The Lost Boys (21 page)

Seth was as excited as I was about working together on new songs for the band. He said it was good to find someone as passionate about it as he was. So Tristan, Seth and I spent the whole weekend working on new songs. Tiffany was really happy that all of us were staying for the weekend too. Many of the students, mostly the ones with family living close to the school, went home to spend time with their parents. Josh, Sam and Harry sometimes went to visit their parents in Esperanza, sometimes they stayed at Sagan; it depended on their mood. Tiffany and Seth were the only ones who almost never went to see their parents, since they lived in another state, and visiting was difficult and took too much time and effort.

During that first weekend with Tristan, and the next week that followed, I got to know every one of my new friends better. By the end of the second week, it was like we’d known each other for centuries; like we were childhood best friends. I couldn’t explain the instant connection, I just felt really blessed to have found them.

Sam, with his curly brown hair and midnight-blue eyes, was a sweetheart since day one. He was so much fun to be around with that goofy, cheerful way about him; a natural joker on any occasion. He had good looks, the most melodic, beautiful voice, and could make you laugh with incredible ease.

Josh was always around Sam. Or vice-versa. If you looked for one, you found the other too. Josh, with his light-blue eyes and black mohawk, was as strong in mind as in spirit, and the most loyal friend. He made you feel secure and calm, a steady arm in a wavering storm. Josh also had good looks, coolness and the most wicked drumming skills of all time.

Harry, with his lovely emerald green eyes and spiked red hair, was out of this world. He was incredibly beautiful, and the walking metaphor for his crimson and green tattoo of cold waves crashing over fiercely flaming fire. He was really shy and quiet at first, but once you got to know him better you realized he was also wild, unpredictable and incredibly passionate, all at the same time. Harry was extraordinary!

Then there was Seth. Seth and his blond locks of hair over the most kind and loving hazel eyes. There weren’t enough words to describe Seth’s friendship and kindness … He was the brightest light in the darkest tunnel, a shining spirit. It was an honor to be his friend.

And I couldn’t forget about my one and only “girl” friend! In just a couple of weeks, Tiffany had become irreplaceable. Tiff with her supermodel good looks, expensive clothes, cheerful attitude and vibrant soul. Little by little I’d allowed myself to be more free and open with her, and she in return started to let her guard down around me. Each day I got more of a glimpse into how honest, kind and generous she really was inside. I saw in her eyes all the time how much she feared that nobody would ever care for her, or love her for who she was; that her parents’ money was always in the way, always blocking her path to real happiness, to real friends, and true love.

So I did my best to always let her know how much I valued her friendship, for her company alone. I never asked her for favors, special treatments, or recommendations. I didn’t want to know about anything related to her surname. She whined whenever I didn’t let her have her way on things, but I think she respected me more because of it. I was the only one who didn’t let her boss me around. She was my friend, but she wasn’t gonna tell me what to do: she didn’t own me! That was what true friends were all about. We supported each other in our choices, but we didn’t impose our needs on the other.

Tristan and Seth had developed the same close relationship as me and Tiff had. They were always together, chatting, studying, laughing and having fun. I even felt a little jealous of their bond sometimes, like it was somehow a threat to the connection Tristan and I had.

My fear was always that, although my bond with Tristan was strong, as it had been made by magic, it might not be real at all. And Seth’s bond was the real deal, no parlor tricks, no magic involved; it was true friendship. They were together all the time and Tristan was picking up a lot of Seth’s mannerisms. He’d changed his way of speaking by observing Seth and the boys in the band. He was using their cool handshakes, and some new slang even I didn’t know. He was updating himself pretty fast. He even went for a modern haircut!

Tristan looked incredible! I couldn’t believe his radical make-over. In just a few weeks he had changed from this quiet, old-fashioned, “swell” kid to this amazing “rocking” guy.

That weekend I planned to go visit my mother. I asked Tristan if he minded staying at the school, because I wanted to ask Tiffany to come with me. It would be a girls’ weekend/slumber party of sorts.

He smiled and said it was no problem, and that he would hang out with Seth at school; he’d make it a boys’ weekend for them too. He asked me to give my mother a hug from him, and to tell her he’d continue keeping her posted on everything. On that point, I raised an inquiring eyebrow.

“Yeah, well, I call her every so often to tell how things are going,” he explained, chuckling.

“You do?” I asked, bewildered.

“Yes, she made me promise! And I wouldn’t have to if you called her yourself once in a while, you know?”

“Oh, that is such bull! I call her all the freaking time!” I said, making him flinch twice. He always flinched whenever I cursed or did something bad mannered. He couldn’t help himself; it was like a body reflex or something.

“Not as often as she’d like, and she worries,” he said, chiding me.

“Come on, Tris. I’ll call her every single day, if that’s what she wants! And besides, she could live life a little and stop worrying about me!” I snapped, annoyed.

“Okay, all right. I’m not getting in the middle of this. You two girls can sort it out when you get home,” he said, throwing his arms up in a gesture of surrender, and walking off to find Seth.

Mom welcomed Tiffany and me with open arms, and I smartly avoided saying Tiff’s family name during the whole time we were there, so my mom treated her just like any of my friends. She even made us wash the dishes after dinner! I washed and Tiffany had to dry and put them away. A fantastic new experience for her. She kept smiling at my mom like she was the best mom in the whole world for making us do this!

Tiffany and my mom ganged up on me and dragged me to the mall to pick some new clothes on Saturday. I tried to protest, but it was hopeless. Tiff said it was time I stopped dressing like a boy and started wearing dresses, skirts, and some color. My mom elected her my new best friend.

On Sunday I snuck out while Tiffany was occupied talking fashion with my mom, and I paid a quick visit to Miss Violet. I really needed to talk to her about all those weird dreams I’d been having lately. She received me with a warm smile and we talked in her cozy living room while we had a cup of tea. I told her all about the cloaked man and all the cryptic things he had said to me.

I had been feeling a little tired all day long, unable to shake a gnawing headache that had started earlier in the week. Recounting my nightmares tired me out even more, and Miss Violet kept asking me to repeat my dreams over and over again. I saw that she was worried, but she tried to disguise it by avoiding looking directly at me. After a long hour of talking, Miss Violet told me she was going to study “my case” with her witch friends, and would keep me posted on whatever they discovered, and that I shouldn’t worry about it for now. I left her house in a hurry, because I didn’t want Tiff to notice I was gone. Explaining to her where I’d been and what I’d been doing would be a bit difficult.

Tiffany and I got back to school late Sunday afternoon. I hugged Tiff and headed to my room with a weary heart and a pounding headache. All I wanted for the night was a nice hot bath and an early night. I was so tired!

When I opened the door, Seth glanced up. He was sitting on his bed, a deep worried frown on his face. “Hey, Joey! Thank God you’re back. I was about to call you.” He seemed flustered.

“Hi, Seth. What’s wrong?” I asked. I could see the concern flooding out of his eyes.

“Tristan’s been really sick today. He doesn’t want me to take him to the infirmary. He said it’s nothing, but he looks real sick!”

Tristan was lying on his bed, covers up to his neck and eyes closed. He looked really bad, sweat pouring out of him, his face pale as death. I remembered the last time I’d seen him like this. New Year. The night of the spell. I threw my bags on the floor and hurried to Tristan’s bed. “How long has he been like this?” I asked Seth.

“Yesterday he just looked really tired. He mentioned he’d been wondering during the week if he was getting a cold or something. Today he woke up pretty bad. He had a light fever but his temperature has been rising since then. Maybe we should call a nurse?” Seth said, running his hands through his blond hair in distress.

“No nurses,” I said at the same time as Tristan. His eyes were slightly open now. The brightness of the room seemed to be hurting him, so I turned the lights off, leaving only the lamp over my night-stand on.

“You two and this ‘no nurses’ nonsense,” Seth mumbled at his bedside, aggravated.

“Don’t worry, Seth. He’ll be okay,” I said, sitting by Tristan’s side. “He’s always like this with the flu. Tomorrow he’ll be all good again, you’ll see.”

I passed my hand over Tristan’s forehead. He was burning up! The moment the palm of my hand touched his forehead, sharp pinpricks of energy shot into my fingertips like needle stabs. A wave of heat spread out of my hands, making me feel like I was dipping frozen fingers in to steaming hot water. It didn’t hurt, but it felt really strange. My headache stopped pounding immediately. Tristan sighed and closed his eyes in relief, relaxing beneath his covers. “See, he’s already feeling better!” I pointed out to Seth. I know I was! It was amazing; Tristan really did look instantly better.

Seth eyed him suspiciously for a moment then shrugged, realizing he had been worrying for no reason after all. “All right. Well, I’ll go grab some dinner, then, since you’re here with him now. Do you want me to bring you anything?” Seth asked, heading for the door.

“Yeah, a juice box and any sandwich would be great! Thanks, Seth!”

“No problem. If you need me, ring me and I’ll be right back.”

“Okay. Thanks, we’ll be fine. Don’t worry, go have your dinner!”

Seth left us and I took off my shoes, climbing into bed with Tristan. I snuck inside his covers, but remained seated, resting my back against the headboard. I put my arm over his head, trying to be as close to him as possible. I could feel the side of my leg touching his body, the tingling sensation reverberating through us. He mumbled something and turned to his side, wrapping his arm tightly around me. I sat there for a long time, watching him.

Seth returned after a while with my dinner, and I ate it in bed with Tristan. I hoped Seth would think I was only being a caring sister right now. Each passing day was turning out to be harder and harder to cover up our lie. Especially for someone observing things closely, like a room-mate.

I don’t remember when I fell asleep that night, but I woke up next day real early, lying in Tristan’s arms. It felt so good having him this close to me that I wished I could spend the rest of my life there.

Then I remembered Seth. I stiffened immediately but, when I looked over, he was sleeping heavily, bundled inside his covers. I let out a sigh of relief and turned to look at Tristan. God, he looked so handsome asleep … I tried to focus on the more important matter at hands: I needed to get out of his bed. Like, right now!

I moved slowly, trying to dislodge his arm, but the movement woke him up. He blinked a couple of times, registering his arms around me. He started to smirk, but then he saw my worried face as I silently mouthed “Seth!” at him. He looked over at Seth’s bed and quickly released me.

I climbed out of his bed fast and went to mine. Tristan was yawning and rubbing his eyes. He looked much better – in fact, he looked completely fine. I whispered in the lowest voice I could manage, “Are you okay?”

He looked at me groggily and nodded. “Yeah. I feel fine now. Yesterday I felt like cra– I mean, I felt awful,” he said, correcting his language.

I rolled my eyes. “Tristan, you can say
‘crap’
to me, for God’s sake!” I hissed. “I’m gonna take a bath now, but I need to talk to you about this spell thing. Wait for me before you leave for classes, so we can talk, okay?”

He nodded and pulled up his covers again, getting back to sleep while I tiptoed to the bathroom.

I finished my long, steaming bath at the same time as Seth’s alarm beeped loudly. The boys got up grudgingly and went about their daily wake-up routine.

Seth was impressed by Tristan’s quick recovery, but I reassured him it was a normal occurrence, and that Tristan’s “colds” were always like that. Seth seemed to buy that explanation.

“You do look a lot better,” I said, when Tristan emerged from the bathroom.

“I’m fine. Thanks for staying with me all night,” he said, sitting on his bed.

“That’s no problem. I’m glad you’re okay. Miss Violet was right, though. She said this would happen again …”

“Why do you think that is? I mean, why now, all of a sudden?” Tristan asked thoughtfully.

“I don’t know. I was thinking about it. Maybe it’s because I was away at the weekend?” I hazarded.

Tristan pondered the idea for a second. “No. I don’t think that’s it. You were away before, your first week at school. Nothing happened then. And I started feeling this way during the week. About Tuesday, I guess.”

I bit my lips, thinking hard. “Well, maybe we need to think about what these two occasions have in common … First time it happened was New Year, right? What about Tuesday? That was …”

“February, first,” Tristan completed. “Maybe it’s at every start of every month?” he ventured.

“Maybe. It makes sense. We’ll have to wait until next month to find out for sure,” I mumbled, looking at the calendar hanging by my desk.

I hoped we were wrong about this, though. Otherwise we’d have to go through this again at the start of every month. This did not sound good! At least I’d only felt a little tired this time, not violently ill like the first time it had happened … But Tristan was as sick as before.