August (The Year of The Change Book 2) (3 page)

The Painting Continues

A screamed erupted and I sat straight up and struggled in vain to tear my way out of my bed covers. The early morning light glowed soft pink and grey around the heavy light blocking drapes on my back window. I’ll never get used to the nights not being dark.

Panting, I fought to slow my heartbeat and wrap my brain around the fact that it had just been a dream. No mountain, no cliff, no affected boys. It was just another stupid dream.

What a dream!

My eyes focused. I wasn't in bed, but on the floor by the wall near my desk. What was I doing on the floor? Wrapped tightly around my legs was Gram's quilt. Eventually, I was able to unrolled myself. I hadn't woken somewhere else since I’d grown too big for my dad to carry me to bed.

Crawling to the headboard, I pulled myself up the side. My knees quivered and hands shook. After a few minutes I was able to hobble around my room, calm my nerves and slow my breathing. Gram had said my dreams would be vivid. I was beginning to realize my grandmother was the master of the understatement. I went for water in my bathroom and was barely able to get the glass to my mouth as it sloshed everywhere while the tremors sporadically shot through me.

What did that dream mean
? If it meant anything at all. Maybe it meant I wasn’t going to survive this year. Maybe that man at the bottom of the mountain – that I knew, I knew -- would be the one to destroy my chances with The Change. The thought sent more vibrations through my body which had nothing to do with the tremors in my hands.

What a way to wake up.

Crossing the room I fell back on my bed. With my heart still beating furiously, sleep wasn't in a hurry to come back. The dream had been so realistic. All my fears and desires were there to scare the bejeevers out of me. I breathed deeply to relax my muscles. My muscles weren't having anything to do with that.

The soft glow around the drapes intensified as the sun inched higher behind the mountains. Nothing I did got me close enough for sleep to slip in. Try as I might the best I could do was let my mind wander over the dream again. I centered my attention on the man and the affected boys and away from the white wolf and the deadly looking fangs.

All those boys and not one I could keep. My heart ached for the love I knew I would never have.

The house painting crew arrived early. When I heard their rough voices drift up through the bathroom window all thoughts of sleep stampeded from my brain. How long had I lain there like that?

Scaffolding had been erected, like the Tower of Babel, outside my third floor attic window. It was through this bathroom window that an Affected got in yesterday. The memory sent a wave of panic through me.

Rolling out of bed I hit the floor running. My shaky hands checked the lock on the screen. It was still secure. No one had climbed up, yet. I slammed the window closed and locked it. My lungs filled. Why was I so scared? It wasn't like anyone could get in. The memory of Zach's glazed eyes slammed into me, making me shake harder. What about Drew? No one could see him if he did climbed up. I crossed to my back window. There was no way anyone could have reached that opening, but I was breathless by the time I checked the lock. The ladder to the fire escape outside was broken halfway down. No one was coming up that way. Still, there was no use taking any chances. I closed the curtains before leaning against the wall to catch my breath.

Five more long months. Would I survive?

Even with the windows secure I was afraid to shower. I made myself go back to the bathroom where yesterday I’d been chased out the window while poor affected Zach pounded on my door. All he wanted was to get to know me. All I wanted was to get to know him, maybe even fall in love. Until this year was over I couldn’t have the one thing I wanted most of all in the whole world. All I wanted was a boyfriend, someone to love me that I could love back. All I desired was someone who wanted me around and who cared about me. This year I could’ve had any boy I wanted with a simple batting of my eyes. What was the use? I couldn't be with any of them. Next year I could date and have lots of fun, but next year the boys won't be affected and no one would want me. I was stuck between a rock and a hard place. My life was so unfair.

Even though I dropped the soap three times and had to sit down twice to slow my breathing that had to be the quickest shower in recorded history. Between Drew and Zach, I was a nervous wreck.

Dressed, I dashed from my attic room and ran down the two flights of stairs, coming to a screeching halt at the kitchen door. I had to calm myself before anyone saw me. They already thought I had a screw loose. They didn't need to know my dreams were getting out of hand.

Hungrier than usual, I sensed a new record coming on. My stepbrother, Tim, would be so happy.

My stepmother, Sue, was in the kitchen buttering toast. The morning light streaming in the breakfast nook windows made a strawberry blonde halo about her head. Talk about misleading advertising.

Before I could open my mouth to tell her I woke up on the floor I swallowed the words. Sue would not want to hear about anything weird. She preferred not to know what was happening to me. Since this whole overwhelming year had started Sue refused to believe any of the weird events were real or that it all revolved around me. She held on to the belief it was all just coincidence. The Change didn't fit into her dull, orderly life. If she couldn't control it, she didn't want anything to do with it.

Now that I had time to think about it, my sleep walking was funny, but Sue wouldn't think so.

Breakfast was a hurried affair so I could escape to the Peterson’s before anything happened today. The Petersons were our next door neighbors that opened their home to me while our monster house was being painted. Since Zach had been affected, while scrapping the outside of my bathroom window, both windows had to be closed and locked. My room was much too stuffy, so Emma invited me to stay at their beautiful Victorian next door. She and her big, strong grandson, Richard, were the ones who came to my rescue yesterday.

Ah, the beautiful house next door. Now, that house had class and character, just like its owner, Emma. Another thing I was jealous of Destiny for.

Speaking of Destiny … Despite four weird events, my beautiful and spunky new pal somehow wanted to still be my friend. Sigh. Hopefully she’d stay my friend, that is, until too many weird things happened. Then she would run screaming and never talk to me again. Okay, so I was being a little dramatic. She probably wouldn't scream. But each time there’s a weird event I held my breath waiting for her to look at me funny. She would  disappear then, just like all my Oklahoma girlfriends did. If history was any indicator our friendship wouldn't last much longer. I was determined to enjoy it while I could.

Eddy, Destiny’s younger brother, and my twin step siblings had become instant friends. Unfortunately there’s a storm brewing. More and more, Eddy and Tim ran off and left Tam behind. It wouldn't be so bad, but we haven’t been here long enough for my little sister to meet any girls her own age. In a month school would start and the storm would blow itself out. Until then, Tam wasn't used to being left alone. That was the nice thing about being a twin. You always had someone your own age to hang out with.

Richard, Destiny’s older brother, was quickly becoming my dream surrogate mature brother, complete with muscles and a big happy smile. I’m so jealous of Destiny, in a happy-for-her kind of way. He hasn't shown any signs,
yet
, of being affected. Even so, I find it hard to stay alert around him. I must keep my defenses up.

If I could choose how my biological mother behaved, it would be like Destiny’s sweet and gentle mother, Cara. If my mother was like her, then maybe she would visit me once in a while. Maybe she wouldn't have left in the first place.

The matriarch is Emma. My Gram would’ve liked her. Maybe, somehow, Gram set this whole thing up so I could live next to Emma and could borrow her once in a while when I really needed my Gram. She reminds me so much of my grandmother that at times I feel great joy and at the same time, great pain. I’m so mixed up right now.

Richard showed up as I skipped downstairs with my sketch pad. Stopping short of the bottom step, I tensed. I’d run stairs all summer at the high school football field in Oklahoma. I was pretty sure I could outrun him.

“What’re you doing here?” I tried to sound casual.

He grinned up at me. “Grandmother sent me to fetch you.”

My face almost burned off. I’m quickly becoming too much trouble, but was very grateful she thought of it.

He held the door open and I scooted out as fast as ‘casual’ would allow. Sue merely shook her head and went back to what she was reading.

The front door was the quickest route, although I’d have run a maze to stay clear of the painters. As I walked by the scaffolding that led to the roof outside my window, one of the painters missed a step and almost tumbled to the ground. I didn’t know whether he slipped because of The Change or because he wanted to get a good look at the girl Zach went bonkers over. Either way, I was mortified and couldn’t move fast enough. I didn’t want anything to happen to any of these guys like what happened to Zach. Richard easily kept up, not even breaking a sweat.

Poor Zach got too close to my third story bathroom window. The Change grabbed him by the nose hairs and head butted him. He crawled in and chased me around my large attic bedroom, “just wanting to get to know me,” he’d said. The Change must’ve been highly concentrated up there which made him more and more affected. He was totally out of control by the time I ducked into my bathroom and locked the door. Every time I remembered how I crawled out the window, I shuddered. I’d crawled across the roof so I could climb down the scaffolding the painters had erected to paint our three-story monster of a house.

Unfortunately, my crippling fear of heights had my hands in a death grip around one of the support poles. I couldn't even open my eyes to consider climbing anywhere. Thank goodness Zach's older brother, Cy, climbed up to save me. Cy, for some reason, wasn’t affected. Emma and Richard – two of the greatest neighbors a girl could ever have – came over right away. I’d called them when Zach entered my bedroom.  Richard is by far the strongest guy I’ve ever met, so he didn't have any problem subduing the smaller guy. He and Cy dragged Zach away kicking and yelling my name. Poor Zach, it was my fault and guilt chewed me up for it.

Inside the Peterson’s house, once the door was closed, I put my hands on my knees. I had to catch my breath and wait for my heart to slow. How had I gotten to this point? The Change was getting worse. It was like I was trapped in an Oklahoma tornado and all I could do was watch the destruction all around me. I wasn't the tornado, I didn't think, but guilty all the same.

Destiny laughed at me. I didn't mind. She wasn't being mean. She just thought most things that happened to me were funny.

“You are the most interesting friend I’ve ever had." I’m hoping she’ll hold onto that thought.

I smiled up at her, grateful she felt that way. "You ain't seen nothin' yet."

Emma, behind her, cocked her head at me.

"I juggle and tap dance, too." Everyone laughed. I straightened up and breathed in deep.

Emma patted my back. "Hopefully you will not have to do that today. I picked up some lovely peaches yesterday so we will once again be canning."

"That's my cue to leave. Bye everyone." Richard was gone in a flash.

Panic washed over me. "Where's Richard going?" I needed my bodyguard.

"Football practice." Destiny looked longingly out the front window as Richard backed down the driveway. “Richard’s a senior and plays center on the football team. He has preseason practice at the old Talkeetna high school.”

Talkeetna, Alaska is a small town at the base of the mountains that will be my prison for two years. After graduation I was determined to escape this small backwater town and return to my beloved Oklahoma, or maybe Nebraska, if Kevin was still there. If my cousins didn’t hate me, I’d consider Texas, as well.

A new school had been built between Talkeetna and The Village which combined the two into one. I’d heard it’s really big and pretty.

“Have you canned peaches before, Sylvia?" Emma was at my side.

"I used to help when I lived with my grandparents." A twang of sorrow shot through my heart.

Emma stroked my hair. "Then I will not need to teach you anything, will I?"

"Oh, I didn't say that. I only helped and it was a long time ago."

"Well, then, let us get started." She wrapped her arm around my waist and led me towards the kitchen. "We will teach you everything about canning."

"That sounds great." I’d always liked helping my grandmother and missed our time together terribly.

The hollow spot at the bottom of my heart didn't hurt so badly when I was with Emma. I would’ve gladly scrubbed fifty toilets so I could spend time with this wonderful woman.

A few hours later, when I was elbow deep in peach peels and pits -- my stomach wanted every last scrap -- we were talking about dreams.

Cara giggled.

"What is so funny?" Emma asked from the stove where she stirred bubbling peaches.