The Academy - Introductions (4 page)

A body landed hard on top of me that I felt the air in my
lungs escape, not giving me enough oxygen to cry out. Legs fell over mine,
someone’s frame sat on top of me and hands sought out my wrists under the
blanket. I managed to let a muffled grunt escape but with the way he held my
arms, my face was stuffed with blanket and I couldn’t twist myself free.

“Are you getting up or what?” The voice said, the baritone
playful. “The world is spinning on without you.”

“Victor.” Kota’s voice came from the other side of the
room. I hadn’t heard him come up.

The person on top of me froze and then let go of my arms.
The blanket was yanked away. My arm jerked in quick reaction, shielding myself
from the sudden onslaught of light and from the stranger sitting on top of me.

“Who...” Victor never finished his statement. His mouth
hung open.

His brown eyes were wide, big and it was the first time I’d
ever thought the term “fire in his eyes” ever actually fit a face. The
intensity would have made me blush in any normal situation but as I was in a
bed and he had just landed on me, I was glowing with heat. His head flinched
back in confusion and I was just as dumbstruck. His body was slighter than
Kota’s and he looked like he was the same age we were. His hair was a softer
brown, reaching to the nape of his neck in gentle waves, brushed back away from
his eyes.

“Victor, this is Sang.”

Victor blinked at me repeatedly. “Uh...” He moved off the
bed and stood up. He wore a crisp white long sleeved shirt, the top button
undone to reveal the start of his collarbone. He wore neat black slacks. His
near formal attire surprised me but he appeared comfortable in what he was
wearing, like he wore it nearly every day. At his neck hung a silver chain with
a round silver medallion with some symbol I didn’t recognize. His face was
angular. His hips were slimmer than Kota’s and his fingers were long and lean.
“What are you doing here?” he asked. “I mean in his bed?”

“She slept here.” Kota held a smile on his face and wore a
calming expression as if this was perfectly normal. He was wearing Levi jeans
and a light blue Polo shirt with a collar, the buttons done up all the way to
the top.

Victor spun on him, his hands shooting out, palms up. “Are
you kidding me?”

“Don’t get weird. And don’t tell my mom. I don’t think
she’ll understand.”

“But
why
is she...”

Suddenly a voice called up from the base of the stairs.
“Kota? Do I hear Victor up there?”

Before Kota could reply, there were footsteps coming up. I
panicked, wondering if I should jump from the bed.

Kota took one look at Victor and they both reacted at the
same time. Kota headed to the stairwell, standing at the top. Victor came to
the bed, pushed me back so I was laying down and covered me with the blanket.
He positioned himself in front of me, sprawled out. I couldn’t see him from
under the blanket, but I could feel his body near mine and it caused me to
blush.

I did my best to make myself as small as possible.

“Yes, we’re up here,” Kota said.

“Hi Victor.”

“Hi.”

“I thought you boys could come down for breakfast. It’s
almost ready.”

“Mom,” Kota said. “Is it okay if I let Sang stay for
breakfast, too?”

“Sure. Who’s Sang?”

“She’s the girl from next door. The family that just moved
in.”

“Oh...” Pause. “Where is she?”

“In the bathroom.”

“She came in with me,” Victor added.

“Sounds good. Have her come down. I made eggs.”

The sound of footsteps on the stairs trailed away. In a
flash, Victor hopped up and pulled the blanket away from me. When he did, he
looked me over and tilted his head. “Are you wearing...”

“Yes,” Kota said, and then blew a breath of air from his
lips. “I’ll explain later. She needs to hurry and get dressed.”

Victor got out of the way to allow me to stand. Victor was
a half a head taller than me. When I stood, he didn’t hesitate at examining me
again. I imagined with bed hair and my groggy face that I was pretty ugly.

Kota moved to the bathroom, opening the door and flicking
the light on. “Does your bag have clean clothes?” he asked me.

I nodded to him.

“Get dressed and come down stairs when you’re ready.” He
crossed the room and grabbed Victor by the arm. “Let’s go.”

“But...” Victor raked fingers through his hair, his fire
eyes blazing with curiosity. When Kota yanked at his arm, he turned away. He
looked back again when he was at the stairs going down but said nothing more
and soon disappeared.

I jumped for my book bag and ran for the bathroom. My heart
pounded. Victor was just as handsome as Kota. He moved quickly to cover for me.
How strange that a complete stranger, who knew less about me than Kota, was
helping me.

People were not all murderers.

I managed to do a quick job of washing my face and brushing
my hair. I twisted my hair up, pulling it back into a clip that sat at the back
of my head, the locks of dirty blond hair falling from it tickled at my neck.
It was the way I always wore my hair to keep it out of my face. I changed into
a gray pleated skirt that was a little short but was great for the warmer
weather of the south. I had a soft button up blouse that matched it. I wanted
to look nice if I was going to meet Kota’s mom. I was lucky I had packed a
couple of extra things into my bag besides shorts.

I felt sore at my back and checked my hip. There was a dark
purple bruise about the size of my palm at my side. I’d have to remember to
adjust my top and not show it. I didn’t want Kota to feel bad again about what
happened last night. Besides, it was pretty ugly. My shoes and clothes that I
wore last night weren’t in the tub where I left them. I was barefoot. How would
I explain that?

I sighed and hurried down stairs. If I stayed too long, his
mom would think I was weird.

At the base of the stairs, the rich grease of fried eggs
and bacon and buttered toast hit my nose. The dining room at the end of the
hall had a small round table with five chairs near it, one was a mismatched
office chair that Kota sat in. There was an empty space next to him and Victor
on the other side. The other two chairs were occupied by a woman who looked to
be in her late forties and a younger girl with glasses.

“Hello!” The older woman spotted me first and stood up,
reaching out a hand. Her eyes were green like Kota’s. Her brown hair was tied
into a bun at the back of her head. There were soft wrinkles at her eyes. She
was almost my same height. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Erica.”

I smiled, blushing and reached to touch her hand delicately
with my own.

I thought that would be it but she took a firm grasp of my
hand and gave it a good squeeze. “I haven’t met your parents yet.”

“We’re still kind of settling in.” She seemed so nice and I
was scared she’d actually stop by my parents’ house. I wanted to warn her that
my mom probably wouldn’t want to talk to her. There was only the hope that
maybe she would forget.

“This is my daughter and Dakota’s sister, Jessica.” She
pointed to the girl next to her. The girl was almost exactly like her mother,
except shorter and with much lighter hair. Her expression was placid and she
wore pink rimmed glasses. She nodded to me, almost shyly.

“Hi,” I said. I blinked at the name Dakota and then
realized she must have meant Kota. It struck me as funny but I like how he
shortened it.

“Have a seat,” Erica said. She motioned to the chair next
to Kota and Victor.

The whole time we were talking, the guys fixed their eyes
on me. Was my outfit bad? Maybe it was too much. I couldn’t tell. The moment I
sat down, Kota reached for the scrambled egg bowl and scooped a large spoonful
in to my plate. Victor had the bacon platter and dropped a couple of slices
next to the eggs.

“Orange juice?” Erica offered.

I smiled and nodded. I went to reach for it but Kota got to
it before I did and held it above my cup.

“Say when.”

It surprised me at first that I didn’t notice that he had
already started pouring. I quickly told him when it was enough and he recapped the
bottle and put it back on the table.

I picked up my fork and knife, wondering if they were going
to also cut my bacon into pieces. When I ate with my parents and my sister, it
was pretty much a fend-for-yourself type of situation.

For a time, the table was quiet as everyone was eating, and
it gave me a chance to notice some small things. Victor picked at his plate,
eating the edge of his eggs and the chewy parts of his bacon. Kota cut his
bacon into even pieces right from the start, with a formal poise that left me
feeling uncivilized next to him. Jessica ate toast only. Erica was the only one
who seemed to eat normally, even as her eyes were happy as she watched everyone
at the table enjoying the meal.

“So how did you meet my son? And Victor?” Erica said. She
had looked excitedly at the three of us the entire time, as if waiting for the
right moment to ask this question.

I felt my mouth open slightly, my lips moved but the right
answers didn’t come to me.

“I met her yesterday,” Kota said quickly.

“I only bumped into her today,” Victor said, spearing a
piece of bacon with his fork and the fire in his eyes lit up as he focused on
me in an amused way. “Kind of surprised me to be honest.”

I blushed.

“Will you be going to their school?” Erica asked.

“Yup,” Kota said. “She’s in the same grade as us.”

Erica’s eyes flew from her son to Victor and back at me.
“You’ve got such a lovely voice, Sang,” she said, a small smile on her lips and
lightly scolding tone. “And that ventriloquism thing you do is amazing. A real
talent.”

Kota and Victor both tinged red at the cheeks.

“You know how guys are,” I said, offering a grin and a
playful tone. “Give them two minutes, they think they know everything,” I
quipped.

Victor dropped his fork, gawking.

Kota laughed so hard his eyes shut and his hand went to his
stomach.

Erica brightened. “Smart girl.” She drummed her knuckles on
the table and then stood, picking up her own dish. “Keep an eye on this one,
Kota. She’s got your number.”

“Not yet she doesn’t,” Kota said under his breath. His
mother had turned away by then but I heard it. He turned his face to me and
winked. The reflection from the light caught in his glasses, giving him such a
strange look that I couldn’t help but giggle.

When the rest of us finished, I attempted to help to clear
the table but Erica shooed us outside. “Don’t waste the day. Go enjoy
yourselves.” She beamed a smile at me, looking so happy I couldn’t refuse.

Jessica headed off to another part of the house. Kota,
Victor and I went outside. The sun was out and there was a hint of the chill
left from the rain but the sun was warming things up quickly. Small pools of
water collected in spots in the yard. The concrete of the driveway was dry
though and warmed my feet. I did like walking around barefoot outside but next
to the guys who had on full socks and shoes, I felt like a bum.

Kota’s dog was tethered to a lead at the back of the house.
Now in the daylight, I laughed at seeing it was a Golden retriever. Last night
it had felt like a horse. As soon as he saw us, he padded over, crossing the
concrete drive to greet us. I ducked behind Kota so he wouldn’t jump on me
again.

Kota spread out an arm, stopping Max with a palm held out
in front of him. “No. Sit. You did enough damage already.”

The dog obeyed, giving only the smallest of whines and then
sinking down to a sitting position.

Victor looked at my bandaged hand. “So that was from Max?”

I nodded. “It wasn’t his fault. He just surprised me and I
hit the pavement.”

Victor looked sympathetic. Now thinking about the wound, my
good hand moved to shield the bandages from the sun shining on it. It felt a
little itchy. A gray BMW was parked in the driveway behind the brown sedan in
the corner. I didn’t know cars, but the BMW looked brand new.

“Alright, out with it,” Victor said. His arms crossed his
chest and he looked firmly at the both of us. “I’ve been playing along all
morning. I’d like to know what kind of trouble I’m digging myself into.”

I glanced at Kota, but Kota gave no sign of hesitation.
“She was out late walking home when Max broke the lead and... well... I
couldn’t just let her go home bleeding.”

My heart fluttered but I nodded, agreeing with him. “I was
out so late that sneaking back in would have meant more trouble at my house.”

“It just kind of happened,” Kota followed up.

Victor looked back and forth at the two of us, as if trying
to decide something. The fire in his eyes settled on me. The intensity was
turned up so much that it caused me to shiver and look away.