Life On Hold Read online

  “Come on, Rae,” Allison urged.

  Kylie backtracked and playfully grabbed my arm. “Rae, hurry up.”

  We circled around the back of Blake’s lot and stopped in a spot where we were conveniently shielded by a row of pine trees. About twenty feet in front of us, a fire burned brightly. I’d been expecting one of those outdoor fireplaces, but this bonfire was built right on the ground with large rocks surrounding it. Logs were teepee-stacked in the middle. Clustered all around the fire were Whitman High’s most popular sophomores and juniors (at least in their opinion), some sitting in canvas stadium chairs, but most standing. The smell of a campfire was something I’d always adored. As much as I hadn’t wanted to come, I had to admit that this whole thing—the secretiveness, the chilly air, the smoke scent—was pretty exhilarating.

  Next to me Kylie shivered with excitement. “This evening just got a lot more interesting, hey?” she whispered, nudging me.

  I nodded in agreement. The kids in front of us were a bunch of self-absorbed egomaniacs showing off for each other, but from this vantage point it was fascinating in a reality show kind of way. Blake had his arm around a blond girl. I couldn’t place her, but she looked like that type you see around school, the kind with pouty lips and shiny, sleek hair. The kind who wore flip-flops and shorts all year round.

  There were about twenty kids total. Most of the party goers held cans of beer. Some had soda. It was easy to spot the ones who were drunk—they laughed doubled over, the girls hung on their boyfriends, everything about them was loud and exaggerated.

  A few of the kids seemed to be flying solo. The single guys were in pyro-mode, dropping plastic bottles into the flames. The unattached girls lingered nearby and encouraged them with laughter and shrieking. It was all very tribal.

  Once my eyes adjusted, I could see more clearly. Kylie and Allison moved a little closer, scooting up to another group of bushes on the left, but I had a good view from where I was, so I stayed put. If I concentrated, I could hear every word. One of the football players, a kid they called Jocko, pulled up his shirt to show off his stomach, which he was able to puff out so he looked eight months pregnant. When one of the girls said, “How did you do that?” he patted his belly and looked very pleased with himself.

  This started a competition of stupid human tricks—one girl was double jointed and could pull her thumb all the way back, and her boyfriend could roll his eyes upwards until only the whites showed. Another guy took off his shirt and made his pecs dance. You get the picture. None of them impressed me until Nick Dunstan got up to juggle cans of Mountain Dew. He started with two, and once he got going one of the girls tossed him a third. With the fire behind him it was an awesome sight. When the girl threw yet another one, he said, “Whoa,” and stepped back. I thought he was going to drop them, but he recovered and added the fourth to the loop.

  He had their attention now, and the other kids moved so they were gathered around him. Before it got anti-climactic, Nick spun around while still juggling, then ended it by saying, “Think fast,” and tossing each can to a specific person in the crowd. When he was done, he bowed dramatically. A few of the girls clapped.

  “Thank you, thank you. I’ll be here all week. I do accept tips,” he said.

  “Oh, Nick,” a girl, sloppy drunk, said, “you’re so good with your hands.”

  “That’s not what Crystal said,” Blake bellowed, and then he made this fake laughing noise—haw, haw—only kidding.

  Nick turned away, and for a split second the flames illuminated the hurt look on his face.

  “Blake, that was so mean.” This from Blake’s blond sidekick. She used a stage whisper, not realizing apparently that everyone could hear her. “He can’t help it if Crystal dumped him.”

  So that was it. Come to think of it, I hadn’t noticed Crystal in the gathering, and she was sort of a leader in that pack. Kylie had said Nick was only included in that group because he was one half of the Nick/Crystal couple. Why was he there when she wasn’t?

  Blake wasn’t letting it drop. “So where is Crystal tonight, Nicky?”

  Nick turned to face him. “She had other plans.”

  “Yeah, I bet she did. Other plans with someone else, is what I heard. You’re so finished, my friend.”

  A flicker of anger crossed Nick’s face, but he held back. When he did speak it was through clenched teeth. “So Blake, here’s a question for you. Why isn’t your cousin Allison here tonight?” It got quiet suddenly. Nick definitely had the floor. “Don’t you think it would have been nice to let her meet all your friends? Since she’s new and all?”

  In the shrubbery where Allison and Kylie hid, I heard a rustle. I held my breath waiting for his answer.

  Blake only paused for a moment, and then he made that annoying haw, haw noise again. “Trust me, you don’t want to hang out with that psycho bitch. She’s so stupid she burned down her own house and killed her parents. And now I’m stuck with her.”

  Chapter 16

  Allison Crashing

  Allison wailed loudly, an inhuman sound that pierced the night air and made me stiffen in alarm. Everyone turned to look for the source of the noise, and at the same second she tore out of her hiding place and threw herself at Blake. The blond girl who had an arm around his backside stepped away, shocked.

  “Bastard,” Allison yelled, hitting Blake’s chest with her fists. “How can you say that, you bastard?” She screamed and hit at him over and over again as if possessed.

  “Hey,” Blake said, trying unsuccessfully to hold her off him, while the rest of the group looked on dumbstruck.

  “Lying bastard. You lie, you lie, you lie.” Blake had the size advantage, but Allison had a lot of anger.

  “Stop it!” Blake grabbed hold of her wrists, and she responded by kicking at him. “See what I mean?” He addressed his friends over the top of her head. “She’s a mental case.”

  “Why do you have to be so mean?” Allison yelled. “They’re dead, my parents are dead. I have nothing left.”

  Kylie came out into the circle and stood behind Allison, who was now sobbing. “Leave her alone,” she said. “Let her go.” Little Kylie braving hostile territory and facing the giant. So much courage in one tiny little person. I knew I should join her, but I was frozen to the spot by my own cowardice.

  “Hey, Kylie,” one of the girls said in a friendly way. Everyone knew Kylie. She was well liked around school.

  Kylie nodded at the girl, but didn’t move. She patted Allison’s back. “It’s okay, Allison. Nobody listens to Blake anyway. Let’s just go. It’ll be okay. No one believes him.” Even over Allison’s sobs, her words were clear.

  The girl who could pull her thumb all the way back stepped forward. “Don’t cry, Allison. It’s okay.” As I looked at the faces of the kids watching this spectacle, it seemed they were sympathizing with Allison. It did look bad—this hulking football player physically restraining a much smaller girl by her wrist, sneering while she cried.

  “Let’s just go, Allison,” Kylie repeated, glancing in my direction. I almost stepped out then, but something held me back. Maybe it’s because I’d then become the center of attention, something I always hated, and in the process wind up casting my lot with Allison. Did I want that?

  Blake released his grip and pushed her away roughly. “Yeah, just go. No one wants you here, anyway.”

  Allison stumbled backward and wiped her face with the back of her hand.

  “Come on, Allison.” Kylie reached out to take her arm, but Allison shook her head and took off running on the far side of the bonfire. Kylie followed her into the dark of the night, and there I stood, left behind. Off in the distance I heard Kylie’s voice. “Wait, Allison!”

  From Blake’s house came the sound of a door opening and a woman’s voice. “Blake, is everything okay out there?”

  “Yes, Mom, everything’s fine.” Exasperated.

  “Do you kids need any more snacks or soda?”

  “I s
aid we’re fine.”

  The door shut and Blake’s group started talking quietly amongst themselves. “You weren’t very nice to your cousin, Blake,” a girl said, accusingly.

  “She’s the one who’s not nice,” he answered.

  Good comeback, Dr. Phil.

  So now I was screwed. I couldn’t follow Kylie and Allison without giving myself away, unless I circled way around the party. Unless, and here was a thought, they’d gone back to the spot where Andy had dropped us off. That would make sense. I could backtrack the way we came and meet up with them there.

  I retreated quietly through the bushes and past the neighbor’s pool—still lit up, the waterfall running. Man, I’d hate to see their electric bill.

  When I reached the road, I started breathing a little easier. Certainly Kylie would think to find me there. It made sense.

  Reaching into my pocket for my phone, I felt a pang when I realized I’d left it at home. How stupid was that? Most of the time it was glued to me, but when I needed it most I didn’t have it. I could picture right where I’d left it too—right on my computer desk next to the mouse.

  I walked to the exact spot where we’d exited the car, looking up and down the street as I went. The houses all had matching lampposts next to the driveways and most of them had lights on inside as well, but there weren’t any streetlights like in my neighborhood.

  The night air, which had seemed so invigorating before, was now cold and clammy. All I wanted was to meet up with my friends and go home. This evening was turning out to be a disaster.

  I waited for what seemed like forever, but it probably was only half an hour. With no watch and no phone I had no way to tell the time. A car drove past at one point, but it was no one I knew, just an old couple who eyed me suspiciously as they passed.

  Screw it, I thought finally and started walking toward Blake’s house. If I didn’t encounter Allison and Kylie along the way, I could go up to the house and ask Mrs. Daly if I could use their phone. She wouldn’t know if I was in his group of friends or not. Generally parents loved me. Such a nice girl, so polite and friendly.

  Chapter 17

  Just in the Nick of Time

  Mentally I practiced my plea to Blake’s mom as I made my way toward the house. Hi, I’m one of Blake’s friends. I was down at the bonfire when I noticed my cell phone battery is dead. If it isn’t too much trouble, could I use your phone to call my mom? No, TMI. Maybe, Blake said it was okay to use your phone. I need to call my mom for a ride. But wouldn’t I need to explain about my phone? This whole thing made my head hurt.

  As long as Blake wasn’t around, anything I said would be okay, I decided. Then I’d call Kylie and we’d work out how Andy could pick me up. My only other options were calling my mother or walking for miles. Neither one appealed.

  I concentrated on one foot in front of the other. I really didn’t want to knock on the door and talk to Blake’s parents, but I was out of ideas. I could hear the party again, the muffled sound of rap music (yuck) and loud talking along with some obnoxious laughter.

  As I walked along the row of parked cars belonging to my wealthier classmates, I had a heart attack. Or nearly had one, anyway. I was still working on my speech to Mrs. Daly (what sounded better—My cell is dead? or My phone’s not working?) when something grabbed my sleeve. “Oh my God,” I yelled. Looking down I saw a hand attached to an arm belonging to Nick Dunstan. He was sitting in a pickup truck with the window down and the engine off. If he hadn’t grabbed my sleeve, I would have walked right past him. “Don’t do that,” I said, swatting at him. “You scared me.”

  “I’m sorry.” He did look sorry. “I said your name, but you were in some kind of trance or something. Your lips were moving.”

  “Oh.”

  “What are you doing here?”

  “Me? I’m looking for my friend Kylie.” Basically the truth.

  Nick sighed. “She was here before, with Blake’s cousin Allison, but they left.” He tapped his fingertips on the steering wheel. “Hey, can I ask you for a favor? Would you give me a ride home?”

  Talk about confused. First off, did he not see me walking? Secondly, I didn’t even have my license yet. “I don’t have a car,” I said. “I got dropped off.”

  “Oh,” he said glumly. “Too bad. I really need to get out of here.”

  “Is there a problem with your truck?”

  “I’m parked in.” He jabbed a thumb front and back.

  I took a step back to assess the situation. Sure enough, he was locked in. My guess was that he didn’t want to go back to the party and ask the owners to move their cars. Understandable, considering what had happened. “I think if you maneuver back and forth a few times, and back up onto the grass, you can get it out. I can talk you through it, if you want.”

  “Would you?” He grinned. “That would be great.”

  I called out directions, and he inched the truck back and forth, angling it a little more each time, until there was enough space to ease it forward. In order to get out of his space, he had to drive partway onto Blake’s neighbor’s lawn, but I don’t think he left tire marks. Not any I could see, anyway.

  “Thanks, Rae,” he said, once he was free. “I’m not sure what I’d have done if you hadn’t come along. You’re a lifesaver.”

  “I’m glad I could help.” I leaned in to talk. “Do you think you could give me a ride home?”

  Unlike my mom’s car, the inside of Nick’s truck was really clean. No fast-food wrappers or bank slips. No Starbucks cups. It smelled clean too, because of the pine tree air freshener that hung from his rearview mirror. I gave him directions to my house. He knew exactly which apartment complex I meant.

  “So,” I said, as he turned out of the subdivision, “did Crystal come in a different car?”

  If I was looking for a reaction, I didn’t get it. His face didn’t give anything away, and his voice was steady. “Nope,” he said, almost cheerfully. “Crystal wasn’t here tonight. She’s now going out with Trey Griffin.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry.” Secretly I’d always wondered how Nick and Crystal ever got together in the first place. Crystal was so flaky that Mason referred to her as “Crystal Light,” while Nick seemed to have it all together—smart, funny, personable.

  “Yeah, I’m sorry too. It happens, I guess. You think a person’s a certain way, and they turn out to be different.” He turned on the radio and scanned a few stations, then shut it off. “How about you?”

  “What about me?”

  “Are you going out with anyone?”

  “No.” Oh damn, I said it too quickly, like of course I wasn’t going out with anyone, who would go out with me? “I mean, not right now.”

  “Good to know.” He smiled in my direction for just an instant. It was a shy smile, but unmistakable in meaning.

  My heart quivered a little. Nick Dunstan was flirting with me, I was sure of it. This was momentous. I didn’t have a lot of experience in this area, but I knew I should say something back. If only I could think of the right thing—

  “So, Mr. Smedley put you in charge of Allison,” he said, before I could come back with my own really smooth flirtatious comment. “How’s that working out?”

  Relieved at the change of subject, I told him everything, starting with how Mr. Smedley tricked me into being Allison’s guide, to how Kylie found the newspaper article online, and how my mother took pity on Allison and invited her to sleep over. Even how Kylie and Allison decided to spy on the bonfire party. I left out the part about me also being in the bushes though, and made it sound like I’d only arrived later.

  Somewhere in there I remembered that Kylie and Allison were still out in the world wondering where I was. Instead of asking Nick for a ride I should have asked to use his cell phone, but it honestly hadn’t occurred to me. Now here I was, driving away from the place where I’d last seen my friends. I should have felt guilty. Instead, I wanted this ride to go on forever.

  We got to my place way too qui
ckly. “This is it,” I said, pointing to the building. “The one with the lights on.” Compared to Blake’s neighborhood mine looked a little seedy, actually. Thank God, Nick pulled up in front. If he’d dropped me off in the back, he’d have seen the graffitied dumpsters and the junker car our upstairs neighbor had up on blocks. Said neighbor was going to fix it—that was the story, anyway—but I didn’t see it happening. “Thanks for the ride, Nick. I really appreciate it.”

  As I unfastened my seatbelt and went to open the door, he reached over and touched my arm. “Rae?”

  “Yes?”

  “So you live here with just your mom?”

  Where was he going with this? “Yep, just the two of us.” I was always afraid that people would think my mom and I were the stereotypical white trash family—the manicurist unwed mother living with her teenage daughter in an apartment on the wrong side of the tracks. I was ready for a smartass comment, or questions about my fatherless state. If Nick was going to judge me, I was ready with a comeback.

  “Do you think your mom would mind if you and I went out sometime?”

  Okay, I was wrong. Oh, I was so glad to be wrong. “No, I don’t think she’d mind at all.”

  Nick ran his fingertips up my arm and then brushed lightly along my jawline, giving me a shiver of pleasure. “Good. I’d like that.” He drew back and sat upright. “I mean, if that’s okay with you.”

  “That’s okay with me.”