I’m slightly uncomfortable with Daphne on my other side. She’s never done that to me before, but she’s accidentally fallen asleep on Trent and Colin. I’m usually in the recliner.

A phone rings, and all the sleepers shoot straight up.

“Oh, shit!” Keira digs around in her purse. “What time is it?”

“Past three,” I say above the groans from everyone else.

“Mom?” Keira says when she answers it. “I’m sorry. I lost track of time and fell—” She rolls her eyes. “Their parents are here. It’s not like we’re having some massive orgy.” She puts her hand over the receiver. “Can you give me a ride home, Garr?”

Garret perks up. “Sure.”

“I’m coming right now. I have a ride, so you don’t even have to put on your slippers. See how nice I am? Bye.” She hangs up, standing abruptly. “My mom thinks we’re all naked over here—
sinning
. She’s such a prude.”

Garret runs his hand through his hair. “Sorry.”

She shakes her head. “Let’s go.”

Chapter Nine

By Monday I decide I’m overreacting. Again. So what if she didn’t ask me for a ride? Keira was totally into me that night. She smiled and leaned her head on my shoulder and everything. She talked to me first at Parker’s, and she approved of my anime watching. She only asked Garret for a ride because I was already home and she didn’t want to inconvenience me. That makes sense.

I shove a few books in my locker, telling myself to snap out of it. It’s only been a week. Garret might move fast, but the cross-clique issues have to slow him down. He can’t talk and flirt with her at school like he can with a cheerleader.

“Russ!” Mercedes calls. Holly Lark is with her, as usual. She is Mercedes’s best friend, and she’s one of the few cheerleaders who has never made a pass at Garret.

“What’s up, Mercedes?”

“You can tell Garr he made me gain five pounds, that’s what.”

I slam my locker, holding back the eye roll. “Anything else?”

She punches my shoulder. “It was a joke, dork.”

“Oh.”

“But speaking of weight gain, I told Holly you make killer food. She doesn’t believe me.” She nudges Holly. “Right?”

Holly stares at her shoes. “Right.”

“Tell her how amazing you are!” Mercedes says.

“If you mean the tacos in Life Skills, then yeah, I made those. I don’t know about them being killer.” I head for the cafeteria, almost preferring Dallas to this obvious attempt at flirting. Mercedes walks too close to me and it’s uncomfortable.

“Well, trust me, they were incredible. I tasted them.” Mercedes bumps into me. It doesn’t feel like an accident. “You should have seen the teacher, Hol—she had a full-on foodgasm.”

“Did you take lessons or something?” Holly asks.

“Nope.”

“C’mon, your mom had to teach you, at least,” Mercedes says.

“My mom hardly cooks.” I stop at the cafeteria door, annoyed at all the prying. Mercedes is insane if she thinks going around making me into a pansy kitchen boy will score her points with me. “Look, Mercedes, can you not tell people I cook?”

She pouts. “But why? It’s so sexy!”

I shake my head. “Whatever. I don’t cook—you got it?”

“Fine.”

I open the door for them, happy when they skip off to the other cheerleaders without any more embarrassing questions. I just want to get some food, sit with the team, and keep things as normal as possible. As I head for the line, a table of franticly waving people catches my eye. It takes me a few seconds to believe what I’m seeing.

Izzy, Daphne, Colin, Trent, and Keira are calling me over. But as wrong as that is on its own, this situation is about a thousand times worse. This is like turning the world upside down and declaring anarchy.

Garret’s sitting with them.

Garret’s calling me over to the freak table.

My feet won’t move. Has he gone insane? Is this some kind of prank he and Keira thought up on the way to her house? It’s not funny. Garret must not understand just how popular and important he is. If he turns into a freak, the whole balance of the school will be thrown off.