Chapter One Evalyn
Waking up and not being able to breathe - usually not a pleasant sensation at all.
It’s one thing, if it’s because you just had a great dream about your crush asking you out and the smothering you in kisses until you can’t breathe, and the dream is just so realistic that you jerk awake hoping for it to be real. That wasn’t the case that day, I’d been dreaming that I had been seconds away from being married to the guy of my dreams – funny right, because I had been dreaming about him- being swept up in his arms and carried into the sunset on some remote beach. Next thing I know, the beach has been replaced by a blob of black and gray fur. I shove my cat, Jo, off of my face where she had decided to lay down, and groaned. Rolling over, I rubbed the sleep out of one eye and glance at my clock.
That couldn’t be right, I thought as my eyebrows knit together in confusion. Then I remembered my mother coming in already and telling me to get up as my alarm clock yelled at me. I had turned it off and told her that I was awake, only to lie back in bed and had fallen asleep almost seconds later. Now I had only ten minutes to be awake and standing at my bus stop. I don’t think I had ever gotten ready that fast in my life. Undressing, then putting on a white blouse, a pleated blue, green, and white plaid skirt with knee high socks in record time.
Not bothering to brush out my tangled shoulder length blonde hair, I just grabbed a hair band and pulled it all back into a messy bun, hoping that it looked okay. As I ran down the stairs into the kitchen, crashing into the counter – that would be a nice bruise on my hip later- and grabbed a piece of bread then shoved it in the toaster.
I rushed to the bathroombrushed my teeth, and then hurriedback into the kitchen just as my toast popped up. I buttered it while it was still warm and quickly pushed it in my mouth as I put on my jacket and grabbed my backpack with my empty hand, while eating I rushed out the front door. As I rounded the corner to the bus stop at a light jog I could just see the bus turning the corner. I sprinted the rest of the way, just making it in time. I slumped into the first empty seat I could find, rolling my eyes at the bickering teenagers. I pulled out my iPod and put my ear buds in, turning up the volume, effectively tuning them all out.
The bus ride was thirty minutes long, even though the school was only twenty minutes away if you were driving slower than a Grandpa on Sunday, with all the stops the bus had to make; I couldn’t wait to get my own car! I settled in and leaned my head against the cold bus window, maybe I could get some more sleep now and go back to that perfect dream. When we got to the school I pulled myself out of my seat and trudged down the stairs – yup, I’m a morning person!
The hallways were full of uniformed kids standing around and talking, some of them were fooling with each other roughly, others chatting and laughing. I ducked around teens that were leaning against the locker but had their feet out in the middle of the hallway – I swear, they were trying to break my neck as I tripped and stumbled over a pair. Finally making it to my locker I slide down the front and sat on the floor, keeping my feet tucked close to me.
“Hey Eva, what’s up?” a voice asked from above me. I look up and standing there was Carter –or the super cutie from my dreams. He had moved here at the beginning of the year and instantly he had fit in with me and my friends.
“Morning. I’m super tired. School shouldn’t start this early,” I complained, “What about you?”
He leaned his back against the locker and looked down at me while shrugging, “Nothing really, just a stiff neck. All this stress for next week’s exam is getting to me.”
“Think a neck rub would make it feel any better?” I asked, secretly sighing over his amazing moss green eyes that were looking right at me.
“Yeah it probably would.”
“Only if I get to use you as a pillow after,” I negotiated.
“That tired? Okay, you have a deal.”
“I can’t reach your neck if I’m sitting down here and it’s all the way up there,” I joked with an exaggerated eye roll. He took a seat in front of me and tipped his head forward so I could get to his neck better and I started massaging away all the tense knots.
“Why are you tired so today?”
“The composition assignment is due soon. I finished the written part of my song but I can’t get the piano part the way I want it.”
“Do you need any help? Maybe I can lend a hand?”
“I’ll let you know. I’m going to my mum’s shop tonight after dinner to finish it and hear what it sounds like on a real piano. My electric at home just isn’t the same,” I told him. Feeling brave I leaned my head against the back of his neck and left it there.
If I were to ask him out right now what would he say? I wondered to myself. I was working up the courage to ask him when Owen came around the corner and spotted us sitting there.
“Morning guys!” he called in greeting.
Owen and I had been best friends since our mums had told us to play nicely in the sand box together on the first day of kindergarten. Okay, not right away... he had thrown sand at me and I solved things by hitting him – something he refuses to admit ever happened - but after that little incident he seemed to have deemed me tough enough to be allowed to hang out with him. All my friends swore up, down and sideways that Owen had this huge crush on me, but really we were just friends.
“Hey Eva, are you coming to the party this Saturday?” asked Owen.
“If you can convince my mum to let me go I am in,” I told him.
The warning bell went telling us we had five minutes to get to our homerooms before we were late. Carter got up and pulled me to my feet. When he let go, all too soon for my liking, we all headed in the direction of our classroom: math.
“Where’s Vic?” I hissed to Carter and Owen when I entered the classroom and noticed my best friend’s desk was still empty and I realized I hadn’t seen her yet that morning.
“Not a clue,” replied Owen as he took his seat. I looked at Carter and he just shrugged as he walked away.
I took a seat in my own desk and just as Mr. Reynolds was about to shut the door Victoria slipped inside, earning her a glare from Mr. Reynolds. She sat down in her seat, grinning from ear to ear she winked at me. I didn’t get time to question her about why she was almost late as Mr. Reynolds started the morning announcements and then had us doing a pre exam warm up. For the next hour, Mr. Reynolds then gave a rivetingly boring class.
When the signal bell for the end of class went I packed my textbooks away and turned to Victoria. “Hey there, hot stuff,” I greeted. She giggled and laced her arm through mine and we walked together out of the classroom towards our next class, Owen and Carter rushing to keep up with us.
Victoria and I had become friends in our freshmen year. Back then she had been super quiet and geeky, with an amazing voice and I was always outspoken. When I had seen two upperclassmen from the DANCE department hitting on her and poor little Victoria, obviously looking for a getaway, I had marched over smiled at her, grabbed her arm and simply pulled her away.
“Where were you that you just barely made it to class?” asked Carter.
“My step mother had to drive me to school today. God, being stuck in a car with her even for ten minutes was enough to make me want to bash my face against the window until I knocked myself out. But she did get me a coffee and bagel,” she explained.
We all entered our next class, English, which was one of my favorites. We had Mrs. Cooley who was a great teacher that when you listened to her talking about a play or explaining something to a student you could just tell that she loved her subject and enjoyed teaching teens. She was sitting behind her desk eating an apple and waved at us when we entered.
“Morning,” she greeted.
“Morning, Mrs. Cooley,” we said in unison. Slowly the rest of the class began to trickle in.
I had Mrs. Cooley for this period and into the next period where my first elective class was creative writing - helpful for song writing - Vic had also chosen this class while Carter and Owen had taken Gym. At the end of the period we all said our goodbye as the boys stood up to leave.
“Who are you taking to the party?” I asked Vic.
“Brad asked me to go with him, I thought he never would,” she gushed, “What about you?”
“I’m not even sure if I’m going.”
“You still haven’t asked,” sighed Vic, rolling her eyes when I just grinned at her. “Well if you can, who do you want to go with?” she pushed. She didn’t know about my crush on Carter, it was something that I hadn’t ever mentioned to anybody.
“Well I was thinking of asking you, but seeing as how you’re taking Brad I guess that won’t happen,” I teased. “What are you wearing?” And for the rest of the break, she was debating with herself what she should wear, mentally tossing wardrobes in the ‘No way in hell’, ‘Maybe I can try this on’, and the ‘If I can get out of the house in this, this is totally the outfit because it makes me look freaking hotter than a ghost pepper’.
When I got home that afternoon I barricaded myself in my room to do some studying before I went to my mum store to finish my project. I was sitting on my bed with my math textbook in front of me and a fresh piece of paper at the ready. Jo, my new alarm clock also known as my cat was doing her best to sit on anything that took my attention away from her. She nudged my hand with her head, begging to be scratched behind her ear. Giving in I pulled her closer to me so she was snuggled into my side and I could pet her with my free hand as I wrote my answers.
I had my pencil poised to find the solution when I heard my mum yelling up the stairs. “Evalyn, can you come down here please?”
“Coming,” I called back down as I pushed the homework off my lap.
I headed down the stairs toward the voices drifting out of the living room. Sitting on the love seat was my mum, wearing a soft green summer dress that matched her green eyes. Sitting beside her was her boyfriend Colin, wearing worn blue jeans and a casual button up grey shirt. He had short hair that was mostly black with a few whites showing here and there. They both stood up when I entered the room.
“Yes mum?” I asked.
“I have some really great news.” She said, a large smile on her face. I gave her a look that to try and tell her to continue but she didn’t I finally said, “Well? What’s the news?”
Colin asked me to marry him!” she shrieked as she thrust out her hand and I could see the diamond on her finger. “I said yes!”
“That’s great mum! Look at it! It’s so pretty!” I said as I hugged her. As soon as I let her go I hugged Colin too, “Congratulations you guys!”
I was glad my mum had found somebody who had made her this happy. She and Colin had been together for nearly five month now- and in that time she had been the happiest I had seen her in a long time. After my dad’s death nearly nine years ago, my mum had seemed to die a little too. My dad had died while he was on a business trip in Oakland, California. Mum had only started dating two years ago. The first guy turned out to be a drunk who she didn’t stay with too long. The second was an ass and the third was Colin, who had made my mum feel alive again.
Mum smiled at me, stroking her finger adoringly. “Colin’s son Carter is coming to meet us tonight. Well, actually to meet you. I met him when I went to Colin’s house months ago. We’ve been trying to get all of us together for a while, but one of you always seemed to be busy.”
Carter. There’s no way it could be the same Carter. There are a million people names Carter, what are the chances. I shrugged the coincidence aside and said, “And you want me to be on my best behavior?”
“I would love it if you were Evalyn,” she said with a grin.
“I will be, on one condition,” I bargained.
“Oh dear, what are you going to make me agree to?”
“There’s a party this Saturday in Yarker, the whole group is going to go…”
“Depends on how well you behave,” she said jokingly.
I mock salted her before I said, “Fine, I’m going back up to my room to finish my homework.”
I was looking over my answers when the doorbell rang, I ignored it at first and continued to check my answers, but soon curiosity got the better of me and I got off my bed where I had been sprawling while working –something my mum always gave me trouble for- and went to the front door. Mum and Colin had already gotten the door and were standing in the front hall talking to a third person I couldn’t see.
“Evalyn, good I didn’t have to call you. This is Colin’s son,” my mum said as I continued to walk towards them, when I was standing beside my mum she did the introductions, “this is Carter. Carter, my daughter Evalyn.”
A feeling of dread grew in my stomach. As I drew closer to the group I could see past my mum and Colin. I could see the black hair that hung past his ears, green eyes hiding behind glasses, and the Kildare Academy of the Arts jacket. My heart dropped as I put the pieces together. Colin’s son was coming over tonight. This is Colin’s son. My crush of a year is about to become my step brother. I had never met Carter’s dad when all of us had hung out at his place, his dad would be at work. It felt as if my world had shattered.
Cupid was a cruel angel.