It reached forward and tried to wrap part of its slimy self around me. No, you don’t. The only place you are going is a water bottle for the rest of your existence. It pushed harder as it tried to climb into me and a plan B began to form.
I pushed forward my own disappointment when I realized Jacob wasn’t joking when he said he wanted to hike, and followed it up with how I felt when he left me to climb with Melissa to the top of the mountain.
My ears popped like we had risen in altitude. The emotion relaxed its grip. I pushed down my excitement and threw the fear I’d felt when I saw Tyler after his fall. Caitlyn’s sorrow released Melissa and leaped at me.
I snatched onto it and shoved it as hard as I could into the water bottle. As the poisonous concoction passed into the bottle, it felt like it charred every nerve ending it touched. I wanted to yell or cry—or something—but I was afraid to lose my focus for even a second. Then it was gone, and I felt strangely deflated.
The water in the bottle looked as clear as it had when I started. I wanted it to look murky, undrinkable, as black as it felt; but it gave no sign of the danger that lurked within.
Chapter Six
Melissa and I hadn’t spoken since the incident. That in and of itself wasn’t particularly weird, but the fact I hadn’t heard from Caitlyn was. Not a call, not a text, not a request to meet up for lunch—nothing.
By the time the phone rang on Friday, I’d begun to think taking the sorrow out of Melissa was one step further than Caitlyn could handle. Who wanted a reminder of the worst day of their life?
The number wasn’t Caitlyn’s, but I didn’t recognize it either. To answer or not to answer, that is the question.
I rubbed some makeup off my phone to stall and pushed the green phone icon on the screen. “Hello?” I asked tentatively, my finger hovering near the END button in case it was a telemarketer. I’m sixteen, people. I don’t think I need the kind of water filter you’re offering.
“Hey, how’s it going?” Tyler asked.
The butterflies seemed to have escaped again and were throwing a party. Just his voice made my stomach flip-flop. “Good. How’d you get my number?”
“Jacob. I told him you were going to get my homework for me,” he said.
“Liar.”
“I wouldn’t be if you check with the teacher for my homework.”
The warm fuzzy feeling started to subside next to the logic of—he called to get his homework. “I guess I could.”
“We still on for tonight?”
“Tonight?” The fuzzy feeling just multiplied to the point I felt like I had fallen into a ball pit filled with teddy bears.
“Yes, our date. I sort of owe you for saving my life and all, and you could bring my homework at the same time.”
“Well, if it’s just for saving your life, then all I need is a thank you.” I held my breath, waiting, hoping this phone call was more than that.
“Thank you.” My heart dropped. “So about our date on Friday. I’m still stuck at the hospital, but I’ve been told I’ve got a nice selection of TV channels for our viewing pleasure. And you’ll sort of have to pick up the food, but besides that, it’s going to be awesome.”
“And what food am I picking up?” I asked when I could stop my voice from coming out like a giddy schoolgirl who just spotted a celebrity. Melissa’s first kiss was starting to make sense. This moment, as silly as it was, had just skyrocketed near the top of my list. “I’m good with whatever. Just let me know and I’ll call ahead.”
“Pizza it is. So I’m going to go now because my mom just walked in and I’d rather not talk to my girlfriend in front of her,” he said, followed by a click.
Had he said what I thought he just said? I mean, we had just finished a conversation about our first date and he had jumped to girlfriend. I had to find Caitlyn no matter what was going on with her. I needed to speak to someone.
I camped outside her next class, chancing detention in hopes of catching her.
The click of Ms. Barns’ approaching heels put more fear in my heart than the sound of a chainsaw in a scary movie. Her voice stopped me cold. “Lilly, what are you doing out of class?”
“I was waiting for class to get out so I could get Tyler’s homework,” I threw out in hopes of stopping detention. My parents wouldn’t let me go on a date if I got detention.
“In the future, make sure you attend your own class before helping others. I’d send you back, but by the time you get there, the bell will have rung.” She shook her head.
“Yes, Ms. Barns.”
She turned on her heel and started toward her office. Only when she was out of sight did I allow myself to sigh. Caitlyn better not have ditched class.
The door swung open, releasing a mingled scent of paper, sweat, and perfume. I stuck my head in and spied Caitlyn.
Was she talking to Drew Morris? Drew, the guy who had been held back an extra year because he couldn’t pass? Rumor had it he was dealing drugs. When did she start hanging out with him? More important: did she like him?
“Hey, Caitlyn.” I tapped her shoulder when she didn’t respond.
“Sort of busy here.” She didn’t turn around.
“I need to speak to you.” I tried to keep the agitation out of my voice.
“And I said not now,” she bit out. She smiled at Drew. Her voice went back to honey smooth. “Sorry about that. She can be so needy.”
Did I just hear her say that out loud? The bubbly feeling fell flat like a smashed pancake. Fine, I hadn’t really wanted to talk to her anyway.
School couldn’t end fast enough. After I picked up Tyler’s homework, I drove home.
As I parked my car, I couldn’t wait to crawl into bed and deal with the fact that my ex-best friend had lost her mind.
My world had cracked a little. I expected it to show everywhere, but our home showed no signs of the sky falling. Everything looked the same.
“Honey, that you? Can you let Twiggy out?” my mom shouted from the kitchen.
“Yeah,” I shouted back, before dropping my bag. “Twiggy,” I called. Our old overweight yellow lab ambled into the living room and plopped down.
“Want to go outside?” I asked as I glanced around the living room. Charlie was in charge of taking her out this morning, and the leash could be anywhere.
Twiggy eyed me as if considering the request, then rolled over and showed her pink belly. “What are we going to do, Twiggy?” I asked as I rubbed her silky ear. Her soft brown eyes fixed on me and I got two slobbery sympathy licks.
“Okay, but you have to go outside.” I tugged on her collar. “Don’t tell Mom I took you outside without your leash.” Her tongue lolled out and I took that as a deal. Outside, she took two bounding leaps as if enjoying her freedom, then went to sniffing an obliging white ash tree.
“Lilly,” my mom called from just inside the door holding the leash.
“I couldn’t find it,” I said, going for Twiggy’s collar.
“Don’t do it again. You getting together with Caitlyn tonight?”
I wanted to gush out, No because Caitlyn has frozen me out since I threw her sadness down the drain and it mutated and latched onto another girl, and then another, and now it's hanging out in a water bottle in my room. “No. Remember that guy that had an accident on that hike I went on?”
“Todd? Isn’t he still in the hospital?” she asked as I walked past her.
“Tyler, and yes, he is. But he asked me out on a date.” I pushed down a squeal. If Caitlyn were here, I would’ve been squealing.
“Date? I thought you were dating Jacob?” Her eyebrows raised. The one time I had told her about my dating life, and she remembered it.
“He’s back with Melissa. It’s complicated,” I said, heading for my room.
“So you have your date at the hospital?” Her voice followed me down the hall, and I contemplated pretending I didn’t hear.
“Yes. Gotta go,” I yelled back before grabbing some clear lip gloss and hea
ding back outside.
“Call if you’re going to be late.”
I shut the door and climbed back into the car. Forget quiet time in my room. Why hadn’t I tried to tell my mom? ‘Cause she’ll think you’re crazy like Gran and have you committed. Good point, and being locked away makes this little fight with Caitlyn seem stupid. Also, no more dates with Tyler.
By the time I picked up the pizza and parked, I was only a little early. I stalled by fiddling with my phone. Didn’t want to seem overeager. The smell of disinfectant and strong hand sanitizer hit me as I walked through the sliding doors. For a second, I felt like I was back in the stupid janitor’s closet wrestling with the soul-sucking creature in Melissa. My gut clenched and I gripped the pizza box within an inch of its life. The little plastic tab crunched under the pressure. I blinked, and the hospital waiting room came back into focus.
An older woman at the admin table with big, blond, beehive hair eyed me. I hurried to the elevator and hit the up arrow.
“Do you know where you’re going, hon?” she asked as I stepped into the metal box.
“I’m fine,” I said as the doors closed. Don’t mind me. I’m just using a pizza box as a life raft. It’s helping me deal with the flashbacks of when I ripped the creature from the Black Lagoon from my worst enemy.
Three floors up and then one down finally got me to the right level. I stepped off the elevator and pulled myself together before the pizza got cold. What if Tyler still looked like he was dying? What if I messed up and he wasn’t the same Tyler?
Then I’ll deal with it, I thought as I shoved the rest of my worries down and stepped in the door.
“Hello, Cinderella. Welcome to the ball,” Tyler said as I walked in and plopped the pizza on the table beside his bed.
“Anger,” I said, standing by his side.
“What? Please don’t tell me I did something.”
“The emotion I was scribbling today—anger.”
“You didn’t sound angry earlier.” He rested his hand on top of mine.
“I wasn’t—or as much. Never mind. What do you want to watch?”
“Very subtle. I figure we can flip through our ten-channel selection and see which one we can agree on.”
I took the remote and flipped through shows until I landed on one in the middle of an epic shootout.
“Really? You want to pick this one?” he asked. Someone pulled a massive gun out of their guitar case.
“Really.” I settled in a chair and opened the pizza box. The smell of melted cheese and red sauce hit the air. My mouth watered as I grabbed a slice. I tried to pull the cheese off the lid without it looking too obvious I’d squashed the box.
“Not to insult the delivery woman, but did you accidentally run over it?” he asked as he peeled some of the cheese off the top of the box and plopped it down on his slice. When I didn’t answer, he smiled, patted the bed, and added, “You could sit on the bed with me.”
“You wish. This is just the first date.” I took another bite. Why was it every time I looked at him, my stomach started fluttering? I licked my lips and turned my attention back to the movie—as if a car could fly that high.
A commercial came on, and I glanced back. He smiled and nudged the pizza box closer to me. “So why did you move here? It’s quite a change from California.” I tugged on another piece. The cheese slid off and I growled.
He laughed, picked up the glob of grease, and plopped it in his mouth.
I glared.
“My parents. My dad got a job that paid better here, and I wasn’t ready to move out—you know, that whole being a minor thing.”
“How does it feel? Utah is different.” I grabbed the cheese off the next slice and lopped it on mine for good measure.
“Different would be an understatement. But there are good things about it.” He picked up the cheese-less slice and took a big bite. “Yum, so good.”
I tried to be cute, by sticking out my tongue but epically failed when I realized I still had a bit of pizza on it. I dropped my head and stayed silent through the rest of the commercials. As the show came back on, I got up the courage to ask, “Like what?”
“Well, I didn’t know there was magic here,” he said as the hero leaped out of the path of a spray of bullets.
“Don’t even know what you’re talking about.” I refused to look at him. “What else?”
“Well, I like the girls here.”
My blush sank in deeper, reaching the color of a beet. “What do you miss?” I asked, trying to push the conversation in a safer direction.
“Music.” His voice dropped off.
I turned and caught his eyes. “Music?”
“I used to be in a band. It wasn’t anything big, but I miss it.”
“What did you play?” This part of his life hadn’t circulated around in the school gossip. For a moment, my fingers itched to text Caitlyn, and then I remembered.
“That’s a secret for our next date. Two can play at this game.” He yawned and pretended to watch the movie, but every few seconds his eyes would flit over.
“So you’re already planning next time?” Yes, I was certain someone had released a whole host of butterflies in my system, and my heart was skipping around as if on holiday.
“Of course,” he replied. He remained silent for the rest of the show. It wasn’t until I was trying to turn off the TV with little result, as it was mounted high on a wall, and I had jumped several times to reach it when he spoke again. “I’m going with genie and I’m counting you saving my life as my first wish. That means I get two more wishes.”
“Really.” I gave up on the TV and went back to his side. “Let’s say that’s true. What would be your next wish?”
“A kiss goodnight.” He closed his eyes and exaggeratingly puckered his lips.
I laughed. “Seems like a waste of a good wish,” I said, leaning in closer.
“Seems like the best use of a wish ever.” He dropped the puckered lips and smiled at me.
“Your wish is granted,” I said, making my voice high and light.
His grin grew wider as I leaned in, inches away from his face. My heart was racing so hard it pounded in my ears, and it sounded like it meant to escape. I was never as aware of my lips as I had been at that moment. And then I swerved, placing a light kiss on his forehead.
“Man, this whole wish thing is harsh. Do over?” he asked, boosting himself up in his bed to get closer to me.
“It would take another wish. Do you want to use it?” My nerves screamed for him to say yes! I bit my lip to keep from giving in.
“I’m saving that wish.” He took my hand in his and kissed the top of it. A sigh escaped, despite my efforts to play it cool.
I leaned forward again, almost without thinking. A few more inches and I’d be there. His lips had felt soft on my skin, and I wanted to feel them on mine.
A nurse cleared her throat, causing us both to jump. I looked away sheepishly and grabbed my purse. “Visiting hours are over,” she said, not bothering to hide the amusement on her face.
“I was just leaving,” I mumbled.
“I’ll call you.” His words followed me out. I nodded though he couldn’t see me. What was I thinking? I almost kissed him on the first date. I grinned—I almost kissed him.
Chapter Seven
“Cinderella, where you goin’?” I heard from down the hall. I shut my locker so hard, the sound echoed down the hallway and a few people looked over. Then again, they might have been looking after Tyler yelled, Cinderella.
“Lilly,” I replied, attempting to glare even as a grin snuck across my face.
“I hope the rest of your weekend was good. Kiss any frogs?” Tyler asked, leaning hard on one crutch.
“Spend all weekend thinking that up?” I asked, unsettled to see him out of the hospital. He’d fallen off a cliff. Shouldn’t he be in there more than a week?
“Yeah,” he said. It took me a moment to realize he wasn’t responding to my thoughts. �
��So I’ve been thinking about my second wish.”
“Your third,” I replied, turning toward my first class.
“Second, third, who keeps track of these things? Anyway, how late is your curfew?”
“What does that have to do with your wish?” That sounded less like a wish and more like our second date, which I pretended to be calm and cool about. My spreading grin might have been giving me away. “Is it a weekday or the weekend?” I asked, fingering my backpack strap to give me something to do with my hand instead of reaching for his.
“Weekend,” he replied, switching his weight to the other crutch. He flinched, and I flinched in sympathy.
“Midnight,” I said, blushing as I said it.
“I should have guessed. Well, my fair lady—Friday it is,” he said. He gave me a half-bow and started to wobble. I grabbed his arm until he had until he caught his balance, and then I let go. “She rescues me again. Say that doesn’t count as my last wish.”
“I’ll think about it,” I said, shaking my head and stepping into class. Melissa was staring at me as if she could bore holes through me with her eyes. I looked away and hurried to my seat, all my playfulness lost.
.o0o.
“Hey, Lilly! Stop! We need to talk,” said Melissa as I exited class.
“What?” I asked, stepping out of the way as my fellow students streamed past me.
“Come with me,” she said, grabbing my wrist and dragging me into the nearest empty classroom.
“What?’ I asked again as she paced in front of me.
“You need to take care of your friend,” she snapped, not quite meeting my eyes.
“Caitlyn? What do you mean? We haven’t talked for days,” I said, my hand clenched part in anger, part worry.
“She’s being stupid. I already told her, but she won’t listen to me. Maybe she’ll listen to you,” she said.
“Drew?” I asked.
She nodded.
“I tried already.”
“Well, try harder,” she said, heading for the door.
A Touch of Water (Touch of Magic Book 1) Page 4