Candid (True Images Series) (26 page)

Then she was gone. I was left alone to face my executioner.

When the door was shut behind us, my mom said, “Well, I guess you’ve proven how little I can trust you. There will be consequences for this Sienna, but I need time to consider what would be appropriate.”

“I’m sure you do. What is there left for you to take away from me that I even care about? And by the way, the only motivation I ever had for trying to keep your rules was that I didn’t want to lose your trust, but I realize now that I never had it. Don’t you think I understand what you’ve been trying to tell me all these years? Why can’t you let me prove that I am a strong person who can make good decisions instead of treating me like a susceptible weakling who’ll do whatever a guy wants me to? Guess what mom - I’m not you!”

I grabbed my blanket off the couch and went to my room, dragging with weariness. I ignored whatever my mom was saying behind me, and fell onto my bed. I pulled my blanket around me and over my head, hoping to stop existing for a while.

My mom followed me into my room, still letting off steam. I wasn’t able to follow everything she was saying, and eventually, my lack of response must have been the last straw. She yanked my blanket off of me and said, “I don’t want you to have this anymore. The comforter on your bed is sufficient. Now stay in here and think about how you’re going to get over this ridiculous and juvenile crush of yours.”

When she was gone, I buried into my comforter and refused to think. For a while, I shook with anger as tears ran hot from my eyes, dripping sideways over the bridge of my nose and soaking my pillow. I felt like howling and sobbing out my heartache, but I suppressed it so my mom wouldn’t know I was crying. The effort exhausted me until I no longer had the energy to cry anyway. Eventually I fell asleep and escaped from the nightmare that my life had become.

Chapter 17

They say time heals everything. I don’t know if I completely believe that, but I was feeling more optimistic. Mom and I were still mad at each other, but three weeks wasn’t enough to fix that. After all, I still wasn’t allowed to see Lee outside of school. She’d also kept my blanket, demanded that I delete all my pictures of him, checked my phone every night to make sure I wasn’t calling or texting him, and constantly kept an eye on me to make sure I wasn’t sneaking around with him.

 It was pretty extreme, but she probably figured that I was feeling pretty rebellious over this whole thing. She was right. I was. Especially since my birthday was tomorrow and I couldn’t celebrate it with Lee. Usually, mom and I made a big deal over all my birthday, but I was feeling less than enthusiastic about it.

But when you’re young, it’s kind of hard to feel down for too long. After all, even if we couldn’t hang out, call each other, or text, Lee was finding plenty of ways to cheer me up. He left notes in my textbooks, put little pre-birthday presents in my backpack for me to find later at home, and watched over me like a bodyguard whenever he could.

I personally thought he was taking this too far. I mean, Jordan and Caleb had left me completely alone, except for the occasional dirty look in the hall. Maybe it was because Lee made sure either he or one of his friends was always with me though. Of course, Brittany and Alyssa were doing a great job of making my life miserable even if they didn’t try to start a fight or anything.

They made mean comments, made fun of the way I looked on a daily basis, bumped into me whenever they could manage it, and one time Alyssa knocked into me when I was getting a drink at the water fountain. It made me soak the whole front of my shirt, so I looked really great until it dried again.

I knew they were basically Jordan’s goons, so hopefully she was getting her resentment out of her system and would move on soon. I was mad at Jordan and Brittany, but I understood it coming from them. Somehow, it continued to bother me that Alyssa had turned out to be such a fake when I’d been nice to her.

 I was surprised when Mr. Greeley asked me if I felt up to taking pictures at tonight’s game, but I didn’t hesitate. He’d been covering the games for the last three Friday’s, and I knew it had been hard on him. Today, he was coming down with a very bad cold, and the weather was not going to be exactly tropical tonight.

“Sure, I can do it. No problem.”                                                                 

“Actually, there’s a big problem,” Lee said. “I can’t spot for you tonight.” He gave me a very speaking glance and said, “And you know it will be dangerous for you to do it on your own.”

Mr. Greeley spoke up. “Well, maybe I can use a little of my influence to convince Sienna’s mom to let you spot for her. I think I could persuade her if I tried really hard.” He wiggled his eyebrows in a suggestive way and grinned.

“Yeah, but I couldn’t make it anyway. I have my first game tonight, remember?”

“Oh yeah,” I said, remembering. Lee’s coach had set up a last minute game with a team outside the conference. He wanted to give them some playing time before jumping into the tournament they had scheduled for Thanksgiving weekend.

“Well, I’ll just have to find someone else to spot for me.”

Lee’s eyebrows almost met he was scowling so hard. “Sienna, can I talk to you for a second?”

I followed him to the other side of the room, glancing back at Mr. Greeley. He was watching us with a puzzled expression. I’m pretty sure mine matched his. “What’s up?” I asked. “What are you so worried about?”

“Do I need to remind you about the threats you were getting a few weeks ago?” he said, leaning close so I could hear what he was saying. He was talking so quietly I leaned in even closer. Not that I really needed to, but it was a good excuse.

“I remember, but like you said, it was weeks ago. I haven’t had any threats since then.”

“Yeah, but that’s probably because they got caught. Plus, Mr. Greeley’s been doing all the photography since then. I wouldn’t put it past Caleb to see his chance and take it tonight if he saw you standing there.”

“Last time was an accident. I’ll watch out for him, and it’s not like he can make the play go my direction on purpose. He can’t just run over me. There has to be someone for him to tackle. Besides, I’m sure he’s moved on.”

Lee rubbed his forehead like I was giving him a major headache. “Sienna, guys like Caleb don’t get over things until they’ve had their revenge. I won’t be able to concentrate on my game because I’ll be worrying about you the whole time.”

“Look, I need to do this. It’s the first game of the playoffs, and they’ll be traveling to play from then on. I can’t go to away games unless it’s close anyway, so Mr. Greeley will have to go to those. Look, I can survive one game without you. I’ll get Parker to spot for me, and I’ll keep my eyes open too. I’ll be really careful, I promise, so don’t worry about me.”

“Well, I will, but I can tell I’m not going to talk you out of this.” He put his hands on my shoulders and gripped them gently. “Please be careful.”

“I said I would.”

“I know, but I’ve seen you when you’re taking pictures. You get caught up and forget everything else.”

“No. Actually, you’ve always been kind of distracting. I won’t have the same problem with Parker, so I’ll have more attention for watching out for Caleb.”

“Let’s hope so.

After school, I caught my mom and told her that I was going to take pictures at the game that night and that I was going to hang out with Marisol until then.

“You don’t have work today?”

“No, Mr. Foster gave me a paid day off today as a birthday present.”

“Well, that was really nice of him. Who’s spotting for you at the game?”

“Don’t worry. It isn’t Lee. I’m going to ask Parker.”

“Ok. Well, be careful and I’ll see when you get home.”

It was the most normal conversation we’d had for weeks. She seemed to be lightening up a little. Maybe Mr. Greeley could have talked her into letting Lee spot for me. Oh well.

I met up with Marisol in the parking lot. I hadn’t talked to her about my plans yet, but I was sure it wouldn’t be a problem with her. I was wrong.

“Uh, Sienna, I have a game too. We’re leaving at 5:30.”

“Oh. Well, flip. What should I do?”

“You can hang out with me until then, but I have to be at the school ready to get on the bus by 5:15. Tell you what. After I’m gone, you can borrow my car. Then you can go wherever you want until the game starts.”

“That would be great. Thanks.”

“Sure. Now let’s get going. I need to go home and shave my legs.”

I laughed and climbed in her car. Back at her house, we both had a snack and then I chilled in her room while she got ready for the game. While she was fixing her hair in a ponytail, I used her phone to text Lee. I told him that I would be at the school before the bus left to wish him luck. He was pretty excited about it. So was I, so I got kind of frustrated that Marisol took so long to get ready.

We got back to the school later than planned, at 5:20. Most of the players were already on the bus, but Lee was waiting for me by the locker rooms. Marisol waved goodbye and ran up the bus steps. I turned back to Lee, feeling strangely awkward. He looked different in the warm-up suit he wore over his uniform, and there was a sort of pulsing anticipation hanging over him.

“Are you excited?” I asked.

“Yeah.
It’s going to be great to play again. I’m kind of nervous too though,” he confided quietly into my ear.

“Why? You’re going to be great.”

“I hope so. It’s just that so much is riding on this season. My college chances, Coach’s job, and we really want to change how this school thinks about basketball. We want to make it as big as football.”

“Wow. I see what you mean. Tonight’s just kind of a warm up game though, right? So don’t sweat it.”

“I wish you could come.”

“Sorry. There won’t be much chance of Mom letting me go to the away games. Nothing will keep me away from the home games though.”

“I’m counting on it. I have a feeling you’d be good luck. Speaking of which, I’ve
gotta
get going. Come here a sec.”

“Why?”

“You’ll find out.”

He took me by the hand and pulled me around a secluded corner. It made me laugh for some reason, and when he kissed me, I was still smiling. It made him laugh in the middle of the kiss, so of course we had to try again a few times.

“You seem totally ok with this,” he said, looking happy but a little puzzled.

I smiled up at him and nodded as I wrapped my arms around his waist. “I can’t make my mom happy anyway, so I’ve decided to make myself happy.”

“Well, I’m all for that.
How about one more before I have to go?”

Coach Webb was turning out the lights in the gym and the locker rooms before we were done. He passed by us and rolled his eyes as he told Lee to get on the bus.

Lee laughed and said, “Don’t worry, Coach. I wouldn’t miss the bus – no matter how gorgeous she is.”

I let him pull me behind him as he went outside. He squeezed my hand once before letting go and stepping onto the bus. I watched him walk through to the back of the bus and noticed that several of his teammates were laughing and slapping him on the back as he passed their seats. Since most of the players were staring at me through the windows, I knew what they were teasing him about.

Lee finally made it to the back of the bus where he sat next to Will. He waved as the bus pulled out, and I waved back, wishing I were going with him.

I might have stood there for a while, watching the bus until it disappeared down the road, but the wind was really cold. I hurried back to the parking lot, trying to decide what to do with my time until the game. I wasn’t really paying attention to anything around me until I heard a voice that made my blood freeze.

Caleb was getting out of his truck only a few yards from me, talking on his phone. Instinct told me that it wouldn’t be good for him to find me alone in an empty parking lot. I was sure he hadn’t seen me yet, so I ducked down behind Marisol’s car and waited for him to go by. I couldn’t help hearing his conversation though.

“Come on, baby. Aren’t you ever going to forgive me? It happened weeks ago. Can’t you just forget about it
?....
What do you mean you’ve still got the picture to remind you? I’ve said I’m sorry a million times. Forget about it already. Look, will you meet me after the game
?...
With who?...Yeah, well if I find out who it is, he’s a dead man…No, don’t hang up.”  

I then heard an impressive string of curse words and the unmistakable impact of a fist against the hood of a car. I didn’t move until I was sure he was gone.

When I was in Marisol’s car, I drove as fast as I dared off the school campus. When I felt safe again, I tried to calm down, but it was hard. Hearing anger in Caleb’s voice and knowing that he’d been reminded of the picture I’d taken scared me to death. I no longer felt so good about going to the game tonight.

Then I realized I hadn’t called Parker yet. I pulled into a fast food parking lot and got my phone out of my pocket, my hands clumsy with panic. When he answered, I didn’t even bother to say hello.

“Parker, I need your help. Can you come to the game tonight and spot for me?”

“You’re doing that again? Where’s Lee?”

“He had a game tonight, so I need you.”

“Look, I would, but I have a date.”

My heart sank? “You do? Great, when I need your help, it’s the one time you have a date.”

“For your information, I’ve been on a lot of them lately.”

“With who?”

“With Olivia.”

“Olivia
Nunes
?”

“What other Olivia do we know?”

“Huh. Wow.”

“You sound upset. Is everything OK?”

“I don’t know. I’m kind of scared to be around Caleb at the game tonight.”

“He won’t do anything at the game.
Too many witnesses.”

“Not if he makes it look like an accident. Besides, I doubt he’s thinking that clearly right now.”

“Look, if you can’t find anybody else I’ll do it. But I had something kind of special planned for tonight.”