Color Blind (5 page)

Whoa,
dude. Get a grip.

“Are you a dancer?” I ask.
Idiot. Captain Obvious.

I shake my head in disgust.

She’s tall for a girl, but I’m tall for a
guy, so she is still shorter than me by several inches. She would fit perfectly
under my arm, if I ever get the chance to wrap one around her.

What am I thinking? Of course I won’t get
that chance. She just told me she’s a dancer. She has probably lived in this
town her whole life, knows everyone who is anyone. She probably comes from this
great wholesome family with two parents who love her and a dog.

I’m not good enough for this girl. And I
have a feeling that she is probably thinking the same thing.

“I am,” she replies.
 
“I was just working with my teacher this
morning on some choreography for our fall musical.”

“That’s cool. Smart, beautiful,
and
talented. I must have won a lottery
in a past life that I didn’t know about.” I mean every word. I already know
this girl is the most amazing creature I have ever had the pleasure of running
into.

And on my first day at a new school? Insane.

She shoots me a weird look, and I decide
I’d better take it easy on the creepy-guy comments before I scare her away.

“Hey, you’re acting as my tour guide this
morning, and I don’t even know your name,” I
aske
her.

“Sorry.
 
I’m Cam,” she replies, really meeting my
eyes for the first time.
 
She is
either pretty shy, or she thinks I’m a jerk.

“Cam?
 
Short for…?”

“Short for Camryn.”

“It’s nice to meet you Cam Short For
Camryn.
 
I’m Cooper Goode.
 
Don’t let the last name fool you.” I
wink at her, and immediately want to kick my own ass.

“Does Cam come with a last name, or do
you one-name it like Rhianna?”

She laughs, and my heart floats into the
rafters. I made her laugh. I want to do it again.

“Grimes.
 
Camryn Grimes.
 
It’s nice to meet your acquaintance Mr.
Goode.
 
I’m sure you’ll love it at
Oceanview. Where’d you transfer from?”

I answer her question, hoping she doesn’t
ask any details about Maryland. I don’t want to tell her anything that would
terrify her, and make her run screaming in the other direction.

We arrive in Lit class, and she introduces
me to the teacher, Mr. Taft. He directs me to the seat behind her (I’ll have to
thank him for that later), and when I take my seat, the girl next to me smiles
and waves. I return her smile politely, all the while wondering how I am going
to get
Camryn’s
phone number. Because there is no way
I am leaving this building today without it.

When Lit is over, I’m determined to walk
her to her next class. But she is up and out of her seat before I can grab my
bag, and I lose track of her in the crowded hallway.
Shit
. Now how am I going to find her again?

The rest of the morning is uneventful and
boring. Just like I have expected my whole day to be. I keep a lookout for
Camryn, but I don’t see her again.

At lunchtime, I walk into the cafeteria
and my luck strikes again. I spot Camryn sitting at a table not far from the
lunch line.

As I walk to her table like being drawn
toward a magnet, I tear my eyes away from her and finally notice the huge
behemoth of a guy sitting next to her.

A whole slew of words I choose not to say
aloud swim through my mind when I se her sitting next to him. The luckiest day
of my life, and then I have to find out that she has a boyfriend.

Why does this have to happen to me?

I realize I have stopped walking, and I
make myself continue on to the table.

I pull out the chair across from her and
sit down. She stares at me like I am a hamster in a goldfish bowl. I decide to
cheer up. He could just be her brother, right?

“Hey, Cam-Short-For-Camryn Grimes,” I say,
making myself right at home. My eyes flit to the gargantuan sitting beside her,
and his eyes narrow.

Good
.

Let him squirm a little. Who is he
anyway? The guy is huge. I wait for an introduction.

Two more chairs scrape the floor around me,
and our little threesome becomes five. I didn’t even notice them coming. One
pretty blonde and a tall, lanky dude who has his hand on the small of her back.
I recognize right away that they’re a couple. The girl assesses the situation
quickly, and I can tell she’s sharp. She reads every intention I have on my
face, even as I think of them.

I’ll have to watch this one, because
she’s definitely going to be watching me.

“Well hey there, Cam,” she greets Camryn.
“Looks like we got here just in time to meet your new friend. Hey Luka.”

Luka is his name. Good. I like to know
who my rivals are up front. I grin at the girl, who is introduced to me as
Dara, and her boyfriend Brandon. Luka sends me a glare across the table, and my
grin only grows wider. He’s worried.

He should be.

I still don’t know who he is to her. I’m going
to have to ask if they don’t---

“What’s up, Coop,” he says, sticking out
a huge hand for me to shake.

Coop?

“I’m Luka Caliper,” he says. “Cam’s…” He
trails off and glances at Cam.

Yes!

He can’t be her boyfriend, or he’d come
right out and say it. She’s mine.

Mine!

Then Cam finishes his sentence. “Date for
this Friday night,” she explains.

She smiles at him like she smiled at me
earlier, and I wish death in many forms on Luka.

So they aren’t an item yet, but they’re on
their way there. That is a train I look forward to derailing. Camryn Grimes is
going to be mine. I don’t know how I know this, but I know it has to happen.

By the time lunch is over, I have worked
up enough nerve to complete my goal for the day.

“Hey, Camryn,” I ask, making a point to
touch her arm. “Can you put your number in my phone? You know, in case I have a
question about all that literature I’m supposed to be analyzing tonight.”

There, that should do it. I’m not giving
too much of my crazy away, but I let her know that I want to talk to her again.
Soon.

She nods, taking my phone and programming
her number in.

Mission completed.

Chapter
5

First
Date

Camryn
         

“Five, six, seven, eight!” I shout as I
watch the dancers move in unison to the strains of “I Have a Dream.”

“Stop!” I yell, shaking my head.
 
“Donavan, you can’t miss the lift
there.
 
Everyone has to be up at the
same time and down at the same time.
 
Try it again, from the top!”

Rehearsals for “Mamma Mia” are going
really well.
 
I finished the
choreography for most of the musical numbers.
 
I hope the experience from
choreographing this musical will help get me into a fabulous dance department
in a performing arts university somewhere.
 
I’m not sure yet exactly where I wanted to go, but I’ve always known
what I want to do.
 
Dance and
performing are everything to me.
  

I grab a water bottle when rehearsal ends,
and sit down on the studio floor to take off my jazz shoes.
 

“Girl, you’re a tough teacher.
 
I’d be scared outta my mind to mess up
in front of you.”

I jerk my head up, looking for the source
of the voice.
 
Luka stands in the
doorway, watching me. His arms are folded across his broad chest, and a wide
grin spreads over his face.

I smile and wave him in.
 
“I’m almost done.
 
You didn’t tell me where we’re going?”

“I know,” he replies, his grin growing even
wider.
 
“I want to surprise you,
Princess.”

“Okay,” I grumble.
 
“But I’m warning you, I’m not very good
with surprises.
 
I like to know
everything
right now
. As in, before
it even happens.”

He bursts into laughter. “And in what
world does that happen for you?”

“Not this one,” I say.
 
I grab my bag and stand.
 
“Let’s go, then.”

He leads me out to his car, a black Mercedes
SUV.

A
Mercedes? Really?
I stop
walking.

“Is something wrong?” he asks.

“No,” I answer, and continue to the
ridiculously expensive looking vehicle.

 
He opens my door, and I climb in.

“Um, Luka?” I ask as he gets into the
driver’s seat beside me.

“Yeah?”

“I need to ask you this.
 
Please don’t be offended. But why in the
hell
do you drive a Mercedes?”

“What do you mean?” He glances at me,
amusement warming his features.

“Well, in case you haven’t noticed, I
drive an old Corolla, Dara drives a beat-up Civic, and Brandon drives a
regular—albeit, nice—Jeep. All very regular-people cars.
 
You, in this Benz?
 
Not so regular.
 
What do your parents do?”

He laughs.
 
“You noticed, huh?
 
My dad owns The Caliper Corp.
 
It’s a real estate investment
company.
 
That’s about all I know
about what he does.
 
But it has nice
perks for me and my sister.”

“Gotcha,” I hope he doesn’t ask me
anything about what my parents do. I don’t feel like getting into the whole
one-parent thing and it’s effect on me on a first date.

As we drive, I try to discover our end
destination, but I can’t. Luka was taking me to an unfamiliar part of the city,
much closer to the oceanfront than where we live, and away from the busy,
commercial sector I’m used to.

We pull into the parking lot of a
two-story brick building that resembles an old church, complete with a bell
tower and a steeple.

I get out, gazing up at the cute little
bell on the top of the tower. “Are you trying to tell me something, Luka?”

“Like what?”

“Like maybe I need Jesus?”

He laughs and taps his index finger on my
nose. “Everyone needs Jesus, Cam. Even angels like you. But this is a
restaurant. My dad used to bring my mom here every year on their anniversary
before she died.”

I gape at him. “Luka, your mom--?”

“Passed away? Yeah. It’s just me, my dad,
and my little sister Lara. My mom died of breast cancer two years ago.”

I step closer to him and wrap my arms
around his waist. “I had no idea. I’m so sorry.”

I can’t imagine what it would be like,
losing a parent. I never had a dad to lose, so it’s not the same thing. He’s never
been a part of my life. But losing my mom would be like cutting a gigantic,
jagged hole into the center of my heart. My heart aches for Luka, knowing he’s
been through such a loss.

I look up at the old church building
again. It is remarkably quaint, with tall wooden double doors marking its
entrance, and old, worn shutters framing colorful stained-glass windows. A worn
block of wood above the doors declared the name of the restaurant: “Pier 51.”

We enter the restaurant, and I fall in
love as the beautiful, whimsical ambiance of the place overwhelms me.

“Luka,” I breathe.

“Amazing, huh?” He says, smiling. “My dad
told me this was definitely the place to take you. It looks like he was right,
if the look on your face is any indication.”

The exterior of the restaurant betrays no
hint of the assault the interior is having on my senses. There is no overhead
lighting. Instead, strings of large, white twinkling lights hang above us in
lengthy rows. Sconces made from what looks like thin wisps of driftwood adorn
the walls next to each table. Light blue lanterns hang on tall metal poles
haphazardly throughout the cavernous space. The old, wooden beams on the ceiling
are dressed with filmy cotton cloth in white. Tablecloths in the same blue as
the lanterns sit on intimate round tables, and the polished wooden floor is gleaming
as it reflects the dim lighting.

I love it.

It is the most beautiful place I have
ever laid eyes on.

The maître ‘d leads us to our table,
dropping off menus and naming the specials.

“Did you know that seafood is my
favorite?” I ask Luka.

“A little blonde birdie gave me that information,”
he replies with a twinkle in his warm, light-brown eyes.

I stare at him, amazed. I have never been
on a date like this, ever. I’ve never really been on a date period. And for
Luka to take this much care with it makes me feel…special. Cared for.

Secure. And security is a scary thing,
because it can cause a person to lose sight of any other feelings they may or
may not be having.

“What do you want to eat?” he asks.

I scan the menu and find the lobster. I
raise an eyebrow at Luka and point. He nods, smiling encouragingly at me.

“Good choice. If you want that, please
order it. Money is no object tonight.”

In my entire seventeen years, the phrase
“money is no object” has never, ever graced my lips, or my ears.

Unsure, I instruct the waiter to bring me
the lobster. Luka orders a surf-and-turf of steak and shrimp, and a crab dip
appetizer for us to share. I shake my head, not believing this is my life right
now. I am being swept away on Luka’s tide of magnanimity.

Which sends red flags waving wildly
across my vision, because girls like me don’t get swept away. Girls like me get
what we work for, what we earn. I’m not the girl who gets to be with Prince
Charming at the end of the story. I’m more like Cinderella before she gets to
go to the ball.

“So, Cam,” Luka says. “Why did it take us
until senior year to get together like this?”

I shrug. “I don’t know, Luka, you tell
me.”

“I’ve always noticed you, you know. You
dance at all my games. You’re a star in all of those dance performances you
guys do. I think I was just too nervous to say anything to you. The guys at
school think you’re…unattainable.”

My eyebrows rise again. My forehead is beginning
to ache from all the sudden moves my eyebrows are making. “Unattainable?”

“Yeah, like no one has ever seen you with
a boyfriend, so everyone assumes you don’t want one. You sort of glide above
everything at school. Dara was the same way. But Brandon was brave enough to
get past all that. His bravery inspired me.”

“Well, that’s about the stupidest thing
I’ve ever heard,” I reply, calmly taking a sip of my drink.

Luka laughs out loud. “Point taken. But
that’s what everyone thinks.
 
That
you’re above it all.”

“And what do you think, Luka?”

He studies me. “I think I’m lucky to be
sitting across from you right now.” He reaches out and takes my hand across the
table.

I feel my face grow warm. “I think I’m
the lucky one.”

I’m thankful our food arrives before I
have to interpret the look that flashes in his eyes.

As we eat, we talk about school, our
families, and just about everything else. I feel comfortable enough to tell
Luka about my mom and our apartment, but I don’t talk about my absentee dad. The
candle on our table burns lower, and when dinner is finished, I feel like I
really know Luka Caliper.

Better than I have ever known any boy.

He does well in his classes at school,
and has been playing basketball since he was seven. He’s on track for a
scholarship to a really good school. He adores his ten-year old little sister,
and he attends church every Sunday. I start to think Luka is too perfect.

In my experience, if something seems too
good to be true, it just is.

“Well that was delicious,” he says,
wiping his hands on the napkin that lay in his lap.

“It was the best seafood I’ve ever had,”
I admit.

“Now what?” he asks, standing and
stretching.

“Um,” I stammer. “Dinner is over. Don’t
you want to go home?”

“Not really in a hurry for this date to
end,” he answers, looking into my eyes.

Wow
.

“Well, since we’re down here at the
oceanfront…we could go for a walk,” I suggest.

“A walk it is,” he says, seeming pleased.
He leaves the tip on the table and places his hand on my lower back to guide me
toward the exit.

***

Luka pulls his SUV up to my building and
kills the engine. As he opens his car door, I place a hand on his arm.

“Hey,” I say. “Thank you so much for
dinner. This was really fun.”

“It was,” he replies. “And now I’m going
to walk you inside.”

“You don’t have to,” I smile at his
chivalry. He’s proven to me the practice definitely isn’t dead, even among
teenage boys.

“Actually, I do,” he replies. “I haven’t
met your mom yet, since I picked you up from school.”

“Oh yeah? You want to meet my mom after
one date?” I smile, teasing him.

He grins, exiting the car. He walks
around, and opens my door for me. “After you, Princess,” he says, gesturing
grandly.

When we reach my front door, I turn to
Luka. “Thank you for walking me to my door, but you can’t meet my mom right
now.”

“Why not?”

“Because she’s not here. She works third
shift four nights a week.” I study the welcome mat, knowing he won’t
understand.

“You mean there’s no one home right now?
But it’s almost midnight!” Disbelief clouds his expression.

“I know. It’s fine. She’ll be home in a
few hours.”

“Cam! I’m not letting you stay here by
yourself.”

I level my gaze at him, feeling fiery.
Who does this boy think he is? I don’t need to be rescued.

“Luka, I stay by myself at night all the
time. I’ll be fine. My mom will be home in a few hours. I’m just going to go to
bed.”

He looks at me with eyes just as steely
as mine. “I’m staying. You can go in and close the door if you want. I’ll just
sit down out here until your mom gets home.”

I sigh, exasperated. “Just come in then,
if you’re going to be that stubborn.”

He accompanies me into the apartment, and
I close the door behind him.

I gesture toward our threadbare couch.
“Sit. I’ll get us something to drink.”

I walk the ten feet to the refrigerator
and pull out two sodas. Luka takes one, and smiles at me.

“I guess since we’re here, we might as
well take advantage of the situation…”

I stare at him, one eyebrow raised.
“Luka—“

“And watch a movie,” he finishes. His
eyes crinkle in the corners and his mouth twitches.

I laugh. “A movie. Okay.” I turn on the
TV, flipping through channels until I find a Lifetime movie.

Luka groans.

“You’re the one who insisted on coming in
to babysit me. Now you can watch what I want, or you can exit to the left.” I
grab a blanket and snuggle under it.