Bittersweet Sixteen (A Dodie Jenks Novel)

by Lexi Witcher

  “I don’t know, but I will try to find out. Let me know if you see any other creatures hanging around.”

  “Okay.”

  He took my hand in his and we headed around to the side of the house and into the wooded area where I spend many of my afternoon walks exploring. We searched around the many trees for mushrooms, lichen and anything we could use in our chemistry class to inspect and do experiments on. By the time we finished exploring we had filled several specimen bags, which Leopold stuffed in his jacket pockets.

  I climbed up on the fence that separated Grandma’s property from the Parker’s and sat down.

  “That doesn’t look safe. You should come down from there,” Leopold advised, taking a step toward me like a protective parent.

  “It may look rustic, but it’s sturdy. I do this all the time when I’m out walking. Come sit beside me and see for yourself.”

  He shook his head and took a few steps backwards. “We should head back. We’ve been out longer than you think. It’s almost four. Anson will be home from school soon. I don’t think he’ll like seeing me here.”

  “Why do you suppose he doesn’t like you?”

  Leopold shrugged. “I’m not an easy person to like. I’m different and people can tell it.”

  “I wouldn’t say that about you. I found you easy to like.”

  “But I rubbed you the wrong way at first. Admit it. Last week when we started this you were ready to revolt when I started setting boundaries.”

  “Well. Wouldn’t you if you just learned you were going to die and then you were being asked to refrain from having contact with other people?”

  “When you put it like that I see your point.” He smiled but looked sad all at the same time. “Sorry. I tend to lack people skills. I guess you could say I’m like a doctor with a poor bedside manner. But it wasn’t easy for me to accelerate to college at an early age. I was seen as an oddity. And being a warlock on top of it all, I learned to keep to myself as much as possible and settle for not having friends.”

  “What’s it like being a warlock?”

  “What’s it like being a girl?”

  I giggled.

  “It’s who I am, Dodie. It’s all I’ve ever known…well…except for when I was in a coven. Then I was a male witch and I had fellowship with some of the most superior minds I’ve ever known.”

  “Why aren’t you in a coven anymore?”

  He kicked at a patch of fallen leaves and they scattered as if a gust of wind blew them away. And then in two long strides he was beside me, leaning against the fence. “I’m no longer in the coven because I chose to go to the university and further my education instead of studying under the elders.”

  I tilted my head to the side and frowned. “I don’t get it. What was so wrong with that?”

  He sighed. “A coven is like a close knit family. It was okay when I was a child to go to school because that is what is expected, but with my superior gifts, once I completed high school the elders wanted my formal education to end. They felt they were the ones who should teach me about chemistry, alchemy, and metaphysical properties to increase my powers rather than my pursuing an advanced degree from a university. And when I chose to study under a chef after college…well, that was even worse in their eyes.”

  “But what is wrong with knowing how to cook?”

  He grinned. “Nothing. Everyone likes to eat, but they felt I should be content with snapping my fingers and making a feast appear or casting a spell.”

  “And what about your parents?”

  “I lost my mother when I was a child and my father left the coven after I was exiled. I hear from him from time to time, but he’s enjoying being independent. And I don’t blame him.” He was quiet for a moment, and then he straightened up and looked at me. “You ready to head back?”

  I nodded and he turned around, leaving me there. I watched him go for a moment before I jumped from my perch and hurried to catch up, linking my arm through his. “Has Grandma mentioned she’s throwing me a Sweet Sixteen birthday party?”

  “No she didn’t.”

  “She’s having it the night before so when the clock strikes midnight I’ll blow the candles out on my cake.”

  “Do you think it wise to have a bunch of people here? What about the curse?”

  “That was my reaction at first, but you’re going to break the curse so why shouldn’t we celebrate?”

  “Hmmm. Who will you invite?”

  “My folks and Brody who will probably bring his girlfriend Sasha. She’s a cheerleader, but she’s nice. You’ll like her. I do. My two friends Callie and Lisa for sure and I suppose a couple others from my old high school. Maybe the kids from the Episcopal Church I’ve met.”

  “I suppose that means Anson?”

  I sighed. “Yes. I can’t very well have a party and not include him. Brody will expect it.”

  Leopold nodded as we rounded the corner of the house. “I think you should have a celebration.”

  I smiled, glad he approved, but a frown crept to my face when I saw Anson sitting on the step of the porch waiting on us. He got to his feet and dusted the seat of his jeans off.

  “Hey Dodie,” he called.

  I stopped walking and braced myself for whatever he had to say. Surely he wouldn’t insult Leopold to his face. If he did I wasn’t sure what I’d do to him.

  “Anson. What brings you by?” I unlinked my arm with Leopold’s and jammed my hands deep into my coat pockets.

  “I wanted to apologize for my behavior yesterday. I didn’t mean to upset you. I don’t blame you for walking out on me.”

  “I won’t tolerate you speaking like that again. If you want to be my friend you need to be more respectful of others.”

  He nodded his head up and down. “I will. I promise. Do you forgive me?”

  “Yes and I’m sorry for leaving you without paying for my part of the ticket. Can I pay you back?”

  “Don’t worry about it. I asked you to go with us, didn’t I?”

  “Well thanks. I appreciate it.”

  “No problem.” He scuffed the toe of his shoe on the sidewalk. “I guess I’ll be going. I’ve got a test to study for. See you around. You too, Leopold.”

  I smiled and turned as Leopold nodded in acknowledgement.

  When Anson was gone we went into the house and sorted through the specimen bags, labeling them, before putting them in our cabinet for class.

  “Do you have homework?” Leopold asked.

  I shook my head.

  “You want to help me fix dinner?”

  “Sure. What’s on the menu?”

  Before he could answer, the kitchen door swung in and Grandma appeared in her smock, a paint smear across her face. Her eyes were wide and her pallor was pale as if she’d seen a ghost.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked.

  “That—that black cat you said you saw on the stoop—”

  Leopold pushed past me and pulled out a chair for her to sit in. “What about it?”

  “It wrecked my studio. One minute I’m adding the last few strokes to my painting and the next I hear screeching and squalling like the poor animal was being killed and it dashes across my studio, knocking over my easel, my paint stand. It leaped clear over my head and perched itself on top of my supply cabinet, hissing and carrying on something fierce.”

  I got a glass and filled it halfway with cold water from the refrigerator. “Here, drink this.”

  She took the glass and gulped the water. “I don’t know where the cat came from or how it got into the house. But as quick as it appeared it was gone again.”

  I looked at Leopold and he shrugged.

  “I’ll go make sure there isn’t a window open in the studio.”

  Grandma nodded. “Dodie, get me a wet paper towel and let me get this paint off my face before it dries. Is there any in my hair?”

  “I don’t see any. Is there a bad mess in your studio?”

  “Yes. But the floor is protected
. For some reason I put down a drop cloth under my easel and paint stand today.”

  “I’ll go help you straighten things up,” I told her.

  “Thank you.”

  When we got to the studio, Leopold was standing the easel up and he put the painting on it. He’d already restored the paint stand and removed the drop cloth from the floor. The room looked in order again and I couldn’t help but wonder if he used magic.

  “I didn’t find any way for the cat to have gotten in here. Do you suppose Anson saw it and let it in the house thinking it was your cat?”

  “Anson was here?” Grandma asked.

  “He was waiting on the front step when Leopold and I came back from our walk.”

  “Well, I didn’t know it. If he rang the bell I didn’t hear it.” Grandma took off her smock and hung it up on the peg near the door. “Thank you, Leopold, for picking things up. I don’t feel like hanging around the house tonight. Let’s go into Dover and have dinner. What do you say?”

  “Okay.” He smiled at me.

  “Great. I’ll go freshen up and we’ll go.”

  Once we were alone, I closed the studio door and leaned against it. “What do you think that was all about? Did whoever sent the cat to spy get angry at us?”

  Leopold nodded. “I think we’ve upset their apple cart which tells me I was right that we’re being watched. I put a protection spell over the house so your Grandma will not be bothered again by the cat or any other creature that might be sent our way.”

  “But who could be doing it?”

  “I don’t know, but I’m going to do a little investigating and I’ll let you know when I find out.” He walked to me and tucked a stray lock of hair behind my ear. “Don’t worry, Dodie. Everything is going to be okay.”

  Easy for him to say, he didn’t have a curse on his head.

  “I better go change. I have a whole wardrobe of clothes that I’m dying to wear.”

  He grinned. “You look fine to me. But go on, have a little fun with the closet.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Dinner in Dover was awesome. We ate at a posh bistro that Leopold recommended. He knew the chef so we got special treatment. And after dinner, while we had dessert, Grandma left us alone so she could run an errand. I sipped my hot chocolate while we waited for our crepe and berry dessert to arrive and admired Leopold. When I came downstairs from changing clothes I found he’d done so as well. Gone were the jeans and pullover, exchanged for a navy suit and a red striped tie that matched the dress I wore.

  “How’d you know what I was wearing?” I finally asked.

  “I know what you’re thinking, Dodie. Have you forgotten that?”

  I had and my face flushed with heat. “Can you always tell what I’m thinking?”

  “Not always, but for the most part yes.”

  “Oh. Is there a way for me to prevent it?”

  He reached for his cappuccino. “Yes, it’s called shielding. You do it sometimes without knowing it. But for the most part you’re like an open book to me.”

  “Then—”

  “Yes, I know you want to kiss me.”

  My face flamed and I found it hard to swallow.

  “It’s okay. I want to kiss you too, but I’m conflicted. As your mentor and possible savior, I’m not sure it is wise that we go down that road. At least not yet. I need to focus on the task at hand. So much is riding on my breaking the curse. More than you know.”

  I found it hard to speak, so I lamely nodded.

  “Just know that I do like you, Dodie. I like you far more than I probably should.”

  “Voila!” The waiter set the large platter of crepes filled with berries, drizzled with chocolate and topped with whipped crème down on the table. “Enjoy.”

  I eyed Leopold for a moment before taking a spoon and carefully lifting one of the crepes onto my plate without losing the filling. “I bet I can eat two of these.”

  “I bet you can too.” He grinned. “But I can eat four.”

  “Oh. Really?”

  “Sure.”

  “Let’s see.”

  He scooped up two onto his plate and dug in, finishing them off within a matter of minutes. I, on the other hand, took it slower, savoring every morsel, finishing my second one without feeling like I had overindulged, even though I had.

  When the check came, he paid and we left, going down the street toward the theater to see what was playing. Grandma came out of the greeting card store and walked toward us.

  “Finished already?”

  “Yes.”

  She smiled. “Well, it’s still early, and we don’t have to rush back home. If you want to catch a movie or go skating at the ice rink set up in the center of the mall, then I’ll do a little shopping.”

  I turned to Leopold to see if he was going to object, but he didn’t. He even left it up to me as to what we’d do. So we agreed to meet back in two and a half hours in front of the bistro.

  “What is it going to be?” he asked as we continued toward the theater.

  “I don’t know yet. Do you know what is playing?”

  “No.”

  “Do you like action adventure or horror best?”

  “Action.”

  “What about drama or romantic comedy?”

  “Comedy.”

  I grinned at him. “I wouldn’t have guessed that.”

  “Why? Cause I’m a guy? I’d much rather laugh than come out of the show depressed by a heart-wrenching drama.”

  “Fair enough.” We scanned the marquee for the selection of films and show times and it turned out we missed the start of the movie we agreed on by twenty minutes. “Drats. Oh well. Do you skate?”

  “Sure, but do you want to do that for two and a half hours?”

  “Not really.” I thought for a moment. “Let’s go shopping.”

  He made a face.

  “Come on, Leopold. It’ll be fun. We can check out the record store and the novelty store. I’m sure there has to be one around here.”

  “Okay as long as we stay away from clothing stores. I am not waiting outside a dressing room while you try on clothes.”

  I laughed, grabbing his hand and pulling him along behind me. “Great idea. I need to find a dress for my birthday party.”

  “Dodie.”

  I ignored him and kept on walking down the sidewalk, weaving our way in and out of the throng of pedestrians toward the large department store.

  “Dodie, I’m serious.”

  “I’m sure you are, but I have no idea what I should wear for the party. And I know you will be straightforward about what looks right and what doesn’t. And just because we are going shopping doesn’t mean we have to look for only me things, we could also look for you something spectacular to wear. I think Grandma said she wanted this to be a formal affair. So do you think you should wear a tux or a dark suit?”

  “If that is the case then you needn’t worry. I have a tux.”

  “You own one?” I look at him surprised, but I really shouldn’t be. He’d studied with a chef so why wouldn’t he have a tux?

  “Okay. If you want my help to find you the perfect dress for your party then let’s do it.”

  “Really?”

  “I said it didn’t I?”

  I hugged him. “Yes you did.”

  The hug was one-sided at first, but he soon relaxed into it and hugged me back. For the first time since this whole thing started, I felt safe and protected like he would not let anything harm me. And as soon as that feeling came it was gone because he stepped away from me, took my hand in his and led me into the department store.

  We took the escalator up to the second floor and found the teen department. We were in luck because they had formal wear out already for the upcoming holiday season. In fact they had so much taffeta, organza, tulle, beaded and sparkling material that I felt a little overwhelmed. And if I felt that way I was sure Leopold did too. I glanced at him and watched as he took his coat off and draped it over his arm.<
br />
  “What color?” he asked.

  “Maybe blue?”

  “Dark? Pale? Medium?”

  I shrugged, taking off my coat and dropping it in the chair at the end of the long rack of dresses along the wall. There were floor-length gowns, tea length and cocktail dresses of every shape and size. I was halfway through the rack when a sales lady came over to see if she could help.

  I told her about the party and what I thought I needed and she began pulling out several dresses for me to try. She even asked my shoe size and called down to the shoe department and they sent up a few pairs for me to try with the dresses. Leopold picked up my coat to hold and sat down in the chair while I went to try on the selection.

  Picking the lowest of the high heels, I walked carefully out and let him see each dress. I even had him take a photo with my phone so I could remember what I looked like to help choose. By the time I was through I was torn between a black organza strapless sweetheart floor-length gown with purple floral appliques and sequins and a tulle strapless gown in a champagne brown color with an off-white embroidered bodice and two flowers down the front.

  “What about the blue one with the rhinestones?” Leopold asked. “That one was cute.”

  “The pink one was cute too, but I don’t know. Maybe I should get Grandma’s opinion before I make a final decision. What do you think?”

  “Out of those four I have to admit you looked natural in them. They were you. I didn’t feel you were trying to be someone you weren’t and I believe that is what you should strive for when buying a dress like that.”

  I thanked the sales lady for her help and told her we’d be back. Then we headed out to the ice rink. The temperature had dropped several degrees and it felt more like ice skating weather than it had earlier.

  We rented skates and joined the other skaters on the ice making loops around the perimeter. At one point I felt brave enough to try my hand at a twirl or two. Leopold applauded my effort and I made a curtsy, laughing. When it was couples skate, Leopold took my hands in his and we made the loop a few times while colored lights flashed on the ice and the DJ played what he considered a romantic song. But I’ve heard better ones. When the song ended we skated over to the side and sat down on the bench, removing the skates and exchanging them for our own shoes.