It took me a minute to get to the door. He was standing outside, leaning on the porch. He wore the same jeans and sneakers he had worn in the morning, but he had changed into a black buttoned shirt. He held a jacket in his hands. My heart missed a beat. He was gorgeous, even in the dark. His green eyes were bright enough that I could make out the direction where they were looking—at me.
“Hi,” I said, looking aghast, unable to get anything more out of my dry mouth.
“Hi.” he smiled at my expression. “Should I leave? You don’t look too happy to see me,” he joked, but his voice gave away the slightest hint of insecurity.
“No—no. It’s just—I didn’t expect to see you again—today.” I fixed a goal in my head: Developing the ability of talking in full sentences in Adam’s presence. He smiled at my chopped words.
“Were you intending to invite me inside?” He took a step towards the door. I unfroze.
“Sorry, sure, come in.” I stepped aside, making space for him to pass. He took another few steps towards the entrance until he stood opposite me in the doorway. He was so close I could smell his scent.
We stood there for a second just looking at each other. I had no idea what to do. What did one say to such a gorgeous guy in such a moment? After a few moments Amber joined us, saving me from an even more embarrassing situation.
“So you are the dubious stranger from the graveyard,” she stated. I shot her a warning look.
“Amber—Adam. Adam—Amber,” I introduced them. Amber gave one of her gorgeous smiles.
“Nice to meet you.” His eyes lingered on her face with a noticeable difference to the expression he had had before.
“Amber’s a friend of mine. We are in the same class at school.”
He nodded.
“By the way, I still don’t have a clue about what you do. Why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself?”
He smiled again, in my direction this time. I felt a rush of blood shooting through my brain.
“Yeah, I could do that.” He turned and walked further into the room.
“Was that your sister who opened the door?”
I was a little surprised by the question, but I nodded.
“You look very much alike.”
I had heard that before, but as hard as I tried, I couldn’t find any similarity between Sophie and me.
“Do you want a drink?”
“That would be very nice, thanks.” He followed me to the kitchen. Amber was right behind him. In moments like this one I wished I could project my thoughts into her mind to tell her she should leave us alone, so I would get a chance to talk to him in private. I opened a bottle hoping she would notice my wish.
“We are still waiting for your answer.” I teased.
“Alright. I’m twenty-one years old, I go to Med School. I’ve got a brother and a dog.” Oh yeah! The kind of information you need, I told myself. So, he was a bit older then me. Who cared.
“How come Sophie doesn’t know you?” I asked, suspiciously.
“We have seen each other several times at school, but we are not taking the same classes, so we haven’t had many opportunities to talk.” he explained. “Funny how I ended up here at her house.” He winked at me.
Gregory appeared in the doorway to the living room.
“Claire, we’re waiting for you,” he said with a glance at Adam.
“Greg, that’s Adam.” I quickly introduced him.
“Hello Adam,” Gregory said coolly, not looking at him, “Claire will you dance with me?”
This took me by surprise. I smiled apologetically as Gregory pulled me to the living room.
“Okay, okay—I’m coming—You needn’t to pull me like a cow.” I was starting to get a bit angry at Gregory.
“Who’s that guy?” he asked when we were dancing. I didn’t like the tone he used.
“Just somebody I know,” I answered, moving in rhythmical steps between the other dancers. “He goes to college with Sophie.”
Amber rushed in between us, dancing.
“He’s gorgeous. Why didn’t you say he was that hot?” She was a bit too enthusiastic for my taste.
“I did tell you he’s something to look at,” I corrected her. Amber gave an intrigued smile.
“And he studies medicine. He wants to be a doctor, that means he wants to do something good for people.”
“Oh yes, a new Mr. Wonderful.”—Amber. I knew the next few weeks were going to be hard. If Amber’s interest in Adam was only a shadow of what I felt, she would try to get his attention as often as possible, and she would get it without having to make too much of an effort. It wouldn’t do any good trying to outshine Amber, she was a magnet for boys without even trying to be. So, what if she tried? No boy she would be fighting for would be able to ever leave her orbit again. So I wouldn’t fight. It wasn’t in my nature. If he was interested in me he would somehow let me know.
I turned around to dance with Sophie and Lydia. They were with Ian and a boy I didn’t know. He looked younger than Ian, but had a similar face and figure, though he was a bit smaller and more bulky.
“Hey little sister, where is your guest?” Sophie shouted over the music.
“I don’t know,” I shouted back and looked around, but Adam was nowhere to be seen. “I left him in the kitchen with Amber, but she came back without him. I’ll go see if he’s still there.” I moved off, heading back for the kitchen.
The room was packed with rhythmically moving bodies. I had to be careful not to get knocked over several times. The kitchen door was only a few steps ahead when I saw Adam leaning against the wall talking to one of Sophie’s friends. She wore tight jeans and a nearly transparent, black shirt. Her fingers played with a strand of her long bluish black hair. Her head was tilted to one side, exposing her throat and left shoulder seductively. I forced my eyes towards the kitchen door again and headed there, hoping he hadn’t noticed me watching the scene.
A hand touched my shoulder.
“Hey Miss, you left me there with the crazy brunette.”
Adam.
“Were you intending to ever come back after you headed off with the jealous guy?”
I turned around to face him.
“I don’t think Greg was jealous. Why should he be?” The way Adam snuck up on me was starting to annoy me. He always turned up out of nowhere, startling me over and over again. “And I don’t think you were missing me that much, anyway,” I added.
He looked at me with his big green eyes, making me feel sorry instantly.
“I mean, Amber is enjoyable company, and there were too many people around to get bored.”
“So, you’re still in high school?” Adam asked, changing the topic without any further warning.
I nodded.
“How come? You are older than the others, right?”
I nodded again.
“I had to move to Aurora three years ago towards the end of the school year. I repeated one year here.” The minimalistic answer needed to be sufficient. I wouldn’t talk to him about my parents.
“Why?” His eyes were trying to see behind my facade. Hardly anybody knew why I had moved to live with my sister. That was why all the rumors about me had appeared in the first place. I ignored his question.
“So you want to become a doctor? How long have you been in college?” I forced his attention off my life and problems.
“I’m in second year.”
“And do you like it?” I kept my tone casual.
“Yeah, it’s interesting and the right thing to do, trying to help people.” His voice was serious. “You know, many people start to study Medicine because they think being a doctor is a well respected job? But honestly, they are after the money, or the reputation, or both. Most of them don’t give a damn about the people who need their help.”
I hadn’t expected such an answer. Adam’s eyes wandered to a point somewhere behind me, his expression getting cold.
“I’m sorry, but I have to leave.,
’ he said in a controlled voice.
“Why?” My question sounded almost childish. I didn’t want him to leave, I wanted to go on talking to him.
“Did you have a look at the time in the last few hours? It’s two in the morning.” He grinned at my unwilling expression and turned to go, but stopped to look back over his shoulder. “When can I see you again?”
Okay, I would let him leave with an answer to this question.
“I work at the public library on Thursdays. Maybe you’ll feel the urge to read proper literature in the next few days.”
I was proud of myself. I hadn’t asked him to stay a little longer, I hadn’t shown my disappointment about him leaving, having spent so little of this evening with me. I had found words that left the decision of seeing me again with him, not with me.
“Good night Claire,” he spoke the words, already moving again.
“Bye!” I called after him.
Greg appeared at my side. His face was glum.
“You left me on the dance floor,” he complained. I looked at him apologetically. Greg’s voice sounded more disappointed than I wanted to hear. He let his head sink to his chest. His wavy blond hair fell into his face. I reached out automatically to push it back. His face shot up again, his eyes immediately focusing on me.
I pulled back my hand. Greg and I had been friends since the first year I had been in Aurora. He was one of the few people who knew about my parents’ deaths, about how I had ended up living with my sister, and about how I had been blaming myself for the accident for the last three years. In other words, he knew a lot more about me than most of the people that were currently standing or dancing in this room. He knew me.
Somehow this familiarity seemed to have changed for him over the summer. He had changed a lot. It wasn’t only his body, but also the way he acted when he was with me. He seemed much more careful and distant. He complained when my attention was with another guy, even if I didn’t show any interest in that person. It seemed like he felt he had dibs on me, because we had been friends for such a long time.
“Let’s just go back and dance then,” I suggested and smiled. He couldn’t help but return the smile. He took my hand and we headed back for the dance floor—or better, the living room, where body moved next to body in time with the music.
Sophie and Ian were already dancing very close. The moment I saw them moving together, I was sure I would meet Ian at the kitchen table at breakfast the next morning. I smiled to myself.
She noticed me over Ian’s shoulder and gestured for me to come closer.
“Where did you leave the graveyard guy,” she asked.
“He had to leave for some reason—tired or something.” I explained.
Ian turned his head and flashed me a smile before he pulled Sophie back into a tight embrace. I winked at her and made my way through the living room in the hope to find either Lydia or Amber—or both.
Lydia was still talking to a boy in the corner of the room. She saw me and called my name.
“Where is he?” she asked in a meaningful tone.
I sighed and told her about Adam’s leaving.
“But you are going to see him again?” Her eyes flared with interest.
“I told him that he could find me at the library on Thursdays.” I noticed the boy she had been talking to was the one who looked so much like Ian. He smiled at me as he noticed my stare.
“Who’s he?” I asked Lydia. “He looks like a younger smaller version of Ian.”
“He is,” Lydia answered. “He’s Ian’s little brother, Richard.”
“I didn’t know he had a brother,” I replied.
“Me neither. But I’m glad Ian brought him here tonight.” She winked at me.
I knew she would prefer to talk to him alone as I recognised the enthusiasm in her eyes.
“Where is Amber?” I hadn’t seen her for a while and looking for her would be my perfect excuse to give them some privacy.
“She’s back there in the corner.” Lydia pointed at the corner beside the stairs. “She’s talking to some college guys. The topic they had when I left the conversation was acting and career options for young actors. Whatever…”
I turned my head into the direction she had pointed. I could see Amber sitting in the middle of a bunch of guys and couldn’t fight a smile. It was so Amber, being the center of boys’ attention.
“See you.” I left Lydia and Ian’s little brother alone and made my way towards the dance floor. The room wasn’t as crowded as it had been. Some of the people must have already left.
The music wasn’t exactly my favorite and I soon felt my feet getting a bit heavy and my motivation to dance faded with every minute I kept on moving.
As I was dancing on my own in the thinning crowd I thought of Adam. How I wished he would hold me in his arms like Ian did with Sophie.
Feet hurting and feeling lonely—everybody had somebody, Sophie, Lydia, Amber, even Greg was talking to a girl with a curly ponytail—I retreated to the kitchen and poured myself a coffee.
I saw some of the people moving in the direction of the front door. I saw Sophie—Ian holding one arm tightly wrapped around her waist—standing in the door to the living room, hugging and kissing them goodbye. It seemed like the party was coming to an end, and I was grateful that I would soon be able to go to my room, to be alone.
“I’ll get Amber and then I’m off,” Lydia announced. She had appeared in the doorway with Richard beside her.
“Okay.” I got to my feet. “I’ll walk you to the door.”
I accompanied them and we found Amber standing in the living room with only two of the college boys left.
“Hey, we’re leaving.” Lydia told her.
“Wait—I’m coming, too.” She said a few words I didn’t understand over the music to the guys and hugged both of them. Then she turned towards us and we walked towards the front door together.
“See you Monday at school.” I waved as they walked through the front door.
Only a few people were left in the house when I turned back, one of them Gregory.
“I’m off, too,” he told me while he shook Sophie’s hand, and then he pulled me into a hug and kissed me on the cheek.
“Sleep tight,” he whispered into my ear before he let go. Then he headed after the others.
It took some time until only Sophie, Ian and me were left. Sophie closed the door.
“I’m tired, little sister,” Sophie giggled. She must have had a few drinks too many.
Ian shrugged apologetically and they headed upstairs, his arm still around her waist.
“Night,” I called after them and both of them lifted one hand to wave.
Smiling to myself, I took a look around. The living room was a mess, bottles and glasses everywhere. The floor was covered with crumbs from the chips I had bought.
The kitchen didn’t look any better. I turned on my heel, deciding to postpone cleaning until tomorrow morning. I was too tired, and I wasn’t intending to do that on my own. Sophie would have to do her part as well.
Upstairs I had a shower and got ready for bed as fast as possible. I went to my room and climbed into bed. I slid under the quilt, curling up until I felt comfortable. My eye-lids drooped and I let them fall shut. A lot had happened that day, but only a few minutes were of real interest to me—the time I had spent with Adam. Thursday, I thought and with his face before my inner eye I soon fell asleep.
Library
Time was running out. I hadn’t studied for the first history test and I saw the disaster coming at me as the days until the exam grew fewer and fewer. All I had to do was study.
Three weeks had passed since Adam hadn’t appeared on the Thursday after the party. But honestly, at the moment the exam was crucial to my success in convincing Ms. Weaver that I wasn’t a complete waste of space in her history classroom. Plus I needed a good grade for my psychological well-being. After a week of whining I had seen very clearly that my infatuation with Adam was not t
he most important thing in my life. At least until the exam was over it helped keep my mind busy, so I wouldn’t think of him constantly. It was hard, but my psychological wellbeing seemed to be all I had left. Unless Adam had told me he never wanted to see me again, I postponed going crazy over him until after the exam. It cost a lot of self-control, though, forcing my attention on uninteresting things such as the Civil War.
Fortunately I had a great coach at my side—Gregory.
I was standing at his front door, lifting my hand to ring the bell when he opened the door.
“Hi Claire.” He pulled me in over the threshold as soon as I hugged him. We walked to his room quickly. His parents weren’t at home this time of the day.
Gregory’s room was large with high white walls. The broad bed stood to the middle of the left wall, it didn’t seem to take away too much space in this enormous room. The wooden floor was polished. All the walls were lit by the sun that came in through the huge windows opposite the door.
“You can sit down, there’s no need to stand there in the doorway,” Greg winked at me.
I dropped my bag on the floor next to the dark red leather sofa and sat down. It was comfortable—a little too comfortable, thinking of the work that lay ahead of us. History had to be implanted into my brain and Gregory had the honor of doing the coaching part. He had offered his help only too happily, not expecting the task to be that hard—impossible, as I dared say.
“Can I get you anything?” Gregory stood behind me, looking down on my face as I looked up. I nodded.
“Do you have some tea?” It was cool although it was a sunny day, and I had been freezing all day at school. Greg rushed out of the room.
I looked around. The furniture was very sparce: Light brown wood and clear, straight shapes. Everything fit together, like it had been made solely for this room. The whole house was stunning. I remembered the first time I had seen his place. I had known Greg’s parents had money, but I hadn’t had expected this. I still hadn’t gotten entirely used to it.—It was absolutely ostentatious.
Greg entered the room, holding a big black cup carefully in his hands. He carried it over to where I sat and put it down on the small table in front of me. It was some herbal infusion, the smell was wonderful.
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