“Something like that.”
“No brothers or sisters?”
“I had a sister.” He sighed. “How about you? You said your mom’s a teacher here. What about your dad?”
“He’s a consultant for Health Made Simple.”
“Never heard of it,” Chase said.
“Dad gives motivational speeches. You know, he sells all that live your life better stuff.”
“So you’re saying he helps people, like my mom.”
I shrugged. “I’ve got two younger brothers, Danny and Collin. They live to drive me insane, but they can be cool sometimes, as if I’d ever tell them.”
He closed Lauren’s page. “I wish my mom would finish her meeting.”
“Me too. Crap, I forgot about the conference.” I logged off the computer and grabbed my backpack, nearly falling as I scrambled out of the chair.
Chase jerked to attention. “What’s wrong?”
“Mom’s gonna kill me. I’m supposed to get my brothers from the fifth-grade building.”
“I’ll walk with you,” he said.
“Not necessary,” I said and spun, meeting Chase’s eyes. His face was inches from mine, with the computer behind showing only a library logo, and his backpack draped neatly over each shoulder. “How did you…?”
“You can ask on the way.”
Chase stared ahead as we crossed the pavement that divided the high school and elementary school. I wanted to ask about what happened in the library but nothing seemed right to say. Finally tired of trying to solve the mystery of Chase, I dropped my bag and leapt from the covered sidewalk, dancing into the sunlight. Since all the busses were taking students home, pavement stretched ahead for the length of the five elementary buildings. I spun on the tips of my toes, arms spread wide.
He watched from the shadowed sidewalk. “You seemed to brighten when you stepped into the light.”
“After days of rain, sunshine makes me feel better than any Saturday.”
“You’re going to think I’m weird again.”
I stopped spinning, although the pavement felt like a steep drop beneath my feet. “Weirder than you logging out of the computer before I could have clicked escape?”
“I hate the sun.”
Laughing, I raised my arms to the sky. “What do you mean, you hate the sun?”
“I burn real easy.”
The look on his face ended my laughter. “Don’t feel bad, just get some good sunscreen. My parents are bent on skin protection—they practically make me bathe with the sticky white goo every morning. Dad gets sunscreen that’s like SPF one thousand.”
After a laugh from Chase, I lowered my voice. “My dad had cancer.”
His face fell.
“It happened about a year before we moved to Credence. He had dark circles under his eyes and went to a specialist in Atlanta I’d never heard of. It was a whole school day and beyond at the hospital just to see him. No lie, I remember actually doing homework on a table next to the bed while nurses drew his blood.”
“What kind of cancer?”
“Most people would guess lung cancer or a brain tumor, but the disease killing him was skin cancer.”
“Is he okay now?”
“He’s in remission. Dad had treatments I couldn’t pronounce, even radiation.”
Chase’s eyes grew. “Radiation?”
The terror in his voice sent me stumbling back. “It saved his life.”
Chase recovered and stepped off the sidewalk. “If too much sunlight causes skin cancer, how can you still like the sun?”
As we stood in the heated afternoon, his eyes on me, I looked down at his palms, which faced skyward. They were pale and smooth like mine, but larger. His fingers shook slightly at first, but the longer we stayed in the sun, the more each trembled.
“The warmth makes me feel good, even if it’s only for a minute,” I said, returning to the sidewalk, his feet close behind mine.
Chase sighed, relief clear on his face. “Jes, I feel good talking to you, like I could tell you anything.”
“If you can tell me anything, explain how you got Bailey’s phone back in her bag.” When Chase smiled, I reached out and squeezed his arm. “You can tell me anything and I’ll believe you. Unless you say you’re from another planet or something crazy like that.”
His smile faded for a moment, then returned. “And if I tell you something crazy like that?” Chase searched my eyes, his face close enough to make being kissed a fear.
“Jes,” Danny shouted from the main entrance.
Chase stared as the boys approached, but I couldn’t read the expression on his face. They only let him get out a short ‘hello’ before taking off down the sidewalk.
“Beat you there,” Collin said.
Although I was prepared to run after them, Chase stumbled in his effort to follow. “They’re twins?” he asked from behind.
“What’s wrong with that?” I asked when the boys finally stopped.
“Nothing,” he muttered. “I’m just…surprised.”
Collin looked up at Chase. “It’s cool to have a twin.”
“I’m sure it is.” Chase turned to me. “What about you? Do you have a twin?”
Yeah, okay. I fought an urge to laugh at the impossibility of Chase’s question. If only he knew where I’d come from, we’d be laughing together.
Danny jumped in front of us. “Jes can’t ‘cause she’s—”
I caught the back of Danny’s shirt. “Shut up!”
Chase glanced from me to Danny, eyebrows drawn together, but I wasn’t about to fill him in on the drama surrounding my life. Collin changed the subject; fortunately, both of the twins got speedy bored with any conversation about me unless they knew a way to make trouble. They mentioned a new computer game Danny wanted for his birthday. Chase fell into their ‘gaming talk’ and owned the twins’ attention until we reached the van.
“Who’s your new friend?” Mom asked as the door slid open.
“Chase,” they answered, perfectly in time.
Mom extended her hand as the boys climbed in. “Nice to meet you, Chase.”
Chase shook Mom’s hand, smiling as if he’d just received a PhD in charm. “Yes ma’am. Nice to meet you.”
“Where are you from?”
“California, born and raised.” Chase checked his watch. “Sorry, I’ve got to go. My mom’s waiting.” He waved at the boys. “It was cool to meet a set of twins.”
Danny and Collin whined as Chase bolted. Mom shut the sliding door, watching me curiously. “You haven’t mentioned a new friend.”
“Mom, don’t go there.”
“Chase does have pretty blue eyes, just like someone I know.”
I shook my head. “Chase and I are nothing alike. He’s my lab partner and probably the only reason I’ll pass chemistry.”
“Okay, okay. So Chase is from California?”
“Yeah.”
“We’ve never lived in California. Maybe you can learn something from Chase.”
“Maybe.” Like how to lie better than you taught me.
* * * * *
Chase was from California.
Chase thought it was cool to have a twin.
Chase knew how to reach level nine of The Dragon’s Keeper.
As I swallowed my last bite of taco, Danny and Collin found yet another opportunity to talk about Chase. I groaned and Mom smiled. Dad listened until the table was clear and the boys climbed the stairs for their hour of TV. After helping Mom with the dishes, I slipped into the living room where Dad was watching the news.
“Dad?”
He looked up, giving me his uncomfortably full attention.
“I was wondering if we could talk.”
“Uh-oh,” Mom said, from the doorway. “This sounds serious.”
“I’ve been thinking about when we were in New York.”
Dad frowned. “New York?”
“I’ve got some more questions.”
He switched off
the TV and waved me over to the couch. Mom took the seat to my other side. “You know we’ve always tried to answer your questions as honestly as possible. Have you remembered something new?” It was always Dad’s first question when I mentioned the past.
“I remember when you and Mom adopted me, but before that…”
Mom put an arm around my neck and pressed her head to the top of mine. “Honey, there’s nothing wrong with not remembering. You were so young then.” She pulled me closer. “Perhaps some things are best left in the past.”
I turned to Dad. “What was it like in New York?”
“Life was much faster than in Credence.”
“Did you always live there before we met?”
His brow creased. “Come on, Jes. Have you forgotten I’m from Colorado? Bailey’s dad and I attended college together. How do you think I met Lorraine?”
They met in New York. Or did they? It was so long ago. My head was foggy as I looked to Mom and then back to Dad. “What about your family? Mom always talks about hers.”
Dad cupped my cheek with his hand. “You are my family.”
I brushed his hand away. “You know what I mean.”
“My parents passed away years ago. What else would you like to know?”
I took a breath. “Why didn’t my real parents want me?”
Dad’s face tightened and his arms surrounded me. “If only you could remember.” He sighed, as if giving up a fight. “They disappeared before the hearing. That’s why Lorraine and I signed those papers and kept you for good. I still have a friend in New York, with the police. No one has found any trace of the Naples since the night I found you. That means no paper trail, no money trail—nothing for the police to follow.”
“I get it. They don’t want to be found. But why can’t I talk to anyone else? At least I could tell Bailey the truth.”
“Remember what we talked about before? About the reporters who swarmed the foster home and how I moved us from New York when your adoption became final?”
Dad had made it painfully clear that no one in Credence would ever hear my former last name. No one could learn my pathetic story. Which was fine, I could deal. I might cry myself to sleep at night, but I’d never reopen a wound for the people who loved me.
He sensed me holding back and pulled away. “No matter what happens, we won’t let you go. We’ll do whatever it takes to keep you safe.” His words felt like a shield from torture Tosh had yet to discover.
* * * * *
The dream came again that night. I heard my parents argue and then sad voices. The powerless feeling overtook me as thoughts of the last words my mother said seized my heart. When I woke, the pillowcase clung to my face.
Date Night
“I told you my plan would work,” Bailey said, smiling in the bathroom mirror. “If anyone catches us, we just happened to be watching the same movie at the same time.”
“Damn it,” I said, as the curling iron grazed my ear. “Are you sure Pade thinks this is a date?”
From her purse, Bailey pulled a compact and a tube of crimson lipstick. “You should’ve talked to him instead of hiding all week. Trust me, guys hate that.”
“I still can’t believe Sarah Beth broke up with him.”
“Not every girl in school would choose Pade, especially when he’s willing to set them up with a senior on the football team. If he was so in love with her, why would he do that?” Bailey laughed and smeared on a dark layer of eye shadow. “Imagine you and me on our first real dates together. You’ll be with Pade and I’ll be next to Chase. On different rows, of course.”
“Of course.” She really had thought of everything. That is, everything except for harassment times two.
“So,” Danny said from the cracked door. “Jes is going on a date with Pade.”
Collin pushed him aside. “And Bailey’s going on a date with Chase.”
I spun, throwing open the door, but the twins were halfway down the hall before I stepped outside. Laughter sailed as they flew down the stairs.
Bailey scowled in the mirror. “Those boys get on my last nerve.”
I shut the door tight. “At least you don’t have to live with them.”
“Do you think they’ll rat us out?”
“Danny and Collin? Rat us out?”
“Right. Let’s leave before they have the chance.”
Bailey gathered her makeup and headed for the stairs. I followed close behind, preparing to sneak out the back door. Danny and Collin had finally pushed me to the breaking point. If they told Mom and Dad and ruined our plans, we’d have serious issues.
Dad sat on the edge of the couch, spreading papers across the coffee table. Mom reclined to his right, flipping through a cookbook. Announcers on the news channel mouthed headlines without sound.
She noticed us first. “I want you both to be careful. Don’t leave the doors of the Fun Connection until Charlie pulls up to the curb.”
Bailey ran for the door, nearly tripping on the carpet. “See you in the car.”
Dad was concentrating on his papers, but looked up in time to stop me. “What movie are you going to see?”
“The Summer Show.”
“What’s that rated?” he asked.
“PG-13.”
He lowered the papers in his hands and leaned back, face sagging as if he’d run a marathon. “Are you sure?”
“Next week will be October. I’ll be sixteen soon.”
Dad smiled. “Jessica Ray, I’m well aware of that.”
I reached down to recover a page as it slid off the table. Unfortunately, I failed to notice the twins standing in the doorway.
“Jes is going on a date,” Collin said with a smirk.
“Date?” Dad asked, eyeing the twins. “How do you know that?”
“We know everything,” Danny said.
Mom chuckled. “You’ve got a long way to learn half of everything.”
Dad grinned at me. “Just who is this mystery boy?”
Danny and Collin stopped in front of me. “Pade.”
Dad’s grin disappeared. “Pade?”
“Jes and Pade sittin’ in a tree…” Collin said, pointing to Danny.
“K-I-S-S-I-N-G,” Danny shouted.
“First comes love, second comes marriage…”
“Then comes Jes with a baby carriage.”
I glared at the twins. “I think I learned that one in second grade.” My eyes shifted to Dad, as he exchanged a glance with Mom. “Bailey and I were talking in the bathroom and the boys overheard us. A girl at school likes Pade. Not me.”
Dad leaned forward, both hands meeting in an ‘A’ below his nose. “Boys, go upstairs. I think you’ve caused your sister enough grief for tonight.”
Danny and Collin laughed, bolting out another verse as they mounted the stairs.
Mom closed her book. “A girl at school likes Pade? Other than the one who just broke up with him?”
Tosh flashed in my head. “That’s what I’ve heard.”
“How do you feel about that?” Dad asked.
Like pulling Tosh’s hair out. “How should I feel? He’s Bailey’s brother.”
“And he’s going with you tonight?”
“He’s going to the Fun Connection. Once he gets there he’ll probably go skating.”
“Skating?” Dad’s voice filled with concern. “Please don’t tell me you plan to go skating again. I don’t know if I could go through another night like the last time you went.”
“I can honestly say Bailey and I are going to watch a movie. No skating. Promise.”
His face relaxed. “And that stuff about Pade?”
“I’m sure Pade will be hanging out with Terrance or whoever else he’s meeting. I haven’t talked to him much this week.” I looked at Mom. “You know I could never like Pade.” My eyes rolled for an extra edge of drama. “Right?”
Mom smiled, but the smile didn’t reach her voice. “What have you got against Pade? My nephew seems like a nice youn
g man, and charming. Do you know something about him we don’t?”
Why couldn’t they just let it go? First, my parents worried I might like Pade. Then they wanted to know why I didn’t. Was I the only sane one in our conversation? “Pade is a great guy, really.”
“Then what’s the problem?” Mom asked. “He seems quite popular at school.”
“Popular is not my thing.”
“Oh,” Mom said. “I thought you might feel weird since Pade is sort of related to you.”
“Lorraine,” Dad said, hands flat against an invisible wall.
Her face colored. “I’m just saying…”
“She’s already confused enough.” He turned to me. “Maybe you’ve doubted me at times, but I can promise you’re not related to Pade. There is nothing similar about the blood in your veins.”
“What’s so bad about me forgetting I’m adopted, just for once?”
“Oh, honey.” Mom stood, putting her arms around me. “It feels wonderful knowing you’d want to forget, that you’d even think of us as your real family.”
Not wanting to argue the point she missed and filled with sickness over the thought of a warm family moment, I looked back at Dad. “Can I kill those boys now or do I have to wait ‘til they’re older?”
Dad’s smile returned, but his voice mirrored the sadness in Mom’s. “Give them a few more years, Jes. They’ll grow out of their obnoxious stage. Maybe you’ll even beat them to it.”
“Beat them? Come on, Dad, I’m not obnoxious.”
He laughed with me. “I’m sure all teenagers have their moments.”
I grabbed my phone from the bar and headed for the door. “Did you guys really believe I had a thing for Pade? That would be weird.” Silence filled the room, far from the laughter of only a moment ago. Surely, I convinced them.
As the door sealed my escape, I fought a surge of dread, unable to shake the sight of Dad with lines at every corner of his face. For months before his cancer diagnosis, Dad came home with an exhaustion ten hours in bed couldn’t fix. The prospect of his cancer returning had the potential to rain a flood of anxiety over the entire evening. No, I’d push the fear away by concentrating on my first date. At least I could control that part of my life.
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