by M. R. Polish
Five
The sun shone brightly through the crack in the curtains and I jerked awake. Heaviness pulled at my heart as I recalled my dreams from the night. Seeing Celeste was both enlightening and painful, but it was my stranger who held my mind captive. The way he looked at me sent heat waves through every nerve in my body. His actions, even though they were in a dream, were gentle and sort of romantic.
I looked at the time and darted from the bed. I needed to hurry if I wanted to get a shower before school. My headache was all but gone; only a small sliver of an ache reminded me of what I dealt with yesterday. I got ready in record time, and then ran to my class. I wasn’t late, but I was completely exhausted by the time I got there.
Professor Priese was my teacher right from the get-go, so I was grateful I made it on time. I didn’t need another reason to be pointed out and used as an example. The first day of school still clung to me. The door slammed shut behind me. She looked up from her tiny desk to scrutinize my loud entrance.
“Sorry,” I muttered under my breath. I quickly took my seat and pulled out my journal.
Across the room, I felt eyes on me. My skin prickled, prompting me to look. Turning in my seat, I spotted my mystery man. I felt his eyes on me like in my dream. He gave me a half smile and I melted. I smiled back, but I was sure it was nowhere near as sexy as his had been. Now was my chance. I moved to get up and actually meet him, but was stopped short by Professor Priese.
“Excuse me, Ms. Moison, but we’re starting class. Please take your seat.”
I dropped my shoulders, slumping back into my seat and looked back over my shoulder to see my mystery man smile wider. Great. Just add to my embarrassment.
I couldn’t wait for class to be over. The minutes ticked by like hours. It was either my foot or my pen that I tapped repeatedly as I waited. None too soon, class was excused. I grabbed my stuff and quickly left my seat.
“Ms. Moison, can I see you please?” Professor Priese asked as I passed her desk.
I groaned as I watched my stranger exit the classroom without me. “Actually, can it wait? I need to go.”
“On Monday I expect you to be in your seat by the time I’m ready to start.”
“I was in my seat today,” I retorted.
She scowled. “I have a certain expectation in my classroom. I won’t tolerate anything less than a punctual schedule.”
I wasn’t sure why she had it out for me, but it was clear that I was not her favorite pupil. “Yeah, I understand. I’ll be here five minutes before.”
She forced a fake smile. “Good.” She tipped her head back down to her papers she was reading.
I darted from the classroom, hoping that I would still be able to find him. I growled and cursed under my breath. Professor Priese made it so I missed my chance meeting—again.
“Stupid teacher.” I dropped my pack to the walkway and placed my hands on my hips.
“Not all teachers are that bad,” a voice said behind me, startling me.
I spun around to see Brick coming up behind me. I tensed up, highly aware of my surroundings.
“Hey, you know Steve is right. You’re very pretty.” His skin glistened with fresh droplets of sweat and he slowly wiped his brow.
I took a small step back. “Did you just get done with practice?”
“No, I got this damn headache that won’t go away. But don’t try to change the subject. Steve and I were talking about you earlier.” He walked toward me and I moved back, matching every one of his steps.
“Brick, I think you should go.”
“Aw, hell, you told Steve no, right? So you’re available.” He wiped his brow again.
“No, I’m not.” I looked around, seeing if anyone was close enough to help. His whole attitude was off and it creeped me out. Tons of students passed without so much as a glance my direction, but at least there was enough people around that I was sure someone would help.
He dashed toward me, grabbing me around the waist. “Give me a kiss.”
“Get off of me.” I struggled to break free of his strong hold.
“Shhh… Don’t tell Steve, but I think you’re sexy.”
“Help!” I cried out to anyone who might be passing. “Leave me alone!” I pushed against him and twisted my head, keeping his lips as far from mine as I could get them.
“Hey!” a guy hollered as he ran up to us. “Let her go.”
Steve rounded the corner, caught sight of the situation, and shot a glare to not only Brick, but to the guy who was trying to help me.
As quickly as Brick grabbed me, he let go and stumbled back away from me. The guy took off without another word.
Steve ran up and decked Brick straight in the jaw. “What are the rules, Brick?” he yelled at him.
I backed away, trying to grab my pack without being noticed. Steve’s face reddened and a vein in his neck popped out as he yelled louder at Brick. “You know the rules. You don’t touch what’s mine!”
My mouth went dry. Students crowded around to see what was happening. I picked up my bag and ran. I didn’t want to see what Steve did to Brick; honestly, he deserved whatever Steve did to him. Brick wasn’t all there in the head. Something was wrong with him.
I ran as fast as I could but I heard footsteps fall in line behind me. “Keeley, wait up.” It was Steve.
My heart raced. I wasn’t sure whether I should stop or keep running all the way back to Maine. My lungs and legs ached so I slowed down to a walk. Steve caught up to me. “Keeley, hey, stop for a minute, will ya?”
He wasn’t anywhere close to being out of breath like I was. “What do you want, Steve?”
He stopped in front of me and grabbed my shoulders carefully. “Are you okay? I saw him grab you.”
I turned away. “I’m fine.”
“It’s okay, he won’t touch you again, I promise.”
I folded my arms and shrugged him off. “I’m not sure what’s going on, Steve, but this is definitely not okay.”Any number of things I should do ran through my head. Call campus security, the police, my dad, so many reasons why I should—and shouldn’t—filled my mind.
“I know, I know. I’m sorry, but I promise he won’t bother you anymore.”
“Steve, you can’t promise that. You have no control over what he does.”
He gave a little smirk. “Actually, I can promise that.”
Inside I shuddered. All of Vahn’s warnings came to the surface and I wanted to run again. “Look, I have class. I need to get back. I can’t let crap like this stop me from that.”
“Okay, I’ll walk you back. Are we still on for later today?”
I shifted the weight of my bag on my shoulder. I wanted to say no and that something came up. “Yeah. What time?” Everything my parents raised me to know: no talking to strangers, no taking rides, don’t take candy… all the things kids learn at an early age; it all left with whatever dignity I had when I agreed to still go with him.
We stopped outside one of the art buildings. “About three sound okay to you? Caty and Jonah are joining us.”
I moistened my lips with my tongue and nodded. “That should work.”
The rest of the morning went by too fast, considering how quickly I wanted my first class to be over. I never saw my mystery man again and decided that it probably wasn’t meant to be. At least, not yet. I couldn’t get over the scene outside with Brick. My insides were all jumbled, rattled with anxiety. Every noise made me jump. By the time Jonah, Caty, and Steve picked me up in Jonah’s car at three I was a frazzled mess.
I wore an old pair of jeans and a T-shirt, hoping that the dirt he planned wasn’t too bad. As soon as we drove up the canyon and stopped next to a picnic area, I knew I was completely and utterly wrong. The dirt he planned was far worse than I ever imagined. It wasn’t dirt, but mud. Out past the BBQ pit was a hole filled with it. A couple of buckets lined the picnic table. It looked like someone came out earlier and carried water from the river below to set everything up.
I took in a deep breath. I looked at our ‘playground’ and folded my arms. “You want me to do what?”
Steve laughed. “I thought it could be fun. A way to work together.” He grabbed a thick rope with knots tied into it. “Tug-o-war.”
I shuddered. “Tug-o-war? You’re serious?”
Jonah came and slapped Steve on the shoulder. “Yup. And Caty and I are gonna pull you guys into the mud.”
Steve led me over to the mud hole, where I stopped at the edge. “Eww… I can’t believe you want me to step in this.”
He laughed again. “Come on, I can’t win without you and if I go down, you’re going down with me.”
“Ugh, that’s what I’m afraid of.”
I rolled the bottoms of my jeans up and took my shoes off, setting them next to Caty’s and Steve’s. There was no way I was going to chance ruining those. Jonah was still getting ready when I hesitated at the edge of the muck.
Cringing, I took my first step and felt the ground squish under my weight. This was definitely not my idea of fun. I hated the feel of it between my toes. I made it over to Steve and he handed me the rope, which I gripped hesitantly.
“I will never forgive you if we fall in the mud,” I told him.
He grabbed the rope behind me and closed the gap so we were closer than I wanted, but at least we weren’t touching. “Then I guess I better not let go.”
Jonah and Caty picked up their half of the rope and Caty laughed. “This is so much fun. We haven’t done something like this in forever.”
I raised a brow at her. “You mean you’ve done this for fun before? More than once?”
They all laughed. Jonah winked over Caty’s shoulder at us. “Alright, girls, this is where we see that I’m the man around here.”
“Big talk, little guy,” Steve said. Even I started to smile. Everything seemed right, normal, fun. Maybe things weren’t as bad with Steve as I thought. Maybe I could let go of the terrible morning I had and just breathe a bit.
Jonah and Caty pulled first; I was totally unprepared for how hard they tugged and almost lost my grip immediately, but recovered and pulled back. Steve surprised me with his strength as he pulled both Jonah and Caty with hardly any help from me. I was calling bullshit on his plea for help. He didn’t need me to win this game.
We pulled together and the fear of falling in the mud made me pull harder. Caty went to get a better grip but slipped instead and she and Jonah both went flying forward. I laughed as I realized it wasn’t me who fell. Jonah helped Caty up, but they were both covered in the dark sludge. Caty’s hair had sloppy piles of it falling out and I laughed harder.
“You think it’s funny? Wait till we pull you over in it,” Caty said as she wiped her face as best she could.
“Oh no, I’m not doing that again.” I wasn’t willing to put myself back in that position. If I didn’t have Steve, I would’ve fallen for sure.
“We can do it,” Steve reassured me with a wink.
“Fine,” I drawled out.
We all gripped the rope again, but this time it was hard not to giggle looking at my opponents, dripping filth. “You and your girl are going down!” Jonah hollered as we all began to pull again.
I didn’t have time to correct his statement. This time was harder. I could tell Jonah was determined to pull me and Steve over. I pulled with everything I had, but I could feel the rope slipping through my fingers. “Steve, ahhh… I can’t hold on.”
Steve reached around my waist and grabbed the rope. “Pull with me.” I tugged as hard as I could. The extra strength wrapped around me momentarily stalled me. I wasn’t prepared to feel him so intimately close to me as he leaned in close to my ear. “Give one good pull. Ready, now!”
We pulled, sending Jonah and Caty back to the mud. I almost died with laughter. Who knew mud or tug-o-war could be so much fun?
Steve hugged me, picking me up and twirling me around. It was the first time I wasn’t appalled by his actions since the night of the bonfire. We laughed together.
Jonah grabbed the rope as he and Caty joined in the laughter. “Okay, one more time.”
I spun around and picked up the muddy rope. “Alright, let’s go.”
We pulled and tugged, but my arms were giving out and I worried about Steve’s. Jonah gave one tough pull and my grip slipped, along with my footing. I fell butt first in the mud, Steve not far behind me. I laughed even harder. As much as I hated being that dirty, it was the most fun I’d had in a long time.
“Brown is very fetching on you,” Steve said as he got up and reached down to help me.
“Gee, thanks. I agree, brown is very attractive.” I picked up a handful of mud and slung it in his direction.
After we all got up, I looked at Jonah’s car and stopped. “Um, how are we supposed to get back? We’re covered in mud.”
“The car can be cleaned,” Jonah laughed. “It’s not the first time we’ve done this.”
I sat off to the side and watched as Steve gathered the rope. Jonah walked over to Steve and they talked quietly. Steve pulled something out of his pocket and handed it to Jonah, who quickly stuffed it in his jeans, then gave Steve a friendly slap on the back. They both laughed and headed my way. I couldn’t help but stare at them. My throat constricted as I realized what just happened. This was something that I couldn’t ignore. The warning bells in my head rang so loud I thought I would puke. I wanted to go home. No more chances for Steve, this was all the proof I needed to know he was behind drugging me. My stomach tightened as I stood to get in the car.
I decided I’d better keep my knowledge to myself. I didn’t need a new reason for Steve to try something with me. “I am so ready for a shower,” I said as we left the canyon. I forced a small laugh to keep up the façade.
Caty giggled. “Me too.”
Steve relaxed in the back seat next to me. “So do you have plans for tomorrow? It’s Saturday and we have a game. I was thinking maybe you’d like to come.”
“I’m not sure.” I looked out the window. There was no way I was going to make plans with him again.
He frowned. “I thought everything was okay now.”
“Steve, I already told you I just want to be friends.”
“I know. Does that mean you can’t go to a game and watch a friend play?”
I shrugged. “I’ll think about.” Psh, yeah right. Couldn’t Jonah drive any faster?
Six
After taking the world’s hottest, longest shower, I fell to my bed, exhausted. Tug-o-war, or as it should be named, mud-o-war, was fun while it lasted—before the drug deal— but it took four times washing my hair to get all the grime out, and I only fell once. I could only imagine how Caty must have felt falling twice.
I laid there and thought about Vahn and his request for me to call when I got home. I finally relented and picked up my cell, looking at his number and chuckling as I thought about programming it. I quickly saved his name to that number before pressing the send button.
It didn’t get through two seconds of his ringback before he picked up. “Keeley?”
“Yes, Dad,” I joked.
“Very funny. I was worried.”
“Ugh, seriously. You don’t even know me, you can’t be that worried.”
“Just because I haven’t known you your whole life, doesn’t mean I can’t care.”
I twirled my hair around my finger. “If you’re gonna worry about me so much, maybe we should get to know each other. I’ll start. Why are you spying on Steve? For real this time, no roundabout answers.”
“Fine.” He took a deep breath. “A couple of years ago my best friend was pulled into Steve’s life. She pulled away from me, no longer wanting to be seen around me. Everything became all about Steve. One night she OD’d on some drugs. She never used them before she started hanging around him, but it killed her. So now I’m trying to find out how Steve is managing to give out drugs and stay off the radar, especially playing football. It doesn’t make sense.”
He sighed. “I don’t know. Things happen, like accidents that shouldn’t. Each time they happen, it happens to someone who pissed off someone on the team—usually Steve. I’m not sure what’s going on. I’ve spent the last two years trying to find out, but no one on the team talks. Whatever secrets they have, they’d rather die with.”
My heart sank into my stomach. “Do you think I’m one of them?”
“No. But I also know that once Steve wants you, he’ll pretty much do anything to get you. I’m only telling you so you can get out while you can. I’d hate to see something happen to you like it did to Christie.”
The fact that his best friend was a girl didn’t escape me. “So was she more than just a friend?”
He gave a small chuckle. “No, she wanted other things in life than me. We grew up on the same street, so we knew each other since we were tiny tots.”
I laid back on my pillow. “Okay, next question. Aside from stalking me, what else do you like to do?”
“Fix cars, go out on the boat, paint… The usual guy stuff.”
“Paint? Like paint houses, or pictures?”
He laughed. “Pictures, for sure. It’s just something I’ve always loved to do. I like art and am going for a degree in it. My turn. What about you? What do you like to do besides hang out with a crazy psycho drug dealer?”