We walked to our first class together and sat down. Jonathon continued to hold my hand under the table. Mr. O’ Connell came over to us.
“Here’s the work you missed.” He said handing us both a couple of papers.
“Thank you.” I said.
“Yes, thank you,” said Jonathon.
“You’re welcome,” said Mr. O’ Connell. He bent down to me. “I hope your mom is okay.” He said. I tried not to squirm or show my left arm.
“She’s doing better. But it’ll be a while before she’s herself again.” I said completely lying. I’m not a very good liar. I usually laugh when I lie.
“Yes, well I’m sorry this had to happen.” He continued.
“I appreciate your sympathy.” I said to Mr. O’Connell. He walked back to his desk at the front of the classroom.
English class flew by in a blur. Jonathon walked me to science, kissing me on the forehead before he left. I blushed and went into the classroom taking my seat next to the guy I had seen holding the guitar case this morning.
Ms. Cappet was at my side with work.
“We, just took notes yesterday, so you can get them from Isaac I’m sorry about your mom.” She added handing me the papers.
“Thanks.” I said, even though if this was going to happen all day I was going to get sick of it.
I turned to the guy next to me.
“You must be Isaac. I’m Kylie.” I said.
“Yep. I’m Isaac here’s the notes from yesterday. Take them quickly we’re doing a lab today. We’re partners so you won’t be completely lost. Although I’m not that good at science so I guess you’re screwed,” He grinned at me.
“Okay.” I said laughing and taking the notes from him. He had a British accent.
I copied them quickly.
“So, are from the UK?” I asked.
“Yeah, I’ve lived here three years with my grandma. My parents decided I was too much of a trouble maker and shipped me here.”
“What did you do?” I asked hoping it wasn’t too bad.
“Nothing to awful. My parents just hate to be contradicted I told them they were bloody idiots and the rest I will not repeat.”
I laughed.
“Okay class, get with your partners. This shouldn’t be so hard since you sit next to them,” Ms. Cappet said clapping her hands.
I handed Isaac back his notes. “Thanks.” I said. “No problem.” He replied.
I studied Isaac. He was good looking but nothing like Jonathon. He had dark brown straight hair with dark blue streaks in it. His eyes were a bright blue. He had a straight nose and good cheek bones. He had large hands and long skinny fingers. He has light skin but nothing like Jonathon’s pale. Isaac had straight teeth and a cute smile. But his smile was nothing like Jonathon’s heart stopping one. He appeared to be tall.
Looking at his light skin made me feel really tan. I’d always been considered pale back in California. But after coming here I looked really tan.
“So . . . um . . . What happened to your mom?” Isaac whispered to me. He looked nervous talking to me and he obviously didn’t feel comfortable asking such a personal question.
“She’s been depressed since my dad filed for divorce. So, she tried . . .she tried . . .to kill herself.” I whispered to him fighting back the tears I knew wanted to come.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”
“Neither did I,” I mumbled. I felt like it was my fault for not recognizing the signs of her depression.
We got out the supplies for the lab. Isaac and I continued to talk. I found out he was in a band with his friends Tyson, Wayland, and Colton. We talked and laughed and it felt like we were old friends.
Isaac and I left the class room together. Jonathon was waiting for me. He was leaned against the wall his right leg angled against it. He smiled when he saw me.
“Bye.” I said to Isaac. Isaac gave Jonathon a look.
“Bye.” He said roughly. I stared after him confused. Guys could be so weird.
Jonathon grabbed my hand and we began walking.
“Who was that?” He asked.
“Isaac. I sit next to him in science. He’s my lab partner.”
“Oh. Do you like him?” He asked.
“Yeah, he seems like he could be a good friend. Wait, are you jealous? You can’t be jealous we’re meant to be together. Soul mates,” I said.
“I’m not jealous.” He grunted.
“Sure sounds like it.”
“Well, I’m not.” He said a little too defensively.
The rest of the day went by quickly. I realized I had my third period class, history, with Isaac too. I said hi to him and he looked like he was going to say something back but then he caught sight of Jonathon and closed his mouth.
The bell rang to dismiss us. I gathered my stuff and put it in my back pack. I noticed that Isaac ran out of the class room as soon as the bell sounded.
Jonathon and I walked out of the school hand in hand.
“Diana parks over here.” He said leading me away from the direction of the motorcycle.
“I expect a full fledged report on my mom when you get back.”
“I’ll have one.” He said smiling.
I could see Diana not far ahead. She was standing in front of a light blue Lexus RX. She smiled and waved at us.
“She’s so happy she has someone to shop with besides Amelia,” said Jonathon. I didn’t say anything.
We reached Diana. She was beaming and dancing on the balls of her feet. Her hands were clasped together.
“We’re going to have so much fun,” she said. Her excitement made me excited. I just was nervous about having to leave Jonathon. I hoped my mom wouldn’t hurt him.
Jonathon kissed me on the lips.
“Goodbye, principessa.” He said.
“I’ll see you later.” I said walking closer to Diana.
“Diana by Kylie whatever she wants!” Jonathon hollered.
“I will!” She yelled back.
“I love you,” said Jonathon. I stopped in my tracks and turned back around to look at him.
“I love you, too.” I said. He smiled big and happy. With that he turned back around and started once again towards the motorcycle.
Chapter Twelve: Shopping
Diana was already in her car. I climbed in.
“You don’t need to buy me anything.” I said.
“Oh come on, Kylie. I’m so buying you stuff. We’ll have so much fun! Plus, no offense, but do you have any designer clothing?”
“No, I said.
Diana sighed as if my lack of designer clothing was the greatest disaster to ever occur.
“When was the last time you went shopping?” she asked.
“I can’t remember I said.
“Well then just enjoy the day and have fun.” Diana said.
“I’ll try.” I sighed.
“By the way, I’m buying you anything you want. No arguing because I can already tell you’re going to argue with me. And, no I’m not saying that Jonathon asked me. I’m doing it because I want to. Plus, I don’t have any friends to shop with. I think we could be friends.”
“I think we could be friends too. But why don’t you have any friends?” I asked as we came to a stop behind Jonathon trying to leave the school.
He looked so sexy on the back of the motorcycle. His back muscles stood out beneath his shirt.
“We aren’t allowed to have friends.” She said simply.
“Why not?” I asked.
“It’s too dangerous.”
“Then, how come we can be friends?”
“Because you know about us.” She said turning right out of the school. The street was lined with trees. Their leaves were oranges and reds.
I felt so bad for Diana. She hadn’t had friends in so long. Just her family.
“So, if you guys don’t have friends won’t people think it’s strange that you’re friends with me?”
“People don’t pay much attenti
on to us. But now that you’re hanging out with us people will talk. But don’t worry about us. They’ll forget about it soon enough.”
“How come they don’t notice you? You are all insanely gorgeous.”
“Humans notice us at first but since we can’t really become much more than acquaintances with them they forget about us like last season’s Jimmy Choo’s. But also, I think it’s that they know we’re different. They know enough to be afraid. They don’t know what we are; they just feel that we are something sinister, something despicable.” She spat the word.
“Then how come you go to school?”
“We get bored and we have to stay up on technology although with Patrick that isn’t a big deal.”
“No, I mean how can you be around all those humans?”
“Oh, I’m sorry, I miss understood. We can be around humans as long as we have minimal contact.”
“Oh, I guess that makes sense.”
She got off another exit leading to the shopping center. Horns honked all around us. Taxi’s shuffled by, carrying tourists. Their normal lives shrouded in mystery. I realized now how much I didn’t know. How much most people never knew.
Diana pulled in front of a store with a strange Italian name that I couldn’t make out.
Diana unbuckled her seat belt and grabbed her purse. I unbuckled my seat belt and got out of the car.
I followed her into the store. Its walls were painted hot pink. A modern white counter was to the right when you walked in. An old timey cash register sat on it. It was also painted hot pink. A friendly looking cashier stood behind it.
I followed Diana to the back of the store. She stood in front of a display of hair clips. They were so beautiful.
“Are those real diamonds?” I asked.
“Yes, and those are sapphires, rubies, and emeralds,” she said pointing out a few others.
I picked up a dragonfly shaped hair clip. It was decorated with emeralds and diamonds.
“It’s so beautiful.” I said to myself stroking the wings.
“I’ll buy it for you,” said Diana looking in the mirror at a butterfly clip. Of course she had heard me. The diamonds in it were pink, yellow, and white. It looked beautiful against her blond hair.
“You don’t need to do that.” I said putting it back on the display. She pulled the butterfly clip from her hair.
“Kylie, you really love it. I can see it in your eyes.” Diana said still holding the butterfly clip. She grabbed the dragonfly clip from where I’d placed it. “Plus this color brings out your eyes and it’s beautiful against your hair.” Diana said.
I just nodded. Not really knowing what I was nodding my agreement to. I tended to space out.
“You know what I’ve convinced myself. I’m buying them both.” She said proudly. I guess when you’ve been saving money since the thirteen hundreds it doesn’t take much to convince you to spend it. Even back in California I didn’t spend much money. I wasn’t raised to act like a Barbie doll. My parents wanted my brothers and me to learn the value of money. So, I was constantly mocked for my less than designer clothes. Although, I did have a few designer names in my closet it wasn’t enough to bring attention to me. I didn’t like attention I like to blend in, I’m a shy person. So basically the thought of spending too much money scared the crap out of me.
Diana sauntered over to the checkout. The cashier rang up the two items. I didn’t get a chance to see the price but I wouldn’t have known what it was anyway, since it would have been in Euros. Diana asked the lady to bag and wrap the clips separately. The cashier did as she was told and handed Diana both bags when she was finished.
Diana then handed me the bag that contained the dragonfly clip. It was in a hot pink bag with the store name on the front. The lady had also boxed both clips in hot pink boxes with white polka dots on it. There was also white tissue paper with hot pink polka dots on it sticking out of the bag.
“Thanks.” I said to the cashier. We left the building and Diana unlocked the Lexus.
“Thank you so much Diana but you really didn’t have to buy this for me.”
“You’re welcome, Kylie. I like buying other people stuff and it’s nice to have someone my own age to shop with.” She said putting her bag in the trunk. I did the same putting my bag on the opposite side to keep them separate.
“But you are like hundreds of years older than me.” I whispered so any passersby wouldn’t hear but Diana would.
“True, but age is just a number. I’m still sixteen. I’m forever and always a teenager. As are Danny and Mason, Jonathon almost got stuck being a teenager. At least he can call himself an adult,” She whispered back.
“That makes sense.” I said walking back to the passenger side and getting in.
She pulled away into heavy traffic. The driving here was worse than in New York City.
Diana pulled in front of Gucci cutting of another woman who honked loudly and I believe said a few profanities in Italian. But I couldn’t be sure. No stores here had proper parking lots. You either parked in front of the store or parked as close as you could get to it.
She unbuckled her seat belt and I did the same. Then she angled herself in her seat so she was looking directly at me.
“I have to buy you a purse and a wallet,” She said.
“Okay, but why?” I asked.
“I noticed you didn’t have one. You don’t have to get one here. Louis Vuitton and Coach are close by so we can go there too. In fact you can do the most expensive shopping on this street.” Diana said excitedly clapping her hands together. I tried to smile for her benefit.
“Great.” I said faking enthusiasm. She seemed to buy it. Or else she was being nice by not calling me out on it.
Diana got out of the SUV and I followed her lead. She half danced half walked into Gucci.
I went in behind her. Two bulky body guards stood at the doors, back to the wall, when I went in. Almost everything in the store was black, white, and gold. My face lit up. Even I can enjoy couture. Diana turned around and looked at me.
“I knew you’d like it.” She giggled, jumping up and down. She looked like she was on caffeine high. A good looking sales man came over to us.
“May I help you beautiful ladies with anything?” He said in a thick Italian accent.
Diana stepped forward.
“Yes you can. I’d like to see your newest arrivals, purses, and wallets only; I don’t want to get carried away.”
“Yes, Miss Pulmer.” The sales man said disappearing into the back of the store.
“Are you a regular?” I asked trying not to laugh, the sales man had been making gooey eyes at Diana.
“Sadly, yes.”
“Why is that a bad thing?” I asked. Shopping could be healthy. Sometimes. If you didn’t over spend.
“Because, almost every time I go shopping I max out my credit cards.” She said looking sad. I laughed. Yep, that is a good reason to not go shopping. But that doesn’t seem to stop her.
I was finally warming up to Diana. But I was still queasy at the thought of her buying me things. The only people who ever bought me anything was my parents. Occasionally my brothers. But that usually ends up being a Yale sweat shirt.
The sales man returned with nothing in his hands.
“Miss Pulmer, Miss . . .?”
“Lyons.” I said.
“Miss Pulmer, Miss Lyons, I have the selections waiting for you in a private room.” He said.
“Thank you Donatello,” said Diana.
“It is my pleasure and, please, as we’ve discussed before call me Don.” He said politely.
“We’ve been through this Donatello. I will call you Don when you call me Diana. It is not necessary for you to call me Miss Pulmer.” She said rather harshly. I giggled when she said ‘Miss Pulmer’ for she said it in a stuffy old lady tone.
“Alright Diana as you wish.
“What would you like me to call you?” Don asked me finally averting his eyes from Diana. He seem
ed to be struggling.
“Um . . . Kylie is fine.”
“Diana, Kylie, kindly follow me.” He said turning his back to us.
“Come on,” said Diana grabbing my hand and dragging me along.
“I’m coming. You can let go of me. I think your nails just broke the skin,” I said struggling against her hold. Of course her being a vampire meant my attempts were useless.
“Oh, sorry.” She said releasing me.
“It’s fine.” I said rubbing my arm trying to get some feeling back into it.
Don led us back to a private room decorated in the same color palette. Diana sat down on one of the black leather arm chairs. I took the matching one.
“Would you ladies like anything to eat or drink?” Don asked.
“I’d like coffee. You know the way I like it,” She said crossing her ankles.
“Um . . . Ice water.” I stuttered. I would never be a politician.
I couldn’t get over how helpful and kind Don was. I guess that’s what he was paid to do. Be nice and get people to buy stuff.
I also couldn’t get over Diana’s power. The Pulmer’s have big money. I’m not talking Bill Gates big money. I’m talking bigger. I didn’t know a single person back in California that could even begin to compare to the Pulmer’s money and power. Not even a celebrity.
Don came back with Diana’s coffee and my ice water.
Don showed us design after design. I didn’t like any of them. Diana got three purses and matching wallets to go with them for herself.
“Are you sure you don’t want anything?” Diana asked for the millionth time.
“I’m positive. Don’t waste money on something I don’t want.”
“Alright, maybe you’ll like something at Coach.” She said handing Don the money for her items.
“Maybe.” I said. But I honestly doubted it.
Don came back with Diana’s things boxed and bagged. He also held her change.
“Here’s your bags and your change back.” Don said.
“Thank you Don. Did you take your tip out of the payment?”
“No ma’am.” He said blushing.
Fallen (Fallen Series Book 1) Page 10