The Mechanics of Being Human (7 page)

Fawn sat next to her mom and dad at the living room table, staring at the clock. At precisely six o'clock, Gavin knocked. His timing was so precise Fawn wondered whether he'd watched the clock to know exactly when it was okay to come get her. The thought made her smile. As Fawn leapt off of her chair, her mom gave her a wary look. Her dad didn't say anything but eyeballed her. She ignored their concerned expressions and marched over to the door.

When she opened it, she saw Gavin. He held a large, glistening paperback in his hand, but it was cover down so she couldn't see what its title was. He wore jeans and a t-shirt like usual, but a paper tag stuck out of the collar of his shirt, revealing the fact his clothes were new.

"This is for you." Gavin handed her the book. He ran his hand through his hair. "I was going to give you flowers, but Remy said it was cliché."

Fawn flipped the book over in her hand and saw the massive tome was
The Completed Works of Jane Austin.
The book contained three stories. She opened the novel and flipped through the pages. She smiled as her skin tingled. As soon as she got back, she would start reading it.

"Thank you, Gavin." Fawn smiled. "Much better than flowers."

"I'm glad you like it." Gavin appeared relieved. "Would it be all right if I spoke to your mom and dad for a minute? I just want them to know you'll be okay with me."

"I think they would like that."
And perhaps it will help my mom be less on edge.

Stepping to the side, Fawn allowed Gavin into the apartment. She led him to the living room. As she hovered by the counter, Gavin reached forward to shake her mom's hand. Her mom gave him a wary, concerned look. . It appeared her mom was extremely worried about Gavin. This situation didn't make any sense. Wasn't it normal for parents, or even non-maternal uncles and aunts, to worry about their family member first, particularly a female one? It was Fawn's turn to be wary as Gavin walked over to her dad and offered his hand to him as well. Her dad wore a pitying expression, which didn't make much sense to Fawn either.

"I should…" Fawn bit her bottom lip. "I should put this book in my room. I'll be back in a minute."

Fawn padded down the hallway to her room and went inside. She laid the fat book on her bed. The book was so heavy she wouldn't have been surprised if the mattress caved under its weight. As she lingered, she knew she should have rushed back to rescue her date from her possible cannibalistic parents. The problem was, though, the confusion was coming back. It should have been all cleared up after their discussion about Jax, but it wasn't. Her world was still stilted.

This isn't the time to be standing around. Gavin is waiting for you.
Fawn left her bedroom to head down the hallway. When she reached the living room, Gavin wrung his hands as he talked to her dad. When Gavin saw her, a relieved grin crossed his face. It appeared he was as comfortable with parents as a pig before an oven. She hurried to his rescue, guilty she'd taken longer than necessary in her room.

"Gavin, let's go, shall we?" Fawn said. "I don't know what you have planned, but we don't want to be late."

"Yeah. We have an appointment at seven o'clock." He checked his watch.

"An appointment?" she asked. "Where are we going?"

"I thought we'd make a first stop at a cardiologist, then we'd carry on to an orthodontist." Gavin winked at her as her parents stared. With a nervous chuckle, he ran his hand through his hair. "Nah, I'm just kidding. It's a surprise. But Fawn will be back by eleven. I promise."

Her dad nodded as Fawn grabbed his arm.

****

As Gavin drove, cars whooshed past on the road. Gavin went ten miles under the speed limit, but that was probably because his car was prehistoric. Every so often it would let out a hacking cough and spew the smell of rotten eggs into the air. She tried hard to ignore this, as well as the silence that filled the car. Why was it that before he asked her to go on a date, their conversation flowed smoothly? Now she couldn't speak at all.

Finally, Gavin spoke. "So are you all right?"

"Me?" Fawn glanced at him. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"I don't know." His brows furrowed. "I thought I picked up on a weird atmosphere today at your place. I could be wrong. Maybe your parents just don't want you going out with me."

"My parents like you."

As Gavin stared at the road with determination, Fawn looked at him and saw his hands trembled. She placed her fingers on his arm. His shaking reminded her that this was Gavin. He'd been her friend first. The fact this was a date didn't change anything between them. Unfortunately, she'd promised her parents she wouldn't say anything to him about Jax. But then again, she wasn't sure if they weren't covering their deceit with more of the kind.

Gavin released the steering wheel, grabbed her hand, then held it on the middle consol. Fawn was so surprised she gasped. The hand hold, though, was not unpleasant, even if his hand was damp. She could get used to holding hands like this. Being with Gavin like this. It was like being good friends with something more.

Silence carried them just as much as the car did for several miles, but it wasn't awkward anymore. At least, not to Fawn. Now the quiet felt more contemplative.
I don't know what to do. Should I tell him or shouldn't I?
She frowned at their intertwined hands and knew how much she trusted him. If she could give anyone her heart for safe keeping, it would be him.

"Well, we're here," Gavin said, jarring her from her thoughts.

Gavin pulled off the road at a large brick building with a bright neon blue sign over the top which read, 'Carl's Laser Tag.' The parking lot half filled with cars was bathed in a gentle azure light. He found a parking spot at the front and pulled into it, then shut off the car.

"Laser tag?" Fawn raised an eyebrow.

With a grin, Gavin glanced at her. "I thought a movie was a bit of a tired date too. Plus, if you don't remember anything, then laser tag is going to be a new experience for you. Tonight is going to rock your world."

What's laser tag?
Images filled her mind. Plastic guns with red lasers. Black Velcro vests. Kids. Laser tag was a war game played with glowing lights. She wondered where the images came from. No way had Jax ever taken her laser tagging. She imagined him with his dirty clothes and ragged face with a plastic gun in hand. No, that wouldn't work. Suddenly, a more sinister image permeated her mind. Jax holding a smoking gun, panting. The smell of gunpowder filled the air. Jax's breathing was ragged. With a gasp of shock, she gripped her chest and bent over, unable to comprehend the memory.

"Fawn, are you all right?" Gavin asked, his voice high-pitched.

"Yes." Fawn straightened up, shaking her head. "I just…a flashback maybe…"

"Of what?" Gavin gazed at her with caring, probing eyes which made her feel like she could tell him everything. It was like he could see into her soul and know all the things she knew and some things that she didn't. Suddenly, she wanted to tell him what her parents had told her about Jax being her real father and the men that were after him.

"Gavin, I—"

With a loud, ear aching bang, somebody slapped their palm against the front windshield, making them both jump. Gavin whirled around and glared out the window as a scrawny, messy-haired brunette boy pressed his face against the pane while laughing. His face left a slimy drool stain on the glance. Behind him, another boy and a girl lingered.

"Bo," Gavin groaned. "I should have known."

"Did I get you? Did I?" Bo asked, his voice high-pitched and trill.

"I'm sorry." Gavin winced. "Looks like I wasn't the only one who thought of laser tag. Are you okay with this? We can go somewhere else. A movie may be tired, but at least we'll have a bit more privacy."

Though the idea of sharing Gavin made her stomach churn, she saw his grinning friends who waited for Gavin to get out of the car. She realized if she chose to opt out now, they wouldn't like her. And if they didn't like her, they'd let Gavin know it. Even though Fawn was new to this world, she understood words could be just as venomous to a person as poison.

"Let's go." Fawn's jaw became set with determination.

"You sure?" Gavin still didn't move to open the door.

"They're your friends." Fawn shrugged. "We'll have time for the two of us later. There's no reason why we can't all go together for now."

Fawn was unsure of why, but Gavin's face lit up with glowing affection. His eyes dropped to her lips and she thought he might lean forward and kiss her, just like she had seen on TV. She wondered what it would be like in real. When Bo banged on the window again, the moment was broken a second time. Gavin opened his car door and climbed out as Fawn did the same.

As Fawn wound around the car, Bo looked her up and down and whistled appreciatively. Gavin punched his arm, making him wince.

"Back off." Gavin mock sneered at him. "She's mine."

"I don't know how you managed to get a girl like that." Bo stepped forward, seized her hand, then kissed the top of it. "My name is Bo. Nice to meet you, beautiful."

With a frown, Fawn stole a confused glance at Gavin. Just as Bo grinned at her, eyes gleaming, the other girl stepped forward and elbowed the boy out of the way. The girl's hair was cut short in a pixie style. Her bangs were the longest part, cutting across her round face. The first strands were bright neon green. She wore a pair of jeans two sizes too small and a baggy black t-shirt that almost concealed the bulge her pants created. She was plump but not unpleasantly so. Her smile was friendly.

"My name is Zelda." Zelda held out her hand to Fawn. Her fingernails were painted black and she wore a leather bracelet that looked like a pant belt. "Ignore this idiot."

"Hi." Fawn grinned. For some reason, she liked Zelda at once.

"This guy is Rick," Zelda said. "But we call him Mute."

Zelda seized the arm of the final boy of the group and drug him forward. This boy was Bo's opposite. He was as bulky as Bo was lean with a belly that strained his bright green t-shirt. He had hair cut short into an army cut. Unlike Bo, he refused to look at her and kept his hands in his jean pockets. When he spoke a "hello," it was so quiet she almost didn't hear it.

What an odd assortment of people.
Fawn glanced from person to person. Gavin wrapped an arm around her shoulders and squeezed, giving her an affectionate glance. Having his arms around her was comforting like he was her own personal guard.

"Looks like you and Mute will get along well," Bo observed. He turned toward Gavin. "Your girl doesn't talk much, does she?"

"Or maybe you talk too much." Zelda elbowed Bo in the ribs again, making him exhale in mock pain. "Come on, Fawn. Let's go inside."

With a nod, Fawn followed after Zelda. As she walked, the garble of Gavin's friends faded out as she caught sight of a man lingering in an expensive black car three parking spots down. She could swear he'd used a spotting scope. As she squinted to see better, the man lowered the scope and put a cell phone to his ear. She swayed, uneasy, as Gavin squeezed her arm to catch her attention. Though her stomach churned, she walked again.

****

While Gavin, Bo, and Mute played another round of laser tag, Zelda sat at the table across from Fawn eating a piece of pizza with pepperoni and extra cheese. The girl picked up the pizza, put it into her mouth, and grease drizzled down her chin. She grinned at Fawn and wiped the grease away. After she was done chewing, she wiped her hands too.

"I'm sorry we ruined your date." Zelda shook her head. "To be honest, it was Bo's idea."

Anxiety hit her like a rock. "What? You did it on purpose?"

"Yeah, well…" Zelda shrugged. "We won't do it again. It was just, Gavin has been through a lot, you know. He's an attractive guy. A lot of the cheerleaders and other girls at school are after him. He's always ignored them. Then one day he comes to school raving about how adorable his next-door neighbor is and how she's the most amazing person he's ever met. Bo may act like an idiot, but he looks out for his friends. He's like a dog—a little goofy and not always the smartest, but loyal as anything. He just wanted to make sure you weren't somebody who would hurt Gavin. It sounded like an okay idea, so Mute and I went along with it. I should have figured Gavin wasn't stupid and wouldn't choose a bad girl to like."

Zelda's words eroded her anxiety. So this was what real friends did. They protected each other. Suddenly, Fawn couldn't help but feel envious. She wanted relationships like Gavin. She wanted a group of people to have fun with who would protect her at the same time. "I see." Fawn stole a glance at the laser tag arena. "You wanted to protect him. I understand."

"I like you, though." Zelda grinned and took a slurp of her coke. "I think Bo and Mute do too. I thought you might throw a fit or something when we showed up, but you seemed pretty cool about it. That's what I meant by we won't do it again. Though I would love it if you came with us this Saturday to a show."

It took Fawn a moment to realize what Zelda was doing. Zelda was reaching out to her, giving her a chance to enter her world. A world of friends. If it meant having people to be with, she would have gone rat hunting at the stroke of midnight.

"I would love to." Her heart pounded in excitement. "What kind of show? An art show? My mom talked about a home show once."

Zelda snorted and dark cola spilled from her nose like a pipe, dousing the table. As Fawn winced, Zelda continued to laugh even as she placed her fingers over her nostrils and her cheeks became blotchy and red.

"I was going to suggest we come up with a nickname for you," Zelda said when she had finally recovered from her bout of laughter and her nose explosion. "I think Fawn fits you just fine, though. You are like an innocent baby deer. Where did you grow up, with the Amish?"

She tried to hide her nervousness with a smile and shook her head.

****