Closer Than You Realize
Chapter 7
After school that night, I worked for the first time in since school started. My boss, an old family friend, understood that since I was taking difficult classes that year, I needed time to settle into the school year, and I couldn't have been more appreciative, despite the fact that I had used some of my time unwisely, what with going to the movies with Adam among other things.
But technically, I hadn't been completely off work.
Hayden and I worked for a small record store that sold vinyl's, CDs, posters, sheet music books, some band merch, small collectable items, and even musical instruments. In addition to working at the store, Hayden and I published an electronic magazine with pictures and articles about concerts that we attended, courtesy of the store, and information and news about other bands, also known as our "band gossip". It was a very broad paper and it was popular all over the world.
Cole was talking about it the night of Second Miracle's concert and how the whole band read it.
The store was empty as I was restocking and reordering CDs on a shelf and Hayden was standing by the register, organizing merchandise while I ranted to him.
"I can't even believe he said that to me. And if it was really necessary to say it, he could have said it a lot nicer." I scowled.
"He could've, I agree." Hayden said. He hadn't said much about Tyson after I ranted the first time. What was he supposed to say anyway? I knew he didn't like the guy, and at that particular moment, I didn't really either.
"I don't even know why I'm so upset." I muttered.
"I do." He looked up from what he was doing.
"Enlighten me, please." I replied as I looked up too.
"You thought you saw something in him and you wanted to know more. Simple as that, Lyddie."
I sighed in response. I wished I didn't care. It would make my life so much easier if I didn't care.
The bell above the door rang and Hayden and I both turned our gazes to greet whoever was coming in. It was weird to have a customer come in so close to closing time.
I almost choked on my spit when I saw who had just walked through the door.
Tyson Flynn. Just my freaking luck.
"What are you doing here?" I snapped.
"What do you think I'm doing here?" He replied in the same sarcastic tone.
"I wouldn't have asked if I already knew, would I?"
"I'm here to buy my younger sister a CD. She's eight. Since when do you work here?"
"Since we turned fourteen." I glared, even though I knew it wouldn't help me get closer to Tyson any faster. "What are you looking for? I can get it for you so you can get out of here."
"That's rude, Dia. Trying to get rid of me so fast now, are you?"
I could tell I visibly shuddered the moment the name Dia left his lips, but I tried not to let it show how much it bothered me. "There's no denying it. After all, you don't want to spend time with me anyway, so you shouldn't want to be in here too long."
"I didn't say that." He denied.
"What? That you don't want to hang out? Not in those exact words, but you implied it." I replied, my face not breaking from the scowl.
"Second Miracle's second album." He replied, looking shameful.
I didn't even have to look for the album, I knew exactly where it was.
"Here. Tell your sister to enjoy, it's a good one." I said, barely even looking up.
"Thanks." He mumbled and brought the disk to Hayden to pay, then quickly made his way back to his car.
"No comment." Hayden said with a straight face and his eyebrows raised.
"Oh, honey, I have a comment." I said as I held up a sassy finger and jutted out my chin and shook my head. "Or question, I guess." I added, my uncertainty breaking me from the intended sassiness. "Have I ever told you how much I dislike him? I want to like him, I want to be his friend, but everything he does infuriates me and everything he doesn't do or doesn't want to do bothers me!"
"You know, Lyddie, I think you oughta let this one go, I think he's too far gone to drag him back in. He seems like the type of person who just can't wait to finish high school and get out of this small town. I think you should just let him."
"I guess you're probably right. I just wish he had friends at this school; it would make things so much easier and make me not want to be friends with him so badly. He just seems lonely."
"If I'm being honest Lyddie, I've never seen him associate with anyone else during school, not even back in middle school. I think if someone is really bothered by the fact that they don't have friends at school, they'd at least try to reach out and make some. I really think he's content the way he is."
"Maybe." I said, and went back to sorting.
I needed something to get my mind off of Tyson. It just bothered me that he didn't have friends, at school at least, and that he wasn't taking advantage of someone who was clearly willing to be his friend.
For the next 30 minutes, no one came into the store and Hayden and I spent the entire time goofing off and cleaning up the store.
I was in the middle of playing the guitar and jokingly, and dramatically, singing a sappy love song to Hayden when he heard the bell ding again.
I was still singing when I saw Mae from math class walking shyly into the depths of the store. I immediately stopped singing the second I saw her.
"You have a really great voice." She said with a small smile.
"Thanks, Mae." I grinned. "Is there anything you need help finding?"
Mae was one of the last people I thought I'd see walking into our shop. She was so shy that I guess I never pictured her listening to music, which, in hindsight, sounds kind of mean.
"I was actually looking for a piano book." She replied and I realized that playing the piano really suited her.
"They're over here." Hayden grinned, remembering the time he tried playing.
It was a nightmare. Definitely a funny moment. But still a nightmare.
Mae picked out a book she wanted and bought it before saying a timid goodbye and exiting the store just as quietly as she entered.
"Maybe you should ask Mae to teach you how to play the piano." I joked.
"Shut up." My best friend laughed. "It wasn't a good moment for me."
"We all know, ask anyone." I said and Hayden rolled his eyes.
For the remainder of our shift, Hayden worked on the computer to layout that week's issue of the magazine and I dusted all of the instruments in the front corner of the store, lost in thought.
I wasn't focused on Tyson though, my mind was fogged with thoughts of my dad.
He was the only one who ever called me Dia. I don't remember ever living with my dad, but every birthday card he sent me, until he stopped on my 17th birthday, he addressed to Dia. Whenever someone tried to call my Dia, it made me feel like my heart was constricting.
My father had tried to reach out a few times over the years, but he made the choice to leave when I was three, and I believed he had to live with that.
*~*~*
When the next Saturday had rolled around, I'd long put my father out of my mind and Adam and I were hiking Mt. Washington.
I hadn't ever hiked before and I wasn't the most athletic person out there, but after much nagging, Adam somehow managed to convince me to go with him.
Originally, I begrudgingly agreed to go with him, knowing Laurie, Carter, and Hayden were all busy, but once we got out on the mountain, I was grateful that I went.
The scenery was amazing and it turned out not to be as difficult for me as I feared it would be.
We'd arrived in New Hampshire at about 10:30 that morning and hiked until 3, when we thought it was a good time to stop for lunch.
There weren't many people on the trail that day, so Adam and I took a break and spent an hour or so soaking in the rays of sun on a large rock and talking.
I hadn't been spending as much time as normal with Adam after the school year began and I was starting to feel bad about it. We'd been friends since seventh grade and I didn't want to drift away from him, especially since we'd all be going off to college sooner than any of us would like to think.
I laid down on my back looking up at the sky and when Adam did the same, his arm brushed up against mine and he glanced at me with a worried look on his face. I gave him a reassuring smile, but I was confused as to why that affected him at all. It's not like our arms had never touched before.
"I have a question, Lyddie."
"Sure. What's up?"
"What should I do to "whoo" a girl?" He asked in all seriousness. "See, there's this girl, but I don't know if she likes me back, and I don't know how I should go about talking to her about it in a way that the girl will approve of."
"Well, you see Adam, you're at a bit of a disadvantage, being a, you know, virgin." I replied, sticking my tongue out at him.
"You hope you're quoting a movie there, because that's the worst advice ever." He frowned.
"I was." I laughed. "Start off by just talking to her. Get to know her better, because I'm sure if you're asking me what to do, you don't know her that well. And compliment her on the little things. Make her feel special."
"Okay." He said, shaking his head like he was taking this information in.
"So, do I know this girl?"
"Maybe." He mumbled.
"Well I look forward to seeing what happens between you guys." I smiled. "Should we keep going?"
"Sure." He said and we both got up off the rock and continued heading up the mountain.
We didn't talk much after that, but it was fine with me. I was so intrigued by the sights and sounds around me.
I couldn't believe that I'd never come up to New Hampshire to hike before, it was like a whole new world that I'd never seen before. Looking at my surroundings made me feel so at peace. Everything around me looked so serene and it just put a smile on my face.
After a while, my skin was getting sticky and it started to get buggy. Although we knew we wouldn't make it all the way there, we continued toward the summit until it started getting dark around 6:30 and we made our way back down with growling stomachs and tanner skin.
Adam and I booked a stay at a hotel near the mountain so we wouldn't have to rush home after hiking and we decided to shower and get some food.
When both of us were ready, Adam drove to a steakhouse where we got dinner and talked about everything and anything. It had been so long since we hung out, just the two of us, and it felt like we had so much to catch up. From school gossip to college applications to family drama, there was never a moment of silence.
When the bill came, Adam took the check before I could even look at it.
"Adam, no!" I whisper yelled. Had we not been in a nice restaurant, I probably would have climbed over the table to take the bill from him, but I couldn't do that in such a high class restaurant.
"Lydia." He said with a straight face.
"Tell me how much it is!" I replied frantically.
"It's not a big deal, Lyddie."
"It's expensive and I can't let you pay for all of it!"
"It's my treat to you." He said with a smile that sent chills down my spine. Good chills, but chills nonetheless. It wasn't something I was used to feeling around Adam. "And besides, you came all the way up here for me, it's the least I can do."
"Adam..."
"It's not up for debate." He told me in a firm voice as he handed the bill back to the waiter. "Ready to go?"
"Sure." I said, lost in thought as if I were in a daze.
In the car, I thanked Adam profusely and I struggled to keep my eyes open. After not engaging in too much physical activity, hiking really wiped me out.
When we got back to the hotel, I immediately changed into pajamas and crawled into my bed.
"Do you mind if I just go to sleep?" I asked.
"No of course not." Adam said with a smile.
"Good night then."
"Good night, Lyddie." He replied as my eyes fluttered shut. I could have sworn I heard him say something else after that, but I was too tired to ask what it was.