Josh wasn't invisible, but he had never felt so many eyes on him or heard his name whispered from so many lips as much as he did through the rest of the school day.
Talk of his and Darren's "fight" had spread like wildfire. Most people gawked at him when he passed. A few tried to approach him, hoping for more details. He told them all the same thing: Darren must have gone on a rampage and attacked the first guy he found.
Nobody bought it, but when his classmates realized they couldn't get anything else out of him, they left him alone. Tom made the bus torture, though, refusing to give up his interrogation until he had to leave.
About an hour later when his family finally went to the supermarket, Josh couldn't help but wonder if he should even get Regalia. It would just give Tom another chance to question him.
"And how about you, Josh?"
He dragged his eyes from the car window to the front. His mother twisted in her seat to look at him. He blinked.
"What about me?" he asked.
"I asked you and Eli how school was."
"Oh."
His chest tightened. He searched her expression. She quirked an eyebrow as he delayed answering, but otherwise, it didn't seem like she was trying to bait him. The tension eased from his shoulders. Was it too much to hope that he'd gotten lucky and the school decided not to call?
"It was fine," he said with a shrug. "Boring as usual."
His mom eyed him for a moment, but before she could say anything, Eli spoke up. "Oh yeah. Tyler said the birthday party is going to be a sleepover now," he said. "Can I stay over?"
Josh took the chance to glance over at the young brown-haired boy that sat beside him. He could still feel his mom's questioning gaze on him, but the conversation shifted to Eli's plans that weekend and didn't return to Josh's hesitant answer for the rest of the car ride.
The closer they got to the supermarket, the more the nervous knot in his gut uncoiled. He would grab his game, explore while he waited, go home, lose himself in games, and then wake up the next day with everything normal again. Like with the dream, the insanity of today would fade away.
"I'll be at the games," Josh said once they stepped into the store. "Don't forget to let me know before we check out."
"Oh yes, because it would be such a shame if we forgot to tell you before," his dad muttered, though jokingly.
Josh began to walk backwards, shooting his dad a mock glare. "Hey, I mowed the lawn for the past month. You promised to get me this as payment." With no more added comments, he faced forward again and started toward his destination.
But that quickly changed as Eli spoke up behind him. "Mom, I need to go to the toys and get a present for Tyler."
A groan built in Josh's chest as he slowed to a stop. There went his peace and quiet looking at the games.
As he expected, his mom said, "Josh, could you take Eli to the toys?"
Could didn't mean he wanted to, but he sighed and turned back to his family anyway. They stood by the carts, his parents and Eli looking at him expectantly.
"Sure thing," Josh said.
Eli beamed, somehow oblivious to how cruddy Josh found this situation. "Thanks, Josh."
"Nothing over twenty dollars," his mom said as Eli darted up to Josh. "Got it?"
"Got it," Josh and Eli said at the same time. "Come on, pest," Josh added with a ruffle to Eli's hair.
"You're the pest!" Eli said as he swatted at Josh's hand. He rushed ahead, putting a couple yards between them.
Josh rolled his eyes and followed.
The store could have held a larger crowd, but there were still more people than Josh preferred. An old couple trailed across the lane while a bustling mom hurried around them. Two young women cut in front of Eli to get to the clothing section, an amused guy trailing behind them. Another family of five walked on the opposite side of the aisle. As they turned a corner, a grumbling man nearly bumped shoulders with Josh. His muscles tensed, his fists curling, but the man walked on. Up ahead—
Josh frowned as he blinked and forced his attention to the back of Eli's head. He rolled his shoulders, realizing the tension hadn't left him, if it had ever been absent since they started walking. Had he been surveying the store? What, was he afraid a wild store-goer would crash their cart into him? That was ridiculous—
He jerked to a stop as it hit all at once. A tingle jolted up his spine, raising the hairs on the back of his neck. His muscles ached as energy thrummed through him. Josh had only felt like this once, but he couldn't forget it. It was the same as when he had stood outside with Hannah and Darren, so much energy coursing through him he bent the metal handle.
Except this time there was a faint tickling sensation in the back of his head, like a whisper teasing him with its presence.
"Eli," Josh choked out, expecting his brother to vanish in a flood of light. When he didn't, a slight pressure lifted from Josh's shoulders.
Eli tilted his head at Josh. He frowned. "What?" When Josh didn't reply immediately, Eli continued, "You okay? You look funny."
"Yeah, I'm fine." At least, he would be. The rush would vanish like it had before. He was still here, in the store. Everything was okay. Josh just needed to get moving. Still, his eyes slid across the store, making sure the world really was okay. "Sorry, I was playing around—"
The words died on his lips. He had expected to either see a wave of moving bodies or a wall of frozen people. Instead, he saw something much better.
His eyes locked onto a young girl around his age. She stood in the opening of a side aisle across from him, gorgeous blue eyes meeting his own. They sparked with amusement as she tilted her head. He watched her dark hair spill over her shoulder, transfixed. The locks looked so soft, and some stupid part of him wondered what it would feel like to lose his hand in those loose curls.
She was beautiful, and that quirk of her full lips tugged at him, daring him to walk over and introduce himself. Only two things stopped him.
The first, minor thing being he would probably make an absolute fool of himself.
The second, more important thing being the cold realization crushing the squirming butterflies in his stomach. He hadn't stopped to look at her because she looked like she walked out of his greatest dreams.
He had stopped to stare because she had been staring first.
Fun fact: In the situation with Josh and Eli, I was actually Eli. I would make my brother take me to the toy's before we went off and did what we wanted. Because of my habit of wanting to press every button in the toy section, my brother really hated doing this.
Josh seems really rattled, what now being paranoid in the store. But maybe he has reason to with people like this girl showing up. Random staring? I mean, I guess maybe she's checking him out... Maybe?
Let me know your thoughts of the chapter down below, and if you enjoyed, don't forget to comment. Or even join my Patron, which can be found in my bio. The lowest tier only costs $1 a month and gives you access to my discord, where you can get chapter previews. Both tiers also allow a chapter shout-out, so... Let's get to this chapter's shout-out!
Patron: TheConfusedTurtle, Book: Of Spellbooks and Thieves
Summary:
Tobias never had any intention of leaving the comfort of his home outside the quiet town of Floridus, until the day a thief steals a mysterious book from his very hands. Afraid that the thief will uncover the book's secrets, he follows her right into the middle of a conflict between her and her former companions.
In order to reclaim his book and safely return home, Tobias must learn to adapt to the world outside. After all, things are not always as they seem to be.