Derrin
He turns to say something to someone behind him and I'm lost, the jeans he's wearing show off his very nicely shaped ass and long legs. I'm still standing in one spot staring when Jason -I mean Jase- bumps his shoulder into mine. "Forget it, we're here to work and you are here to learn how to blend in, not date." Jase whispers next to my ear.
"But dating is blending in." I whisper back with a wink.
"Would you two start acting more like siblings and less like a couple whispering sweet nothings!" Char snaps, grabbing my wrist and practically dragging me towards the entrance, I have to jog to keep up with him.
"Sure Char, we'll stop flirting just as soon as you stop ordering me around like a jealous lover." I tug my wrist free of his grasp and stop walking.
"I'm not..."
"You are!" Jase cuts him off. "How about we change the cover, no one is going to believe she's our foster sister, you can't even look at her without trying to..."
"Okay, we'll tell people she's a friend of the family who lost her parents and we've been looking after her ever since. Happy now?" Char growls.
"Yup!" Both Jase and I say. Jase wraps his arm around my shoulders and leans in close to my ear again. "He can't look at you without trying to strip you naked with his mind."
"Jase! Enough." Char growls again but even I can hear the embarrassment in his voice.
Are they seriously hitting on me or is this their way of trying to distract me from thoughts about my first day of school?If they are hitting on me, is it just because of the bond or have they been interested in me all this time?By the time I finish that thought we come to a stop in front of the office door.
"You ready for this?" Char asks Jase.
"Yup, what about you?"
"Not at all." Char laughs.
"Good, let’s do this." Jase pushes on the door, neither of them bothering to ask me if I'm ready for all this. Again, I get that feeling of being a thorn in their sides, this feeling causes me to dispel the earlier idea that they had been flirting with me. I'm not sure why that makes me feel like crying, but I swallow the lump in my throat and follow them both into the office. It's not the kind of office I was expecting. A huge bench-like desk separates the room, teachers, and staff on one side, students on the other. A long line of twenty or so orange plastic chairs span the length of the room against the wall beneath windows that face out into the hall.
Half of them are occupied by students playing on phones with an impatient air about them. Jealousy over seeing them playing on their phones hit me, a piece of technology the guys have denied me. Knowing I can't interrupt the guys to once again ask about getting a phone, I bite my tongue and simply stand there, watching as they talk to the woman behind the bench-desk. She hits a few keys on the computer then turns away and grabs some sheets of paper from the giant printer behind her. Char hands me the first sheet of paper and glances around the room. Jase grabs the second sheet, looking from his to mine and back again.
"We have four classes together." He says. I frown down at the paper, trying to make heads or tails out of the information written on it.
Sci, Mat, HPE, Eng., Phys, Che, Vis, Fre.
"Off to class Rose." Char says pulling me from my perusal of the timetable. Before I can ask what the three letter codes mean, a man wearing a grey suit calls out Char and Jase's names. The two of them rush over to the suit guy and disappear into the room with him. I stand there gapping after them for a few minutes but then a bell rings above my head making me jump into action.
I wander out into the hallway and lean my back against the wall, unsure where I'm supposed to go or what I’m supposed to be doing. Students pass by looking like they are too busy to be stopped by a stupid girl like me. I sigh, hanging my head.This school thing might be harder than I thought.
Thirteen
Jason
I feel a little bad leaving Rose to fend for herself, but Richard and I need to put on a professional front with the principal. After doing the polite handshake thing he motions for both of us to take a seat. “Is the girl not coming in?”
“Oh, no, she’s not part of the operation, just our…” I fumble for the right words so Richard takes over, “Ward. She’s our ward. We thought it would be best to have her here with us so we can blend in a little easier with the students.”
“I see. So Areyna, is it?” After we both nod Principal Jacobson continues, “So she’ll be a regular student, staying on after you both leave?”
“That’s the plan.” I mutter at the same time Richard says, “Yes.”
“And she has a medical condition?”
“She has a rare blood condition that requires special medications. We don’t have all the required paperwork to allow the school to administer it yet, so if she has a need for it, either Jase or I will take care of it for now. It’s nothing dangerous and won’t cause any issues to the investigation. We’ve informed her to notify us or you immediately so you can contact one of us in the event it interferes with her classes.” Richard holds his hand up to stop Mr Jacobson from interrupting or protesting. “I doubt it will occur, but we thought it important to let you know either way.”
“I appreciate that. Is there anything else I need to know before we move on to the main issue at hand?”
“No, that’s all, in regard to Areyna.” I quickly say to stop him prying any further. “We’re aware there’s been four murders and three missing students, all of which occurred on school grounds or near the perimeter of the grounds. What we need from you is a list of the troubled students, any teachers who have had issues with students and any other information you think may be relevant.”