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Authors: S.E. Akers

Talisman (8 page)

BOOK: Talisman
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My perfect vision was interrupted by a classic “I know what you were doing” smack to the shoulder from Katie to my right and Mike’s arrogant rear plopping his butt into the seat to my left. 
Perfect
, I grumbled as I kept my eyes straight ahead.  Neither of us acknowledged the other with even so much as a crappy-look.  We seemed to be on the same page —
ignore each other
.


Any day now,” Ms. Fitzpatrick announced, trying to hurry the remaining stragglers to take their seats.

Kristine Fitzpatrick, also called “Ms. Fitz” by many of us, was one of my favorite teachers.  I think she
earned her Master’s degree from an Ivy League school up north.  How she ended up here, I had no idea — or
why
she would even want to?  Today, she was way more dressed up than usual, wearing a stylish, double-breasted red suit that accented her brown skin tone perfectly.  You couldn’t help but notice all her jewelry either.  I’d seen Christmas trees with less bling.  To top it off, she had even darkened her make-up several shades and was sporting a sleek new hairstyle too.  I wasn’t the only one who had noticed.  Someone blew a catcall towards the front of the room.

“Ms. Fitz, you sure look nice today,” Marcus Patterson, one of our football team’s tight ends, called out.  Several other students chimed in, whistling at her in agreement.


Flattery
won’t get a single one of you an A on this test,” Ms. Fitzpatrick insisted.  “
But
…It might get you a few bonus points,” she added with a smile.

“What’s with the
new
look?” Kara Leighton asked.

“Not that it’s
any
of your business, but an old friend of mine from college is coming to town, and I’m meeting them for coffee later,” Ms. Fitz explained.

“Is it a girl friend or a
guy
friend?” Kara pried, batting her eyes.

Ms. Fitzpatrick began to blush.  “It’s a
guy
friend, but that’s all he is — a dear, old
friend
,” she insisted over several of her student’s giggles.  “Books away and pencils out people,” she demanded, attempting to end our interrogation.  “Good luck.  If you haven’t studied…you’re going to
need it
.”

Fortunately, I wasn’t one of those people.  I jotted down my name, Sh
y
loh Wallace, at the top of the first page and got right to work.  I breezed through the questions, and after writing a detailed summary of the characteristics of various igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks, I walked up to Ms. Fitzpatrick’s desk and handed her my exam.

“I’m not surprised,”
Ms. Fitzpatrick remarked with a grin.

I smile
d back and returned to my seat with a good fifteen minutes left to kill.  I couldn’t let my thoughts dwell on the mine, so I grabbed my Geology book and started reading the next chapter.  The bell rang before too long,
thankfully
.  Katie had just handed in her test and was returning to her seat.

“I’ll meet you in the
Caf,” Katie called out.

I confi
rmed our plans with a quick nod and then hurried down to the second floor where my locker was located.  It was uncomfortably close to Mike’s, especially today.  I’d successfully avoided a conversation with him last period, but I knew he would be along soon.  I still couldn’t stomach the idea of a face-to-face about “the dance”.  Chloe could fill me in on any pending details later.  In the midst of my frantic rush to dodge him, I dropped all the books I was scrambling to put away. 
Crap!

I tried to gather them up as quickly as possible
when I heard a hostile male voice say, “We need to
talk
.”

I saw a pair of black Asics with white piping and looked up.  There
, standing above me was the
jackass
, in the flesh.  Disappointed and defeated, I rose up and pitched the last book in my locker.

“What about, Mike?”
I replied, pretending to be puzzled.


Look
…I know Chloe has already filled you in on our proposed
date
,” Mike countered.  “I really don’t care.  I’d
rather
go by myself, but my parents are insisting I go with someone…
Anyone
,” he stressed, nostrils flaring.  “Just don’t embarrass me.  I’ll pick you up around 7 o’clock, so be ready.  None of this keep-me-waiting-because-you’re-not-ready ‘girl-crap’. 
Got it?
” Mike demanded and then smugly strutted off down the hall.

I slammed my locker shut and gave the combination lock a quick spin clockwise. 
I’m sacrificing my Saturday night to spend it with an asshole
, I raged to myself. 
To help out two ungrateful witches!

My “selfless act” had
already lost its luster and was in no way giving me the warm & fuzzies any more.  I stormed off down the hall towards the cafeteria to meet up with Katie.  I wasn’t the least bit hungry.  I didn’t know if it was because I’d eaten such a big breakfast or if my stomach was flipping around full of worry over the situation with the mine. 
Probably a little of both, with an added touch of nausea about the dance — and my “date”
, I thought as I yanked open the cafeteria door. 
Yeah, he’s a regular “Prince Charming” all right!

The scene in the lunchroom
seemed markedly amiss.  Everyone was huddled into his or her cliques like always, but the room was relatively quiet — almost “focused” — not the least bit lively like it usually was. Even the teachers were gathered around a large table near the back, engrossed in their hushed conversations.  Each and every one of them looked extremely apprehensive, and I didn’t need three guesses “why”.

I felt a tap on my shoulder.

“How’d you do on the test, Shi?” a familiar and stirring voice asked.

A warm
sensation tingled my entire body, which forced my eyes to ignite.  I whipped around to see Tyler Smith standing there, smiling back at me.  My stomach flipped, but I knew that reaction wasn’t because I was thinking about the fate of any ’ole coal mine.

“I think I did
pretty
well,” I replied humbly.

There was something quite fine about Ty
ler Smith.  It wasn’t his sculptured physique (of course, that didn’t hurt), or even the way his eyes glistened whenever he smiled.  That only forced me to remember to breathe.  The fact that he made straight A’s and cared about his grades was merely a perk.  Truthfully, it was because with all that going for him, he was still so down-to-earth and radiated this indescribable gentle kind of confidence.  That’s what pulled my trigger.  Realistically, Ty could be as cocky as Mike Riverside, if he wanted to be —
but he wasn’t
.  Ty had a compassionate side, too.  He volunteered with Helping Hands, a group that assisted the handicapped on the weekends.  I stood there in a slight daze, totally envying Kara Leighton while I stared at the handsome, quintessential boy-next-door.  They were clearly polar opposites.

I just don’t freakin’ get it,
I grumbled quietly.

“I’m sure you did better than
‘pretty well’,” Ty vowed with a certain laugh.  “You probably destroyed the curve for everyone else.”

“You won’t need to rely on a curve,” I countered. 
As thrilling as it was to have Ty’s full attention, I found myself scanning the cafeteria, distracted by its nagging vibe.

“Ty…
is it me, or does it seem a little weird around here to you, too?” I asked.

“You could say that.  Everyone’s gossiping about the mine, including the faculty.  Ms. Fitz got a makeover. 
But my personal favorite, which I just heard a second ago, is that
you
are going to the Homecoming dance…
with Mike
.  I’d say our town is heading for a redneck apocalypse.”

My eyes
shot open.  There was a strange look dancing on Ty’s face — no doubt about it — but I couldn’t quite tell if it was disbelief or
disgust
.  Embarrassed, I chose to focus on his first observation.

“Yeah, I guess no matter who you are in this town, the fate of the mine will be your own, in a sense.”  I
scanned the hushed sea of gathered masses in the lunchroom.  I didn’t want to be reminded of this all day, so I rallied to continue the conversation.  “Personally, I like Ms. Fitz’s new look.  If an old friend of mine was in town, I suppose I would want to look a little nicer, too.”

“You’re right,”
Ty concurred, “about the mine…and Ms. Fitz.”  He stepped closer.  “But that doesn’t explain why
YOU
are going to the dance…with
Mike
.  What’s up with
THAT?

Clearly, Ty wasn’t letting this topic go.
  Honestly, it was none of his business, but for some reason I felt the need to mount a defense.

“I’m only doing it for
Chloe
.  His mother won’t hear of him going stag…and let’s just say, my little sister trusts her girlfriends about as far as she can throw them.”

Ugh
.  I felt icky enough about “the favor”.  I sure didn’t need the awkwardness of someone bringing it up to me purposely — especially Tyler “I’ve had a crush on him forever” Smith.  I happened to spot Katie by the vending machines and waved her over.

“Hey, there’s Katie.  I was supposed to meet her here a few minutes ago,” I
informed him, trying to dodge any further questions. 
Why the heck should it matter to him anyway?

Katie
strutted over to us, grinning from ear to ear.  She tossed a Diet Coke my way, along with a discreet, sly grin.  “Hey, Ty…Are you
joining us?
  I saved a couple of seats over by the back windows,” Katie suggested and gave me a subtle nudge.


Um…
No
,” Ty insisted awkwardly.  “I’m heading for the fountain.”  During lunchtime (on any day of a fair-weathered week), all the senior football players as well as most of the cheerleaders could be found in the school’s courtyard hanging around “the fountain” — their
sacred
ground.

Katie shrugged her shoulder
s.  “Okay…Suit yourself.”

“Yeah, Katie…
um
, bye, Shiloh,” Ty replied somewhat uncertainly.

What happened next was nothing short
of bizarre.  He had told us “bye”, but his body didn’t seem to be going anywhere.  I nodded back to him, leery about why he hadn’t moved.  Ty picked up on my confusion.  He started to walk off, but he stopped and then slowly turned back around.

“I
didn’t know you…
liked dances
,” Ty announced and then blazed a trail through the cafeteria, headed for the exit.

“What the heck was
THAT?
” Katie inquired with a laugh-like gasp.

I was stunned.  “I’m not
exactly
sure.”  After all, he was Kara’s “boyfriend”.  At least it appeared that way last night at the Drive-In.  I hadn’t heard any rumors of a break-up.  “You don’t think
Ty
wanted to ask
me
to the dance…
Do you?”
  I could hardly say it out loud, let alone think it.

Katie smacked me on the head. 
“You think?”
  She grabbed my hand and led me over to the one of the seats she’d saved.

I
lowered myself into the padded chair in daze.  As I replayed Ty’s comment in my head, I couldn’t help but wonder,
If he wanted to ask me to the dance, then why the heck didn’t he?
  I pondered that one simple question, over and over in silence, while I sipped on my Diet Coke.

I
’d heard Katie’s voice calling me, but my mind was helplessly adrift.  I snapped out of my trance as soon as she pressed her icy soda can against my arm.

“Oh, I’m sorry, Katie.  What did you say?”

“You’re intimidating,” Katie replied casually.

Confused,
I looked at her like she’d lost her mind. “
What?
  What are you talking about?”

Katie cleared her throat. 
“You’re sitting there thinking, ‘Why didn’t he ask me to the dance?’ and I’m telling you — it’s because you’re kind of
intimidating
.”

“That’s ridiculous!” I laughed.

“Oh,
is it?
” Katie posed with an arched brow.  “Well,
let’s see
— for starters, you’re super smart, and your kindness goes without saying.  Your only flaw is your own guilt, which is probably why you can’t say ‘no’ to anyone.  You don’t care what
anyone
thinks about you.  You run around town, sportin’ your college sweatshirts and jeans, without any makeup on, your hair in the same old ponytail you’ve had since kindergarten, and you hardly ever wear perfume — while the rest of us spend hours trying to pull ourselves together, mind you. 
With all that
, you’re still one of the most naturally beautiful girls around.  It’s rather
sickening
,” Katie added as she snarled her nose and grinned.  “Like I said…
You’re intimidating
.”

BOOK: Talisman
10.08Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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