Chloe (Chardonnay Series Book 1)

by Hollye Davis

  “I’d be crying by now,” Jody commented, propping her head up with her elbow on the table.

  “I wouldn’t come back to school,” Kim added.

  Chloe really didn’t have a clue what they were talking about so she shrugged and took another bite of her sandwich. Before she could finish swallowing she noticed Jody’s eyes get round and Kim jump up with clinched fists next to her. That was when she felt ice-cold liquid pour down her head, dripping on the table.

  “Oh my God, did I do that?” Chloe didn’t have to turn around to know it was Britney. Who wouldn’t recognize the shrilly tone that girl employed.

  “Oh yes, Erkel, you did,” Kim said and took her glass of juice and threw it at Britney. Britney then launched after Kim and a brawl commenced.

  Chloe pulled Kim off of Britney when a teacher grabbed them and hauled them to the Vice Principal’s office.

  In all her illustrious years of high school she had never been sent to the office. Typically teachers would rather forget about her, and since she was a master at disappearing, that was easy for them to do.

  They both were covered in dripping food when they entered the official office. The Vice Principal gestured for them to take the seats located in front of their desk.

  “Hello Kim, nice to see you again.”

  Shocked, Chloe whispered to Kim, “But it’s only the second day of school.” Kim winked at her.

  When the Vice Principal slammed his hand down on the desk Chloe flinched so hard that she fell from her chair. She was shaking when Kim lifted her up and whispered, “Are you okay?”

  But Chloe couldn’t answer, she was suddenly very afraid.

  The Vice Principal looked at her queerly and had the good grace to look a little ashamed. It didn’t stop her shaking uncontrollably.

  “What were you two fighting about?” The bald-headed short man barked. Chloe and Kim exchanged confused looks.

  It was Kim who explained, “We weren’t fighting each other.”

  “Oh I see, you guys were merely discussing the weather covered in food,” He sneered.

  Chloe looked disbelieving at him and tried to clarify, “Sir, I think you have it all wrong, we weren’t fighting EACH OTHER.” She talked slowly, so he could understand it but it only pissed him off worse.

  “I don’t have time for this, I’m calling your parents to pick you up.” He pushed a button on his phone.

  “Good luck with that,” she and Kim said simultaneously. They looked at each other with amused expressions.

  “What did you say?!” the Vice Principle yelled.

  Chloe scooted further down in her chair. This guy reminded her too much of her father.

  “I said good luck getting in touch with my parents,” Kim said defiantly.

  More confident, Chloe added, “I don’t even know where mine are. You’ll have to call my aunt.”

  Kim added, “Ditto that, except you‘ll have to call my brother, but he’s at work and won’t be able to get off.”

  Chloe spared a sad glance at Kim then turned to the Vice Principal, “My aunt probably could take us both home as we live near each other.” At least she assumed Kim lived nearby since she worked in her community and rode the same bus. The man nodded his shiny head just as the front-desk administrative assistant walked in to escort them out of the office and into the main hallway into chairs as if they were on display. Chloe imagined it was a mid-evil tactic to shame them for their poor behavior, but all it did was piss her off more.

  After a few moments the administrative assistant came out to explain Chloe’s aunt would be arriving within thirty minutes. Kim was right, her brother couldn’t get off and her mother couldn’t be found.

  They waited the thirty minutes in the hallway leaving a puddle of juice and food underneath them. The only thing she felt was guilt. The guilt of inconveniencing her aunt on a workday was making her stomach hurt. She hated being any kind of imposition to anyone, especially over a misunderstanding, but she especially hated being an imposition to her aunt who had done nothing but be supportive and loving.

  When she saw her aunt, she bolted up and practically ran into her arms but they both stopped at arms length, her aunt looked at her disbelievingly.

  “Oh my dear, tell me what happened?!” Her aunt said while flicking a piece of jello off Chloe’s shoulder with her manicured index finger.

  Chloe quickly divested the burdensome tale to her aunt who shook her head and muttered, “Typical.” Without another word, she stomped off to speak with the Vice Principal.

  Chloe and Kim exchanged looks and resumed their seat of shame. After what felt like forever but was probably more like ten minutes, the Vice Principal came out of his office looking like he had been to hell followed by her aunt who was crisp and triumphant, carrying a smug expression.

  Aunt gestured for them to follow her to the little sports car where she placed beach towels on the soft cream leather seats for them to sit.

  A distance from the school, Aunt explained, “He was going to give you two In School Suspension but I convinced him that wouldn’t be a smart choice,” aunt gripped the steering wheel tightly as she continued to explain, “The jerk didn’t believe that Britney had anything to do with it. She evidently has a golden reputation and her father was responsible for donating their new stadium to be built this summer.” Aunt spared a quick knowing glance at Chloe, “That, my dear, makes her very dangerous.”

  Chloe knew Britney was dangerous purely because the girl was used to getting her way, and she wouldn’t quit until she did. But to have that type of money pouring into the school was beyond Chloe’s comprehension. It was a whole another level of danger.

  The sad thing is that Chloe was sure Britney’s parents thought their daughter’s tenaciousness was great, but when you add an overindulged child on that, all you create was a monster. Her parents are going to have their hands full when Britney finds out the real world doesn’t work like high school. At least those thoughts gave Chloe comfort.

  As they drove on the open highway, Chloe glanced in the back seat to see Kim watching the traffic out the window. For once she did have something positive come out of school. It felt good to have a friend like Kim who was willing to get in trouble to defend her. And although Jody is practically scared of her shadow, she didn’t shun her from sitting with Chloe or talking to her. That meant a lot. In the past the few friends she made would fall off once the harassment started. The fact these two girls didn’t gave her hope that things were going to get easier.

  Aunt dropped Kim off in a hidden trailer community near her cottage. The singlewide looked like it had seen better years as they watched Kim climb its steps and disappear inside. Chloe was beginning to understand her better. It was obvious that they shared similar struggles.

  It was barely a mile before the gates to the community came in sight. Aunt pulled into the driveway and they made their way inside.

  It was too early for Edwin to be at home so she went to her room and showered. Afterward, she pretreated her laundry and walked back to the living room to do some homework. She called Jody hoping she would get her homework for the last few classes of the day.

  “I thought you guys got kicked out of school when you didn’t come back” Jody said.

  “Nothing like that, all we got was a day off,” she explained finding Jody’s drama amusing.

  “I’m glad you can laugh about it, I have been feeling sorry for myself thinking I lost the only two people who would talk to me.”

  “Don’t worry. I’ll be back, unfortunately.”

  “I’ve got to run, I’ll call you later with the homework assignments.”

  “Thanks Jody, I owe you.”

  Chloe settled deeper into the couch reading an assigned book for her AP English lit class when Edwin walked in. He glanced at his watch and stated the obvious, “You’re early.”

  She smiled at him mischievously and said “Yep, they sent me home early for fighting.” She wished she had her cell phone han
dy to take a picture for his expression was priceless.

  Patting the seat next to her, she began to tell him how it was really Kim that was defending her that got into the fight. She thought he would be amused but instead Edwin looked so very worried.

  “This Britney sounds like a bitch but what’s worse is that she sounds like she has a lot of support behind her. I don’t understand why the school lets her behave this way.”

  “Like everything else in the world, school is a business. Without money it would cease to exist or it would exist very poorly. Therefore they tolerate these kids, who are usually brats, in order to save their bottom line. Unfortunately it’s often at the expense of the other children who just want to get an education.”

  He looked at her and smiled, “Have I ever told you that the way you think is really neat? Most people would just say, ‘I don’t know why Britney gets away with what she does, I guess they’re idiots.’” He said that last part with a very convincing American accent. It shocked her, he sounded different.

  She cocked her head, “Wow, you are really good at that American accent, if I tried to sound British I’m sure you’d be rolling on the ground laughing at me.”

  He looked uncomfortable and then said, “well…uhh….when you live somewhere long enough you begin to figure out how to sound like them.” He shrugged and changed the subject. “Tonight our friends are coming over.”

  “Oh, I miss them!!” She could forget about school for a few hours at least. He smiled at her, reached over and kissed her lips tenderly, “I know you do.”

  Right before the sun dipped into the ocean, Edwin went ahead to start the fire while she finished up her homework. The fire blazed brightly bringing a smile to her face when she arrived. It had been too long.

  She rushed down the steps her toes sinking into the soft sand when she noticed two silhouettes arguing quite forcefully. She stopped to listen.

  “You have to stop this Edwin, It’s only going to cause hurt! You’re going to mess everything up and I’m afraid you won’t survive!”

  “Leave it alone Christoph, it’s none of your business,” Edwin’s voice was calm but strained.

  “Hell it is, I love her, too, we all do, and we don’t want to see anyone hurt. You’re playing a dangerous game with someone I don’t want to see damaged anymore than she already is.”

  Chloe gasped when Edwin grabbed Christoph’s shirt.

  “It’s her decision, and you’ll leave it at that.”

  “You aren’t the only one involved you know.”

  In a deadly voice that she had never heard Edwin use before, “You keep your distance Christoph, we’ve talked about this.”

  “You don’t own her Edwin.”

  Sandra saw her and hollered “Boys, chill out your play acting, Chloe’s going to get the wrong impression.” Both of them relaxed their combative stance and stepped away. If that were play acting she would hate to see the real thing.

  Stepping toward the fire she debated on asking what the “play acting” was about but she was too exhausted to deal with any more drama. She would try to remember to ask tomorrow. Right now she just wanted to enjoy the night with her friends.

  Edwin was tense all night, but he put on a show of being unaffected. Her stomach hurt but that, too, she ignored. When the music was turned on she was so thankful for a diversion that she nearly cried.

  Even with the music playing and them dancing, Edwin was still tense, and he was being very possessive and protective. She wished she was brave enough to ask what was bothering him, but as usual she was scared.

  It got worse afterword. Edwin didn’t spend the night for the first time in a very long time making some excuse about having to meet his father to discuss the trip.

  She didn’t sleep, fearful he was avoiding her. He was hiding something and she didn’t know if she could handle it.

  The constant noise from the waves was even getting to me. Crash, crash, crash. Does it ever stop? I tried walking inside, closing all the doors to shut out the never ending roar but then the clock tick seemed louder. Tic, tic, tic. So I dismantled the clock, satisfied to have peace but the quietness felt loud. The low hum of the refrigerator, the click and soft woosh of the air conditioning, won’t it go away? Can’t I escape this? Why hasn’t Edwin called me? –Chloe’s diary

  Chapter 3

  Tension

  Since she didn’t sleep the night before, school was even more unbearable than usual. She fell asleep in study hall and got written up for it. Her second period teacher yelled at her for dropping her book, her classmates sneered and taunted.

  To say her first week of school was not going well at all and her home life was worrying her was an understatement. Everything felt precarious, and she didn’t know what to do or how to ask for help.

  The only bright spot was that Britney must have been occupied with some sort of cheerleading thing because she and her cronies were nowhere to be seen. She was thankful for that one small boon.

  She and Kim sat together on the bus that bumped along without too many words spoken between them. It was by mutual consensus that their life sucked at the moment and they really didn’t want to discuss why.

  Chloe decided it was time for her to visit Bear since she had neglected him since school started. Thank goodness Cole was there to let Bear out of his stall, otherwise she would have felt horrible.

  First she needed to go to the cottage and change into jeans. Walking up the steps, Edwin greeted her but without his usual charm. He was distracted. She didn’t push but went to her bedroom to change.

  As she slid on her jeans she wondered what his father did that required so much of Edwin’s time, and why was Edwin being secretive? What was that argument with Christoph about last night? She got irritated from the lack of answers but she was still afraid to broach a subject that may cause an argument. She decided small steps would be easier, one question at a time.

  Her stomach was upset asking any question but she pressed on. She needed to know something. She walked back out into the living room to find Edwin watching the ocean.

  She sat next to him, “How’s home?” That was a good question, she thought, easy to answer.

  Edwin turned toward her, looking confused for a moment. When his expression cleared, as if he remembered that he had a home, he answered simply.

  “Good.”

  Not a great answer. She would try again, “Anything interesting happen?”

  “No.”

  She was getting irritated and tired of Edwin being evasive so she said snappishly, “Do you do anything interesting outside of here?”

  And that was all it took for Edwin to snap.

  “What’s with the twenty questions?! Do I have to come home and have you question me too? God won’t everybody leave me the hell alone!”

  It was the first time Edwin ever yelled at her, but it just confirmed what her father beat into her. Questions lead to unhappiness. Tears welled up in her eyes and she began shaking. She stood up for a moment but she didn’t know where she was going. Finally she stumbled out of the room to her room even though it offered no sanctity. She curled into a ball in the middle of her bed, something she hadn’t done since Germany.

  Edwin followed her into her room a moment later. When he saw her curled in the fetal position, he cursed. When she felt the bed dip, she knew he was making his way to her.

  “I’m sorry Chloe. I’m really sorry,” he said softly. She stiffened slightly when he placed his hand lightly on her hip.

  “I’ve had a bad day. My father’s been on to me about some obligations, and I found out today that I’m leaving tomorrow for England.”

  She gasped and sat up, turning toward him.

  “No,” she shook her head and grabbed his shirt with her fists, “NO!” she said more forcefully.

  He closed his eyes and ran his hand through his hair. He looked like he didn’t get much sleep last night either. He looked pained.

  “Yes, I’m afraid so.”
r />   Her heart shattered. Barely able to choke it out she asked, “Are you breaking up with me?”

  His eyes registered shock, and he grabbed her arm still attached to his shirt,

  “Hell no, don’t ever say that or THINK that. I’m coming back as soon as it’s humanly possible and don’t think for a minute that I’ll ever let you go.”

  Yeah right, he was going back home, he‘ll never miss her. She searched his eyes for the truth, trying to see past the lies.

  “Are you sure? You might go away and find that I’m not at all what you need or want….” She stopped then, ashamed at herself for being so pitiful.

  “Why do you ask, are you wanting to break up with me?” he asked with a degree of alarm to his voice.

  She laughed but it was harsh and held no humor. “Are you insane? I’m afraid that if it was my choice, you would never leave my side.”

  She sighed, tears fresh in her eyes, “There’s no need to discuss this now, what will happen…will happen. I know you have your obligations,” she said obligations as if it was a dirty word, “and there is nothing we can do about it. Let’s not spend tonight fighting. It will be our last night for a while.” At that her heart squeezed painfully and her eyes filled up further with tears. His eyes reflected the same pain.

  They didn’t say that much that night. Edwin was upset he didn’t have enough time to arrange things at her school properly before he left, she was upset because he was leaving. She assured him that she would be fine, he assured her that he would back. They were empty promises but she refused to dwell on it.

  When morning came she held him tightly to the very last minute, tears still glistened in her eyes when she left the house and walked to her bus stop. She couldn’t believe Edwin wouldn’t be waiting for her when she got home - she wanted to throw up.

  One of her safety nets was just snatched from underneath her.