by E. C. Newman
Contents
~ Dedication ~
~ Acknowledgements ~
The Beginning
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
~ About the Author ~
~ More YA Fiction from Etopia Press ~
Phase
E. C. Newman
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This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are fictitious or have been used fictitiously, and are not to be construed as real in any way. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales, or organizations is entirely coincidental.
Published By:
Etopia Press
P.O. Box 66
Medford, OR 97501
http://www.etopia-press.net
Phase
Copyright © 2012 by E. C. Newman
ISBN: 978-1-937976-49-1
Edited by Thalia S. Child
Cover by Eithne Ni Anluaine
All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
First Etopia Press electronic publication: July 2012
~ Dedication ~
To Pam, who can be my Jules or my Sophie, depending on which one I need.
And to my parents, who allowed me to be impractical for as long as it took me to find what I really wanted to do.
~ Acknowledgements ~
I am pretty sure that no one reads these except the people who actually know me and hope to have a mention, so I’ll do my best.
I’d like to thank the people at Etopia Press for taking a big chance on me. My editor, Thalia Child, the marketing people, just everyone there. I will always, always be grateful.
Julia Green, Steve Voake, Nicola Davies, John McLay and everyone else involved in the Writing for Young People program at Bath Spa Univerisity, including my classmates deserve so much thanks. The support and encouragement I found there was priceless.
I would especially like to thank Sallyanne Sweeney, my agent at Watson, Little Ltd., who believed in my stories even when I wanted to burn them. She’s always ‘gotten’ me and I am so blessed.
I’d like to thank my readers from so long ago on fanfiction.net. Without you guys, I would have never had the confidence to go forward and submit my work. You liked my stories without even knowing me.
Big thank-yous to Emily Fauble, Kate Dombeck, and Sarah Petrovic. Emily, because she was my steady reader for so many years. Kate, because she was my first writing friend and who knows if we’d be buddies without our stories. And Sarah, if she hadn’t introduced me to Newsies as a freshman in college, I’m not sure I’d be writing. I wouldn't know what it means to be a friend without these women.
I owe so much to Pam Przybylski. We became friends through our stories and her encouragement and critique has pushed my writing in the last few years and I wouldn’t be where I am without her. She is, as Stephen King mentioned in his writing book, my ‘ideal reader.’ I write for her as much as for myself.
My family deserves much of my gratitude. They’ve never thought (or at least said) that I was the odd one without a regular life or pursuit. Brad, Laura, Greg and Erin, thank you for being supporters even so far away. To Jack and Aiden, I can’t wait to share my stories with you when you get older. And to Mom and Dad, words don’t cover the amount of love, prayer and support you have given me. Thanks for letting me try and fail and try again.
Lastly, I thank my heavenly Father and His Son for bestowing upon me the ability to tell a story. It’s not something I earned or paid for, certainly not something I deserve. I am thankful and humbled by it and I hope to always use my gifts in the way I was meant to.
The Beginning
A billion thoughts should have been going through my head as I saw her fist swing toward me. A million actions should have come to mind as rather smart things to do. Namely, duck.
But no, in the split second that it took for Summer Harlan to swing at me, I only thought, who gets into fights the first week of school?
Apparently I did.
But I wasn’t really in a fight. I mean, I was in it, but not participating. I didn’t much like Summer, the meanest girl in the history of high school, and gorgeous to boot. But I’d never fight her. Or pick a fight with her.
She was fighting Juliet Ellery, and Juliet didn’t exactly like me. For reasons that remained confusing to me, I found myself stepping in front of Juliet to separate the two of them. Then Summer decided taunts and shoves weren’t enough.
Getting punched hurt. And even though she hit my left cheekbone, it hurt my whole face. Even my right ear.
I stumbled back and fell as Juliet grabbed Summer by her very shiny shirt and shoved her into the lockers. I covered my throbbing cheek with my hand, panting like I’d just gone for a run. Two hands lifted me up by my arms, and I turned to meet pale green eyes.
Ezra Varden.
He nodded at me before hurrying with Micah Reade to pull Juliet off Summer. Summer’s perfect red hair tumbled out of her strategic messy ponytail as she escaped Juliet’s grip. Summer’s friends—or minions, as I liked to call them—hurried to her, consoling her as Summer switched from instigator to victim.
Juliet, after struggling against Micah and Ezra, calmed. She glanced at me, and for one second I thought I saw regret, but my vision was kooky already with being punched and all.
And that’s when the teachers arrived.
Chapter One
I first saw her four days before the school year started.
The city of Gregory, Tennessee had only fifteen thousand people but had the biggest Walmart in the county. Everyone did their back-to-school shopping there.
My mom was searching for birthday cards, and I’d wandered down the office supplies aisle, my favorite.
I was in the process of choosing the best notebook for English class. Pickings were slim at that late date. When I saw movement out of the corner of my eye, I turned to see who had shown up.
She was gorgeous. The kind of girl that made you want to spend twenty hours at the gym or drown your sorrows in a tub of ice cream, because even with the most expensive plastic surgery, you would never look like her.
She was tall. That’s what I first noticed. I was just five foot five inches, and she was so much above that. Maybe five ten. She had dark brown hair, darker than my plain old brown. It hung to her lower back, but the ends were ragged like they desperately needed a trim. What made her even more memorable was a streak of white hair near her right temple, solid white hair contrasting with the rich brown. Not blonde or bleached, but white. Her eyebrows were thick and dark l
ike the rest of her hair, making her look primitive.
I could see only her profile, but she turned toward me, reaching down to pick up a green notebook. She ran her hands along it, like it was special. Her attention was solely on the notebook, even though I had a full view of her now.
“There’s more durable ones over here,” I said congenially. Though my family wasn’t originally Southern, we were just as friendly. We could strike up conversations with anyone. Talking to a stranger wasn’t unusual.
The girl’s head snapped up.
She had the eeriest eyes. They were the lightest blue I’d ever seen. Beautiful but creepy. They looked alien. Especially in contrast to her copper-colored skin.
“If you’re rough with your notebooks like I am, I mean mine get so incredibly beat up by the end of the semester, not even the year, and I hate—” I broke off, realizing that I was rambling, not an uncommon occurrence, but her expression stopped me. Her eyes had been wide when I’d first spoken, but now they’d narrowed. As though she was angry.
I had no clue as to why she would be angry.
“Do you go to Gregory High?” Our high school was big, nearly two thousand students, but I knew she was a new kid. With looks like hers, I would have remembered passing her in the halls.
She didn’t answer, but kept looking at me. She seemed less angry now and more bewildered.
“I’m Sophie,” I told her. “I’ll be a senior.”
“Juliet?” came a guy’s voice. A blond head popped around the corner.
I knew that head. And the rest of the person. My heart sank.
Ezra Varden. My crush. This year would make it four years of crushing. Four years. I didn’t know if I was loyal or just pathetic. We’d had a few classes together throughout high school, but I was pretty sure he didn’t think about me. Ever.
He walked up to the girl. His green eyes seemed worried. He wore his favorite red hoodie. I assumed it was his favorite because he wore it a lot. Wasn’t liked we’d ever talked about it. Or ever talked really.
The girl, Juliet, set the green notebook down. She seemed sad to let go of it. She didn’t say anything to Ezra, but headed the same way he’d come.
I’d never seen Ezra with a girl other than his little sister, which meant only one thing in my mind. They were dating.
My heart ached.
Ezra looked at the discarded notebook and glanced at her retreating back. He sniffed once then turned to me. “Hey, Sophie.”
He recognized me outside of school? Brilliant day!
“Hey, Ezra. Did you have a good summer?” I fiddled with the notebook I held, my nerves haywire. Like always around him.
“Yeah. Not bad. You?” He stuck his hands in his jean pockets, rocking back on his heels. He didn’t smile much. Certainly not around me, but he didn’t seem bothered by talking to me.
Progress.
“Good. Went road-tripping with the folks. National Parks. Yellowstone, Yosemite, Grand Canyon…” I made myself stop before I really babbled. Could I sound more lame?
“Cool.” His eyes met mine briefly. I restrained a dreamy sigh. “I’ll see you Monday.”
“Yeah.” I nodded like a goof. “Monday. See ya.”
He left, and I stood for a few seconds, thinking about him. Wondering about her. I walked down the aisle and leaned over, picking up the green notebook.
Mom showed up. “Got what you need?”
I nodded, taking two notebooks to the checkout line.
* * *
Exactly a week later, I sat next to Juliet outside the principal’s office while Summer was in with Dr. Mack, probably getting off with no punishment because her daddy owned half the town.
Juliet’s knuckles were bandaged, and she stared straight ahead. “Why did you do that?” she asked, breaking the quiet.
“Do what?”
“Do something so stupid like get in the middle of a fight?” She sounded disgusted. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her turn toward me.
I opened my mouth then shut it. Why had I done it? Juliet, new girl to Gregory, had landed in my first period class and I’d shown her around, made sure she’d found her classes. I’d introduced her to my friends at lunch, where I found out that she was a foster kid with the Vardens. My relief that she wasn’t dating Ezra was overcome by my sympathy for her situation. I’d even invited her over for dinner on Wednesday, but she’d barely talked, and when she had, she told me coldly that she’d only come over because she wanted to be away from her foster family for a little while. She didn’t want to be friends, especially with someone who pitied her.
She’d made me cry.
So why had I stuck up for her, even to the point of getting hurt?
Glutton for punishment, Exhibit A—Sophie Todd.
“She was being so mean,” I mumbled, taking off the ice pack the school nurse had given me. The left side of my face was now numb, but I knew it would hurt again soon.
Juliet didn’t comment for a few seconds, then said, “You’re very strange.”
I didn’t have time to agree with her because the door opened and Summer, with a busted lip, flounced out. She smiled smugly at us and waved as she left the office.
I was oddly happy to see that busted lip.
“Sophie Todd?” Dr. Mack called.
I stood up and promised myself I would not cry. I walked toward the door and looked back once. Juliet watched me and, out of the blue, offered me a small, encouraging smile.
I was too shaken to know if I smiled back.
Dr. Mack asked me to share what I’d seen. I told him everything and repeated that Summer had thrown the first hit. He seemed to believe me.
“Sophie, you are an excellent student and good person,” he began at the end of my tale. I watched his gray eyebrows as they twitched with every word he spoke. “I would hate to see your clean record marred because of the company you keep.”
“Dr. Mack, she provoked Juliet.” I was adamant. “Jules was walking away when Summer grabbed her hair.”
He nodded. “I understand this. I’m just telling you to be careful. I’ve had to call your parents to let them know what happened.”
I closed my eyes. “Oh no.”
“Are you OK to finish up classes today?”
I nodded, opening my eyes. “Did my parents sound upset?”
He gave me a “duh” look, for a principal anyway. He stood and went to his office door.
I followed. “Dr. Mack. You’re not going to suspend Juliet, are you? She really did try to walk away.”
“I like to give everyone a second chance. We’ll see.” He opened the door. “Go to class.”
“Thanks, Dr. Mack.” I walked out to see Juliet still sitting tensely.
“Juliet Ellery, please come in.”
She got up, wiping her hands on her jeans. She met my eyes for a second, then went past me.
Class had already started, so the halls were quiet as I pulled out my cell to call my dad.
“Hey, Dad,” I started weakly.
He heaved a big sigh. “I know you weren’t just in a fight, were you?”
“Can I explain first? There were extenuating circumstances.”
He chuckled. “Go ahead.”
I quickly gave him a rundown of the words exchanged and how the fight had escalated. “Dad, she was awful to Juliet.”
“Who was?”
“Summer. Summer Harlan.”
“Harlan? Your friend had to make a Harlan angry.” He chuckled again. “Juliet shouldn’t have hit her.”
“I know. But part of the reason I’m explaining is that I’m supposed to study with Juliet tonight. We have a test tomorrow, and the teacher assigned us partners to study with. So she’s supposed to come over.” Our geography teacher, Mrs. Lange, was evil like that.
Another long pause. “I see.”
“Please? It’s school. And I dunno, I like her. Not sure why.” That last statement was more to myself. I’d felt something when I’d seen her at Walmart. A
connection. Maybe a kindred spirit, although that seemed like a long shot with her being so different from me.
Oh, and not liking me.
He laughed. “That’s my girl. All right, I’ll make sure it’s OK with your mom, but if it’s your teacher’s assignment, not much we can do, huh?”
I grinned into the phone. “You’re the greatest dad ever.”
“I’m your only dad.”
“Details.”
“I have to work now. And you have class.”
“Love you.” I froze as I saw Ezra Varden walk out of the boys’ bathroom just as I said that. He paused at seeing me.
“Love you too, pumpkin,” Dad said and hung up.
I closed my phone and slipped it into my bag. “Hey,” I said lamely. I could talk up a storm with anyone: stranger, friend, relative. I rambled enough when I was nervous, but seeing Ezra right at this moment, I was struck dumb. Or at least, ineloquent.
“You OK?” he asked, stuffing his hands in his pockets. He looked at my face and winced. “Looks like it hurts.”
I nodded. “It does. Thanks, you know…for…” Picking me up? Touching me? Giving me more reasons to crush on you? “Breaking it up.”
He shrugged it off. “Someone had to, although seeing Summer get a taste of her own medicine wasn’t bad.” He smiled a little.
I grinned back, completely ecstatic to see him smile. “You going to class?” We had Chem. 2 together. And second period Pre-Calculus and sixth period Spanish 4, the most classes I’d ever had with Ezra in our entire high school career.
“Yeah.”
We walked next to each other, a good foot of space between us. I imagined him reaching out and taking my hand, but I knew better. Didn’t stop my daydreams, though.