Sanctuary Bay (5 page)

“Oh,” Sarah said. “Uh … sucks for them, I guess.” Though she couldn't imagine many better places to live than this, it seemed like it was trendy to complain about being stuck on the island.

“We should head to dinner,” Karina said. “The dining hall is a ways behind the main building. It's not far, but it gets cold at night, so grab a jacket.”

Sarah wondered if she'd get to the point where Karina's mothering would piss her off. Right now she actually appreciated being told what to do. And she was glad both her roommates seemed to assume they'd be eating together, at least tonight. For once, she was at a new school where she wouldn't have to figure out where it was acceptable for her to sit in the cafeteria. Accidentally sitting in someone's regular seat wasn't a good way to introduce herself.

Izzy moved out of the doorway to let Sarah and Karina into the bedroom. Sarah's suitcase and backpack had disappeared from where she'd put them on her bed. “Oh, I unpacked for you,” Karina said, following her gaze. A hot burst of anger mixed with shame shot through Sarah. Who did this girl think she was?

She took a deep breath in, and let it out slowly. If she followed Nate's advice to not judge, she would just accept that Karina was being friendly.

“Which I told her was
completely
inappropriate,” Izzy said, reading Sarah's expression. She sat in her desk chair and smiled. “That being said, I want your leather jacket.”

Sarah was confused. Her leather jacket? The one she bought for six bucks at Goodwill without even switching tags? Izzy stood up and opened her closet. It was stuffed. She flicked through the hangers and pulled out a gray sweater, holding it out to Sarah.

It took less than a second for Sarah to place it—she'd seen that sweater in a magazine at the library. She could picture the entire page layout, the headline, and each item shown. This sweater had been worn by an Asian model with her hair in a high ponytail. The text next to the photo said, “Alexander Wang. Chunky open-knit cardigan. $625.”

Sarah sank down onto her bed. People actually bought things like that? One sweater for hundreds of dollars? She'd always assumed the clothes in magazines belonged to movie stars only, not regular humans.

“Trade?” Izzy asked.

“You don't have to if you don't want to,” Karina said. “But we're always trading stuff here. It's one of the few ways to get new things before package day.”

Sarah frowned, trying to think it through. Trade her six-buck jacket for a six-hundred-and-twenty dollar sweater. Was it some kind of pity move? Or would it turn out to be a trick?

“My jacket's from Goodwill,” she said. What was the point in trying to pretend she wasn't poor as dirt? They'd seen her stuff. They knew. “It would take about a hundred of those jackets to make a decent trade for that sweater.”

“Right, it's vintage,” Izzy replied.

“I used to love finding great vintage stuff.” Karina checked her cell as she spoke. “There was this great place, the Super Thrift Store in North Hollywood, that I'd go to. My mom hated when I'd come home with anything. She was afraid the clothes would have bedbugs.”

“The jacket has a stain on the sleeve,” Sarah told Izzy.

“What you mean is that it's
distressed
.” Karina plopped down next to Sarah. “Make her give you two sweaters. Boston thinks she'll look like a badass in it.”

“Let me try it on at least,” Izzy said. “And for the record, I am a badass, in whatever I happen to be wearing.”

“Fine.” Sarah gestured toward the closet, keeping her expression neutral. Izzy opened it. A lot more hangers than clothes.

Izzy slipped on the jacket and buttoned it. It was big on her. On Sarah too. It was a men's, sort of in the style of a blazer. Izzy didn't look like a thug in it. It actually looked great on her. Not quite as loose as on Sarah because of the boobs, and the black leather made her hair look even blonder.

Karina pointed at her. “Yes to the dress!”

“I don't always listen to Karina, because, really, who can with her output, but I do listen to her on fashion. So, trade?” Izzy asked.

“Trade,” Sarah agreed. Maybe it was pity, Izzy being charitable. But maybe she actually wanted the jacket. Even if she was trying to give Sarah something nice, that didn't have to mean she was patronizing her. Being cautious, questioning motives, that had been part of surviving in the old world, but not here.

Izzy tossed her the sweater. It was so soft in her hands that it made her want to press it against her cheek. She shrugged off the urge, pulling it on. $625. $625. $625! Nothing was that soft or pretty. She shot a glance at herself in the long mirror. The sweater did something to the plain navy tee and khakis. It made them into an “outfit.”

“Yes to the dress,” Karina said again, smiling at Sarah. “Now let's go. I'm starving.” She put on her own jacket. It looked a little military, with double rows of buttons running from the waist up and epaulets on the shoulders. Sarah might not know what to call the room downstairs, but epaulets she knew.

“Do you have your cell?” Karina asked.

“In my pocket. Do I need it for something?” Sarah asked. It wasn't like anyone had the number. She realized she didn't even know it. She'd have to get it off the phone later.

“You need it for everything,” Izzy said. “Just like your smartphone.”

Yeah, right. Just like that thing she'd never had. They'd seen her clothes and shoes and even her ratty underwear, but they still didn't get it. The fact that there existed people who couldn't afford phones had probably never occurred to either one of them. The unfairness of that sent a rush of anger through her, and she had to struggle to let it go. Maybe it would get easier.

Izzy led the way down to the first floor.
She's the alpha dog,
Sarah decided. Izzy was quieter, but Karina seemed eager for people to like her and Izzy didn't seem like she cared, which gave her the upper hand. Not that she was mean or anything. She'd been completely cool and friendly to Sarah, and she and Karina seemed to get along really well. But, yeah, Izzy was alpha, and Sarah wouldn't try to change that. It was always safest to let the power stay where it was.

They were right about it getting cold at night. When they stepped outside, Sarah was really glad she was wearing the sweater. In Ohio, September was one of the hottest months, but not here. She was also glad the path that led across the huge back lawn had small lights running along either side. Because it was dark, even with the lights emanating from the school. No streetlights out here. No cars driving by with headlights shining. The stars were brighter though, piercingly bright.

“Tonight there's hot caramel custard soup as one of the desserts. I know soup dessert sounds gross, but it is sooo good. You have to try it,” Karina said.

“You realize you're treating Sarah like either she's five or she's a puppy. I'm still trying to decide which,” Izzy teased.

“I'm sorry!” Karina immediately said. “I wasn't trying to be all controlling or whatever. It's just you're new, so you don't know about the dessert or how cold it gets or any of that.”

“It's all good,” Sarah reassured her, and realized she meant it. “You've both been great. Fixing up my part of the room and taking me with you tonight, and the banner. Everything.”

“Awwww. You're welcome.” Karina beamed.

“Everyone's going to want to hang with you,” Izzy replied. “You have to understand how incredibly sick we are of each other, at least some of the time.”

“Other new kids started at the beginning of the semester, didn't they?”

“Well, yeah. But mostly first years, so that doesn't count,” Izzy said.

“Especially first-year boys,” Karina chimed in. “Most of them are shorter than me. And that's short. And anyway, the difference between a fourteen-year-old and a seventeen-year-old, even not counting that girls are so much more mature, is ridiculous. I should think of who to introduce you to. I think Brian and Emma just split and—” She stopped midsentence. “I'm doing it again. I'm going to stop.” She grinned at Sarah. “Unless you want my help finding a guy.”

“Maybe later,” Sarah answered. A guy was the last thing she needed to add to the mix. She was on sensory overload already.

“Karina can't believe anyone would want to be single for even a day,” Izzy said.

“Why be single when you can be in love?” Karina countered. “Ethan makes everything better. Bad things aren't as bad, and good things are awesome.”

“What kind of insane drugs does Ethan impart?” Izzy asked.

“Our roommate here doesn't like my boyfriend. But that's because she refuses to get to know him,” Karina told Sarah.

“I know enough,” Izzy shot back.

It was the first time an exchange between them had any kind of edge. Sarah wondered if there was history there, something that had happened between Izzy and the boyfriend. Had he hit on her or something? Or could Izzy have some kind of secret crush on him she was overcompensating for?

“We're here,” Karina said, as they reached the door of a building at the edge of the woods; it looked like mostly pine trees from here. The dining hall was built out of logs, appearing almost like it had grown naturally from the ground.

Sarah thought she'd seen enough to stop expecting the school to be anything like what she'd seen in Ohio. Still, she'd thought a cafeteria was a cafeteria. Long tables. Fluorescent lights. Kind of a faint sour smell, and a stronger disinfectant smell.

Not here. It was like a restaurant with cozy booths and small tables, and low lighting. It smelled like pine needles and polished wood and good food. The center of the room was dominated by a fire pit on a circle of the same rocks that made up the jetty. A copper hood caught the light of the flames.

“Maya and Taylor are already here,” Karina announced, waving. “I asked a couple of friends to eat with us, so you could meet some people,” she added to Sarah. “Do I need to apologize again?” she asked Izzy, speaking all in a rush the way she always did.

Izzy laughed. “You're being Karina. You shouldn't have to apologize for that.”

“Good. Guilt makes my stomach hurt, and I'm hungry.”

They wove around the tables heading toward a long buffet. Sarah was conscious of a lot of curious glances, some more obvious than others. She was tempted to throw her arms wide, spin in a circle, and tell them to get all their looking over with at once. But she didn't. Obviously. First day, make that first weeks, you laid low, took in everything you could, tried to figure out how things worked, and didn't call attention to yourself—at all.

She picked up a china plate from one end of the buffet table and studied the array of food. Not the pasta, she decided. She loved shrimp and hardly ever got to have it, but pasta was messy. She wasn't going to end up in front of a bunch of strangers with a noodle sliding down her chin. She went with the meatloaf instead.

“They serve drinks at the table,” Karina said when they reached the end of the buffet. “And the desserts will be out in about half an hour.”

Sarah got what felt like her hundredth introduction when they sat down at the big circular booth in the corner. Taylor—white, sandy brown hair in a smooth ponytail, the kind of makeup that looked like no makeup, just natural flawless skin—was a junior too. She'd also chosen the meatloaf, and was eating it with chopsticks. Was that a thing? Was Sarah supposed to be doing that? She did a quick table check, but she and Taylor were the only ones eating it, so she couldn't be sure.

“What's with that?” Izzy asked, nodding toward the chopsticks. Okay, so it wasn't a thing.

“I heard if you eat with chopsticks, you'll naturally lose weight. It's because you eat smaller bites, so you eat slower and that gets your digestive juices flowing,” Taylor explained. “I'm definitely eating more slowly.”

“I'm sure your roommates will appreciate you switching over from the scarf and barf method,” Izzy commented, raising an eyebrow. She took a big forkful of her pasta and didn't drop any on her chin.

“So, Sarah, you met with the dean, right? Did you figure out your class schedule?” Maya asked, shooting Izzy a disapproving look. It didn't seem to have any effect on Izzy. Sarah wondered what it would feel like to be that kind of girl. She didn't want to care about being approved of, but it made life workable. Survivable.

“We figured out a tentative one,” Sarah answered. “But she said I could make changes if I needed to, once I got a feel for the classes.” The dean had set up another meeting with Sarah after her first week to talk about if her classes were what she'd called “challenging and stimulating enough.” At her old schools, the only time Sarah had talked to a principal was if she was in trouble.

“What are they? Maybe we have some with you,” Maya said.

Sarah started listing the classes she'd be taking. “Ethan's in that one!” Karina exclaimed when she got to Advanced Chemistry. “Want me to have him send you his notes?”

“Sure. That would be great, especially since everyone's already weeks ahead of me.”

Karina pulled out her cell. “Text Ethan,” she told it, then left a message about the notes.

“I can give you my American Renaissance Lit notes,” Maya volunteered.

“Thanks,” Sarah said. Was this more of Maya's student government welcome? Or were people really just that nice here? Izzy was the only one who had shown even a little edge.

“On it.” Maya pulled her own cell out of her purse. “Send Sarah all American Renaissance notes,” she instructed it. “The cells are connected to our laptops,” she told Sarah.

“Sarah Perlberg or Sarah Merson?” a smooth female electronic voice asked.

“Merson,” Maya told it. “They'll be there pretty much now,” she told Sarah.