by Seven Steps
“Unless what?”
Cole stepped in front of me, his hands on my shoulders. His touch was so gentle. So warm. It made me want to loosen my tongue. To reveal my greatest secret to him.
“Tell me.” His voice was soft. Pleading.
A single tear dripped down my cheek.
I stepped out of his hold and away from him.
“Rolling Stones,” I said. “The answer to yesterday’s question. The Rolling Stones.”
He looked confused and angry as I stepped around him and backed toward my room.
“Goodbye, Cole.”
I hadn’t yet closed the door when my hands flew over my face to keep in the sobs that rocked me to my core.
A moment later, the front door closed and Cole was gone.
41
My lies were racking up by the minute. I’d just lied to my father and told him that I was going to study at Ariel’s house. Then, I changed in the hallway and ran down the stairs in my hot pink mini dress and a pair of black heels that were guaranteed to make my feet hurt.
I was sure that my father was right behind me but it was only my imagination. I sprinted through the lobby, ran out of the door and jumped in to Jake’s awaiting car.
“You made it,” Jake said, giving me a smile. “I was sure that you would.”
“Did I have a choice?” I muttered.
His jaw clenched.
“Say hi to Ariel and Eric,” he said, throwing the car into drive and speeding off.
I slowly turned my head. Ariel gave me a little wave.
“Hey Bella,” she said. I could tell by the tightness in her voice that she was still pissed at me.
“Hey,” I replied. My eyes slid to a smiling Eric, then back to her. “I guess I should say congratulations on finally making it official. You deserve it.”
Ariel’s face relaxed a bit.
“Thanks. I have you and Jake to thank for it.”
My breath caught in my throat. Me? Had Jake told her what we’d done?
She took Eric’s hand and laced it with her own. “If you guys hadn’t started going out, I probably never would have spoken to Eric.”
My lungs relaxed. She didn’t know.
“Don’t mention it. I’m just glad that you two are happy.”
“Very happy,” Eric said, taking Ariel’s hand and kissing her knuckles. His eyes stayed on mine. “Very, very happy.”
I couldn’t read his expression in the darkness but something in his message said that he was telling me something. Something important. I made a mental note to have a conversation with Eric later.
“Did Jake tell you that my cousin runs the bar?” Eric asked. “He said that we can get some drinks if we’re cool about it.”
I caught Ariel’s eye. We would not be drinking tonight, I told her with a look.
She ignored me and looked out of the window.
“Whiskey for everyone!” Jake hooted, lurching the car forward, the engine purring beneath my seat. The cherry red convertible smelled like new leather interior, expensive cologne and freshly purchased clothes. If wealth had a scent, this was it.
I turned around in my seat, put on my seat belt, pulled my lip gloss from my purse and slathered on another layer.
Just be cool, I told myself. Just be cool.
“The DJ at this place is killer,” Jake said. “I met him at Sharon Anderson’s party this summer. I’m trying to convince him to do the Winter Formal.”
“Dude, isn’t your brother’s band trying to get that gig?”
Jake nodded. “Yeah, but who wants to listen to that crap all night. I want some real music. Not a lame cover band.”
I frowned. Cole was in a cover band? When did this happen? Why didn’t I know that?
“Dude, did you hear Jay-Z’s new album?” Jake asked Eric. “It’s amazing. I downloaded it this morning.”
Eric leaned forward. His head nearly touched my left shoulder.
“Put on track three. I love that song.”
The car shook as Jake pumped the music and him and Eric proceeded to rap the lyrics to four Jay-Z songs in a row. The songs were cool but I wasn’t in a rapping mood. I was much more interested in Cole’s band. What was their name? What did they play?
I tried to imagine Cole as a drummer but I couldn’t. He didn’t have the raw aggression that drummers needed. He was probably a guitarist. A singer, maybe? Was that why he was so shocked when he caught me singing in my room? Maybe he didn’t think I was musically inclined.
I wanted to pull out my phone and text him my questions but then I remembered who he was probably spending his time with. Stephanie. No. I couldn’t text Cole. I couldn’t do anything with Cole. We were friends and that was all we’d ever be.
My heart sank as the car raced around corners and down busy streets, zooming its way toward the docks.
Didn’t Stephanie live on the other side of the city?
I looked back at Ariel but she was gazing in to Eric’s eyes as he slowly kissed the inside of her wrist. He’d left off rapping with Jake several minutes ago. Now I knew why.
“Aren’t we going to Stephanie’s party?” I asked.
“What?” Jake shouted over the booming music.
I spun the volume dial, turning the music back to manageable levels.
“Aren’t we going to Stephanie’s party?”
Jake shook his head. “Nah. We’re not going to make it in time. We’ll make this stop and go straight to the Stamford Club.”
“After the fuss you made about Jelissa and Chad going to the party, you are not even going to show up?”
He shrugged. “I was only doing it to remind certain people that they don’t have a say in what goes on in this school anymore.” He winked at me. “It really pissed her off, didn’t it?”
I frowned and turned back to the front of the car, watching the city fade away into rows of warehouses.
Detective Harding’s words came back to me. He mentioned to keep my eye out for any suspicious stops, and warehouses at night was definitely suspicious. This place appeared to be the same warehouse that Jake had stopped at when he took me clothes shopping. It was dark now so I wasn’t a hundred percent sure, but it looked pretty similar.
My eyes looked for any identifying marks but there was nothing. No signs. No weird shaped windows. Just water and a dark warehouse in a row of a dozen dark warehouses. I couldn’t lead anyone back here if they paid me.
Crap!
Jake backed in to a dark entranceway and the trunk popped open, obscuring my vision of whatever was going on behind me. Out of my side view mirror, I made out several men walking toward us. They all wore ski masks and carried black garbage bags.
Probably bags full of drugs that Jake and Kenny were going to sell at the party.
I looked back at Ariel in the rearview mirror. Our gazes touched for a long moment. I saw her questions. Her suspicions. I mentally sent to her that everything was going to be okay. She nodded, getting my message.
The car rocked and the trunk shut. Someone banged twice on the back of the car and we pulled away from the warehouse. My stomach was in knots. What was in the trunk? What if we got stopped? We’d all get arrested!
None of these questions seemed to phase Jake, though. He flew across town at what seemed like double the speed limit until finally, we pulled in to an underground parking garage. I stepped out first, anxious to get inside and collect my thoughts. I had to keep my eyes and ears open for any suspicious activity. Anything that I could pass on to Detective Harding.
Eric and Ariel detached themselves long enough to climb out of the car and head to the door. We showed our IDs and walked into the club.
Being a country girl from a small town, I had never been in a club before. Sure, we had parties in barns and churches and people’s houses from time to time but never in a place like this.
Loud music shook the floor. I felt it rumble through my shoes and all the way in to my heart.
There were bodies everywhere. I sme
lled their perfume. Their sweat. Something sweet and sharp, like liquor. How many people were cool enough with Eric’s cousin to get him to break the law? What would happen if the cops came in here and busted everyone?
You shouldn’t be here, my mind screamed at me. You should go home.
My heart, however, was singing a different song. It raced with exhilaration. This place was dangerous. I was in a club, with liquor and dancing all around me. It made me feel very grown up. Like I’d matured just a little more since I left my house. It felt … good.
I bounced a little to the beat and turned around to find Ariel and Eric sliding in to a booth, laughing and holding their heads close together like they’d been in love all of their lives.
I couldn’t leave now. There was too much evidence floating around. I had to stay and observe. Plus, it was Ariel and Eric’s official first date. Even though she hated me, I wanted to celebrate with them.
I put leaving out of my mind and looked around some more. It was darker than I imagined a club would be. The dance floor was nearly pitch black with strobe lights. Some of the kids wore glow in the dark necklaces or rings. One girl had a glow in the dark dress on. It was all so new and different. I wish I had someone to experience everything with, but with Jake’s sudden disappearance and Ariel and Eric being so cozy, I realized that I would have to fly solo tonight.
I sighed and decided to use my alone time to gather my thoughts.
Jake was obviously planning to distribute the drugs at this party. I needed pictures of him in the act. Some hard evidence of the crimes that were surely going on around me.
I looked around again, saw no signs of Jake or Kenny, walked to the bar and ordered myself a water. Loneliness hollowed my chest. This was not how I imagined my first time in a club to be. I wanted my friends around me. I wanted to laugh and be catty with them. Instead, I was the chick alone at the bar, sipping on a water and looking miserable.
Life sucked.
My phone buzzed and I pulled it from my purse to answer it.
Cole: I was guaranteed three questions today. You’re slipping, French.
I smiled, remembering how nice our time together was before it got … well … intense.
I thought a minute and wrote back.
Me: Stewart Copeland, Certifiable, There’s a blind man looking for a shadow of doubt.
That last line always gave me goosebumps. I loved The Police. My mom sang Police songs to me when I was a baby. I swear that I still remember her singing King of Pain as she rocked me in our rocking chair. Her melodic voice rang in my mind and I smiled at the memory.
“Wow. Those clues were too easy and you’re a bit young to be drinking.”
Cole appeared next to me, phone in hand, looking carefree and teasing like always. He wore a white shirt, purple tie and black pants. His hair was smoothed back from his face. I took a moment to admire how handsome he was. Then I reminded myself that he wasn’t mine to look at and scowled instead.
“It’s just water,” I replied, examining the fingerprints on my glass.
Hadn’t he thought at all about what happened between us this afternoon? I know I hadn’t stopped thinking about it. Even now I remembered how close he was. The minty scent of his breath. The strength of his hands. How was he so unaffected?
“You sure it’s not vodka? If it is, I’ll have to call the cops.”
His eyes warmed to me, the teasing in them back in full effect. My mouth went dry and I took another sip of water.
“So, your boyfriend abandon you?” he asked.
I shrugged. “It seems so. And your girlfriend?”
“I wouldn’t call her that but she’s not here as far as I can tell. Probably still cleaning up from her party. Where were you, by the way?”
The music changed to one of the rap songs that Jake had played earlier in his car.
“We had to make a pit stop.”
One of Cole’s eyebrows raised. “Where?”
“A warehouse or something.”
I watched his eyes for any sign that he knew what the warehouse was but his expression didn’t change. I took another swig of my water.
“What a pair we make,” he said. “Two lost souls, standing at a bar, drinking water out of dirty glasses, alone and lonely.”
“Sad.”
“Pathetic, really.”
“Unbearable.”
“Pitiful.”
“Wretched.”
“Trite.”
“Miserable.”
He laughed out loud. “Okay, French. You win.” He sighed. “Do you want to dance with me?”
Cole danced? Yet another thing I didn’t know about him.
“What? No.”
“Come on. You don’t want to sit by the bar all night, do you? Besides, I love this song.”
Before I knew it, he’d plucked the water from my hand and pulled me on to the dance floor.
“Cole, I don’t want to dance.”
“Come on!” He held up one of my arms and spun me around. “You’re too young to act so old. Have some fun for once.”
Fun? This wasn’t fun. I was on a mission.
I searched the floor for Jake and Kenny but there was still no sign of them.
The rap song boomed over the floor. I felt it shimmy through my heels and up my calves. I liked the feeling.
I guess dancing to one song wouldn’t be the end of the world.
Cole pulled my hands on to his shoulders and did a two-step from side to side. Surprisingly, it was on beat.
“You’re actually good,” I said, moving my hips from left to right.
He grinned. “You say that like you’re surprised.”
“I am.”
“Well, the feeling is mutual. I thought that you danced like you spelled.”
“And how’s that?”
“Not great.”
I went to slap his arm but he turned me around, bringing my back to his chest. We swayed together, his arm slung across my belly, holding me to him. I placed my hand over his and for a moment, imagined that this was okay. That it wasn’t a punishable offense.
The music changed again, playing One Direction’s Best Song Ever.
To a girl born in the 2000s, it was pure nostalgia.
The dance floor exploded, everyone who had sat down now packing on to the dance floor to jump in time to the music. I turned and ruffled Cole’s hair, smiling. He took my hands and placed them on his tall shoulders.
Together, we lip synced the lyrics, made funny faces and jumped every time the chorus came on.
It was the most fun I’d had in a long time!
After the Georgia Rose verse, he turned me around for the slower part of the song. Somehow, through the noise and the shaking floor, I heard his voice. So sad. So sweet. So … good.
“I hope you remember how we danced…”
My eyes widened in shock. Cole could sing? I tried to turn around and call him on it but he pulled my back to his chest and we jumped in time to the chorus again.
Shivers broke out all over my body. My heart floated, slipping through the music, through the screams of the crowd. I imagined that it would land right on to Cole’s shirt and sink in to his chest, nuzzling in tight to his heart.
For a single moment, I wished that it would stay there forever.
But then the song ended. The jumping stopped. The floor cleared. The moment passed.
Weak, a slow, soulful ballad by 90’s band SWV, floated through the speaker. Our bodies slowed down with it. He turned me around and held me close, wrapping me in his arms while we rocked together to the melody. It felt right to be in Cole’s arms. So right, yet terribly wrong.
“I’m not finished with our conversation,” he whispered in my ear. “One day, you’ll have to tell me.”
“There’s nothing to say,” I said, not hiding the sadness in my voice.
“I don’t believe you,” he whispered back. “I think there’s plenty to say.”
He pulled back a little, forcing
me to look in to his eyes. The teasing had disappeared, replaced by a serious expression. His eyes were darker now. The color of the ocean at sunset. I could almost see the waves crashing within them.
“Who would you rather me be with?”
My treacherous tongue wanted to reply. I squeezed my mouth shut instead. His face moved in to mine and I felt myself falling. Falling into him. Into arms that I craved. Into a body that I fit so perfectly against. Into a heart that was quickly wrapping around mine.
And then…
“You came!”
Stephanie’s shrill scream cut through our moment, slicing through the connection that Cole and I had created. My heart ached but I refused to allow myself to dwell on it.
It was too painful. To dangerous.
Cole’s face fell in irritation for a moment before he slid his mask back in place.
“Hey, Steph.”
I stepped back, allowing her to hug him like she obviously wanted to do. The thought of her touching him made my skin crawl and I looked away.
“There you are,” Jake said, coming up behind me. “I’ve been looking for you.”
His eyes narrowed at me and I saw what he meant.
Dana had arrived and he wanted to parade me around like some new trophy he’d just won.
“I’ve just been here dancing with Cole,” I said.
For some reason, I wanted to say it. I needed him to know what I was doing and who I was doing it with. I wanted him to say something. To react.
Instead, he shrugged.
“Not too close, I hope.”
I opened my mouth to speak but he grabbed my hand and led me back to the bar.
“You left me here alone. Where did you go?” I demanded.
What I really wanted to ask was, why did you bother coming back?
“I was taking care of business,” he said, casually placing my hand on his shoulder as we leaned against the bar.
I then remembered why it was so important that I be here in the first place. I was looking for information about Jake and the drugs he so obviously was distributing. Solid evidence that I could take back to Detective Harding.