Awaken (9 page)

“Thank you.” The crowd slowly settled back down in their seats. I folded my hands in my lap and stared at my father, preparing myself for the startling statistics he threw out every year to fire up the crowd. When the cheering quieted down my dad continued.

“There’s much to celebrate. Please, raise your glasses and toast to the most successful educational program ever initiated in the history of this great country.”

The room erupted in whistles and shouts of agreement as everyone raised their glasses in the air. I looked around and felt a chill run through my body to witness so many powerful people who adored my father.

“Digital school is a success,” he yelled, and people hollered and cheered in agreement. I exhaled sharply and straightened up in my seat. Did they have to cheer after every sentence?

“Teenage violence is at an all-time low.”

Cheers rang out again.

“Teenage shootings and deaths have fallen sixty-seven percent since 2048, when this program was initiated.” The audience interrupted my dad with a celebratory roar.

“Teenage recreational drug use has fallen sixty-six percent.” Again, he paused for the applause.

“Since the implementation of this program, teenage suicide has fallen forty-five percent. Teenage pregnancy has fallen a staggering ninety-onep ercent!”

The crowd stood on their feet again and cheered with jubilation. I stood up as well and observed the room and the man standing on the stage in front of me. My dad soaked up the adoration like a sponge before he continued.

“One hundred percent of the children and young adults in this country receive a free education with the free resources necessary to make their lives and this world a better place. Every child and young adult in this country has access to a safe, challenging, secure educational program that is the finest this world has ever offered and will ever offer. American students currently test the highest in the world. This program is working and it will continue to work. Digital school has made education what it’s intended to be and America has never been safer for our children.”

The standing ovation after his speech took several minutes to dissolve and my dad was swept away by the press to give interviews.

I drummed my fingers on the table, too keyed up to eat my dinner, and looked over at Becky, who was still absorbed in her phone.

“Isn’t this party exciting enough for you?” I joked.

She gave me a sly grin. “My friend’s at a table on the other side of the room and we’re rating who the hot guys are in here.” My eyes took a turn around the room and I frowned at the sea of older couples. What hot guys were there to rate?

“What are you up to tomorrow?” Paul suddenly asked. I blinked in surprise and stared into his blue, confident eyes. I studied Paul’s face – his smooth, flawless skin and high cheekbones. His thick blond hair was spiked at the top of his head. He was attractive, there was no doubt about it. Then why did I find him so irritating? Was it only because he was safe and predictable? Was it because he was the one boy I could date with my father’s approval? What was the challenge in that?

“I have a paper to write,” I told him.

“I thought we could go on a chatwalk.” He said it as more of a statement than a question.

I chewed on my bottom lip and tried to think of an excuse.

“I just got a program to hike Mount McKinley. Are you up for that?” he asked with a grin, as if his adventurous spontaneity would leave me speechless. I played with the napkin on my lap and stalled.

“It’s hard for me to chat at such high altitudes,” I finally said.

He laughed at me. “Okay, we could stay closer to sea level. How about a walk along the beach?”

I picked up a piece of bread and chewed a corner of it as I thought this through, trying to find a nice way to say no. In all the years I’d known him, even chatted with him online, he’d never asked me out. I decided to answer him with the one response I knew he’d never expect.

“We could just take a shuttle to the beach and actually walk.”

Paul stared at me like I had just suggested dropping out of DS and joining the circus.

“Why would we do that?”

I smiled and shrugged my shoulders.

“It’s always raining at the beach,” he pointed out. “And it’s freezing.”

I stared back at his bewildered expression. “Can’t you handle a little rain?”

Paul sat up straighter in his seat and lifted his chin. “Of course I can handle it. I just don’t think you would like it.”

I smiled. “Right, of course.”

Paul wrinkled his forehead as he tried to read me. I glanced around the room again and had the feeling that someone other than Paul was watching me. I looked over at my dad instinctively, but he was still buried in a mob of reporters. Then I saw him, standing next to Riley and Jake in the back corner of the room. I felt the air stop in my lungs halfway through a breath. Justin met my eyes and offered me a subtle smile, a smile more cautious than friendly, more intense than lighthearted. I felt like I was melting into my chair. In the two weeks since I’d seen him, I’d forgotten the way his presence was like high-voltage electricity coursing through the room. My mother leaned toward me.

“He’s been watching you all night,” she whispered between her teeth so Paul couldn’t hear her.

I was finally able to drop my eyes. “Why didn’t you tell me he was here?”

“Because I wanted you to be able to think straight, Maddie,” she said. “That young man has a strange effect on you and your father would have noticed something was up.”

Becky caught on to our whispering and looked over to see who we were talking about. She gawked when she realized it was Justin and set her phone down for the first time all night.

“You know him? We just voted him unanimously the hottest guy here.”

I grinned at Becky and couldn’t help but nod in agreement. In his dark slacks, black dress shirt, and suit jacket, Justin looked like the model celebrity invited to boost the benefit’s media coverage.

“Would you both stop staring?” I pleaded, and forced myself to avoid his eyes, eyes that tugged at me with a magnetic force. What was he doing here? Why didn’t he warn me he was coming?

Paul looked across the room and smirked. “You know those guys?” he said condescendingly.

“I might.”

“You don’t want to get mixed up with that crowd,” he said. “Especially Justin. His parents were arrested, on more than one occasion.”

My mouth dropped open so fast you could practically hear it.

“What?”

My mother watched me carefully. I looked at her and stole another glance at Justin. He was facing his friends now, still across the room from us.

“Cool,” Becky said, and gushed in his direction.

“Breaking the law is hardly cool, Becky. Grow up,” Paul scolded.

“What did they do?” I asked, still looking at Justin. As if he could feel my stare across the room, he turned and his dark eyes met mine again. I quickly looked away.

“I don’t know for sure. I think they led a few riots in D.C., back when DS was going national. They served a couple years in prison.”

I looked back at Justin. He was talking to Jake and they were both laughing. I never would have guessed he came from a family with that kind of background. And I thought I had a sketchy past.

“Is he dangerous?” Becky asked. She sounded more hopeful than afraid.

Paul shrugged. “People are less concerned with him. I heard he emancipated himself from his parents when he was younger. I think he grew up in a foster home or something. So, I guess if his parents didn’t learn, at least he did.” Paul’s wide eyes met mine. “But he’s got a lot of baggage. I don’t know how much I’d trust a guy like that.”

Interesting, I thought. Justin insisted the one thing I could do was trust him.

I stole one more glance at Justin and found him watching me. He lifted his head and motioned for me to come over.

I picked the napkin off my lap and set it on the table.

My mother looked at me. “Are you sure that’s such a good idea?”

“What, to miss the virtual shopping spree?”

She grabbed my hand and her eyes turned serious. “To mingle with that boy. You know it upsets your father.”

“He might not mind if he could learn to give people a chance.”

“I trust you,” she said. “You know
I
do. But I’d get back here before he notices you’re gone.”

I nodded and looked over at my dad, who was still surrounded by a herd of photographers and reporters. I knew it would be at least another hour before he was done with interviews. I stood up and ignored the disapproval on Paul’s face. I walked the length of the room and felt Justin’s eyes on me the entire time, which made me feel self-conscious with each step. I tried to act like walking in heels didn’t require all my concentration not to trip.

“What are you doing here?” I asked as soon as I was in earshot.

He took a sip from his glass and set it down on the table behind him. “It’s nice to see you too,” he said.

“I doubt you were invited,” I said, and stuck my hand on my hip to pretend I wasn’t ecstatic to see him.

He shook his head. “I just love hearing your dad’s riveting annual statistics,” he told me.

“They are inspiring,” I agreed.

“I’m in town for a few days.” He looked over my shoulder. Even in my heels he was a head taller than me. “Say hi to Paul Thompson for me,” he added.

“Garrlgh,” I gagged. The corner of his lips curled up.

“What was that?”

“That was vomit creeping up the back of my mouth when you mentioned Paul’s name.”

Justin’s mouth widened into a full smile and he told me I should speak my mind more often. “You’re pretty funny when you do,” he said.

I soaked up his face and his eyes like someone soaks up rays of sun after days of rain and cloud cover. I felt starved of him. I glanced back over at my dinner table.

“Paul did invite me on a chatwalk next weekend,” I said.

He raised his eyebrows. “I’ve heard about those. Make sure you right-click on all the billboards you pass. You can win prizes.”

I rolled my eyes at his mocking face. If I didn’t feel so out of Justin’s league, I’d swear he was acting jealous.

“Is that why you’re here? To give me a hard time for being forced to endure bad company at a boring formal event?”

He looked across the room and his dark eyes reflected the glow from the chandeliers. His gaze stopped on my dad and his face tightened for an instant.

“I like to be reminded what I’m up against.” He looked back at me. “I actually came to get you. Don’t you want to get out of here for a while?” Before I could answer him the lights flickered and wide screens on every side of the room rolled down from the ceiling with an electric hum. An automated female voice encouraged everyone to pick up their handsets from the tables (which the wait staff set down after plates were cleared) to join the video shopping spree. The voice reminded us that all money used to purchase items during the shopping spree would be donated to charity. It was strange how much the modern digital screens juxtaposed against the ornate chandeliers and the waiters in old-fashioned tuxedos. It was like two different worlds colliding and people were caught somewhere in between.

“At least it’s for a good cause,” Justin whispered. I felt myself shudder, either from his voice so close to my ear or the feeling that I needed to escape.

“Didn’t you say something about getting out of here?” I asked him and met his eyes. He nodded. “Then what are we waiting for?” I asked. He told me to wait a second and turned to say something to Jake and Riley. I pulled out my phone and voice-messaged my mom as the shopping spree began. I promised her I’d be back to watch the dance competition. I knew my dad would be occupied until then.

“Shouldn’t you grab a jacket?” Justin asked me. I shook my head and told him I was fine. I took a final look around the room full of people comfortable now, staring at the warm, glowing digital screen and not at each other, entertained by a virtual shopping spree competition. I followed Justin through the lobby and he held the towering door open for me. I walked through it, into the dark night to meet a world so different from the one I’d always known. As the solid doors closed tightly behind me I didn’t feel scared or anxious or worried. Everything settled inside of me, like pieces falling into place.

We walked down the white marble steps of the Stratford House and I breathed my first full breath in hours. The red carpet was empty of media and spectators. I felt like I was standing on a stage after a rehearsal, like tonight was all a show, full of actors performing their roles.

Justin stood on the sidewalk waiting for me while Jake and Riley gained distance ahead of us. I squinted down the street, which looked dark and silent next to the lit-up Stratford House.

“We’re walking?” I asked with surprise. I took a few steps towardh im.

“It’s only a couple blocks.” He glanced down at my feet. “Those couldn’t be comfortable,” he said to my pointy-toed heels.

I stared back at him. It wasn’t my shoes I was worried about. The problem was that other than the Stratford House, there wasn’t another light on down either side of the street.

“Come on,” he said. “No hesitating when you’re with me.”

He walked close to my side and his presence made my heart pound. I asked him where he was taking me.

“Maddie,” he said slowly, as if he was overthinking his words, editing out some and inserting others. “You trust me, don’t you?”

I watched him, puzzled, like he had overheard the conversation I had with Paul.

“Of course I do,” I said. We continued to walk and turned the corner down a narrow side street. There was a slight mist falling from the sky, so fine it was like walking through a thin cloud.

“What were you and Thompson discussing?” he asked. I sighed, not wanting to mentally go back to the benefit.

“He gave me something to think about.”

A small grin played on his lips. “What’s that?”

“Let’s just say I have a few more questions for you.”

Justin suddenly grabbed my arm and we stopped in the middle of the dark, quiet street. I felt my skin tingle where his fingers held on. Sometimes when I was around Justin I couldn’t think. All I was capable of was how I felt. It was like sensory overload.