Julia Jones - The Teenage Years: Boxed Set - Books 2, 3 and 4

by Katrina Kahler

  “I wonder if he has kids.”

  “He doesn’t wear a wedding ring, so maybe he’s single.”

  “I wonder if he has a girlfriend.”

  “How old do you think he is?”

  Even though he didn’t teach any of my classes and I had only caught glimpses of him around the school grounds, I had certainly noticed him. Amongst the male teaching staff, there were very few who we actually considered good looking, but he was definitely at the top of the list.

  Sitting down in a booth at the rear of our favorite café, Becky and I continued to speculate on the scene we had just witnessed.

  “Maybe he was just driving past and offered her a lift?” I suggested half-heartedly, all the while knowing that this was more than likely not the case.

  The shake of Becky’s head as she discounted my idea, confirmed my thoughts. “But why would they have both been in that delivery lane at exactly the same moment?”

  “I know,” I replied, “but then, why was he picking her up in a deserted place, anyway?”

  “Because it’s exactly as you said. Deserted! It’s a safe place to be picked up without being seen. Or so they thought.” Becky grinned at the irony of her words but remained adamant in her response.

  She was convinced that Sara was seeing the new Math teacher. And the more she justified her reasoning, the more I tended to agree with her. There simply was no other explanation.

  “I can’t believe it!” Becky continued. “We’ve all admitted that he’s good looking, he’s pretty much the hottest teacher in the school. And there’s probably a lot of girls who’d jump at the chance of hooking up with him. But he’s a teacher! And he’s so much older than her!”

  Becky’s excited ramblings had begun to draw curious glances from people at surrounding tables.

  “I think we should keep this quiet, Becky,” I whispered, glancing around, concerned that our conversation had been overheard.

  “Yeah, but seriously, Julia. Can you believe that a teacher from our school is hooking up with one of the students? He could lose his job over this!”

  “Exactly!” I replied firmly. “And we have no proof there is actually anything going on. So, let’s just keep it to ourselves, for the time being anyway. I mean, who knows what Sara is up to? That girl is capable of anything!”

  We sat quietly then, each of us deep in thought over the idea that a girl in our grade might actually be seeing a teacher. That was the kind of thing that happened in the movies, certainly not at Carindale High School. And as I sipped on my straw and drained the last of the chocolate milkshake from the bottom of my glass, I pictured Sara once more, her beaming smile almost outshining her glistening blonde hair as she opened that car door and hopped inside.

  Unsure…

  Back at school the following day, Becky and I acknowledged each other knowingly. We’d vowed not to say a word to anyone, not until we were sure of the facts at least, and our plan was to keep an eye out for any clues that there might definitely be something going on.

  Meanwhile, the incident with Sara, as shocking as it appeared, was still not enough to override my thoughts of Ky and he remained my main focus. He had texted me the night before and I could still feel the butterflies dancing crazily in my stomach. The moment I realized I had a message from him I was overcome with excitement, and the feeling continued to erupt each and every time I pictured his handsome face in my mind.

  How was your day?

  Such simple words but the mere sight of them on my phone screen had caused my heart to skip a beat. And overcome by an overwhelming happiness, the school day had passed in a daze. He was all I could think about and after exchanging glances with Becky just before first period, in a silent promise to keep our secret intact, I had not given Sara another thought.

  That was however, until I spotted her deep in conversation with Mr. Hathaway just inside the door of her Math class. The bell had rung to signal the end of the last lesson and the hallway was filled with noise and congestion, everyone occupied by last minute chats with their friends before leaving the school grounds.

  Normally, I would have taken little notice of a student talking with a teacher. Even though it was the end of the day, they would most likely be discussing a class assignment or other task that was due, or perhaps helping to organize an event around the school. However, because the pair happened to be Sara and Mr. Hathaway, I instantly took an avid interest as I headed along the corridor in their direction, the curiosity too much for me to resist.

  Slowing my pace to a halt just near the doorway where they were standing, I used the pretence of checking through my bag for a misplaced item. I was partly camouflaged by students who filled the walkway, which was clearly to my advantage as it allowed me to stand within earshot while remaining unnoticed. Continuing to search through the bag hanging loosely on my shoulder, I strained above the surrounding noise in order to grasp snippets of their conversation.

  Pulling my phone out, I quickly focused on the screen and pretended to be replying to a text; my attention appearing to be solely on that task. Abruptly however, I became aware of a break in their conversation and looked up to see Sara’s eyes on my own. Glancing innocently away, I returned my attention to the screen in my hand and then began walking slowly down the corridor towards the exit door; all the while pretending I was completely oblivious to anything other than the phone I was carrying.

  Not daring to look back, I continued on until I reached the corner, at which point I was unable to fight the temptation to take one quick glance behind me. In that split second, I watched Sara put her hand on his arm. It could have been a completely innocent gesture in response to something he had said, but after being privy to the words spoken between them, I knew otherwise.

  Locked in place by the intensity of the moment, I stood staring, unable to move, but realized my mistake when Sara’s head turned abruptly in my direction. She must have sensed someone watching her and with my heart thumping, I caught a brief glimpse of her suspicious gaze before quickly moving away. I desperately hoped she hadn’t realized it was me who had been watching her so closely.

  When I boarded the bus a few minutes later and grabbed the first empty seat I could find, I shuffled across next to the window and took a moment to catch my breath. I was still shaking from the close encounter I had just left behind, along with concern over whether I’d been caught out.

  In silent disbelief, the main message of the conversation I had overheard ran over and over in my mind. And for the entire trip home my thoughts were reeling with the repercussions of what I had witnessed.

  Something quite serious was undoubtedly going on.

  But the problem was, I was at a loss for what I should do about it.

  Obsessed…

  When I opened our front door later that afternoon, I was welcomed by the deafening sound of heavy metal music blaring from a set of speakers that had been placed in separate corners of our living room.

  On the sofa and surrounding arm chairs sat Matt, Zac and a few others, clearly enjoying the music that was blasting loudly throughout the entire house.

  Matt had mentioned the evening before that he and Zac had been shopping around for new speakers as the damaged ones were irreparable, and so they’d decided to buy a new set the following day. This was obviously what had happened and I could see by the smile on my brother’s face that he was clearly happy with the choice. I was also relieved that Zac had been true to his word in replacing the damaged ones so quickly.

  The gaping hole still stared at us from the wall. We had done our best to camouflage it with furniture, but it remained a huge eyesore. We had hoped to find a repairman before our Dad came home on the weekend, but after contacting several who we had found online, none were available to do the work. Matt suggested we ask our mother’s boyfriend, Barry, but I had simply looked at him with disgust at the sheer thought of that option.

  “There is no way that’s going to happen!” I declared adamantly.

&nb
sp; I did not want to be asking Barry for any sort of favors, and as well, I would rather that our mother did not find out! It was bad enough having to own up to our Dad. That had been one tough telephone call to make and I could not imagine trying to explain to Mom that we’d had a party and ended up with the house being partly destroyed. She would definitely freak out so I would prefer that if possible, she did not know. In addition, I was determined to avoid having to invite Barry into our house, even if it was for the sole purpose of repairing a wall.

  Thankfully though, after our Dad’s initial shocked reaction, as soon as we reassured him that we would take on the responsibility of organizing repairs, he had calmed down.

  “As long as it’s fixed, Matthew!” he said firmly, when Matt had spoken to him on the phone.

  I’d elected Matt to be the one to break the news. After all, it had been his friend who had caused all the trouble, so I thought it only fair that he made the phone call. Matt had placed the phone on speaker so I was able to hear every word, and I had listened anxiously to the conversation.

  At first, we’d contemplated the idea of not telling Dad at all but as we were having so much trouble finding a repairman, we knew that he’d be home before we would have a chance to get anything done.

  But we’d made a promise and because I wanted to avoid having to contact our mother’s sleazy boyfriend, I left my brother and his friends to enjoy their music and made my way to my room to do one last online search.

  Closing the door, I attempted to muffle some of the noise that was wafting up the stairs. Normally I would simply yell at Matt to turn it down, but as he was in such a happy frame of mind, I was reluctant to spoil his fun. Especially as things between us the evening before had been so awkward and I was pleased to have my brother speaking to me again.

  At the time, I happened to find him sitting at the kitchen bench madly texting on his phone, completely engrossed in the messages that kept popping up on his screen. I watched for a moment as his fingers sped frantically across the keypad, the grin on his face spreading wider and wider.

  Curious to see who he was messaging, I took a discreet look. But when I realized her identity my blood began to boil.

  This was quickly heightened by his delighted grin and the feverish speed with which he was responding to Lisa’s messages. It clearly indicated that she was leading him on, and I could imagine her thriving on the attention, even though she had openly admitted at school earlier that day that she was obsessed with someone else.

  How dare she humiliate my brother like that and fool him into believing her texts were genuine. I simply could not stand by and watch it happen and it was then that I made the decision to step in.

  At first, I tried to be tactful and hint at the fact that Lisa was friendly to everyone.

  “She’s such a flirt, Matt!” I prompted gently. “And besides, I thought we agreed not to get involved with each other’s friends!”

  “Hey! I don’t read your texts!” His guilty response was simply an attempt to change the subject and turning his back so I could no longer see his phone, he continued to type.

  “You’re such a hypocrite!” I responded, keen to try anything in order to convince him to change his mind about her. “If I tried to hook up with one of your friends, you’d rage at me!”

  “And besides,” I continued, “you can do so much better than her! Seriously! Don’t even go there!”

  He looked at me and shook his head. “Julia, mind your own business!”

  I could see that he was not going to listen. As far as he was concerned, she was keen and that was all that mattered.

  Unable to help myself, I opened my mouth to speak. I could not watch him make a fool of himself over a girl who would dump him the second some other good looking guy came along. She had openly admitted she was obsessed with Joe and was planning to meet up with him, even if it meant sneaking out her bedroom window again.

  I knew that Matt would be hurt, but I did not want to see him deceived by the likes of Lisa. Deciding the only way was to tell him outright, exactly what I had heard, I blurted out every word. When I went on to explain that she’d actually hooked up with Joe at another party a few weeks earlier and had been obsessing over him ever since, Matt finally appeared to sit up and take notice of what I was saying.

  Instantly his face fell. It was certainly not what he’d been expecting to hear and looking down once more to the many messages that she had just sent him, he shook his head again.

  This time however, it was not for the reason I’d been expecting.

  “Julia, I know about Joe. And you’re wrong. She’s moved on from him. If I want to see her, I will. Like I said before, mind your own business!”

  Taken completely aback at his abrupt response as well as the fact that he had not believed anything I’d told him, I watched in dismay as he shoved back the stool he’d been sitting on and stormed out of the kitchen, slamming the door behind him. The next sounds I heard were the front door banging shut followed by the revving of his car engine as he reversed down our driveway and sped off along the street.

  Staring at the closed kitchen door, I sat in disbelief, unable to comprehend the scene I had just been a part of.

  “What just happened?” I spoke the words aloud, all the while my anger over Lisa and the way she was openly deceiving my brother, upsetting me more than ever.

  The worst part had been the way he’d spoken to me. That had been the most hurtful of all. Especially as my intention had been to look out for him and protect him from what would clearly end in disaster. However, it was obvious that for him, it had not simply been just a casual hook-up, he had definitely taken a serious interest and was truly obsessed. But I knew deep down that it could only end badly. That was inevitable. The problem was, I was forced to sit back and watch it happen.

  Sitting at my desk the following afternoon with the music from the new speakers continuing to waft into my room, I thought again of Lisa and her ability to lead guys on. She obviously loved the attention she was getting and was clearly a serious flirt. She also did not appear to be bothered about the impact she had on the guys involved. It made me angry to think that my so-called friend could consider it acceptable behavior to treat my brother that way. Surely she was aware of what she was doing? And if so, what sort of friend did things like that?

  Unable to answer those questions, I focused again on the computer screen, my anger at Lisa quickly turning to frustration as I scrolled through the list of names in front of me. I could see that I’d already contacted every person in our area, who even remotely fitted the description of someone who could repair our wall, and the idea of having to ask Barry was quickly becoming a necessity.

  Cringing at the thought of being forced to make that phone call, I was abruptly distracted by the loud bleep of my phone. And the anxious feelings that had begun to erupt were instantly transformed to excitement, the second I saw Ky’s name.

  My heart skipping a beat, all thoughts of Barry disappeared as I read Ky’s message. At the same time, the butterflies in my stomach danced their wonderful dance, a replica of my reaction every time I received his texts, the joy overwhelming me over and over again.

  Hey- we finally arrived. Such a mission but we’re here now and we’ll see the doc tomorrow. Have been thinking of you… Can’t wait to see you again! xx

  My head spinning with joy, I typed a reply…

  I’ve been thinking of you too! xx

  The texts continued back and forth until eventually he said goodbye, ending off once more with a double ‘x.’ The sight of that tiny letter had the ability to make my heart sing. And when I eventually put my phone down, my thoughts were of him and him alone. I could not wait for his return so that we could be together.

  I had homework to do but was too distracted and found it impossible to concentrate. Picturing my hand in his as I walked by his side, the electric thrill that worked its way through my veins was almost too much to bear. If I dared to imagine his lips on m
ine, it wreaked havoc with my senses and I almost lost control. I knew that I was completely infatuated but had no way of removing him from my thoughts.

  He was all I could think of. And there was nothing I could do about it!

  Threatened…

  I felt her presence the moment I walked through the classroom door. Looking fearfully around, I glimpsed the shine of her hair as the sunlight filtered through the open window beside her. Glaring at me from across the room, she watched closely as I made my way to a seat in the far corner. My aim had been to sit as far away as possible, but I was unable to escape her evil gaze as she turned around and stared blatantly in my direction. Feeling my face flush uncomfortably, I pretended not to notice and focused my attention on the book spread out on the desk in front of me. Grateful that I had work to complete, I kept my head down and pretended to be working on the scientific equations that stared back from the page. But in reality, they were a blur of words and figures, the calculations for which I was far too tense to even attempt to complete.

  Beyond any doubt, I was convinced Sara’s reaction was due to the incident with Mr. Hathaway. Not that the issue of being caught speaking to him should have been of any concern. Even her affectionate stroke of his arm could possibly have been misconstrued. But the words spoken between them were definitely a cause for alarm and while she had no way of knowing whether or not I had actually heard their conversation, I suspected she was aware that I knew something very suspicious was going on.

  Although she often tried to intimidate me, and it could simply have been another Sara moment, where she hoped to exert her authority and dominance in the room, I was quite sure that right then, it was a different matter entirely. What was most worrisome though was the message behind her threatening glare.

  Without saying a word, the implications were being clearly communicated. “Keep quiet or else!”

  How she had the power to intimidate others so successfully was something I was sure I would never understand. But I breathed a sigh of relief when the lesson finally ended and I was able to escape into the hallway and join the mass of students rushing towards their next class. Thankfully I lost her in the crowd, and for once I welcomed the sight of Miss Bromley and the safety of her classroom, where I could relax in the knowledge that Sara was nowhere in sight.