Mina tried to call after her and apologize until she recognized the person the girl was making a beeline for-Jared. Mina stood stunned in the middle of the hallway, as the cute girl caught up to Jared, leaned in close to him, really close. Closer than what was natural for just friends. Questions began to plague Mina. How did he know her? Did he have a girlfriend she didn’t know about? How come he never mentioned her before?
She stood frozen, in the middle of the hallway, as student after student bumped into her. Some called out expletives for her to move. Jared leaned forward and whispered into the girl’s short hair, in almost an intimate manner. She turned her small frame to him and tried to take a step closer. Jared shuffled and it almost looked like he was giving her a hug. WHAT in the world was going on!
Mina’s fingers dug painfully into her text book and she quickly put her head down and kept moving through the hall, hoping he didn’t see her staring at him. How was this fair? Why could everyone, even Jared carry on and have a normal life except for her. It wasn’t until Mina walked into her biology classroom and saw a bunch of freshmen, that she realized it was the wrong period and wrong class. Now, she would have to turn around and walk past Jared and the girl again.
Her footsteps sounded immensely loud in the hallway and she could feel her teeth grinding at the injustice that was high school. She wished she had her notebook of “Unaccomplishments and Epic Disasters” here with her because she would literally rip the whole thing to shreds. Her whole life was a disaster; nothing seemed to be going right. She didn’t have a boyfriend, or a best friend and she found herself insanely jealous of people she should be angry at. Whatever happened to her insanely boring, predictable and clumsy life? It fell off the catwalk that’s what happened.
She found her destiny or better yet her destiny found her. How bad would it be really if she didn’t complete any of the quests? Why couldn’t the Fae run rampant through their world? No one’s noticed it before, it couldn’t be that detrimental if she didn’t complete any quests right? She could just ignore the Story.
Mina’s spirits brightened as she sat down at her desk. Until, she remembered the three bears and the missing homeless. She felt nauseous and felt even worse when she remembered who would be forced to complete the tasks if she didn’t. Her younger, mute brother.
“Aaargh” Mina groaned and smacked her forehead into the desk and decided to stare at the clock above Mrs. Colbert’s head the whole period, counting the seconds until she could leave. All of her best laid plans failed. She thought and plotted and devised but nothing fruitful came of it.
The morning passed without a single hint of magic, power, or segues of fairy tale specials. Nada. When lunch came, Nan still wasn’t speaking to her, which was fine because it left it open for Mina to sit closer to Savannah’s table and spy on her. It didn’t exactly help when Nan sat right next to Savannah.
Mina watched Pricilla plait Savannah’s hair to make a very intricate braid that included a blue ribbon down it. Mina gnawed on a carrot stick and her eyes narrowed in hate. She couldn’t believe it; she was sitting in the lunch room watching Brody’s ex-girlfriend get her hair dolled up with ribbons. The carrot snapped off loudly in Mina’s mouth and she crunched it angrily. And not only that, but if the Story decided to use Savannah in a tale, Mina would have to rescue her butt.
“Ah, come on.” Mina rolled her eyes as another cheerleader came over with her lunch tray and sat next to Nan, Savannah and Pri. Everything seemed boring as usual until Savannah asked for Pri’s uneaten apple. Mina jumped up in eagerness. It was happening right now! Savannah thanked the Pri, gently wiped the apple clean with her napkin and slowly brought it to her pink rouged lips.
Mina launched herself from the table next to Savannah’s and quickly slapped the apple out of Savannah’s hand. The apple flew across the floor and rolled into the black sneaker of a lone boy.
“OW! What did you do that for, Grimy!” Savannah screeched loudly calling her that ugly nickname she hated. Savannah rubbed her hand where Mina had slapped it. A faint red mark was already appearing.
Mina hadn’t prepared what she was going to say after she’d saved Savannah from being poisoned by the apple. Thinking fast wasn’t her strong suit, nor was acting. Luckily, there was someone sitting close by that happened to be great at both.
“Oh Savannah! Didn’t you hear?” Nan answered nonchalantly. “There has been some sort of pesticide that has infected the out-of-state apple farms. Supposedly it hasn’t reached the news yet, because only a few cases have been reported to the area hospitals. But if you eat any apples from those farms you could get really sick.
“I should know my moms’ boyfriend is a doctor and since we don’t know what farm that apple came from it would be better if you just stayed away from all apples.” Nan leaned forward and placed her head on the back of her hands, her eyes portraying all honesty.
Mina couldn’t believe her good luck, she quickly moved away from Savannah’s table but not before she caught the smallest wink from Nan. She didn’t understand the sudden change of heart from her friend or the reason behind her willingness to lie for her, but she was very glad.
She looked up at caught Jared’s eye. He had watched the whole exchange and he looked amused by Mina’s actions. He pointed down at the apple that had come to rest against his shoe, the apple that she had smacked out of Savannah’s hand. He laughed as he reached down and picked up the apple. Mina frowned.
Dusting it off against his shirt, Jared took a bite out of it and chewed slowly, taunting her. Mina’s mouth opened and closed in shock and her level of frustration rose at his constant teasing. Jared laughed at her embarrassment. Mina retreated out of the lunchroom, his laughter followed her out.
***
Once school was over, Mina rushed toward her bike, only half eager to follow Savannah home. She knew that she would have to ride fast to catch up with a car. She couldn’t wait until this quest was over and she could be done with her babysitting duties. She had just pulled the lock off of her red Schwinn bike when a sleek black Mustang sped down the road toward the school. The driver was a show off, driving fast, turning easily. Mina was slightly surprised when the car hit the brakes and stopped on a dime right in front of her. She could see her own reflection in the tinted windows of the high end car and knew right then, she was in trouble.
If she knew what was good for her she would’ve walked away, but curiosity got the best of her. She waited as the power windows lowered with only a small hum. Mina leaned down expecting some sort of sport executive or celebrity VIP. She stepped back in disdain when it was Jared.
He leaned across the passenger seat and whispered to Mina. “We need to talk.”
Mina glanced warily over her shoulder and watched Savannah get into her blue convertible, any minute now she would be gone. “No, I don’t think we do,” she answered out of the side of her mouth.
“YES, we do, and if you don’t stop avoiding me you are quickly going to be in over your head again.”
“What do you mean again?” Mina argued.
“Can’t you feel it? The storm brewing, the accumulation of power, the Story is building up toward another quest for you.” At the word quest a small gust of wind blew against Mina, making her shiver.
“Yeah I know. It’s not my first rodeo. I’m way ahead of you and I’ve already got it covered,” she said, impatiently patting her jacket where she had tucked the Grimoire.
“Oh you mean taking care of it like you did in the today in the lunchroom? You are way off track and you obviously don’t understand how these things work.”
Mina gave Jared a disgusted look.