Up-close, his eyes were chocolate brown and his skin was lightly tanned. He tucked his ear-length hair behind his ears, looking at Autumn inquiringly.
“Yes. I am,” Autumn began and Eric chuckled slightly.
“What?” Autumn asked confused.
“Sorry,” Eric said, taking a seat at the desk beside hers. “I thought letter writing was extinct, much like the dinosaurs.”
Autumn smirked and introduced herself.
“A pleasure to meet you Autumn. I’m Eric King,” he said.
“So I’ve heard.”
“Ah. My reputation precedes me does it?” he grinned. “It’s good to hear that years later I am still the talk of the town.”
“Or just the school,” Autumn teased.
Eric winked at her. “Obviously, you haven’t been around town yet.”
Autumn was quiet, thinking of what to say next when Eric spoke up.
“For the record, I have heard about you too Ms. Kingston.”
Autumn arched an eyebrow.
“Oh really?”
“Really,” he said, leaning towards her. “The saying is ‘if these walls could talk’ and around here, they never shut up.”
“Now I am curious,” Autumn admitted, running a hand through her dark hair anxiously.
“Let’s see. According to my intel, you moved here to tutor Rick Jacobs, your childhood best friend. The general guy consensus is you get nine stars out of ten in the hotness department, though personally, I would give you a shining eleven.”
Autumn was stunned. It took her a minute to regroup. How did he know so much about her?
“Ok? So are you a stalker or did you shakedown Rick at some point?”
“I have connections,” Eric said, smirking.
“Connections?”
“A good reporter never reveals his sources sweet pea,” he smiled and turned away just as Mrs. Reid entered the room.
She greeted the class, but Autumn wasn’t done yet. She poked Eric’s arm.
He looked back at her appraisingly. “Yes?”
“Seriously. How did you find all that out?”
Eric shrugged, beaming. “All in due time sweetheart.”
He put a finger to his lips. “Now hush. Class is starting.”
5
The bell rang indicating the end of English. Autumn grabbed her backpack swiftly as Eric walked over to her.
She gave him a disapprovingly look. “Let me guess. You know my blood type too?”
Eric leaned across her desk, looking mock hurt. “Hey! It’s high school. There is a grapevine.”
“A very long, nosy one,” Autumn grumbled as she began walking out the door.
It was unnerving knowing so little about someone who already knew so much about you.
“Hey wait!” Eric called after her just as Rick came strolling down the hall.
He said nothing, but he didn’t look pleased. Autumn knew what he was thinking. That his best friend was talking to Eric King, the demon worshiper.
For some reason, the thought made her want to laugh.
“I feel rather misunderstood,” Eric said. “I was going for charming. Not creepy guy who watches you through your bedroom window. So can we start again?”
Autumn looked at him. He was rather charismatic and mysterious.
She smiled. “Sure. We can do that.”
“Perfect. Why don’t we start with this?” he handed her a black envelope.
“What is it?” she asked.
“An invite to my party Friday,” he said. “Invites to my manor are exclusive,” he grinned.
“So this invite makes me special?” Autumn said, failing to hide the hope in her voice.
“Or cursed, depending on who you talk to,” Eric joked. “Now,” he reached out touching her arm gently. “Tell me you will come.”
Autumn glanced over at Rick. Though he appeared to be giving her space to talk to Eric, he was still watching them like a hawk.
“I will, if you can swing an invite for my friends.”
Eric looked hesitant. “How many friends?”
“Three,” Autumn said.
Eric looked over at Rick, who was giving him the evil eye, then he turned back to Autumn.
“Sure. They can come, but based on the way Rick is looking at me, I don’t think he’ll show,” Eric said, as he reached inside his bag and handed her three more envelopes.
“So this seals the deal? You are coming?” he asked, looking excited by the prospect.
“Yes. I will be there,” she smiled.
“I look forward to it,” he said. “See you tomorrow.” He winked at her and headed down the hall. As he walked past Rick, he nodded cordially.
“Rick.”
“Eric,” Rick said sharply.
When Eric was gone, Autumn went over to Rick. “Hey there.”
“What the hell was that?” Rick asked, his eyes narrowed.
“What was what?”
“Don’t play dumb Aut! You and The Demon King. You guys talking with him touching your arm! That was truly a sight!”
Autumn rolled her eyes and headed to her locker. “You act like you caught us making the beast with two backs Rick!”
“The what?”
“Having sex!” she snapped.
“Ugh,” Rick grimaced. “Just stop. That thought is enough to make me hurl.”
Autumn sighed. She didn’t want to fight.
“Rick. He isn’t a bad guy. A little odd? Maybe. Arrogant? Definitely.”
“Well that’s a winning combination,” Rick muttered as he followed her.
“But he seems quite nice. He even invited us all to his party.”
She held up the black envelopes.
Rick gave her a withering look. “Great. And I suppose I have to go because you are.”
“You don’t have to …” she began, but he raised a hand to object.
“Yes I do. I have to protect you from him Aut. When you find out he makes voodoo dolls out of human hair, I need to be there.”
Autumn shot him a daunting look. “Rick, just give him a chance. You aren’t like everyone else. You don’t judge people by the rumors that swirl around about them do you?”
Rick’s shoulders slumped. “No.”
“Perfect. I will invite Eric to sit with us at lunch tomorrow so we can all get to know him better.”
She handed Rick the invitation and smiled. “For you.”
Rick stared at the black envelope. “How festive,” he muttered sardonically.
“Autumn, just face it! You are going to be eating my dust!” Rick bellowed.
“Funny that Rick. Aren’t you dining on my dust as we speak?” Autumn called back to him.
Rick and Autumn were racing home, and Autumn was currently in the lead. She swerved around a fallen branch in the road and began pedaling as hard as she could. For a moment, she flashed back to her childhood, when racing was the epitome of summer fun. Her sister never cared much for it, but Autumn loved it.
“Girls don’t sweat Autumn.” Audrina had told her. “It isn’t attractive.”
Autumn didn’t care. She wanted to be included in everything Rick did. In her mind, anything Rick could do, she could do too.
Riding along, her movements flowed seamlessly, and she sped across the pavement, with ease and grace. She looked behind her.
Rick was gaining on her.
She welcomed the challenge, pedaling just that much harder, pushing her body, willing it to be faster. As she came up a small incline, she spotted a figure in the distance. Something about him caught her eye, though she wasn’t sure what.
As she got closer, she saw he was sitting in the grass, under a large oak tree. He was an older man, probably in his mid-thirties, and he wore a tattered hat,
a ripped suede jacket and grass stained jeans.
Autumn knew right away. He was homeless.
She didn’t know why, but she felt an overwhelming urge, to help this man. It was like gravity was tugging at her to do something, so she pulled over near the park.
“Hey! Why are you stopping? The race isn’t over until we get home!” Rick yelled.
Autumn ignored him and began slowing down.
Rick pulled over behind her, looking confused.
“What’s wrong? Is it the bike?”
“No,” she said quietly. “Look.” And she tilted her head discreetly in the man’s general direction.
Rick studied the man for a moment then turned back to Autumn.
“Yeah I know. That’s my future if I don’t graduate. I’ve heard this speech from mom before.”
“No!” Autumn said. “We should give him some money.”
Rick didn’t argue. Instead, he shrugged his shoulders. “Okay. Let’s go.”
Autumn jumped off her bike and began walking it towards the man. Rick followed behind her on his blades.
The man, who was playing with the blades of grass unsuspectingly, looked up at them as they approached. As they got closer, Autumn noticed he had attractive features underneath all the grim. He had brown hair and dark eyes, and beyond the initial stress and dirt on his face, she could see hints of youth and exuberance.
“Hey there,” Autumn said, approaching the stranger cautiously.
The man looked at them, confusion in his eyes. “Well, hello there.”
“Are you drunk sir?” Rick asked capriciously. Autumn shot him a glare and elbowed him in the ribs.
“OW!” Rick yelped.
“Me drunk? Nope, sorry,” the man replied in a raspy voice. Then he grinned.
“Sorry. It’s just been a long time since someone referred to me as sir.”
“Oh,” Rick said, looking down at his rollerblades. “I can call you dude if you want.”
The man chortled. “That would be more appropriate I guess.”
The man straightened up a little and stretched his legs out.
“So what brings you two kids over here?”
“We wanted to give you something,” Autumn said, suddenly feeling a little sheepish.
The man eyed up her bike, looking excited.
“Is it the bike?”
“It most certainly is not!” Rick replied sharply.
“Oh,” The man said, frowning.
“Actually,” Autumn said, looking at Rick, annoyed. “We have some money for you.” And she reached into her backpack, grabbing her wallet. She opened it, pulling out two crisp ten-dollar bills.
Rick, who got a rather large allowance, gave him a twenty.
They handed the man the money, but he didn’t reach out to take it. Instead, he hesitated, looking at them suspiciously.
“I don’t know if I can accept your money,” he said warily.
“Why?” Autumn asked confused. “We want you to have it.”
“Sorry,” he said, looking at them guardedly. “Most kids who give me money hand me change, maybe a five if I’m lucky. Which makes me wonder,” he paused, putting a hand to his scruffy chin. “What kind of jobs do you two have?”
“We don’t have jobs,” Autumn admitted.
“I see. You aren’t bullies are you?” he asked, eyes narrowed. “You know. Shaking down people for their money?”
“Nope,” Rick smirked.
“Petty thieves?”
“Nope.”
“Just borrowing money from mom’s purse every week?”
“Just take the money please!” Autumn insisted holding it out to him again.
“Yeah dude,” Rick chimed in. “We want you to.”
The man looked to be pondering this. Eventually, he sighed and reached out his hand.
“Alright. I’ll take it.”
He grabbed the money hesitantly and slid it into his jacket pocket.
“Thanks kids. I appreciate it. Most people aren’t as generous as you two are,” he said. “I’m Stuart by the way.”
Autumn and Rick introduced themselves, and Stuart smiled.
“Nice to meet you both,” he said jovially. “You two a couple?”
“No,” Autumn said. “Best friends.”
Stuart nodded. “I see. Maybe one day,” he grinned at them. “Thanks again for the cash. I think I’m going to go get myself some pie from the diner up the road. Lemon Meringue. My favorite.”
Looking quite excited about the pie, Stuart stood up and dusted himself off.
“You kids have a good day,” he said. Then he tipped his hat to them and headed on his way.
Autumn and Rick made it home just in time.
The sky had suddenly become overcast, and rain had started pouring just as they got into the house.
Autumn could hear the claps of thunder and the torrential rain pounding on the windows as they stepped into the kitchen.
“Damn it,” Rick said, as he looked at his cell.
“What’s wrong?” Autumn asked, as she set her bag down on the floor.
“Mom just texted me. She’s going to be late tonight.”
“Is something wrong?” Autumn asked, alarmed. Aunt Katherine was hardly ever late coming home.
“No. Mom is fine. She is just overloaded with paperwork. I’m going to starve!” Rick said, eyes wide. He ran to the fridge and opened it, looking inside frantically.
“We need to cook Autumn! I don’t cook! I just eat!” he cried.
“Why don’t we go out for dinner?” Autumn suggested. “We can go to that diner you and Nathaniel took me to this summer.”
Rick’s panic swiftly disappeared and was replaced by joy.
“Good idea Autumn! Now we don’t have to cook anything! You are a freaking genius!”
He reached out and hugged Autumn tightly with both arms.
“Oh, don’t get too excited,” Autumn said grimly.
Rick pulled away slowly. “Why’s that?”
“Before we go, I believe you have some homework to attend to?” she said, grinning.
Rick’s happiness dissolved almost instantly. “Oh yeah. I forgot.”
“Come on. I’ll help you,” Autumn said, as she led a begrudging Rick to the kitchen table.
6
The rest of the school week flew by and before Autumn knew it, Friday night had arrived. She was in her room, getting dressed for Eric’s party while talking on the phone with Kristin.
“Wear your low-cut black dress with the jewels along the straps,” Kristin said, sounding remotely envious. “Though your cleavage might give the poor guy an aneurysm.”
Autumn giggled. “You are hilarious.”
Kristin had an amazing sense of humor. It was what Autumn liked most about her. Suddenly, she was overwhelmed by sorrow.
“I miss you Kris.”
“I miss you too Auttie,” she said. “Things haven’t been the same without you here. I am pretty sure even Nikki misses seeing you roam the halls.”
“I doubt that,” Autumn said, crashing onto her bed. “So how have things been with the ice queen?”
“She is too busy planning what to wear to prom to harass me,” Kristin replied, sounding bored.
Autumn sprawled out, feeling tears forming in her eyes. “I told you Kristin. Anytime you want to come up Katherine and James offered to pay your way. You can stay here and meet the infamous Rick.”
“I will definitely take you up on that offer, but I swear, with all my advanced classes and extra credit courses, I will be lucky to sleep let alone travel,” she said. “But when school is done, I am more than willing to come up there. I mean, look at you! You’re the new girl and you already have an invite to some hot guy’s party.”
Autumn’
s cheeks flushed. “Eric is my type, that is for sure.”
“Let me guess: tall, brooding and undeniably charming?” Kristin teased.
“He looks broody at first but as it turns out, he is actually quite the joker,” Autumn admitted.
“A prankster is he?” Kristin pressed. “Or is he just really funny?”
Autumn turned onto her stomach. “Let’s put it this way. When it comes to the battle of wits, he is armed to the teeth.”
When Autumn was finished chatting, she showered and put on the black dress Kristin had recommended. She brushed her long, dark hair and pulled it into a sleek ponytail. Then she adorned her vibrant green eyes with plum eyeliner and added the finishing touches: jet black mascara and pink lip gloss.
She was studying herself in the mirror when she heard a knock at her door.
It was Rick, so Autumn directed him to come in. When he did, she couldn’t believe her eyes.
He was actually dressed up. He looked rather dapper in a white dress shirt with the cuffs rolled up and khakis. Even his curls looked less wild as he appeared to have tamed them with hair gel. Rick stared back at Autumn, looking just as stunned as she did.
“Wow,” he murmured and Autumn bowed dramatically.
“Really? I think the cleavage is a little much.”
Rick shook his head. “Take it from a guy. It isn’t.”
“Typical male,” Autumn rolled her eyes. “What did you need? Are we running late?”
“No. I just need help with this,” he held up a skinny black tie. “Usually, mom or dad helps me, but since they are out tonight I thought you could.”
“No problem,” she said, walking over to him. She slipped the tie around his neck and began knotting it.
“Have you given any thought to who you might want to take to the dance?”
“Nope,” Rick said, his blue eyes meeting her green ones. “You look amazing by the way.”
She beamed. “Thanks. You don’t look too shabby yourself there Ricky.”
After she slipped the tie through the knot and tightened it, she stepped back admiring her handwork.
“As perfect as a sailor’s knot if I do say so myself.”
Rick looked down, loosening the tie a smidgen. “Thanks Aut,” he said, holding out his arm to her.
“Are you ready?”
A Night without Stars Page 8