“Absolutely. Let’s go.”
Dani’s pickup truck was a lot newer than Meredith’s father’s pickup. The white exterior looked freshly washed, and the burgundy interior looked and smelled like freshly applied Armor All. Mikey sat in the middle of the truck’s front seat that held the three of them quite comfortably.
“Nice truck,” Meredith said once they were buckled in and on their way down Center Street.
Dani looked at Meredith over the top of Mikey’s head. “Thanks. It’s my dad’s, but he usually drives his Honda to and from work. He lets me use his truck if he doesn’t need it, so, basically, I use it all the time. Someday I’ll get my own, though.”
“You really want a truck? Not a sports car or something?”
“Nah. You sit high up in a truck. And if you have to haul cargo, you’ve got the room.”
“Okay.” Meredith thought about it for a moment and asked, “What cargo do you plan on hauling?”
Dani laughed and Meredith smiled because she liked the sound.
Dani looked at her again. “Well, you got me on that one. I don’t know. I’ve just always liked trucks. Probably because my dad does.”
“That’s cool, I guess. Oh, I brought my digital camera, by the way. My grandparents gave it to me for Christmas. We might be able to get some good pictures with the flash, since it’s dark.”
“Yeah, I know. We didn’t think about the fact that the sun goes down early, did we? Did we, Mikey?”
“No,” he said and smiled up at Dani.
Dani looked back at the road and said, “But we’re going to be okay, because Center Street is so lit up they can see us from space. Right, Mikey?”
“Right.” He looked at his sister. “Right, Mewey?”
“Right, Mikey, right.” Meredith squeezed his hand. He had grabbed her hand the moment they got in the truck. He was probably a little nervous about the new truck and the new person in his sister’s life.
Mikey reached up and grabbed at Dani’s hand on the steering wheel. Dani looked at Meredith, presumably for a translation of his gesture. Meredith said, “I think he wants to hold your hand, too.”
“Oh, okay. Gee, I’m a little slow.”
Meredith watched Dani cringe.
“Oh, Meredith. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that. It just came out...wrong.” Dani took Mikey’s hand in hers.
Meredith couldn’t see, but figured Dani was probably turning red. “It’s okay. You didn’t mean it. And hey, he’s heard worse.” Although Meredith felt bad that Dani was embarrassed by her slip, she couldn’t help but turn her artist’s eye toward Dani’s new expression. She hadn’t seen this one before. Embarrassment. She took a mental photograph of the moment and knew she was going to add one more sketch to her growing collection of the many moods of Dani Lassiter.
They pulled into the parking lot of the auto parts store. Mikey fumbled with his seatbelt and said, “Weddy, Mewey?” He wanted to race.
They stepped out of the truck and Meredith grabbed him by the shoulders. “No, Mikey, we’re not going to the auto parts store.”
She looked toward the store and saw three guys, probably in their mid to late twenties hovered over the open hood of a blue sports car. One of the guys, the one with the weak mustache, leaned into the engine with a cigarette dangling from his mouth. That probably wasn’t the safest thing to do, Meredith thought, and she wanted to get as far away from them as possible. The guy with the dark complexion and dark hair pointed to something deep in the engine and was obviously telling the cigarette guy what to do. The third guy wore a red checkered hunter’s jacket and leaned against the side of the car looking bored. Meredith turned away, but something about them made her uneasy.
Meredith shrugged off her unease and turned Mikey to face the dark four-gabled Victorian House. “We’re going to take pictures of that house.”
“Scawey house.”
“What?” Dani had come around to their side of the truck.
“Oh, we always pass this old house on the way to kar—, oops, taekwondo, and he calls it the scary house.”
“Yeah, it does look kind of scary. Is he going to be okay?”
“We’ll find out, won’t we? Hey, Mikey. Let’s go take some pictures, okay?”
He took a big breath and exhaled loudly. “Okay, Mewey.” He reached up for her hand.
Dani went to his other side and held out her hand. He grabbed it without looking. He just stared at the scary house looming in front of them. As they headed down the sidewalk leading to the front gate, Meredith was overcome with emotion at the kindness Dani showed her brother. She looked at Dani through a slight haze of tears in her eyes. When Dani looked back and smiled, Meredith blinked back her tears and mouthed the words, “Thank you.” She dropped her chin slightly to indicate Mikey.
Dani continued to smile. She said in a low voice, “No problem. He’s sweet.”
Meredith could have sworn Dani was blushing again.
With no lights and no signs of life, the house was positively creepy. The chain link fence around the property stood like a metal sentry warning passersby to stay out. Lights from the neighboring stores created eerie shadows across the face of the dark house and yard. The upstairs balcony, quaint by day, was gloomy and foreboding by night. The dark house now seemed cold. Meredith didn’t much feel like a tea party anymore.
The century-old oak tree that towered over the house creaked and moaned, and Meredith felt a chill go up her spine at the sound. In the dark, she couldn’t make out the wonderful rose color of the exterior, but she held onto the fact that the bright color was there, because otherwise she might lose her nerve and run back to the truck. Why had they come in the dark?
They stopped in front of the gate that opened up to a concrete walkway leading to the front porch. Meredith let go of Mikey’s hand so she could take her camera out of its case. “Let me take a couple of pictures. I can zoom in on anything you want so if you see something just point it out.” She turned on the flash and snapped a few pictures of the front of the house. She took wide shots to include the yard, but she also took a couple of close-ups. “It’s such a beautiful house, you know?”
Dani grunted in disbelief. “Yeah, well, it’s kind of creepy right now. We should have come in the daytime.”
“Yeah, duh. Live and learn, I guess.”
Dani said, “Hey, Mikey. You want to go up to the house with me?”
“No.” He pulled her away from the gate that she had just unlatched.
“Meredith, how about you? Do you want to go up?”
“I’d better stay here with the scaredy-cat.”
“Would that be him or you?” Dani laughed and extracted her hand from Mikey’s. She stopped laughing as soon as she stepped inside the yard. The dark shadows seemed to suck away her bravado. The long path to the house was choked with dead grass, but she picked her way carefully over the uneven terrain. She turned her head and said to Meredith, “We should have brought some flashlights.”
“Dani,” Meredith pleaded, her voice barely above a whisper, “maybe you should come back.” She fidgeted where she stood on the sidewalk. They didn’t have permission to take pictures of someone’s private property, let alone trespass in the yard.
“No,” Dani called back, “it’s cool. I’m just gonna check out the front porch. Maybe look in the windows. If the coast is clear, you guys should come up. Okay?”
“Okay,” Meredith said with resignation. “Hey, Mikey Spikey, let’s get ready to go up to the front door.”
“Scawey.”
“Oh, I know it’s scary, but Dani’s up there and she’s very brave. Besides, Mikey, you are the only one of us that knows taekwondo. What if Dani needs you?”
He looked at her as if considering this and said, “Okay, Mewey, c’mon.” He pulled her by the hand through the open gate and practically dragged her up the walkway.
Meredith called, “I hope the coast is clear, because we’re on our way.”
“I see you had
no choice.” Dani smiled.
“None.”
“Hey, Meredith. Take my picture on the landing.”
“Okay.” She pulled Mikey to a stop. “Wait a second, Mikey. Let me take Dani’s picture.”
Dani held the banister with one hand while the other was shoved deep in her bulky letterman’s jacket. Meredith snapped the picture. She zoomed in a little and snapped another, but watched in horror as Dani, along with the banister, went tumbling to the ground.
“Dani!” Meredith screeched and ran to her. Dani sat in the wilds of what used to be a flower garden. The flowers were long dead from the winter cold.
“Oh, my God, Dani. Are you okay?” Meredith searched for breaks and bruises. She grabbed Dani by the arm and patted her up and down. She even felt Dani’s forehead as if Dani had a fever. She stopped when she saw Dani grinning at her.
Meredith smacked her in the arm. “Cut it out. I thought you were hurt.”
“Is that all you’ve got? We’ve got to get you into some kind of weight training program. Gee whiz.”
Dani could have been her father’s clone with that comment, but Meredith ignored it and said seriously, “Are you okay?”
Dani locked eyes with Meredith and said, “You’re cute when you’re worried.”
Meredith felt her face grow hot. “Oh, stop that. I was afraid you got hurt.”
“Well, I may have bruised my ego a little, but I’m okay.” Dani reached a hand toward Meredith’s face. “You’re very pretty with your hair pulled back, you know.”
Meredith leaned back out of reach, mortified. Dani had almost touched her acne scars. Meredith knew she was blushing furiously, and if she didn’t know better she would have thought that Dani Lassiter was flirting with her.
Dani pulled her hand back. “Why don’t you wear your hair back at school?”
“I don’t know,” she stammered. “I guess I don’t want to be seen.” She instantly regretted saying it. She never thought she would admit that to anyone. She barely admitted it to herself.
Dani brushed herself off and stood up. “Well, I think from now on you need to be seen. Starting on Monday.”
“Dani, I—” Meredith started to protest, but Mikey launched himself at Dani sending them both sprawling back to the ground.
“You 'kay, Dani?”
Dani laughed. “Mikey, I’m okay. Really.” To Meredith she said, “He said my name. Did you hear that?”
“Yeah, he’s quick like that.”
Dani smiled and got up. “Hey, let’s go get hot chocolate and cookies. This ground is kind of cold.” She stopped and looked at Meredith. “Oh, can he have sweets?”
“Sure, why not. Let’s get out of here. Cookies, Mikey?”
“Cookies! Yeah.” Mikey heartily agreed with the change in plans for the evening.
They stood up to go, but something caught Dani’s eye. “Hey, look at this banister I broke.” Dani pointed to something in the shadowy darkness. “It looks cut at the base. Like with a hacksaw or something. See where it’s smooth all the way around except just right here in the middle where it’s all splintery? It wasn’t cut all the way through. It almost looks like someone meant for the banister to break the way it did.”
Meredith looked at Dani with concern. “There may be more to this house than we bargained for. Let’s get out of here.”
Halfway down the overgrown walkway, a loud bang shattered the quiet air. Meredith jumped and knocked into Dani who in turn grabbed onto Meredith’s coat sleeve to keep her balance.
Meredith whispered urgently, “Did you hear that?”
“Yeah.” Dani still held onto Meredith’s sleeve. “It came from inside the house. Let’s get out of here.”
Meredith grabbed Mikey’s hand and the three of them ran down the concrete steps and through the open gate. They didn’t stop running until they reached the pickup truck. Meredith’s eyes grew wide she realized that the blue sports car was still in the parking lot, but not a single one of the three guys was in sight.
Chapter Five
The Protector
THE FIRST HALF of Meredith’s senior year was finally over. What a relief. But when one thing ended, another began— in this case the second semester. She sat at the big worktable in the art room and waited for her new course, Senior Art Elective, to start. The art class was filled with mostly seniors who needed to fulfill the fine arts half-credit required for graduation. Meredith was hopeful that, even though this was a beginner’s course, she’d learn something new. Art was ever evolving and Meredith knew she’d be learning all her life.
Four tables placed together formed the large student work area. Naturally, she had plenty of space around her because the other seniors in the new class, about twenty or so, crammed themselves into the chairs well away from where Meredith sat by the windows. She sighed when she realized what was happening again. In fact, she had an empty seat on either side of her. Clearly, the other students did not want to be associated with her. Less than one hundred days of high school left. She could make it. Endings created beginnings, after all and after high school she would create a new beginning at Syracuse University. If she got in, that is.
Mrs. Levine bustled around the room getting ready for the new semester. She reached around Meredith to place a basket of fruit in the middle of the work area. The bananas had definitely seen better days because several had brown spots. Some kind of genetic engineering had gone into creating the orange because it was an almost unworldly color. And the huge Delicious apples looked so shiny Meredith figured they could make candles from the wax.
“What do you think, Meredith? Think this bunch is ready for a still life?”
Meredith laughed. “I’m not so sure about that, but I guess they have to start somewhere, right?”
Mrs. Levine patted Meredith on the shoulder, and Meredith saw the other students look her way. She sensed their confusion with Mrs. Levine’s obvious familiarity with her. Most students didn’t know that Meredith was in the AP Art class, but that was because most students didn’t know Meredith at all. How Dani had known she took AP Art was a real mystery. She smiled in spite of herself. In this class, at least, she was in her element. Maybe she wouldn’t have to hide so much. She couldn’t make up her mind that morning whether or not to wear her hair back all day like Dani wanted her to, but ultimately decided against it. She would pull it back for art, like she always did, but then she’d yank out the rubber band before heading to Mr. Dalton’s seventh period history class.
Meredith began to wonder where Dani was. She was supposed to be in this art class. Maybe she decided to drop. Maybe she didn’t want to spend so much time with Meredith after all. By the time Meredith had almost convinced herself that Dani was trying to get out of her life, a blur of Whickett green and yellow barreled through the door.
“Am I late?” Dani asked to no one in particular. “We went out for lunch, and I forgot what time sixth period started.” The bell rang. “Ah, I made it.” She looked up and saw Meredith at the far end of the art room near the windows. “Meredith! Long time no see.” Dani sauntered over to Meredith, threw her book bag on the floor, and plopped down in an open chair next to her.
Meredith saw the other students in the class turn their heads again and whisper to each other. Yeah, that’s right. The president of the senior class is sitting next to me. Meredith sat a little higher in her chair. She hoped that Dani wouldn’t take too much flak for associating with the class outcast. She nodded hello.
“Did we start yet?” Dani whispered.
Meredith shook her head no.
“Hey, how’s my dude, Mikey?”
“Oh, he’s fine.” Meredith smiled. She remembered how great Dani had been with her brother when they had gone out for hot chocolate and cookies the Friday before. “He kept talking about you all weekend. Dani this and Dani that.”
“Yeah? He did? Tell him I said, ‘hi.’ No, wait. Tell him I said, ‘hi, dude.’” Dani reached into her book bag, but then stopped. She
looked perplexed. “What do we need for this class?”
Meredith laughed at Dani’s confusion. “Mrs. Levine will probably give us supplies today, but eventually you’ll have to buy your own. We’ll probably use graphite pencils for the still life.” She gestured at the fruit.
“Still life. What does that mean? Life that is still?”
Meredith smiled at Dani’s ignorance. “You really haven’t been around an art room since middle school, have you?”
“I told you I was inept. You’re supposed to help me, okay?”
“Okay. A still life is a piece of art that depicts inanimate objects. You can take anything, like the fruit Mrs. Levine put out or shells or kitchen utensils or whatever, and draw them.”
“Why would you want to do that?” Dani blinked several times in obvious disbelief.
“Well, for one thing, the artist has control over the objects in a still life, but with, say, a landscape you draw what’s already there. You can’t manipulate the scenery. Here, though, Mrs. Levine could have put the bananas in the back instead of on top. Do you see? In fact, each one of us has a slightly different perspective on the bowl. Those kids across from us can see the full orange while we only see the top. We see the entire apple—”
“While they only see part of it. Okay, I get that, but what makes this art? Why do I want a picture of fruit on my wall?”
Meredith laughed again. “You’re funny, but at least you’re asking questions. Most people don’t get it at all. Sometimes it’s just art for art’s sake.”
“Oh, now that’s clear...not.”
Meredith smiled. “Sometimes we do art just for the sake of doing art and not for any other reason. Artists just enjoy the process. Mrs. Levine told the AP class that art doesn’t always have to make a big moral or historical statement. The art doesn’t even have to be displayed once it’s done, although Mrs. Levine will probably display our still lifes on one of the bulletin boards. When we look at everybody else’s stuff we’ll see how differently people see the same objects. Like some people will focus on the colors. Some on the shapes and some will focus on the contrast—the interplay of light and dark.”
Barbara L. Clanton - 1 - Art for Art's Sake Page 6