Somewhere in the Middle (9 page)

"All right. Everybody back inside." Mrs. Collier, school secretary,
was so close that I startled. "The ballroom's clear." I realized that
several chaperones had come out to shoo us back in and were now rounding
up couples hidden all over the lawn. "Hurry along now."

Before we could get to the terrace, the music began to blare again. I
guess I winced or something.

"Have we done our time?" Roone asked.

"And then some, in my opinion. Unless you want to stay...?"

"No."

"Then come on. We'll need to thank the chaperones and tell Dayna and
Gavin we're leaving."

Roone followed me to the chaperone area, where we politely chatted up
the teachers and spouses who'd come and told them how appreciative we
were. Then I caught Dayna's eyes and pointed to the door before giving
her a wave. She pouted, but nodded permission I wasn't asking for.

For the first time that night, I saw Sid, who'd never looked so
handsome. His immaculate black tux gave him what I called
star
quality
, as in he could've stood on a stage in Italy and belted out
an aria. If he could sing a note, which he couldn't. His talents
definitely lay elsewhere.

Sid didn't seem to be with anyone in particular, but stood with a
group of friends and appeared completely at ease. When he spotted us, he
gestured to show he had his eye on my sparkly dress and gave me a thumbs
up, an opinion I actually valued.

The moment Roone and I got into my car, I kicked off my shoes. If just
two dances were making my feet hurt this much, I definitely should've
played it smart and gone with flats or, better yet, sneakers. Roone
started the car and drove it from the parking lot. I let him drive for a
while before I impulsively redirected him. It was early yet, and I just
wasn't ready for Dad's inquisition. Roone followed my directions without
questioning them, so we wound up at a rocky overlook I loved.

Living on the Cumberland Plateau of northern Alabama meant we had some
nice mountains, if not the sky-scraping Rockies. My favorite spot was
located on a craggy bluff that was perfect for sky gazing. Determined to
avoid further damage to my feet, I subjected them to a different type of
torture by walking barefoot from the gravel parking area through some
trees to a giant rock that overlooked a valley. Roone shook his head the
whole way, which was only a matter of yards, no doubt wondering just how
crazy his un-girlfriend really was.

But when we got where we were going, he did just what I did--instantly
forget the cold. By then I had his jacket draped over my shoulders. I sat
on the jutting rock. He sat next to me. We eyed the heavens stretched out
before us, a canopy of night sky and windswept storm clouds that teased
us with fleeting glimpses of starlight.

Click!

"I feel like I could reach out and pick that star like a flower," I
said, pointing to the one and only we could see at the moment.

"What would you do with it?"

"Keep it in a wishing jar."

Roone smiled at me. "And what would you wish for?"

"I'm not sure yet. World peace?"

"World peace works."

"Or maybe a cure for every disease that's incurable."

"That works, too."

"Or maybe free pit tickets to a Linkin Park concert."

That made him laugh.

"Do you like them?"

"Who?"

"Linkin Park." I reached over to untie his tie and unbutton the top
button of his crisp white shirt.

He swept his forefinger around the front of his neck to widen the
opening I'd made. "I'm assuming that's a band...?"

Hm. "Into country music, are you?"

"Y-yes?"

"Classic or country rock?"

He just looked at me.

I sighed. The boy had definitely been living under a rock before he
moved to McAlister. I tactfully changed the subject. "I love everything
to do with outer space. When I was typing your dad's theory, I couldn't
help but think how cool it would be if he was right. Imagine a
wormhole--" I gave him a half smile "--or 'cosmic kobling,' as he calls them, that
would take us from here to someplace we never imagined existed."

"That would be very, very cool."

"Wouldn't it? There's this show on one of the Discovery channels that
I totally love called 'Through the Wormhole.' Morgan Freeman is the
host." Surely he'd heard of Freeman.

Roone nodded as if he had.

"In one episode, he talked about parallel worlds, which are unproven
at this time, but entirely possible, at least according to many
physicists, your dad included, obviously."

"Apparently you've picked the right major. Do you come here a
lot?"

"Yes."

"Ever see anything besides this?" He swept his arm to encompass the
sky.

"The moon?"

Roone grinned. Was he...relieved?

"And occasional lightning in the distance." Suddenly remembering a
night like tonight, I grabbed his shirt sleeve. "One night back in July
or August I saw the most incredible lightshow ever. The clouds in that
part of the sky?" I pointed to the east. "They were so dense and colored
so weirdly that it looked like the Earth was rising up to meet the
lightning. I tried to catch it on my iPhone, but some clouds moved in and
hid everything--"

"So you didn't get a picture of it?" Roone's voice sounded oddly
strained.

"No. Too dark." I shivered and then blinked when a single snowflake
landed right in my eye.

Roone actually startled as if remembering something. "Are your feet
cold?"

"Past cold into frozen so hard my toes might snap off." I expected
Roone to suggest that we leave. Instead, he slid off the rock, squatted
in front of me, and began rubbing some warmth into my feet with his
decidedly toasty fingers. And I'd just walked barefoot from the car! I
pulled them back. "My feet are too dirty for that."

"Your feet are fine."

"We should go." Gulp.

"Oh! Okay." He stood, frowning slightly.

"You're not one bit cold, are you?"

"
I'm
wearing shoes."

"Yeah, but..." Standing, I touched his nose, his cheek, and his neck,
the only parts of him exposed to the elements besides his hands, which
I'd already felt. All just as warm.

He could tell I was surprised. "I, er, run a little hot."

"Apparently. Too bad I don't." I turned toward the car, but before I
could take a single step, Roone swept me into his arms. "Whoa!"

"Don't want you to lose any of those adorable toes to frostbite."

That was okay by me. Being carried by Roone was a decidedly heady
experience--as in I'd never felt so feminine--and I wasn't about to
complain even if my toes were far from adorable. When we got to my car,
he let me open it and then set me inside. I thanked him for the ride with
a voice that shook.

Random flakes of snow turned into more by the time we got halfway to
my house. They swirled in the headlights, none of them sticking to
anything at the moment. I put on my shoes before I got out of the car to
avoid questions from my parents. We walked to my front door together. I
handed him his jacket.

I glanced at my watch--just ten-thirty. "Coming in?"

"Uh... Sure."

Was he simply being polite? He definitely had the most astounding
manners I'd ever seen in a teenage boy. "You don't have to. But my big
brother is home now, and I wanted you to meet him."

"I'd like to."

He put on his jacket as we went inside. I led the way to the den,
where my entire family was bowling with the Wii. They all looked toward
the door when we stepped into the room. "Cory, this is my friend Roone
Thorsen. Roone, Cory. Have a seat. I'm going to change clothes."

Just as I headed down the hall, I heard my dad grilling my
un-boyfriend about the dance. "You're back so soon? How was it?"

The moment I got to my room, I kicked off my shoes and slipped out of
the dress. What a relief it was to put on jeans and a sweatshirt, not to
mention my fuzzy house shoes. I felt a pang of remorse that Roone
wouldn't be as comfortable, but assumed he wouldn't be at the house long
enough for that to matter. I mean, we'd made an appearance at the dance,
which was our sole goal for the night.

I next took down my up-do, pulling out all the pins I could find and
then bending over to shake my hair out, which put a few more pins on the
floor. After tossing aside my dangly earrings, I headed back down the
hall to the den where I found Dad and Cory arguing about football.

Roone, who was listening intently, didn't say much. I had to wonder
why. What male didn't have an opinion about sports? Was he staying
politely out of it? Or was he clueless? I had no trouble believing the
latter, which had me wondering. Any guy with a body like his had to be
into something athletic.

Mom jumped up and gave me a hug. "I can't believe that chandelier
fell! Tonight of all nights. You could've been killed."

"Me and a bunch of other dancers." I so wanted to add
Roone saved
us all.
But was I really sure of that? Thinking back, I couldn't be.
It all happened so fast.

"Will you play Mickey with me?" Eli asked Roone when he could get in a
word edgewise.

"I don't know how."

Should I rescue him? I wondered. Though I probably should, I held off.
I wanted to know if he was familiar with video games.

"It's easy. I'll show you."

Eli expertly changed out the game and handed Roone a control. Noting
his blank look, Eli then explained the remote and rules of play. Moments
later they began the Disney game called
The Power of Two
featuring
Mickey Mouse and Oswald the Rabbit on an adventure in Wasteland. Since
I'd played the game countless times and knew it was fun for all ages, I
only worried a little that Roone was bored. I shouldn't have worried at
all. In seconds my two favorite guys in the world were totally
engrossed.

Click!

And though Roone quickly caught on, Eli easily outmaneuvered him.
After a third game, Roone laid down the control with obvious regret.
"You're too good at this, and I really need to go."

Eli turned his yawn into a protest that Mom quickly cut off. "It's
late, buddy."

"Way past your bedtime for sure," said Dad, assuming the father role.
He stood and offered Roone a handshake. "Thanks for taking care of my
daughter tonight. We've enjoyed having you over. Come back anytime."

While Roone murmured goodbyes all around, I walked to the door of the
den. We headed to the front door together and stepped onto the tiny
porch.

I saw that he'd taken his tie completely off and stuck it in his
pocket at some point, but had kept his jacket on even though everyone had
offered to hang it up for him at least once. "I had a really nice
time."

"But we only danced twice," he said.

"Doesn't matter. It was still fun."

"Yeah. It was."

Was he going to kiss me? I waited, admittedly half hoping, but he
simply took a step back and turned to go down the steps. I waved. "See
you Monday. I'll be at your house around eight."

"Okay." With an answering wave he was on the move. Shortly after, his
car started, and he left.

Since I was one big goose bump again, I went back inside. But I
avoided the den full of family or tried to. Cory, just stepping out of
the bathroom, met me in the hall.

"Roone's cool."

"I know."

"But just a friend?"

"Yeah." I explained our charade.

"Well that sucks swamp water."

"Doesn't it?" I winced. "I didn't mean that like it sounded."

Cory flashed a grin. "Uh-huh. Be careful, Everloo. Love just might
sneak up and bite you on the ass."

I flipped him off and went to my room where I plopped down on my bed
in the dark. I lay there on my back for the longest time staring at the
snow swirling around the security light outside my window, my mind full
of that night's events.

The dance had been shockingly bearable thanks to Roone and that crazy
chandelier. And since I couldn't stop thinking about it, I dreamed about
it, too, once I showered and went to bed. Well, sort of, anyway. In my
dream, Roone was a magician in a Mickey Mouse sorcerer's apprentice robe
and star-studded wizard's hat. He openly manipulated a giant prism of
light by moving his raised arms all around. While that made total sense
in the context of my dream, the moment I woke up and remembered it, I
burst out laughing.

Still...I had to wonder if there wasn't a measure of truth in it. I'd
seen Roone move his hand in the same direction that chandelier swung,
defying laws of gravity that should've resulted in it falling straight
down. What force had shifted it? A human one? If so, that human was
unlike every other human my world had ever known.

At least so far.

On Sunday I felt a little lost and without a clue why. It wasn't until
I caught Cory's moves from the corner of my eye and turned expecting to
see another guy that I realized what was going on. I missed Roone. I
actually missed Roone. How odd. It wasn't as if we'd spent enough time
together for me to. In truth, if I'd added up all the minutes we were in
proximity, I still wouldn't have a whole day. Nonetheless, he'd somehow
become a rock-solid fixture in my existence, and I wanted to see or at
least talk to him.

Around noon, I called my father's mother to see if she needed me to
make a Walmart run, thinking I'd swing by Roone's house when I made it.
But she didn't. And it wasn't until an hour later that I found an excuse
to get out. I spotted Thorsen's handwritten pages, which I'd forgotten to
return. I thought of simply calling to say I'd get them to him, but nixed
that, choosing instead to drive to his house right then and hand over his
originals.

But not before I put on my nicest jeans and a fairly new Old Navy
hoodie. I also fixed my face and pulled back my hair in a ponytail that I
stuck through the hole in the back of a Crimson Tide cap. A squirt of
Mom's best perfume came last. After telling Cory where I was headed and
promising not to stay long--he told me he had a date later--I left.