Unconventional Scars (16 page)

****

Anna was filled with nervous anticipation at school all day on Tuesday. Phil’s flight left at ten o’clock and the idea of having the house to herself until Thursday was not only exciting, but terrifying. She played through her mind every possible scenario. Would Alex come over
again
?
What would happen if he did?
How far would things go? How far would she
let
them go? She was conflicted with emotions ranging from thrilled to scared.

They were walking home from school when Alex unexpectedly suggested that she come home with him. He must have caught the surprise on her face, because he added, “I don’t think my mom likes the idea of me hanging out at your house when your uncle’s out of town. Guess she sees it as too much of a temptation.”

“Is it?” Anna couldn’t help asking.

“More than you could possibly know,” he admitted, stopping to kiss her on the sidewalk. An elderly lady who was watering her flower garden smiled at them. Anna made a mental note to write a letter to Miss May.

“Is your mom even home yet?”

“Not yet. She usually gets in around four-thirty if she’s not held up in court. You’ll just have to fend me off until then.”

“Good thing I have my mace,” she teased.

“You carry mace?”

“Uncle Phil gave it to me. He said he wanted to make sure I was
protected
.
I guess it could come in handy if I’m being chased by a vicious dog or something.”

“You definitely want to look out for those wild animals.” Alex’s eyes twinkled.

Inside, they had glasses of
Sprite
and Alex tried to teach her how to play some Xbox game
,
but
kept interrupting her
for a
kiss and after that it was
really
hard to concentrate on which buttons to push.

About an hour later,
Ms. Somerville
came
home. Anna thought she was very nice but couldn’t help feeling slightly intimidated by her. She was always dressed so professionally, in conservative but fashionable suits and
stiletto
heels, and her flame-red hair was never out of place. Anna couldn’t wear heels
that high
– they made her ankles wobble. It occurred to her that Alex must have inherited his composure from his graceful mother.

Creed
breezed in
from work while they were playing with Sylvester in the living room, and he seemed surprised to see her there. As a matter of fact, Anna kept noticing out of the corner of her eye that he was watching her suspiciously
,
as if he expected her to suddenly internally combust. Ms. Somerville invited her to stay for dinner, but Anna declined with the excuse that she had homework to do. Which was true, but the real reason was that Creed’s furtive looks were making her uncomfortable. Maybe he didn’t approve of her seeing his brother, but she had no idea why.

The rest of the week passed in basically the same manner.
The
Somerville
home became the central hangout, and they
retreated
there
after school
to play
board games
and watch silly cartoons and
talk about everything that popped into their heads. They also kissed. A lot.
Anna wasn’t sure whether
she should
be disappointed that Alex didn’t come back to her empty house with her. She supposed that at least now she didn’t have to worry about what might happen. It was
actually
a weight off her mind.

Well, a
lmost.

12

May arrived quickly, and finals were coming up. Anna and Karen studied together just about every night the week before. Erica joined them once, but since most of her classes were different, she wound up studying on her own anyway. Alex declined to join them, with the excuse
that
he didn’t want to be a distraction. He was right, of course. Anna was inevitably distracted when he was around. She couldn’t help it.

She passed her finals with flying colors and had never felt prouder. Phil and Lisa took her out to a
very
fancy restaurant to celebrate, and after dinner Phil gave her a little box containing diamond earrings like Lisa’s. Anna could hardly believe it.

When Lisa asked what she planned to do with herself all summer, she didn’t really know how to answer. Schoolwork had been taking up so much of her time lately, she hadn’t given it much thought. Phil said it would be a good idea if they practiced driving together some so she could get her license before the fall term began. Other than that, he said he just wanted her to have fun and enjoy the summer. “You deserve to have some time to be young without shouldering adult responsibilities,” he said. Anna knew he was referring to her previous life. Funny, it had only been a couple of months since she’d left it behind, but already it seemed like a distant, unpleasant dream.

****

Alex invited her to Creed’s graduation. She met him at his house, wearing a
rose
-colored dress and low heels that she hoped she wouldn’t trip over. Lisa had fixed her hair for her, with curls piled on her head and a few ringlets framing her face. She was pleased with the result.

When Alex came to the door, her
jaw nearly hit the ground
. He was dressed in a sport coat and tie, and his shirt was an indigo blue that brought out the color of his eyes. Anna had never seen him look so scrumptious. “You look nice,” she said lamely, tongue-tied.

“We may not make it to the ceremony,” he told her. “I don’t know how I’ll keep from pulling over and having my way with you right in the middle of the road.” He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close.

“I’ll get lipstick on your jacket,” she protested, even as she hugged him back.

“I can live with that.”

“You can have your way with me after graduation. Until then, behave.” Anna straightened his tie. “Where’s your mom?”

“She and Creed went on ahead
in her car
about an hour ago. We’re taking his truck.”

“Cool. Well, are you ready?” Anna didn’t feel ready to leave. She wanted to pull Alex inside and throw herself on him. He looked so handsome it made her ache. He smelled good, too.
Is it normal for someone to make you this crazy? Is falling in love supposed to turn you into a blathering idiot? If so, I’m done for.
Lock me up, throw away the key . . .

She tried to make small talk on the way there, asking rational, safe questions
to prevent herself from blurting
out what she was really thinking, which was that she loved him so much it completely freaked her out.

“Is Jennifer graduating, too?”

“No, she’s a junior.”

“Oh. I thought she was a senior, too.”

“Nope.”

“Is Creed planning on going away to college?”

“Actually he’s going to work full-time this summer, then start community college in the fall.
After he has his associate’s degree, he’ll transfer to a different school.
So he won’t be going anywhere for a while
yet
.”

“Oh. That’s nice.” She tried to come up with something else to say, but failed. So much for intelligent conversation. Was she really this slow-witted, or did he somehow sap the aptitude right out of her? All he had to do was put on a coat and tie, and her IQ dropped fifty points.

Alex glanced over at her. “He’s going to a party after graduation with Jen. They’re taking her car so I can use his truck.
So w
e can go someplace afterward
s
,
if you like. Maybe a movie?”

“Sure.” The
idea
of spending some time alone with him tonight was exhilarating. Hanging out at his house with his mom and brother around most of the time was fun, but marginally frustrating. Sometimes she got the
feeling
that Alex didn’t
want
to be alone with her. That maybe he was afraid of things going too far, too fast, the way they almost did on Storm Night. He could be right. Who knew what might have happened if
Uncle
Phil hadn’t unexpectedly shown up?

The graduation ceremony had a bittersweet atmosphere, like that of a wedding, where everyone is happy and at the same time pensive. The poised Charlotte Somerville
became teary-eyed
when her eldest son’s name was called to receive his diploma. Alex squeezed his mother’s hand, and Anna thought again what a warmhearted person he was.

After the ceremony, they found Creed in the crowd long enough to congratulate him, and after hugging his younger brother he kissed Anna on the cheek and thanked her for coming. He no longer looked at her as if he viewed her as some sort of unknown threat. Anna supposed she would never know what had been going through his mind. When one of
Charlotte
’s acquaintances stopped to speak to them, Alex introduced Anna as his girlfriend and her heart almost burst from happiness.

“So what would you like to do?” he asked her once they were in the
Tacoma
. “Want to catch a movie?”

“What’s playing?”

“I don’t even know.” He paused for a moment, apparently turning something over in his mind. “We could just go for a drive. Have you seen the lake?”

“There’s a lake?” This was news to Anna.

“There is. It’s not far. Why aren’t you wearing your seat belt?” Alex reached over her lap and pulled the nylon belt across her,
buckling
it securely.

Because I forgot. Because I was too busy thinking about how sexy your eyes are and how much I
adore
you. Does that answer your question?
She wanted to unbuckle her seat belt just so he’d reach over her again. Pathetic.

The lake turned out to be only twenty miles away. Alex pulled into a gravel lot near a boat landing where he parked facing the water
, then
shut off the engine. Anna could see the moonlight reflecting off the surface of the lake, casting a million sparkles into the darkness. It was lovely.

“Let’s go out on the pier,” he suggested, and they walked across the gravel with their arms around each other
,
toward the wooden structure. Their shoes made a hollow sound against the planks that seemed to echo in the quiet, still night. When they reached the end of the pier, Alex removed his coat and spread it across the boards, motioning for Anna to sit. She pulled off her shoes so she wouldn’t accidentally drop one into the water, a likely scenario considering her lack of agility, and sat on his warm coat with her feet dangling off the edge of the pier.

Alex sat close beside her, their legs touching, and rested a hand on her thigh, palm up. She slipped her hand into his. The water lapped gently against the pilings, a sleepy sound that lulled her into a pleasant lassitude. In the distance, frogs called to one another in creaking voices. Countless bright stars stretched across the endless expanse of the clear sky. The night held something magical in the air, something too indefinable for words.

Alex turned to look at her. She met his gaze shyly, sensing that somehow he could read what she felt in her heart. That in some bewitching way, he could see into her very soul and know that she loved him fiercely. It unnerved her to be so vulnerable, an open book to be devoured by soft blue eyes.

“You look like a princess with your hair up like that,” he told her, tugging lightly on a stray curl.

“Does that make you my prince?” He’d never looked more like Prince Charming to her
than he did tonight
.

“I’ll be whatever you want me to be.”

“I’ll settle for you just being my Alex.” She rested her head against his shoulder. “That’s all you ever need to be.”

“I hope you mean that.” His hand tightened around hers. Then softly, so softly she barely heard him, he confessed, “I’m falling in love with you, Anna.”

She lifted her head and stared at him in wonder. So the night was magical, after all.
In
that moment she could easily believe that every fairy tale she’d ever heard was real, that the stars in the sky could truly grant wishes, and damsels were sometimes rescued by handsome knights on white horses.

“You came to rescue me,” she said. His puzzled expression made her smile, and she kissed her prince there by the shimmering lake, underneath the magic stars.

****

Summer held a promise of endless delight. Alex had a part-time job working for a landscaper on weekday mornings, but most of his spare time was spent with Anna. They went hiking on some of the nearby mountain trails, stopping to rest by scenic waterfalls. A passing hiker took their picture for them and Anna put it on the mirror over her dresser. They played Goofy Golf, even though she was
awful
at it. They walked downtown to rent movies and had ice cream cones. One June day Alex borrowed his brother’s truck and took her to a crafts fair in a town
eighty
miles away, where he bought her a stuffed bear that looked
just
like a real black bear cub. Even though he
protested that it was the wrong species,
she named him Yogi.