by Clark, Bekah
Lexa giggled, relieved Melissa wasn’t pissed. Anna said nothing as usual. Lexa was getting used to that, however, so it was a surprise when Anna suddenly initiated a conversation, “So yesterday was fun, did your sister wear any of those new clothes?”
Lexa laughed, “Are you kidding, I think she’s planning on returning them.”
Anna frowned, “That’d be a waste. They really looked good on her.”
“I know but Lyssa is… modest.”
“She give Kyle her number yet?” Missy asked eagerly.
Shaking her head, Lexx sighed, “No. She was seriously dreading her first class today. She doesn’t know how to handle guys at all!”
Missy snickered as they separated from Anna and headed off to class. It was a relatively quiet morning with nothing really going on. When they got to lunch, however, Lyssa’s eyes were huge and her gaze was darting about until she locked onto Lexa. She hurried over, her little lunch cooler in her hand. Kyle walked in a minute later with a smug smile and stepped into the lunch line. His rich brown eyes kept darting over to Lyssa until he was sure where she was sitting.
Lyssa sat down and started to pull out her lunch. Cold chicken from last night, a salad and a piece of chocolate cake all packed in their containers, which fit into her cooler. It wasn’t what she had for lunch that made Missy and Anna’s eyes go wide, it was the amount. Lyssa worked out hard, she also ate a lot.
“I’m officially jealous. I thought Lexa ate a lot.”
Lyssa gave a small smile and tried to engage in conversation, “Yesterday I was starved, I was so glad when we went out after school.”
Anna quietly eyed both sisters before turning back to her own food. She actually had quite a bit herself, just not as much as the sisters did. Meanwhile Lyssa kept watching the empty seat like a hawk. She looked almost terrified of it.
“Um, Lyss… what happened?”
Lyssa just looked to her sister with wide eyes.
“Lyssa!” she demanded.
“He asked me out,” she whispered.
“What?!”
“He. Asked. Me. Out.”
Missy squealed so loudly people from all the surrounding tables looked at her. She was bouncing in her seat, “Tell me you said yes!”
Lyssa’s eyes never left Lexa, “I tried everything I could to say no but, he shot down all my excuses. I…I said yes.”
Melissa let out an extremely loud yelp, which got the monitor to walk over to their table, “Is there something wrong girls?”
“No, sorry Ms. Landers. Just thought I saw a bee.”
With a frown, the brown haired woman of forty or so walked away. Lyssa still hadn’t moved and Lexa was wondering if she was in shock. A girl with bright red hair came by, looking for a seat and Lyssa’s arm shot out. Lexa could see Kyle making his way to their table.
“Do you need a seat? We have an empty seat. You should sit with us.”
The girl looked at Lyssa and was about to refuse. Then Lyssa did something Lexa never thought she’d see her do in front of people. Lyssa used her gift to influence others. Her eyes locked onto the girl, her pupils dilated to twice their normal size and the girl stopped. Her eyes going blank and then she smiled. “I’d love to sit with you.”
With that the girl sat down and started eating just at Kyle came over. Lyssa didn’t raise her gaze as she started in on her food. Lexa raised her gaze to Kyle and smiled.
“Well that’s too bad. I’ll just have to find another table.”
Lexa had to give him credit. He smiled. No, he smirked. He knew he had riled Lyssa and he wasn’t going to let this little set back deter him. After all, he had a date with Lyssa. She gave him a secret thumbs up and a smile. Kyle lit up and left for a table with his friends. At least, she assumed they were his friends.
Missy leaned forward, “Out with it. Now!”
That snapped Lyssa out of it and focused on the rest of them. Anna and Missy eyed the red haired girl who ate in silence, not even paying attention to them. Lexa was going to have to get Lyssa to fix that poor girl before they left.
“I was in the library, trying to read. Once again, he tracked me down and sat next to me. Then he just started asking me all these yes and no questions. Well, mostly questions that the answer to was yes. All of a sudden, he asked me if I’d go out with him on Saturday. Before I could stop myself, I said yes. I tried to make an excuse after, but he wouldn’t take no for an answer since I had already said yes. What the hell am I going to do now?”
Melissa laughed heartily, “You are going to go out with him and wear some of your new clothes!”
“If I wear those he’ll get the wrong impression. He’ll think… I don’t care what he thinks, how do I get out of this?!”
Anna and Missy exchanged glances. Lyssa wasn’t acting like a normal human girl. There was no choice. Lexa was going to have to step in. So, she grinned at her sister and put an arm around her.
“Lyssa’s shy,” she called out in a singsong voice, “Lyssa’s shy!”
Lyssa was about to open her mouth to deny when she must have caught the gleam in Lexa’s eyes. Closing her mouth, she nodded, “Maybe a little. I’ve never gone out with anyone before.”
“Maybe we can come over and help you pick out an outfit?” Anna asked softly.
Turning her eyes to Anna, Lexa smiled. Maybe she was making progress with her after all. Merrily she replied, “Of course. The four of us should brainstorm tonight! I’ll make us dinner! We can study too. I have this math assignment…”
Lyssa grinned, “Fine, fine. We’ll do that.”
“Don’t you have to ask your parents?”
“They won’t be home tonight until really late, we’re on our own.” The lie rolled off Lexa’s tongue with ease. It was one of the standards the sisters used when dealing with nosy friends.
“Great! We’ll have a party!” Missy grinned, starting to pull out her phone.
“No,” Lyssa said softly but with power in her voice, “No parties. Homework, dinner and you can help me pick out an outfit. That’s it.”
“You’re no fun!” Missy pouted.
“Lyssa’s the responsible one,” Lexa shot her sister an adoring smile.
“One of us has to be.” Lyssa drawled.
Melissa busted out laughing. Anna broke into a small smile. Finally, Lexa thought, she’s loosening up. But, as soon as there gazes met, Anna looked away with a little frown. What was with that girl? Maybe food would work.
“Hey, Anna, what’s your favorite food?”
Anna looked at Lexa and smiled challengingly, “London broil.”
Lexa let the brightest smile she could touch her face as she replied, “I have a great non-traditional recipe for that. Can we go to the store on the way home, Lyssa?”
“Yes, we need some things anyway. And I want ice cream.”
“Yay! Ice cream!”
Missy shook her head, “You two are weird.”
With a smile, Lyssa said, “You have no idea.”
The warning bell rang and everyone rose. When Anna and Missy started for the door, Lexa called out, “You two go ahead. I wanna talk to Lyss for a minute.”
Once they were out of earshot, Lexa turned around, “What do you think of Anna?”
Arching a brow, Lyssa asked, “What do you mean?”
Letting out a frustrated sigh, Lexa continued, “Well she’s weird, isn’t she? I’m serious. She doesn’t like us and I don’t see any reason why.”
“And, you are telling me this because?”
“Look ahead.”
Lyssa frowned and her gaze screamed at Lexa that she was crazy, “Come again?”
“Go on, you know what I mean. Check it out. What if she’s a danger to us?”
Shaking her head in disbelief, Lyssa said softly, “I thought I was the paranoid one. I’m not going to force a seeing on some human just because you don’t like her. What do you think? She’s going to call the tabloids about us? It isn’t as if…”
“
Please, Lyss, just check. I have a bad feeling about her. She’s not normal.”
“What is normal?” But, something must have been in Lexa’s eyes, because Lyssa immediately relented and sighed, “Fine. But not here. Who knows who is watching.”
“Wait! What about her?”
Lexa pointed to the redhead who was sitting and staring into space now that her food was gone. Lyssa guiltily put her hand on the girl’s shoulder and whispered softly in her ear, “You sat with the Stone sisters, they seemed nice but ordinary. You probably won’t sit with them again since they just weren’t into the same things you are.”
The girl nodded, rose and walked away. By the time she reached the door, the girl shook her head and headed out. The full effect of Lyssa’s influence having run its course, the girl would remember things as Lyssa had influenced her to. Smiling sheepishly, Lyss turned to Lexa.
Nodding, Lexa followed Lyssa out of the cafeteria and headed towards the bathroom. There were a couple of girls in there so Lyssa pretended to do her makeup and Lexa fixed her hair. Once they left, Lexa checked the stalls to make sure no one else was there. When she was sure, she walked over to the lock on the door and her hand hovered there for a moment until there was a click. She may not be as powerful as Lyssa by any means, but Lexa had her gifts.
“Ok, Lyss, do it.”
Lyssa rolled her eyes, leaned against the nearest sink and stared off. As she did, her eyes started to glow as her whites of her eyes as well as her pupils disappeared and only the gray-blue remained. When she had a flash, Lyssa could feel it coming on and would close her eyes to hide the glow. However, this was just the two of them and Lyssa was forcing it. No easy task.
“What do you see?”
“Shut up.”
“Well, what do you see?”
“Nothing beyond your irritating me so shut up!”
Lexa paced in quick rapid steps. She started to gnaw on her thumbnail. If Anna was a Hunter…Lexa didn’t want to think about that outcome. What if Anna’s family worked for the government and she reported the oddness that was the Stone sisters. That could happen. They could…
“Nothing.”
“What?” Lexa asked, clearly surprised by the pronouncement.
Lyssa sighed, the color of her eyes returning to normal as the brilliant glow, which hid the details of her gaze, faded. Standing up straight, she walked over to Lexa and pulled her into a hug. Softly, she stroked her sister’s hair. Lyssa was trying to comfort Lexa in her own way. However, that wasn’t what Lexa wanted so she pulled away roughly. Regretting it the moment she saw a little hurt in Lyssa’s eyes.
“Listen, Lexx, I know you’re scared. Worried about what will happen to us. But I saw no Hunters coming for us, no human authorities.”
“What about Anna?”
“Nothing stood out. I see no instances where she accuses us of anything, nor any instances of her leading Hunters to us. I looked for that and that alone. I’m not going to violate her privacy by trying to look at every aspect of her life. You know I hate doing that!”
Lexa frowned and then looked down. Lyssa was right and Lexa trying to force her into looking deeper into Anna was not right. It was also cruel to Lyssa who, as much as she relied on the gift to keep them safe, hated the gift. It had taken Lyssa years to learn to control it. Now the only flashes of insight she got were when one or both of them was in real danger. It was how Lyssa had found her so quickly when Jack-Ass thought he’d have his way with Lexa. Lexa had been in real physical harm and Lyssa had come to the rescue. She really was the best sister and Lexa had to remind herself not to take advantage of that.
“Ok, sorry.”
With that, Lexa popped the lock and the two of them went their separate ways to their classrooms. Lexa had Spanish with Anna and Missy. At least she didn’t have to pay attention to the class very much. She knew Spanish, but foreign language was a requirement for sophomores. Why couldn’t Lyssa just put that they were twins? Sure, Lexa wasn’t as book smart as her sister was, but Lyssa could have helped her. Granted, Lexa was almost two years younger, but Lyssa and her looked close enough in age no one would know.
Then again, she never would have met Missy. Grinning at Missy and Anna while her back was to the teacher, Lexa made her way to the seat in the back and slipped in. The rest of the day was a dull blur as she eagerly waited for the final bell to ring. That last bell of the day just wouldn’t ring fast enough for her.
When the last bell did finally ring, Lexa made sure that Missy and Anna understood the directions she gave them. Quickly, she headed off to meet Lyssa at the car. She spotted her sister making her way to the Audi and Lexa's brows shot up. Lyssa was looking nervous as hell and right beside her was Kyle. Lexx didn't know whether she should laugh or pity Lyssa. It was unreal how Lyssa had no idea how to deal with Kyle. If, in the past, another boy had been interested in Lyss to the point where he wasn't scared off by the bitch persona, maybe she'd have some experience now. But, in the last three and a half years, all of the guys that they had met had fallen into the “look, but don't touch Lyssa” category. Kyle had his own category. She just hoped he was worth her sister.
In Lexa's opinion, she believed this was great for Lyssa. She really needed to learn to deal with guys and what was so terrible about a good-looking guy liking you? If they were going to live on this world, eventually they'd have to have somebody. Unless Lyssa thought that it was going to be just the two of them running together alone forever. Oh God, she hoped not! Lexa wanted to find a soul mate one day. No matter how much she loved Lyssa they were sisters, not soul mates.
Sliding up to the car, Lexa grinned, "Hey Lyss. Hey Kyle, so when and where are you taking my sister on your date?"
Kyle grinned, his chocolate gaze sparkling in the sunlight. Then, with mischief in his voice, he replied, "Oh that's a secret. I don't want to spoil the surprise."
Lexa rolled her eyes, grabbed Lyssa's keys and jumped into the red TTS. Lexa pushed the start button, turned and rolled down her window. With a little smile, she listened into their conversation.
"So, I'll need directions to your house and I'll pick you up Saturday around ten."
"My parents aren't going to let me go out on a date at ten at night."
Kyle laughed, a warm rich sound, before saying, "For someone really smart you can be a little ditzy. Ten in the morning."
"Where are you taking me?"
"Secret."
With a frustrated noise, Lyssa opened her car door as Kyle laughed again.
"Why didn't you turn on the A/C it's hot...oh. You were listening, you brat!"
Kyle roared outside as he walked away. Lyssa turned all manners of red before driving off in a rush. Fortunately, she didn't hit anyone in her haste.
"Slow down, Speed Racer, we're only going to the grocery store."
Sighing softly, Lyssa slowed down to a reasonable speed and they headed off to Whole Foods. Lexa's mind was full of the dinner she had to make and only those groceries popped in her mind. Though she was sure there were other things she'd probably need by the end of the weekend, she didn't really care. What Lexa wanted was to make the best damn dinner possible so that she could impress Missy and Anna. Especially Anna, who seemed very hard to please. Now that Lexa felt confident Anna wasn't a threat, she was hoping to gain her friendship.
When they got home, Lexa immediately started the marinade. Lemon juice, olive oil, fresh basil, and garlic. She tossed in a few dry herbs she had too. When the smell was exactly what she was looking for, she moved on to scoring the meat before she tossed it into the marinade and let it sit in the fridge. Lyssa was sitting at the side bar in the kitchen, staring off into space. Every time she'd glance at her, Lyssa had a different expression. Perplexed. Frustrated. Smitten? Angry. Confused.
"Oh for the love! Lyssa, get yourself together! The girls will be here soon and you don't need to be looking like a lunatic!"
Lyssa rolled her eyes, "I'm going to go change. You can stay all cute and uncomfort
able if you want; I'm getting my flannels on."
"Not the polka dots, ok? Those look so goofy!"
Pausing at the bottom of the stairs, Lyssa tossed her sister a grin, "Polka dots it is!"
With a growl, Lexa cried you, "You're making a salad when you get down here!"
Lyssa made a non-committal sound and Lexa continued on to rinse the rice. She wanted to be all set so all she had to do was start when the girls got there. It wouldn't take long for the food to be ready. Lyssa came bounding down the stairs and plopped on the couch with one of those old sci-fi novels she loved to read. Lexa couldn't be bothered learning the names of them or even check which one she was reading now.