Parker's Island

by Kimberly Schwartzmiller

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  CONTENTS

  Acknowledgements

  Preface

  Chapter One: Making Plans

  Chapter Two: Graduation – Countdown to…Misery

  Chapter Three: The Big Blow Out

  Chapter Four: The History of Parker’s Island

  Chapter Five: The Wrath of Molly

  Chapter Six: Brian

  Chapter Seven: Logan

  Chapter Eight: Room to Grow

  Chapter Nine: Martina

  Chapter Ten: Making Plans

  Chapter Eleven: Wesley Barnett

  Chapter Twelve: Chad

  Chapter Thirteen: Aunt Vickie and Harley

  Chapter Fourteen: The Shirt

  Chapter Fifteen: A New Life

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  As always, I’d like to thank my family for their never-ending patience for all my time at the computer; and especially my mother for her faith and encouragement, and for being my biggest fan.

  Being a night shift nurse, finding quiet time at home to write is easy…I wait until everyone’s in bed and write through the night…no problem…well, that is until it’s time to get up. So I must also thank my husband for all the mornings he spends alone. Although with the few mornings I’ve managed to drag myself out of bed, I’m sure he appreciates those lonely mornings much more than he lets on…!

  I’d also like to thank Marsha, a wonderful nurse that I work with for her encouragement and her willingness to read and correct my multitude of typos and grammatical errors. And yes, I’m buttering her up…I have more books for her to edit…!

  And last, but not least, my friends at work...you know who you are…just for your encouragement and for merely putting up with me!!!!

  PARKER’S ISLAND

  Preface

  They were already planning it, this year’s blow-out on Parker’s Island. It wasn’t even December and all thoughts were on June’s grad party. Every year it’s the same thing; loud music, alcohol, drugs, and unpredictable, unsafe teenage sex. Each year they trashed the island and the damage was worse than the year before and the stories even more unbelievable. Each party seemed to up the ante for the next years’ party planner. This year was no exception…

  Chapter One: Making Plans

  “This year we’re going to do it right! Our graduation bash will be the party of the year…no, the CENTURY!” Chad Davis almost shouted from the front of the classroom.

  Where’s a teacher when you need one? I thought from the back of the room. Mr. Harris was always late!!!

  I could see Logan’s hands clenching the table out of the corner of my eye as soon as Chad started talking about the party. I turned to look at him, but he immediately went back to reading his book.

  This is Logan’s first and last year at Jamison High. I felt sorry for him having to start over in a new school in his senior year. I had tried a few times to talk to him. He was always polite, but never said much. He never talked about himself. In fact, no one here knew anything about him. Somehow, we ended up in all but two of the same classes together and invariably we sit in very close proximity in all five of the classes that we share. Maybe that was simply because we both always gravitated toward the back of the classroom. He seemed to always find a seat next to mine, and at first I thought maybe he actually wanted to sit next to me to get to know me, but I’ve since realized he sits next to me because I’m as quiet as he is and I leave him alone.

  “Delaney, you’re coming to the party, right? Or are your parent’s going to lock you in your room?” Chad called back to me. I felt Logan’s eyes on me as if he was waiting for me to answer.

  “Um, I really hadn’t thought too much about it. It’s only December. There’s plenty of time to think about it,” I said, trying not to offend anyone.

  “What’s to think about? It’s tradition and it’s finally OUR turn!” Chad said, shaking his head and then turning back to his “cool” friends.

  I had no intention of going to that party. My parents would definitely not approve. I come from a very strict religious background…a preacher’s daughter. A lot of the students seem to think that being a preacher’s daughter makes me more likely to be a “bad” girl. That is definitely not my case. I’m afraid of my own shadow. I’ve never done anything even remotely wrong, wild, or out of character. I’m 17 years old and haven’t even been on a single date. I’ve been asked out a few times, but most guys my age just irritate me, so I’ve always made up some excuse to say no. After a while, they just finally stopped asking. However, there is one guy in this school I wouldn’t turn down if he’d ask me out. But since he barely even speaks to me, I guess I’m doomed to be alone. Logan is gorgeous, for lack of a better word. He’s beautiful in every way. I’ve always wondered if he was shy or just really unhappy here. Most of the girls here have tried to win him over, but like me, he’s turned down everyone who asked him out. “Well, at least we have that in common,” I said under my breath, which made him look up at me for a split second.

  Mr. Harris walked in then, cell phone still attached to his ear, as usual. He pointed to the board, covered the mouthpiece of his phone and mumbled, “Get started. Assignment’s on the board.” I looked over at Logan’s desk and saw that he’d already been working on the assignment and was probably just about done. “How can someone look that good and have brains too?” I thought to myself, while opening my calculus book to begin the assignment.

  Molly met me after school to offer me a ride home, which I gladly accepted. We talked about nothing in particular until she mentioned Logan. I’ve never told anyone how I felt about him, not even my best friend. I kept my opinions about him to myself and unless anyone noticed how I looked at him, I felt very safe with my secret.

  “I don’t know how you sit by Logan Barnett day in and day out without hyperventilating. Just once, I wish he’d sit by me,” she smiled at the thought.

  “I never really paid much attention to him,” I lied.

  “Are you blind? He’s perfect! Maybe you should ask him out. He always makes it a point to sit by you, so maybe he’s got a thing for you.”

  “You think so?” Actually believing what she said for a split second, until reality set in once again. “No, he’s not interested in me. Besides, if he turned down Haley Williams, I’m certainly out. I don’t care, anyway. I’m not interested in someone so…self-absorbed,” I lied again. I didn’t really believe that about him. I just thought he was looking for something deeper than most guys his age.

  “You should ask him out, Delaney. It’s worth a shot, you know. You are the prettiest girl in school, whether you believe it or not.”

  “You know me better than that!” I said, a little stronger than I should have. I couldn’t imagine asking anyone, especially Logan, out on a date. I changed my tone, “Who cares anyway? I don’t think he likes anyone!”

  Molly looked at me kind of funny and said, “Do you know anything about him? Where did he come from, anyway?”

  “He doesn’t talk to anyone, so who knows. Can we talk about something else now, please?”

  “Like what? Oh, I know, did you hear that Chad was planning our Graduation party? It’s going to be GREAT!” Molly smiled and clapped her hands, taking them off the steering wheel.

  “Yeah, I heard, and keep your hands on the wheel.”

  “Please don’t tell me you’re not going to go...YOU HAVE TO GO!” Molly whines as reality started to set in.

  “You know I can’t go. My parents would never allow it. Besides, it’s not really my kind of thing.”

  “Delaney Marie Miller, just what is your kind of thing?” she asked me sarcastically.

  I wanted t
o scream ‘Logan,’ but as usual, I kept silent regarding my unrequited love and shrugged my shoulders.

  “Someday you’ll have to learn to let go and have some fun. We’ve been friends since Kindergarten and I have never once known you to do anything but what you’re told to do. Don’t you ever just want to let your hair down and have some fun?”

  She knew the answer without my having to answer it. “I do have fun.”

  “No you don’t. You don’t know how! My God, Delaney, you’re almost 18 years old. You’ve never dated anyone, you don’t drive or even want to get your license, the only books you read are textbooks, you always have your homework done and turned in on time, and you have never once done anything that your parents wouldn’t approve of. Hell, you’ve never even kissed anyone. Please, just once, do something without over-thinking it. Throw caution to the wind. You’ll be 18 by then, an adult. Your parents can’t run your life forever.”

  Molly knew she was losing the battle before it even began. It wasn’t the only time we’d had this conversation. I stared out the window and didn’t say a word. She sighed and said, “Okay, have it your way. But I’m going to that party and I’m going to have the time of my life, with or without you.”

  “Molly, you know I can’t go, and I really wish you wouldn’t either. You know there’s going to be drugs and alcohol and heaven only knows what else there,” I turned and pleaded with her with my eyes as she pulled into my driveway.

  “I guess we’ll both just have to agree to disagree. You know I’m not going to do anything stupid,” she said, unlocking the doors so I could get out.

  “Thanks for the ride,” I said and smiled at her, knowing we were both at an impasse, and neither side was going to give in.

  “See you in the morning?” she asked, trying to make amends.

  “Yes. Still best buddies forever?” I asked, hoping it would make her smile. We’ve been saying that to each other since first grade, using it any time either of us was angry with the other.

  “You know we are. I’ll pick you up in the morning, if you want?” she said.

  “I think I’ll walk. The cool air is nice in the morning, but thanks anyway.”

  “Okay, call if you change your mind,” she said and smiled sadly as she drove away, knowing that there was no way I was going to that party with her.

  Weeks rolled by. Christmas vacation was fine, but very long. Actually, I was really looking forward to going back to school. I hadn’t seen Logan in two weeks and it reminded me that soon, school would be out forever and then I’d never see him. I didn’t know where he lived, or anything about him and I doubted he’d tell me. I wanted to ask him where he was going to college, but didn’t know how to broach the subject.

  “You’re such a coward!” I said to myself on the morning of the first day back. “Just ask him. He’s not going to bite your head off!” I was trying to give myself a pep talk on the way to school, but I didn’t feel very confident once I walked into first period and saw those beautiful eyes.

  “Hi,” was all I could manage as I sat down next to him.

  “Hi. How was your holiday?” he asked.

  Was I imagining this, or did he actually ask me a question? “Oh, um it was fine,” I said, stuttering my way through one small sentence. “How w…was yours?”

  “It was…quiet,” he said, looking like he wanted to say more, but then stopped and looked down at the desk.

  Here’s your chance, I thought…“Um, I was won….”

  Just then Chad walked over and sat down next to me.

  “Hey Laney, how was your Christmas? Get anything good?” I hated it when he called me Laney, he seemed to think that it was endearing, but I found it very annoying. My name was Delaney and if I had the guts, I’d correct him, but once again the coward in me reared its ugly head.

  “It was fine, thanks,” I said, frustrated. I was finally in an actual conversation with Logan and Chad had to ruin it. Go figure!

  “So, I was wondering…” Chad began, “are you planning on going to our graduation party? I know you don’t actually date, but maybe we could take the ferry over together and then see what happens?” The charming smile that followed just about made me nauseous. I didn’t understand the fascination most girls had with him, and I certainly didn’t find him the least bit appealing. Actually, I found him to be rather unsettling. There was something about him that I just couldn’t put my finger on, but I was almost frightened of him.

  “Oh, um, thanks, but I’m probably not going to go.” I knew I wasn’t going, but I really didn’t feel like arguing about why.

  “Your loss,” he said, covering up the sting of rejection, something he most certainly wasn’t used to. Every other girl would give their right arm to go out with him, but not me. There was no kindness in Chad’s eyes, only a harshness that made me almost fearful, not like Logan’s eyes. His eyes were always soft, even when the rest of his face was intense. His eyes were clear and thoughtful.

  Chad strutted off and I gladly turned back to finish talking to Logan, but realized it was too late. He was already engrossed in his text book, a sure sign our conversation was over. I sighed and pulled my book out of my backpack, content to at least be sitting next to him again after two very long weeks.

  I knew it was crazy to feel so much for a guy I knew absolutely nothing about. He was a huge mystery, and maybe that was part of the fascination. I was certainly not the only one fascinated with him. He had almost every head turned in his direction for the first few months of school; that was until he had turned each one of them down, very politely, one after the other. So now, instead of fawning all over him, they talked about him like he was this horrible person. I just didn’t see it. I have never heard an unkind word from those beautiful lips, even when he heard some of the nasty comments about himself. He simply shrugged it off as if it didn’t matter to him in the least.

  Some of the more popular girls were talking about him in the bathroom when they didn’t know I was there. Two of the three were unusually cruel and it only took me a few minutes to figure out why they hated him. Like Chad, they were also not used to being rejected. So, instead of accepting his “no thank you” after they asked him out, they turned on him, making snide comments that he wouldn’t know what to do with them anyway.

  Haley Williams was the worst. No one had ever turned her down before, and she had made it a point to spread the nastiest of rumors about him. On this particular day, Haley was talking to Chelsea Winters and Candace Simmons and then they started talking about me.

  “So, I guess ‘Miss Goody Two Shoes’ isn’t going to the party. No big surprise there,” Haley said sarcastically while brushing out her long mane of blonde hair.

  “Of course Delaney’s not going. Her parents would never approve,” Chelsea sneered.

  “Hayley, I wonder if it’s Delaney you don’t like, or could it have something to do with the way that Logan looks at her?” Candace asked.

  How does he look at me? I thought to myself, sitting as quiet as a mouse in the last stall, holding my feet up off the floor and feeling completely ridiculous.

  “I don’t really give a damn how Logan looks at anyone. He means nothing to me,” Haley glared at Chelsea.

  “Glad to hear it,” Candace grinned, obviously irritated with her friend for some reason.

  “Why would I care about Logan? I’m going to the party with Chad. He just asked me today at lunch,” Hayley grinned, thrilled that they may be getting back together again.

  “So, Delaney turns him down this morning and then he goes running back to you?” Candace said.

  “What do you mean Delaney turned him down?” she snarled.

  “Oh, yeah, Chad asked her to go with him to the party this morning in first period. Guess you’re second choice,” Candace said, starting to sound a little guilty now.

  “God Candace, what’s with you?” Chelsea chimed in, surprised that their long-time friend could be so mean. “This isn’t like you.”

&nb
sp; “Sorry,” Candace said, looking contrite.

  “Did Chad really ask Delaney to our graduation party this morning?” Hayley asked, looking crushed.

  “Um…no, not really. I’m sorry,” she lied. “I was just pissed at you for telling Jeff that I didn’t like him,” Candace said while looking down, trying to hide the truth in her eyes.

  “Well, you don’t like him.”

  “He’s a nice guy, and you didn’t need to be so mean. Come on, let’s get back to class,” Candace said, wishing she’d never said anything at all about Chad, Delaney or Logan.

  I stepped out of the bathroom stall feeling confused. I washed my hands and wondered what Candace meant about the way Logan looks at me. Did he even look at me? I was certain they were wrong. I dried my hands and headed to my next class.

  I walked into fifth period and glanced at Logan. He was staring out the window. Suddenly I was even more self-conscious around him. I wondered what Candace meant about the way he looks at me. I sat down next to him and said, “Hi.”

  “Hi. Are you ready for the chemistry test next period?” he asked.

  “Um, yes…I think so. I studied for it, but I’m sure I’m not as prepared as you are.”

  “I’m sure you’ll do very well,” he grinned.

  “Easy for you to say; you never have to study for anything.” It was true. I didn’t think he ever studied. He always got perfect scores on all of his tests and assignments. It was somewhat aggravating to always sit by the smartest guy in the school, but all I had to do was to look into those beautiful eyes and I completely forgot about my irritation.

  “I study!” he said, looking a bit annoyed with me.

  “I didn’t mean anything…I just…”

  “I know. I just think you’re selling yourself short. You’re very intelligent, Delaney. Don’t think you’re not.”

  “Thanks. So, um…are you going to college somewhere, I mean I’m sure you’re going to college, but which one? I’m sure you have your pick of any university that you want.”