CHAPTER THREE
⤷ the alchemist
JACKIE sat at her usual spot in the library. For the first time in forever, she took the opportunity to study for an upcoming English exam. She didn't understand how she had never studied before yet still managed to pass her classes, but she knew she really needed to remember the material for her next test, she didn't want to risk her grade.
Her alone time was interrupted when Lucas invited himself to her table, "Well, If it isn't Muhammad Ali," Jackie acknowledged him, barely looking up from her notebook. Everyone had heard about the altercation between him and Nathan. He didn't say anything as he slid a book toward her, "The Alchemist?"
"It's a classic," Lucas informed, "I think the message will do you some good."
Jackie's gaze on him softened before she picked up the book to examine it before placing it in her bag. She would be lying if she said she hadn't been thinking about him for the past few days. What he told her in the car stuck with her, since then, she had been laying off her obsessive search and allowed herself to put her trust into time for a while, "I'll make sure to give you my feedback." She gave him a small toothless smile, "So, are you okay?"
"Yeah," Lucas sighed, "I just wish everything could just go back to normal. I've never walked away from anything before."
"Then why now?"
"It's just the game always made sense. It was mine, you know? In a lot of ways, it's who I am. But I can't be that person in their gym, uniforms, or their world."
For the two of them, there was this unspoken, comforting connection. The last few days the two would openly express themselves to each other. They both found comfort in the fact that they were practically strangers, it was always refreshing to talk things out with someone who didn't know you personally without the need for explanation or justification. That way, they felt like it was a judgment-free zone.
"Look," Jackie placed her notebook down to give him her undivided attention, "I don't know you that well but so far I can tell that you're a hell of a good player and a good person, no uniform or any teammate cans take that from you, okay? Now get yourself together."
"Thanks, Jackie," Lucas thanked her with a grateful smile, getting up from the chair, "Don't forget to read the book."
"As long as you don't forget to play in the next game."
"No promises."
OVER the course of the next few days, Jackie had fully emerged into The Alchemist. She highlighted and underlined everything that she felt related to her or changed her perspective on the development of a fulfilling life. She instantly found the similarities between her and the protagonist, Santiago. His struggles with self-doubt and uncertainty resonated with her the most. Both the obstacles and the lessons he faced on his journey showed her what it meant to have a true, personal transformation. The way he found his purpose, but mainly emphasized the importance of the journey itself, was a true eye-opener. It easily became one of the best books she had ever read.
Jackie walked the halls a bit quicker than usual to catch Nick at his locker. Nick glanced over to her and used the opportunity to mock her, "Jaqueline! So you do remember me." He quoted her from last week, "Remind me again of how many of my games you've missed?"
"I have better things to do than watch you play with balls for two hours," Jackie joked, aware of the way she made Basketball sound, "I'll be there at the next one crybaby." Jackie looked down at the single drawings in his hands, "Woah, when did you become talented?" She poked fun at him.
"Ha," He laughed sarcastically, "These aren't mine."
"Then who are they for?"
On cue, Nick's locker was slammed shut by a fuming Peyton. Nick and Jackie looked startled, "Who do you think you are?!"
"Uh," He looked around, "Nick?"
"I'm just gonna go," Jackie excused herself with a laugh, she turned to walk to the opposite side of the hallway. She was grateful to see Lucas alone, going through his locker, "Great game, Lucas," A girl walked past, keeping her voice flirtatious.
"Well, aren't you just the newest star of Tree Hill," Jackie leaned her back on one of the nearby lockers.
"I guess I am," Lucas looked proud of himself, "I can't believe you missed it."
"I know, but that was because—" Jackie grabbed the fully annotated book from her bag. It was filled with sticky notes and highlighted lines, "—I was busy reading this. I loved it, by the way, I really needed that."
"Wow," Lucas examined the annotations, "I'm glad you appreciate my services."
"Yeah, yeah."
"Are you busy after school tomorrow?"
"Uh, no, I don't think so, why?" Jackie cocked her head to the side.
"I was just wondering if you would like to get some coffee or something and talk about the book, my Mom has a coffee shop—"
"Karen's Cafe, yeah I know, my Mom goes there all the time," Jackie finished, "We can do that. Wait, you sure you don't have to check your calendar or something?" She joked.
In the middle of the two laughing, Brooke Davis, another cheerleader and a friend of Peyton's, strolled up to Lucas' locker, "Hey, Random Girl," Brooke nicknamed her before looking over to Lucas, "Hey, you didn't happen to find my, um—"
Lucas cut her off by holding up a leopard bra on display. She took it with a smile, "Thank you, gorgeous."
"It's Jackie by the way," Jackie informed Brooke.
"Oh," She chuckled, "I was talking to him but you're pretty too." She complimented the girl before walking away. Jackie glanced up at Lucas in disbelief before they both let out a laugh.
"Anyway," Jackie shook her head, "Cafe at, let's say, three o'clock?"
"Three o'clock," He confirmed.
"SO, what happened between you and Peyton the other day?" Jackie asked as she changed her shirt one last time. Nick laid across her bed, throwing and catching his keys. She was currently getting ready to meet up with Lucas at his Mom's cafe. She was feeling a bit nervous but she couldn't pinpoint why, she was wouldn't deny his attractiveness but she didn't like him that way at all.
"I submitted her drawings to THUD magazine," He sighed, "She should be thanking me. She was too scared to do it."
"But you did it without her permission," Jackie looked back at him then back to her full body mirror, smoothing out her outfit, "I can see why she was upset, why were you snooping in her stuff anyway?"
"I wasn't," He defended himself, "They were out in the open."
"Still doesn't give you the right. What's up with you and this girl anyway?" Jackie grabbed her bracelets from her desk and evenly distributed them between her wrist, "I mean she's still with Nathan but it might do you some good to just tell her how you feel. Right now you're just annoying her."
"I really like her, Jackie."
"Then I'll get rid of Nathan," She suggested, grabbing her shoes, "I can make it look like an accident."
Nick laughed before sitting up on the bed, "Where are you going?"
"Get some coffee," Jackie shrugged nonchalantly.
Nick eyed her, waiting for her to go on, "...With?"
"Lucas, why?"
Nick jumped up from her bed, one hand cupping around his mouth and the other pointing towards her. Jackie threw her head back with a small laugh, "You are so childish. "
"Is this young man taking you on a date?"
"No, Dad, it's not a date."
"Does he know that?"
Jackie thought to herself, "I think so, we're just getting coffee and talking about a book he lent me."
"A book?" Nick snickered, "Aw, nerds in love."
"Yes, a book," Jackie playfully rolled her eyes, "you should pick up one, maybe Peyton will find you a little interesting."
"Hey, I do read."
"Yeah?" Jackie put on her jacket, "What was the last book you read then? The Cat in the Hat?"
"No...but that was a good read though." He pointed out. Jackie shook her head with a smile, reaching for her bag and her keys.
The walk to Karen's cafe was pretty brisk. Jackie always preferred to walk than drive during the fall weather. She loved the slight breeze and the sound of the leaves crunching beneath her feet. The bell chimed as she walked into the Cafe, and she was immediately greeted with the warm, comforting aroma of a variety of pastries and fresh coffee. Conversations from tables and the hissing of coffee machines meshed together to fill the air.
The dark-haired girl at the counter turned to her with an inviting smile as she approached, "How can I help you?"
"Hi," She greeted before looking around, "I was wondering if Lucas made it yet, he was supposed to meet me here."
"Jackie, right?" The girl questioned although she was sure. Jackie nodded, "Thought so, he told me you were coming. I'm Haley." she introduced herself, extending her hand.
Jackie shook her hand before eyeing her, "You didn't tutor Nicholas, did you?"
"That's me," She nodded, "He was definitely...something."
"Oh, I bet," Jackie laughed, "Can I get a small coffee, two sugars, two creams, and a slice of Toffee Apple Cake, please?"
"Six twenty-five."
Jackie happily pulled out the twenty-dollar bill she had won from Nick and handed it over to Haley. As she waited for her order, she took a seat at a circular table near a window. She patiently tapped her nails against the table and hummed to herself. A few minutes later, the door chimed again. Jackie made eye contact with Lucas who wore a smile on his face. He first acknowledged Haley before having a seat across from her.
"Almost thought bailed, superstar," Jackie glanced down at her watch, "I should charge a late fee."
"I had some trouble with the team," He shrugged it off, "They trashed the court."
"That team is filled with a bunch of immature assholes, I hope Nick isn't participating in any of that." Jackie frowned a little. She hoped her best friend would never scoop as low as Nathan.
"He's actually the nicest one besides Jake believe it or not," He reassured her, "I won't let them get to me though, I can't let them win."
"And you shouldn't, they'll get tired eventually if you don't give them a response." She advised, "I can take 'em you know, have you seen me in the gym?" she asked, flexing her barely toned arms.
Lucas laughed pushing her arms down, "I think I've seen enough."
It wasn't long before his mother, Karen, (who she had seen a few times) walked up to their table, placing down the slice of cake and the cup of coffee in front of Jackie, "Can I get you something else?" She asked with a smile. She stole a quick look from her son and wiggled her eyebrows, Lucas glared at her as a signal to stop.
"That'll be all, thank you."
Karen gave her a short nod before returning to the counter. Jackie pulled out the book from her tote bag and places it in the middle of the table, "What made you give me this?"
"It reminded me of you. I thought about what you said in the car, you know, trying to find your spark." He explained, doing a quick scan of some of the annotated pages, "I couldn't put what I wanted to you in the right words so I thought the book would be more successful at delivering my advice."
Jackie took a sip of her coffee to hide the smile that threatened to form on her face before replying, "You're right, the message was very clear and I really appreciate the gesture. I feel a lot better."
"Do you?"
"Yeah, really," Jackie confirmed, "Who knew ink on paper could have so much impact." She chuckled, before pushing the slice of cake between them, "piece of cake to celebrate?" she offered.
"Don't mind if I do," He picked up a fork, digging into the cake with Jackie doing the same. Jackie popped the fork into her mouth and immediately closed her eyes, savoring the taste.
"Woah," She commented, with her eyes still closed in satisfaction, "this is what sex is like."
Lucas stifled a laugh, "It is pretty good."
"Understatement," She opened her eyes, taking another bite, "Even better a second time." She turned to the counter to see Haley and Karen already watching her and Lucas' interaction. The two of them pretended to seem busy, fiddling with random items on the counter, as if they weren't interested in their conversation at all, "Ms. Roe?" She called out.
"Yes?" She answered, walking over to the table.
"What is in this cake?" Jackie covered her mouth with her hand as she chewed, "It's delicious."
"Uh, the usual," Karen wasn't sure what to say before she started listing the ingredients, "brown sugar, eggs, flour, cinnamon, almonds..." She continued to list more ingredients.
"No, there's something else," Jackie tasted the cake one more time, "I can't put my finger on it... what are the ingredients for the syrup on top?"
Lucas and Karen looked at each other, equally confused at her sudden interest, "Just sugar and lemon juice." Jackie simply shook her head at the list, there was this distinct taste that Karen just wasn't listing, something was making it stand out. "Do you bake?"
"Oh, no, sorry, my Dad worked as a chef before he passed," Jackie informed, "I guess this cake just made the inner baker in me come out." She joked.
"Hold on a sec," Karen held up a finger before jogging back behind the counter. A minute later, Karen returned to the table with a small list of ingredients, "Here, this should be everything I used if you want to try it yourself."
"Thanks, Ms.Roe," She took the small paper then placed it in her bag, "Thanks for hanging out with me Lucas but if I don't figure this out, I might go insane, see you at school." She dismissed herself from the table, making her way out of the door and in the direction of the nearest grocery store.
"Huh," Karen huffed out, as she and Lucas watched her through the cafe windows, "I have never seen someone that invested in a piece of cake."
Lucas held back a smile, "I think she just found her spark."