Fated Dreams (Book One In The Affinity series) (19 page)

He glanced over
at Luke, forgetting he was there. “I want to go to Noah’s, but Mom and Dad
won’t drive me. They said I could go if Sarah took me. But I figured she
wouldn’t, so I went for blackmail.”

I scowled,
about to tell him off, when Lucas interrupted, “You don’t have to use
blackmail, I’ll drive you. I should get home anyway.”

I looked at
him, surprised and disappointed. I didn’t want him to leave yet.

His fingers
lightly brushed my cheek. “I should go home, and you don’t want to get in
trouble over a misunderstanding,” he said to me, and then looked at Alex.
“Really, we weren’t doing anything.”

“Whatever.”
Alex shrugged. “I’ll meet you downstairs.” He turned to me. “Bye, Sarah,” he
added with a smug look, and walked out. The little punk, I would definitely be
getting even.

“You don’t have
to go, Lucas; I can handle the jackass down there.” I leaned into him, cupping
his face with my hands.

He hugged me,
kissing my forehead softly. “I actually need to get my homework done. I’ll pick
you up at eleven forty-five, okay?”

“Okay. I love
you.”

He smiled. “I
love hearing that. I love you too.” He walked out of my room, and right away, I
felt his absence.

I suddenly
remembered how tired I’d been all day. I took off my sweater, threw it on the
floor, and climbed into bed. Snuggling into my blankets, I fell asleep
instantly.

I woke up in the morning with a muffled
cry. The guy with the angry twisted face had haunted my dreams all night. It
was just his face for the most part until he raised a shiny butcher knife over
his head. That’s when I woke up in a panic, smelling the scent of roses.

The angry man’s
face hovered in my mind. In order to distract myself, I decided to do my
homework and then get in a little piano practice. I was starting college soon,
so I needed every bit I could fit in. My teachers had always told me that I
could be a concert pianist. But I never wanted that; I wanted to teach other
kids to be one. My goal was to become a teacher, something my mother always
wanted, but when I became involved in piano, I decided to combine my two
passions. I would love to teach at a music school. Watching a child find
something they really cared about, to see how proud they were of themselves,
brought me joy.

A few hours
later, I headed to the kitchen to wait for Lucas. A horn honked outside,
announcing his arrival, I yelled goodbye to my parents and rushed out.

I opened the
door of his car and climbed in. “So apparently you didn’t have to work—” I
froze, holding the seat belt above the slot. “Logan, what are you doing here?”

“Isn’t it an
improvement?” he asked with a smug smile.

I tried not to
laugh. “Not really.”

“How did you
know it was me? Most people can’t tell us apart, and I figured since I was in
his car…?”

“I made that
mistake once, before we were together. It won’t happen again.”

“Why?”

I paused,
trying to put my thoughts to words. “I can sense him. I know that sounds crazy,
but I can feel him somehow. With you, nothing.” It was the only way to describe
how I felt when Lucas was in my presence.

“You’re right,
that is crazy.” He pulled the car onto the road behind a red minivan.

“Where’s
Lucas?”

“He couldn’t
leave the restaurant, we were busy. I don’t start until two, I like to sleep
in.”

“I didn’t know
you worked there. I thought the dishwashing was just a punishment.”

“I used to, but
I didn’t like it. But since what happened with you, I don’t have a choice. My
mom figures responsibility will straighten me out.” His words held no anger;
this was definitely an improvement.

I realized now
that there was more to him. “Why do you do it?”

“Do what?” He
glanced between me and the road.

“Pretend to be
this badass who doesn’t give a shit about anyone but himself.”

He stared at
me, his lips turned up at the corner into a cross between a sneer and a smile.
“How do you know I’m pretending?”

“Because since
I’ve started dating Lucas, I’ve noticed you’re different at home. And I pay
attention. When your parents are joking around with your brother, you’re quiet,
like you’re on the outside looking in. You have this expression on your face
that tells me that you miss having fun with your family instead of being the
one who is always in trouble.”

He was quiet,
looking straight ahead. I didn’t think he was going to answer until he suddenly
smiled. “You do pay attention. Do you have any idea what it’s like living with
the golden boy? We may look alike, but he’s nicer, he’s smarter, he’s talented.
He makes my parents proud. I embarrass them.”

“Are you
kidding? Your parents aren’t embarrassed, they’re disappointed. They know you
have potential for so much more, but you throw it away. You act up at school so
you’ll get noticed, but you’re known as an ass. I hate to tell you, but no one
really likes you. They fear you.”

His jaw locked,
and his knuckles went white as he gripped the steering wheel. I continued
before he could yell at me. “Hear me out. I’m not saying this to hurt your
feelings or make you mad. It’s just that, I know you can have what you want.
You can be noticed, just being who you really are.”

“And who is
that? Since you know everything.” A full-fledged sneer appeared on his face.

“Be who you
were before you started to feel threatened by your brother. Be the cook you
want to be. I saw you that day when I walked into your house, and you threw
that food in the garbage. Be a friend to Lucas, be what you want. Just be happy.”
I smiled, trying to calm him if he was angry. We were parked in front of the
theater now.

“You better go;
you’re going to be late.” His voice was void of feeling, and he showed no
emotion.

“Think about
what I said.” My seat belt clicked open after I pushed the button.

He nodded as I
started to open my door. “Hey, don’t tell anyone about the cooking. I will
think about what you said, but I’m not ready for anyone to know.”

“Sure, I won’t
say anything.” I climbed out, shutting the door behind me, and went inside to
start my shift.

I wanted to keep my promise to Lucas, so I
was relieved to see that Zack didn’t work today. I didn’t know how to stay away
from him if we were scheduled together.

It was busy, as
it usually was on weekends, and I was tearing tickets, a job I didn’t mind, but
one I worked at alone. My feet were sore by the end of the day.

When my shift
was over, I received a text from Lucas saying he was a little late, but he
wouldn’t be long.

I decided to
wait outside, even though it was cold out. It was a sunny day, and they were
rare these days. The cold breeze caressed my face as I stuck my ear buds in,
and turned on my MP3 player.

The theater was
located on the main street of our downtown area, and since it was Saturday, the
road and sidewalks were crowded with people. The bench in front of the theater
was filled with a group of loitering teenagers. I glanced around, searching for
a free one, and spotted an empty bench in front of the yogurt shop. Bobbing my
head to the music, I stood on the curb beside the road, waiting to cross. I
glanced to my left and turned to the right, about to step onto the street.

As if in slow
motion, I saw a car coming right at me. I could see the driver, and recognized
the hooded figure that had been following me two weeks ago. The car was coming
at me so fast, I didn’t have time to react. I braced for impact as I was sure
it was going to plow right into me.

I was suddenly
on my back, with a body lying beneath me. Someone had grabbed my jacket from
behind and yanked me further back onto the sidewalk. The pull was so strong, it
caused me to fall. And my thanks to the person who saved my life was to lie
motionless on top of them.

Alive! I was
alive. I looked back at the car; it had come up onto the curb, but was now
driving away, tires squealing as it sped off. Loud music still blared in my
head, only now it sounded deafening. I yanked the ear buds out and, feeling
dazed, sat up slowly, turning to look at my rescuer. It was Lucas, staring at
me in horror. I couldn’t move. I wanted to get off of him, but my limbs
wouldn’t work; my arms and legs felt like rubber. I heard screaming, and felt
myself being pulled up onto my feet.

Strangers were
talking to me, their faces looking concerned, but I couldn’t hear their voices.
I turned to Lucas, whose expression was panicked. He started to lead me to the
bench that had been occupied earlier.

I was still in
a daze, but started to hear the voices. “Are you okay?”

“Someone call
nine-one-one, I think she’s in shock.”

“Sarah, can you
hear me? You’re okay, I’ve got you. I love you.” This voice I wanted to answer,
I needed to hear those words. I was comforted by them.

I finally
spoke. “You saved me. Lucas, I’m sorry, I had my MP3 player on, and I wasn’t
paying attention.” My voice sounded hollow, or maybe it was just my ears.

He put his arms
around my shoulders, rubbing the back of my head to soothe me, whispering in my
ear. “Its okay, you’re okay, we’ll just sit here until you feel like you can
move.”

Someone was
saying something behind me that sounded like, “The ambulance is on its way.”

I didn’t want
that. “No! No ambulance, I’m fine, I just want to be alone with you. I’m fine,
let’s go.” I started to get up, but was a little dizzy. I teetered a bit; Lucas
pulled me back down onto the bench. I heard sirens. Oh crap.

A police car
pulled up, and two officers in uniforms climbed out, walking over to the mob of
onlookers that had gathered.

I heard people
talking to the police. “That car just came out of nowhere, and up on the curb,
aiming right at her.”

“It must have
been a lunatic, trying to kill her.”

Kill me? No
way, it was an accident, right? Even though I was sure it was the same guy I
saw before, I had to believe there was a logical explanation for what was
happening. Because otherwise it meant someone was actually trying to hurt me,
and I just couldn’t comprehend that.

“Excuse me,
miss, we need to check you out, to make sure you’re not hurt.”

I looked up and
saw a man with a wrinkled face and salt-and-pepper hair, wearing a paramedic’s
uniform. I hadn’t even noticed an ambulance pull up. I nodded at the man as he
started to check my blood pressure and heartbeat. “You’re fine, but be careful
for the next twenty-four hours, and watch for signs of shock,” he said to Lucas
when he finished his very thorough exam.

“I will. Thank
you so much for checking her out,” Lucas said, shaking the paramedic’s hand.

Two policemen
approached us to ask what happened. I explained as well as I could, and then
was finally free to go.

Lucas took me to his house, since I didn’t
want to see my parents while I was still shaken up.

Once we were in
his room, he told me that I should lie down and rest. Like a good girl, I did
what I was told and felt better immediately. The warm blankets heated my body
and took the chill out of my limbs.

He turned the
lights off and started to leave. “No, can you stay with me? I need you.” My
stomach lurched at the thought of being alone right now.

“Sure,” he said
softly, lying down beside me.

The mattress squeaked
under his weight. He lay on his back and pulled me over to him, placing my head
on his chest. The sound of his heartbeat comforted me, until I heard an
exaggerated sigh…and then another. By the third one, I knew that something was
bothering him.

“What’s wrong?”
I asked, staring at a framed picture hanging on the wall directly in front of
me. It was a black-and-white photo of his parents. They were standing in front
of the kitchen island with a bowl of what looked like chocolate cake mix in
front of them. Karen was spreading some of the mix on Nick's nose with her
finger and laughing, staring up into his face. You could feel the love and
laughter emanating from the picture. It was amazing how he could capture
emotions so beautifully.

“I knew this
would happen, I should have stayed away. I shouldn’t have been so selfish,” he
was mumbling quietly to himself.

I turned my
attention away from the picture and looked up at him “Lucas, I don’t understand
what you’re saying. But if you think this is your fault because of that dream
you had weeks ago, then stop. It was my fault. I had my ear buds in, and
everyone knows you don’t cross the street while wearing them. It was dangerous,
and I will be more careful, so please don’t blame yourself, it has nothing to do
with you.”

He stared into
my eyes, and then finally nodded, kissing the top of my head. “You’re right; it
was a stupid thing for you to do.”

I breathed a
sigh of relief. “There you go, blame me, it was my fault.” I decided a subject
change was in order. “I had an interesting talk with your brother today.”

“Did you now,
what was it about?” He started to rub my shoulder.

“I told him
that he should stop pretending to be a badass who doesn’t give a shit about
anyone but himself.”

He laughed,
very hard, a sound I had never heard from him before. When he finally stopped,
he said, “So you noticed he isn’t really like that, did you?” He chuckled
lightly. “Only you would have the nerve to stand up to him. I’m surprised he
didn’t say anything to me. He wasn’t even in a bad mood when he came in for
work. How did he take it?”

“He was mad at
first, but he told me why he acted that way. I’ve got to say, you two have
issues. You wear glasses and dress badly so you can hide from unwanted
attention from girls. He acts like a douche bag so he can get attention because
he feels he can’t live up to you at home.” I laughed. “You guys need serious
therapy.” I shook my head, looking up at him. His eyes were the size of dinner
plates.

“What do you
mean he needs attention because of me?”

“He thinks
since you’re smart and talented, your parents are more proud of you than they
are of him.”

“That’s the
dumbest thing I’ve ever heard. Considering he hides the fact that he’s a great
cook, my dad would love that. If he wanted attention so badly, why the hell
doesn’t he tell them?”