When I got there, I sat down opposite of Azra and reached for the food and drink. They’d ordered Pizza Hut. Once I was through eating my slices, I sat back in my chair. “Go ahead.”
Azra leaned forward and rested his arms on the table, “The mortal is special to you?”
“She is,” I said, “and I know that I’ve only known her for two days. My fondness has a mind of its own. I can’t help how I feel.”
“No, I understand. I just came out here to warn you that the others might intimidate Keira tomorrow. They are very protective over you and are planning to find out if she is good enough.” Then he was silent.
“That’s it? You came out here to warn me about the rest of the guild?”
Azra looked at me like I was a fool. “Why do you think you’re in trouble? And who am I to reprimand you for only talking to this girl?”
“I just- I’ve never been in this situation before; I don’t understand everything. I have so many questions, but there’s one that I keep asking myself and I don’t even know if I should be asking it.”
“What’s the question?”
I confided, “Can I be close to her?”
After he thought, Azra simply replied, “Can you bear not to be?” And he was right; knowing the answer to that question would answer all of the others. “Stop worrying Uriel. I saw your face light up when you talked to her. You don’t need it, but you have my support on this.”
“Thanks Azra.” He was right. I hadn’t done anything wrong. I liked Keira, and she had instantly stirred something in me. I was already looking forward to seeing her the next day. But I was going to have to talk to Odeda, Dagan, and Zev. There was no way I was going to let them get to Keira. If anything was going to mess up our relationship, it was not going to be my family. Listen to me, I hadn’t yet known Keira for three days, and already I was thinking like we were in a relationship. I didn’t even know if she felt the same way about me as I felt about her. What if she was just being nice to the new kid?
Secret Agents
Chapter 5
Keira
Wednesday had been the best day of my life so far. And, yes, I do realize how pitiful that sounds. I was afraid that I would wake up the next morning and find it was all a dream. Uriel was better than I could have ever wanted or imagined. He was a welcome distraction to my mundane school life. I couldn’t pay attention to my teachers when he was in the room, but I had been diligent for eleven years so I felt I had earned a little break from attentiveness.
Thursday morning I actually cared about what I looked like when I left the house. I straightened my hair and everything; I hate messing with my hair when it’s in the mood to be unmanageable, and that morning it had decided to be a puff ball so it was either do something with it or put it in a ponytail. I tried to do something with it, and when I thought it was good enough, headed off to school.
In Religion, I started counting the minutes until my next class. When I was down to forty, Mr. Pollard’s words slipped into my absent mind. The first quarter of the year-long class was to be taught on Christianity. He was saying, “The Christian Bible is not all of the literature that we have from the time when it was written. In fact, up until the King James Version had been out for a while, there were books included in the Christian Bible that were not considered Scripture but more like additions. They give extra insight into things that were not discussed much in the Bible itself. For example, it tells some things about the angels that were said to have been cast out of heaven, their offspring, the flood, the end times, hell, and other things that the Christian teachings do not go into much detail about.”
One of my classmates raised her hand, and when acknowledged, she asked, “What are these books called?”
Mr. Pollard answered, “As a genre, they are classified as apocryphal. More specifically, a few would be The Book of Enoch, The Book of Jasher, and The Book of Jubilees.”
Somewhat interesting, I thought. He did mention angels and hell- some entertaining topics- but I’d rather think about how much longer until I get to see Uriel.
When class let out, he was waiting for me by my locker. He was wearing a pair of dark kaki pants and a deep blue polo that brought out the color in his eyes. How did he make a school uniform look good? Leaning up against the wall that my locker was set into, he was so still that it was easy to picture him as a statue of some perfect looking Greek god that had been dropped in the hallway just for me. The spell was broken when he turned his head and spotted me, but when he smiled, a new spell was placed on me.
“Hello,” he said when I walked over and grabbed the books for our next class.
“Hello yourself.” Did I honestly just say that? “Hello yourself?” Have I lost my bloody mind? And yes, sometimes when I think to myself, I sound kind of British. Deal with it- I’m weird like that. But Uriel didn’t seem to think I was insane. Once I closed my locker door, he chivalrously scooped my books out of my hands and carried them to English class for me.
He sat in the desk next to mine and said hello to Josh when he walked in the room. Uriel turned back to me. “So how was your night?” With those eyes burning a hole in mine, the only answer I could think of was the truth: It was quiet. My night consisted of me doing absolutely nothing other than thinking of you. Luckily, I came to my senses and said, “Fine, what about yours?”
He was clearly remembering something that had happened because his face suddenly became serious, but it only stayed that way for a moment before he put on a smile and told me that his night was uneventful. Further questions were suppressed when the bell rang. Immediately, we were assigned to read the first fifteen pages of the textbook. I was only on page ten when the teacher started the discussion. Okay, I’m a slow reader, but I don’t like to read to finish quickly; I’m more of the soak-it-in type. What I had read was about Native Americans at the beginning of the founding of America by Christopher Columbus… Fascinating.
Our teacher had red hair and was middle-aged; she looked nice enough. “Now who can tell me how the Native Americans were seen in the early seventeenth century?”
To my surprise, Uriel raised his hand. He hadn’t shown much participation in the other classes we shared. When Mrs. Ginger nodded at him, Uriel answered, “They were seen many different ways depending on what the viewer wanted to see them as. Columbus claimed that the Indians were good-natured and friendly people while Bradford and his crew were viciously attacked shortly after arriving in America. Columbus was always trying to make a name for himself, so he would tell everyone that the New World was littered with gold for the taking and that its inhabitants were the epitome of generosity.”
I was staring at him with my mouth wide open, and one glance around the room told me that half of the other students were just as surprised by this outpouring of information as I was. “Very good, Mr.…?”
“Gray,” Uriel finished for her. He gave me a side-long look accompanied by a half grin. If he had hoped that his answer would impress me, then his wish was granted. The reading hadn’t given any of those facts, and he spoke almost as if he had witnessed things first hand with Columbus. He’s got quite an imagination on him.
The teacher went on with the lesson and by the end of the class had won my favoritism. I already loved English, but Mrs. Ginger allowed us to discuss how we felt about the things we read. The first chapter of the textbook was meant to introduce us to our first major work of literature: The Crucible. The rest of the class flew by, and before I knew it, it was time for anatomy. Uriel walked with me to that class as well. I wasn’t used to such things, but I decided that I could definitely grow accustomed to them. As we got to my table, Uriel noticed Ralph. When he looked up from his paper and saw us, Ralph said smiling, “Hey Uriel. Hey Keira.” He’s so friendly.
“Hey.” I sat down and expected Uriel to keep walking after he said his greeting, but he didn’t. He kind of hesitated while studying Ralph’s face. Once I was thoroughly puzzled, Uriel stared Ralph down and simply said, “Don�
��t.”
“Don’t what?” Ralph asked harmlessly.
“Don’t,” Uriel repeated and then looked at me. “I’ll see you after class,” he said in a more casual voice, and I replied, “Okay.” Once he was gone, I turned to Ralph. “What was that all about?”
“Oh, he just doesn’t want me to grill you the whole class about your intentions with him.” Apparently, he understood that I was completely lost in this conversation because he further explained. “You’re the first girl Uriel has liked and our family is very curious about you.”
Uriel likes me, I thought as a smile spread across my face. I’m not slow- I noticed that he walked me to class and carried my books- I was just trying not to get my hopes up. And Ralph is supposed to have questions. I can handle that. “Shoot,” I challenged.
Ralph looked a bit surprised. “Okay. What are your feelings for Uriel?”
“Oh…” Way to start off with an easy one, Ralph. Did I really want to tell anyone other than my pillow how I felt about Uriel? No, but I had to say something. “I’ve only known him for two days really, but I think he’s great.” This was awkward. “I’ve never liked a boy before either so I don’t really know how I am supposed to feel.”
“That sounds fair enough.” Having apparently been satisfied with my answer, Ralph focused back on his paper. It looked like a list. Well that went alright, I guess.
“What you got there?” I asked, happy to change the subject.
“Oh, this is the varsity basketball team roster from last year.”
“You play basketball?” Hopefully he did. His height would make him a natural post player, and two of ours had graduated the year before.
“Yeah, sports are kind of my thing. I hear you play.”
“I usually play volleyball, basketball, and soccer here, but this year I dropped volleyball. Sports have been one of my things too.” Yes! We have something in common. It would be good to have Uriel’s family approve of me. Even his friends must mean a lot to him since they moved to High Point with him, and they have all ridden together to and from school every day so far.
“You’re going to be starting point guard, I hear. How are you doing with that?” He sure knows a lot about me.
“I’m nervous because I haven’t been starting point since middle school, but I’m excited. The other seniors make a great starting line up so I should be fine.” My voice cracked a bit on “fine.” Honestly, I was scared to death. This was our year; most of the girls who played against us, and were any good, had graduated the year before, and we hadn’t lost anybody. I hadn’t gotten much playing time the last two years because the five seniors barely came out of the game. And when they did, it wasn’t normally Julia, the senior point guard whose place I was filling. What if I wasn’t good enough any more?
Ralph seemed to have noticed my cracked word. “You’ll be great; I have a sixth sense about these things. Trust me.” And for some reason, I did. The minute he said those kind words to me, I felt a little better. “You could come over some time Saturday if you want, and Uriel and I can practice with you. We have a hoop in the backyard along with a makeshift court, and I need to start getting ready for the season.”
“That’s so nice of you. I’d love to. Thanks.” Wow, what a nice guy. I guess Uriel isn’t the only great person in the family. I recalled that Ralph had volunteered Uriel to help. I’d have to talk to him about where he stood with all of this.
When it was time for lunch, Ralph invited me to sit with him and the blond girl and boy that he, Uriel, and Uriel’s other cousin had apparently moved with. So I walked with him over to where the others sat. He introduced, “Keira this is Eron and Bridget.” Then gesturing to me, he said, “Guys this is Keira.” The two people in front of me where both blond and beautiful. Bridget was delicate looking; she was fairly short and extremely thin. She was naturally gorgeous with long, straight blond hair and a pale complexion with a hint of peach tone in her cheeks. Everything about her seemed subtle except for her eyes which were bright blue and radiated with a fierceness that the rest of her delicate physique would never give away. She was holding Eron’s hand on top of the table and he was smiling up at me. His smile was the first thing that I noticed about him. However small, it was warm and completely genuine and accepting. Eron’s blond hair was cut at the ear in the front and grew to the middle of his neck in the back and was very neatly kept. He had an air about him that said without words that this was a man, not a boy. Sophisticated and insightful were the two words that sprang to my mind, I didn’t know why. He had a strong jaw and lightly tanned, smooth skin. His low brows framed knowledgeable hazel eyes. Looking into those eyes, I felt like I was looking into history itself.
“Won’t you have a seat?” Eron asked as I came out of my daze. Ralph was standing behind a chair, holding it out for me. Speechless, I sat down across from Bridget. When I saw Meredith walk in, I motioned for her to sit in the chair on my left. I don’t usually do well with conversing with people I haven’t known for some time, unless it’s the run-of-the-mill polite conversations that always feel more like procedures- now that kind of talking is what I’m accustomed to- and while Ralph had made me instantly comfortable around him ever since we first met, I still felt the pressure to impress Uriel’s friends, or at least not make a complete idiot out of myself. Meredith would act as a good back-up for when the conversation might drag. While she was waiting in line to collect her ordered lunch, I decided to speak first. “So how do you two like High Point Academy so far?”
Bridget answered, “It’s alright, I guess. I’ve never attended a modern school so small, and the art program isn’t the best I’ve seen.” Opinionated, I can respect that. I hate it when people sugar-coat things just to seem like they’re cute.
Eron spoke up a bit more optimistically. “You have some bright classmates, and the teachers seem to be well learned in their subject. Everyone has been very friendly.” By giving only positive answers, he balanced Bridget. They suited each other, I decided after a few minutes of talking to them. “How long have you attended here?” Eron asked me.
“Since kindergarten,” I said, “and I’ve never been anywhere else.” Meredith appeared beside me and sat down. “Meredith has been here as long as I have.” After saying this, I felt badly that I hadn’t even let her get settled before I pulled her into the conversation. Might as well get introductions out of the way, I thought. “Meredith, this is Eron, Bridget, and Ralph.”
“Hi,” she said smiling at each one as I said their names.
“You’re in my AP Chemistry class, aren’t you?” Eron asked her.
“Yeah, first period,” Meredith replied. She had wanted me to take the class with her, but I had declined with the excuse of having already taken Chemistry Honors with her the year before; I could not survive another year of the subject.
After a few more typical topics, the lunch time chatter between us all became relaxed and natural. I found out that Bridget and Eron lived with Uriel and his family. I liked Uriel’s friends a lot, and they seemed to feel the same way toward me, or maybe that was just my wishful thinking. Hopefully not.
Once third period was over, Uriel came into the classroom and spoke to Ralph, “What did you say?”
“I couldn’t lie to her anymore,” Ralph said grimly. “I had to let Keira know what she was getting into. I told her that she’s too good for you, but the girl still likes you for some reason. I guess I can’t talk any sense into her.” He turned to me. “Keira this is your last chance; dump Uriel before you get too involved. Pick me instead.” I knew he was just kidding, but he had put me on the spot, and I could feel my face going red. What’s up with the blushing? I wondered. I never blush.
Uriel just smiled as Ralph walked away pretending to be jilted and left us alone together. “You like me?” He said as he took a step closer, now only inches away. His eyes were shining, and I couldn’t believe he was looking at me like he was. He was so incredibly gorgeous. “You’re not too bad, I guess,�
�� I got out. I felt hypnotized, like I couldn’t move or hardly breathe. All I could see was him and every nerve of me sensed how close we were.
The spell was broken as the students for the next class started filing in. Uriel picked up my books and my backpack and said softly, “We’ll be late for our next class if we don’t go now.”
“Mm-hm,” I sounded as I willed my feet to follow him. Once we started across the parking lot, I ventured on a topic. “I met and sat with your friends Bridget and Eron today at lunch.”
“I heard. Eron told me that you were wonderful and that I am lucky to have met you. I thoroughly agree.” Uriel looked at me as he said this, and there is no doubt in my mind that for the second time that day, he saw me blush. Smiling he continued, “And you can call them Odeda and Azra if you want.”
Uh, question: “Why do you all have two names?” Honestly, were they secret agents or something where they required double identities? How could I possibly keep up with who was who if they kept switching their names on me?
“I’ll tell you some other time, but I just thought that since you call me Uriel instead of Luca you might want to call the others by their original names as well. Whatever you want is fine.”
“Okay, well, in that case, Ral- Zev,” I corrected myself, “offered to help me out with practicing for basketball season this Saturday. He invited me over to your house. Is that okay?” I waited to see how Uriel would react to me coming over.
To my delight, he unhesitatingly answered, “Absolutely. I’ll help too if you want.”
“That’d be great, especially since he already volunteered you an hour and a half ago,” I laughed. This seemed like a fantastic family he had.
“Typical,” Uriel shook his head. Then he inquired, “Would you like for me to pick you up or do you want to drive yourself?”
“I’ll drive.” I’d only had my license for a few months, and I still loved driving. Besides, I had never been picked up by a boy at my house, and there was no way my parents were going to meet Uriel after I had only spent a few days with him. I couldn’t imagine my mother’s reaction to a boy showing up. “What time should I come over?”
Defiant Destiny Page 4