“Plane crash,” I answer.
“Okay. So your parents were on a plane together?” he asks.
“Um...”
You know, one thing I always liked about myself was the fact that I always tell the truth. Or I try to. I hate lying. I’m terrible at it. But right now, I need to be a good liar. I need to come up with a story that is believable. But I can’t.
My phone starts ringing, which pretty much gives me the perfect excuse to avoid. I pull out my phone and see the name Dad with his face flash across my phone screen.
“I should take this,” I tell Estaine.
But he’s looking at my screen. And he’s probably thinking about how my dad definitely isn’t dead. And probably that I look a lot like my dad, because I do.
So, I do what any normal person would do.
I run.
9pm.
The rest is history.
“Hey, Dad,” I answer, sounding very out of breath. But it’s not from the running I just did. Nope. It’s from the fact that I now have to think of one epic lie to get myself out of the mess that I just got myself into. I can’t exactly tell Uncle Matty and Jake. If I did, I’m pretty sure if I did, I’d have a one way ticket straight out of Massachusetts.
“Hey, pumpkin,” Dad says. “You’re on speaker with me and Nora.”
“Hey, Nora,” I say, then add, “Hi, little brother or sister.” I look at the date on my phone. “Wait, wasn’t your appointment today? To find out the gender.”
Because, seriously. I see all these cute baby clothes and I need to know if it’s a boy or a girl. I am going to spoil my little brother or sister.
“It was,” Nora answers. “But the baby refused to change positions. So we still don’t know if we’re having a he or she.”
“Darn,” I say. “Sounds like the baby is going to be stubborn.”
“Like his older sister,” Dad says.
“We don’t know the baby is a him,” Nora says. “You could be calling our daughter a him, right now.”
I just laugh.
Dad and Nora have had this argument since she first found out she was pregnant. Nora thinks it’s a girl, Dad thinks it’s a boy. Me, I have no idea. I just know that I’m excited for January so I can meet the baby. I hope all of this terrorist nonsense is behind us so I actually can be there for the baby’s birth. I would never want to do anything to put my sibling in jeopardy.
“They also said they were a couple of days off on my due date,” Nora says. “Looks like she will be making her arrival on January first. Hopefully. I really hope I don’t go over my due date.”
“Aw, she’s gonna be a New Year’s baby,” I say.
Dad groans. “Now you’ve got Phoenix calling the baby a girl.”
“Have you guys picked out any names yet?” I ask.
“Not yet,” Nora answers. “Your father and I can’t seem to agree on any names.”
“You have to name the baby something unique,” I say. “There is a boy at my school named Estaine. How cool is that? And I love my name.”
“Estaine. I like it,” Nora says.
“Oh, so you’re finally agreeing it’s a boy,” Dad says. “And I’m not naming my boy Estaine. That just makes him sound like a prissy rich kid.”
“Actually, Estaine at my school is so not prissy,” I say. “Though, he’s definitely rich. His name is, seriously, Estaine Rinaldi.”
“Uh,” Nora says.
“But he’s my friend. He’s kind of awesome,” I say.
“Just friends, though. Right?” Dad asks.
“It’s okay if he’s more than a friend,” Nora says. “You’re sixteen now. I was sixteen when I had my first serious boyfriend. I dated a guy from my junior year of high school up until my junior year of college.”
“Why’d you break up?” I ask.
“I got the chance to study abroad. In Rome,” she says. “I thought about turning it down, but I realized I wanted to go to Rome more than I wanted to be with the guy. I broke things off and knew if we were meant to be, someday we’d get back together. A year later, when I came back, he was engaged to another girl. And then I met your father. The rest is history.”
Nora is only twenty-five and my father is thirty-seven, but I think they’re perfect for each other. My dad was pretty unhappy before he met Nora. I mean, he always put on a brave face for me, but when he met her, his life changed. And now he’s starting a family with Nora, and it’s perfect. The best part is I get to be in their family, too. I love Nora and I know she feels the same about me.
“That’s so romantic,” I tell Nora, letting out a girly sigh. “It would be nice to have a boyfriend in high school. Like, somebody to go to homecoming and prom with. Speaking of, I met this guy.”
“Tell me more,” she says.
“How did you already meet a guy? You’ve been there four days. What kind of school did we send you too?”
I laugh. “His name is Brooks. He doesn’t actually go to East Raven. He goes to West Raven. Which is our rival school. So, like, I’ve been hiding from my friends the fact that I’m talking to him. But. Oh. My. Gosh. He is so hot. Like... his face belongs on a billboard hot.”
I would say his body belongs on one, too, but I’m pretty sure that would freak my dad out.
“Send me a picture,” Nora says.
“Okay,” I say, putting my phone on speaker. I send her the selfie he took the night I met him.
A few seconds later, I hear her phone go off.
“Wow. He’s cute,” Nora says.
“Let me see,” my dad says, then grunts. “He looks too old for you.”
“He’s a junior. Which means he’s my age,” I say. “And I’m sure he comes from a respectable family.”
“Uh huh,” Dad says, not convinced. “I need his first and last name. I’m going to do a background check on him and his family.”
“Dad...” I groan.
“What? I’ve got to make sure they’re not Democrats,” he says.
I laugh. “Dad, you sent me to school in Massachusetts. I’m pretty sure that everybody here is Democrat.”
Dad is silent for a moment, probably reconsidering his decision. A few days ago, I might have used this to my advantage, and convinced him send me to school somewhere in a warmer climate, but now that I’ve started making friends, I don’t want to leave.
“It doesn’t matter if they’re democrat or republican,” Nora says. “Your father and I will be nice to the boy either way. Promise.”
“Thanks,” I say, imagining that Nora is giving my dad a stern look. She’s a hopeless romantic and has been waiting a long time for me to finally be interested in a guy. Correction—a real life guy. I’ve had lots of TV or movie crushes on fictional characters, but never on a guy in real life.
“I’m proud for you, Phoenix,” Nora says.
“Thanks,” I say again. “So, I’d better get off here. Curfew is at ten, so I need to get back to my dorm.”
“Goodnight,” Dad says. “We love you.”
“Love you guys, too.”
When I hang up the phone, I have one simple text from Estaine.
ESTAINE: We need to talk.
No.
No, we don’t.
I ignore the text and finish walking to my dorm.
Wednesday, August 23
Easier said…
For breakfast the next morning, I go super early, grab food and eat it in my dorm room. There is absolutely no way that I can face Estaine after last night. He most likely thinks that I’m a pathological liar. I have no idea what I’m going to say to him. Unfortunately, lunch is a completely different story, and the only open spot at the table when I get there, is the one right beside him.
Seriously?
I look at the table for a second or two, debating my options.
Should I run away?
But Teagan spots me and waves me over. I take a deep breath and just suck it up. I’m going to sit there.
And I look at everybody a
t the table besides him.
I realize that I am being completely immature and irrational, but I don’t know what else to do. Avoid. Ignore. And hope that eventually he will just forget that he ever saw what he did.
Or, I can tell him the truth.
No. I shouldn’t. If I did, it could put him in danger. That’s the last thing I want.
My phone vibrates in my pocket. When I pull it out, I’m extra careful, just in case it’s a text from my mom or dad. It’s not.
UNCLE MATTY: I need you to come to the house right away. The school is already aware. It’s urgent.
My heart pounds hard against my chest as pure fear rushes through my veins with each throb. My face is warm and I am freaking out. What if the terrorists found me? What if they’re on campus?
No. If they were on campus, Uncle Matty and Jake would’ve come to me. But whatever it is, it’s not good.
I hope Dad, Nora, and the baby are okay.
I quickly stand up from the table. “I... uh... gotta go. Family emergency.”
A lame excuse, but it’s the only thing that I can come up with at that exact moment. I leave my untouched food on the table and run out of the dining hall.
I debate running straight to Uncle Matty’s house, but it’s over a mile away. Instead, I run towards the girl’s dorm and get my car, thankful that I have my keys in my pocket.
Before we came, my car was delivered. Uncle Matty and Jake seemed to think it would be for the best if I had a get-away option in case things went south. I have quite a few options, but my car is the best bet. They asked me to bring my keys with me every single day. I have every day, but I almost didn’t today. I feel safe. But, now I see that I should always keep my keys with me. Always. Because no matter how safe I feel, I’m not. Never.
Will I ever be safe again?
I don’t linger on the thought too much, as I throw open my car door and put the keys in the ignition. I barely shut the door before I am taking off, suddenly glad I went for a sports car instead of the Range Rover I initially wanted. I take off fast, shifting through the gears. I’m grateful for the many hours that Charlie spent teaching me how to drive a stick shift. All the hours I sat in horrible LA traffic, all the times I killed the engine in the stop and go traffic... has paid off. I will have to thank him later.
A minute later, I am at their house in the middle of the woods and I am running inside. As soon as I get in there, I nearly collapse on the floor.
“Is it Dad? Or Nora?” I ask. “The baby?”
“Your family is safe,” Jake answers.
With his statement, I relax. But only a little. “What about me? Am I safe?”
“You’re never fully safe,” Uncle Matty says. “But for now, you’re as safe as you can be.”
With his admission, I allow myself to collapse onto the couch.
“Thank God.”
“Something happened,” Jake says.
His words cause me to stiffen.
Something happened.
“What?” I ask.
“First of all, you should know that it’s not your fault,” Jake says, taking a seat beside me. Uncle Matty takes a seat by Jake.
I don’t like that he’s saying these words.
Shortly after I was kidnapped, awhile before coming to East Raven Academy, a girl I went to school with was murdered by the same group who kidnapped me. The girl wasn’t my friend, but she was the closest thing I had in Malibu. She was shy and nerdy, so anytime we had to partner up in class, I would work with her. I guess they assumed that she was my friend because she had come to my house to work on an assignment. They murdered her. I felt like it was my fault. That happened at the end of the school year last year, and that was why they decided it was in my best interest to go into hiding.
“Who?” I ask.
“Nobody you know,” Uncle Matty answers.
“What happened?”
“When we brought you to East Raven Academy, we left a few false trails. One of the trails led to a high school in East Texas,” Jake says. “Earlier today, those terrorists broke into the office of that school. They shot three people. The principal and two students. They ransacked the office, but they found nothing. They got away. The police are looking for them... but...”
They’re professionals. Highly trained. If trained CIA agents can’t find them, obviously a bunch of local cops can’t.
“Are they all dead?” I ask, swallowing the lump in my throat.
“No. The principal and one student is,” Jake answers. “But the other student is alive.”
“Is the alive one going to be okay?” I ask, hope bubbling up. I hate that the other two are dead, but maybe, just maybe, the third victim will survive.
“She’s in critical condition, so we don’t know yet,” Uncle Matty says.
I sit back against the couch, trying not to cry. I look at Uncle Matty and Jake through blurry, tear filled eyes.
“Tell me about them,” I say. “The principal, was he married? Does he have kids? How old were the students?”
Because I need to know. I want to hear that the principal was old. That he lived alone and left nobody behind. Not that it makes his death any less, but I would like to know that he doesn’t have a family left behind to mourn him.
“The principal was thirty seven. He was married with two kids, and a third on the way,” Jake tells me. “The student who died was fifteen. He was a straight A student and an only child. And the student fighting for her life is sixteen. She was dating the other boy, and they were in the principal’s office because they were caught kissing in the hallway. She has one older brother and two younger sisters.”
I notice he doesn’t tell me their names, and for that I am grateful. Somehow, hearing their names makes it feel more real. I feel guilty enough already. If it wasn’t for me, they would all be okay. The day would’ve been normal. The two kids might have gotten after-school detention, but they’d be healthy and alive, and I want that for them.
“What am I supposed to tell my friends?” I wipe at my face. “I just told them I had a family emergency and ran out of there as fast as I could.”
“Why’d you do that?” Uncle Matty asks, obviously annoyed.
“Because I was worried that something bad had happened to my family,” I say. “It was the only thing I could come up with on short notice.”
“Fine. Okay,” he says, letting out a breath.
“Tell them your favorite cousin, Jake, was in a car accident,” Jake says. “I’m fine, of course. Just a few cuts and bruises.”
“Okay,” I say, nodding. “I can do that.”
“Take some time and get yourself back together,” Jake says. “You can skip the rest of the day if you need to.”
I nod. “I know. But I want to get back and see if I made the soccer team.” I cringe. “Those people died because of me and I’m worried about making the stupid soccer team. What’s wrong with me?”
“It’s not your fault,” Jake says. “And you’re doing exactly what you’re supposed to do. You’re sixteen and your life was turned upside down. You’re starting over and doing the best you can. Don’t be so hard on yourself.”
Easier said...
5pm.
My little secret.
I do skip my classes for the rest of the day, but show up for soccer. I find out that I made the A soccer team, which is awesome. I’m super excited to be doing something that will help me get my mind off... everything.
After I’m all showered after practice, I get a text from Brooks, which makes me smile. We haven’t talked a lot today. I’ve just been so stressed that I haven’t felt like talking to anybody.
BROOKS: Hi.
Why does this one word text make me smile so big? I don’t know. I like him way more than I should.
ME: Hi. So guess what?
BROOKS: You’re transferring to West Raven???
ME: No. But I did make the soccer team. The A team.
BROOKS: Awesome. I will be at your firs
t game.
ME: REALLY?? :)
BROOKS: Yep. Because your first game is against West Raven. You’ll be at my school. (Where you ACTUALLY belong).
I laugh, loving that Brooks wishes I was at his school. Because I wish the same thing about him. If I’d met him before I met all my friends, I would’ve requested a change of schools before I ever even arrived.
ME: That’s awesome. Do you think we will be able to talk?
BROOKS: Absolutely. It’s impossible to see you and not want to talk to you. Which is why I risked getting caught to meet you. It was worth it.
I let out a girly sigh as I read the text.
ME: I’m glad you did.
BROOKS: I’m beginning to think you like me.
ME: Maybe.
BROOKS: Maybe, huh? Well... I kind of like you.
I let out a girly squeal and I’m suddenly glad that Teagan is still in the shower, because, wow. How embarrassing.
My phone vibrates again.
ESTAINE: How long are you going to avoid me?
A long time.
Seriously.
I ignore him and reply to Brooks.
ME: I might kind of like you too. A little bit.
Or a lot.
Definitely a lot.
BROOKS: Will you hang out with me Saturday? I want to spend the day with you.
Ever After (East Raven Academy Book 1) Page 8