Once we’re back on land, he starts to walk away without even so much as a glance toward me, but I run after him and grab him by the arm. He turns with a scowl at me.
“What?” he demands irritably.
I hand him his wadded up soaking and bloodied shirt. “I thought you might want your shirt back.”
He scoffs. “Not now. That was John Varvatos, too.” He shakes his head in total disgust. “What a waste.” He walks away and I wonder which he means. Me or the boat.
Chapter 7
Victoria sees me in the hall as soon as I head back to the school and her mouth falls open in shock. I tried my best to dry off beforehand, but I’m guessing I still look like an absolute wreck.
There are two girls with her; each of them standing just behind her, like wingmen. She comes to me and picks tentatively at my wet hair and white blouse with her fingertips, as if she can’t believe what she’s seeing or touching.
“What happened to you?”
“I went for a swim in the lake,” I say. My voice is the only thing dry about me.
“Oh my god … that rumor about you sinking a boat today is true?” She blinks and then laughs hollowly for a second. “Who would have thought?”
Great. It’s already going around the school. How many rumors can I get going about myself in one day, I wonder? Maybe I can set a Guinness Book World Record.
“Yeah, I guess so.”
She watches me interestedly for a moment, and then brightens and introduces me to her friends; Alisha Kane and Laura Brighton.
Alisha looks exactly like Malibu Barbie, and Laura looks like a brunette version of Alisha. Their vapid eyes tell me that there’s not a lot going on behind the designer makeup and fake eyelashes. That’s alright with me. It’s the smart ones you have to watch out for.
“It’s nice to meet you.” I offer them a polite smile.
The sinking boat escapade made me miss my next class, but Victoria is quick to fill me in as she hauls me back off across the quad to find a sunny spot to dry off in. At this point changing completely is pretty pointless. I’m just a bit damp now—nothing a little sunshine won’t fix.
We stop at a beautiful area with some flower beds in the corners, paths, grassy areas, and tall, old trees growing overhead. She passes a few empty benches and parks us on one at the far end of the quad where some other students are hanging out.
A few tables have been set up with sign-up sheets for clubs and sports. A decent number of students are milling around, laughing, and catching up about the goings-on of their summer holidays. There’s a general feeling of excitement, and it’s infectious.
I’m about to ask Victoria if there are any clubs she thinks I should join, when I catch her positively preening beside me. I try not to stare, but it’s so ridiculous it’s hard not to. If I did say something to her now, I doubt she’d listen.
She’s grinning
like a cover model in front of a Nikon; flipping her hair back and forth over one shoulder while crossing her legs and giving them a good, obvious look. It wouldn’t look nearly so odd if both Alisha and Laura weren’t starting to copy her, while looking on out of the corner of their eyes for cues.
I’m really starting to wonder what in the world she’s doing it for until I happen to raise my eyes and see three boys leaning against one of the big old trees, talking and taking in the view. The brief storm left a shimmer to the grounds that makes everything appear just a little … magical. My stomach tightens at the sight of them. It’s Astor Hawthorne, Wills Stryker, and another boy I haven’t seen yet.
They look like they’re the worst half of the three musketeers; all for one.
The third boy catches me staring. He’s different from Astor and Wills. Even from here, I can see the green of his eyes that seem to pierce everything they look at, and those eyes are seriously set off by his dyed silvery white hair. There’s mischief in his smile, one cheek punctuated with a dangerously adorable dimple.
This is not good.
It’s been my experience that anyone with dimples is trouble.
He looks over and I can see him blatantly checking me out. He gives me a wink and a full-blown smile, and I feel my breath catch in my chest.
I look away quickly and focus on Victoria again, trying to reignite the conversation I was hoping to have with her about school clubs that might look good on a college resume, but she’s completely distracted with trying to catch Astor’s eye. The problem is, he’s not looking at her … he’s looking at me.
But it’s not with admiration. It’s disdain.
It’s like he can look right through me, right past Sadie to Teddy.