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As he pointed to students
they guessed at the number. He did it methodically, the first row
right to left, and then the second and so on. The good thing about
going last was you could pick something no one else had. Nobody
else even picked a number in the 50's so I held fast with my
number, so when he pointed to me I said “54”. Jett gave me a dirty
look when I picked it, I just gave him a look back. “I have a
winner!” He kept pointing at me “...and she was only two numbers
away from the number I picked which was 56!”

“I won!” How fun was that, I
looked at Jett and scrunched my nose. Declan turned and said “Good
job Addie.”

“Why thank you Declan” He
turned back around, I didn't even look at Jett again. Coach started
to lecture, but only for about ten minutes. He told us all the
supplies we needed to purchase, told us about the class and after
we got up to get our books and syllabus at the front of the room.
He also had supplies for students to purchase today.

I was lucky, since I only
had to grab a syllabus and book. Declan and I were first back to
our seats. He leaned on the front of my desk and asked “Are you and
Jett fighting?” I just shrugged. “What are we going to do about
Cale” he continued, I shrugged again.

“Ugh, I can't think about
that right now. My head and shoulder are still killing me.” As I'm
finishing my sentence Jett came walking right towards our desks and
bumped into me on purpose, hitting my bad arm sending shooting
pains throughout my shoulder. I stood up so fast my stool flew
back. I grabbed my bad arm and leaned on my desk. It was now
throbbing hard, uncontrollable tears flooded my eyes.

“Dammit Jett, can't you
watch where you're going.” I gritted through my teeth as the whole
class and Declan just looked at me.

“I’m sorry Addie, are you
okay? I didn't mean to hurt you.” Jett said.

Declan interjected “She has
a bad shoulder, really bad. You okay Addie?” I looked at Declan, “I
am fine, I'll be fine.” I said sternly. I had explained to Declan
earlier about my run in this weekend and how I thought it was Cale
who tackled me….

“Addie, I'm sorry I didn't
know you were hurt, are you okay?” He said “sorry” again the same
way he always says it “soary.” It was cute and made me ease up a
bit, plus, it looked like he meant it.

Trying to fight back the
tears I told them I was fine. They were both hovering at this point
and I didn't want to draw any more attention to myself. Jett went
to the front of the class and then disappeared by then everyone
else had gone about their business. I felt relieved; I didn't want
to show him any weakness. Jett came back in minutes with an ice
pack. He said “May I?” Holding it up so I knew what it was. I let
go of my shoulder, he pulled the stool back up for me, as I sat and
tried to relax, I looked him in the eye; he did look soary. He took
the edge of my sweat jacket and pulled it back carefully. The
bruises weren't totally hidden under my tee, but it looked better.
“Holy cow Addie, what happened?”

I looked down and pulled my
sleeve up to show the remnants of the very large green, yellowish
and brown bruise. “Oh, this looks good, you should have seen it two
days ago.”

“My God” Declan said.
“That's what Cale did to you?”

I snapped my head in his
direction, gave him a dirty look. “You mean when I fell.” Jett
pulled my sleeve down and put the ice pack over it and put my sweat
jacket back on my shoulder and held the ice pack in
place.

“Cale did this?” He said in
almost a whisper.

I let out a breath of air in
a huff. “Ya know Declan, you have a big mouth.” But I knew that
when I told him, so maybe I wanted Jett to find out, maybe I was
looking for him to tell someone because I do need help but it's too
much for me to figure out right now, especially with the searing
pain in my shoulder.

“Addie that isn't even the
half of it and you know it. And if you don't do something by this
Friday, I will.” Declan said with authority, I gritted my teeth
with annoyance.

“Gee Declan, what do you
think you'll do? Tell my mommy?”

“Sure I will, at least it’ll
be something.” Declan smirked back.

“Maybe I can help.” Jett
interjected. “Maybe Declan is right, you should tell someone. I
mean, you did get attacked on our date, twice.”

I looked at him and said
“How do you know it wasn't someone after you.”

He and Declan chuckled.
“Because no one in their right mind would mess with a McGaven, they
have a reputation you know.” Declan said.

“What reputations, all I
know is they are moody and have no follow-through.” Jett switched
hands with the ice pack and put his free hand on my back, laughing
at me. “I'm glad you think it's funny.” I said looking at him
trying to soften my tone.

“I do think it's funny. I
was sick the entire Christmas break so between that and family
plans I had no time to myself. Besides, my phone wasn't ringing
either.”

I looked at him with a
little smile and a glimmer of hope. “I shouldn't have to call you,
not until after the third date, isn't that the man's, I mean boys
job? You’re supposed to do the asking and chasing. Ask your parents
I’m sure that's how it goes.”

Declan started laughing, “I
guess you have met your match!” After the two of them stopped
laughing at me, Declan took charge “Addie you need to start by
telling Jett your story, because whether you two are boyfriend and
girlfriend or not, he's got a point, no one messes with the
McGaven's.” There was a slight pause. “We have to come up with a
plan because Topher was obviously right, Cale is stalking
you.”

Declan came back and said
“I'm not overreacting and by your arm and your head you know I'm
not. We should call the police or at the very least have Jett take
care of him.”

“Cale's stalking you and he
knocked you on the ground hard enough to make you pass out? That’s
how you got your bump on your head and your shoulder so messed up?”
Jett said exasperated. I looked at him and blew air through my
pressed lips, it made my bangs ruffle.

I explained to them that I
actually sought Cale out; I was the one that went to the park to
find him. “Yes, when he tucked his shoulder and ran into me I got
knocked off my feet into a tree and landing on the ground before
losing consciousness,” trying to make the topic sound much lighter
than it was. “We can’t exactly go to the police because I never saw
Cale’s face, it’s just he’s the same size and shape and I am pretty
sure it was him. And I don’t want Jett
‘taking care of him’
either. I
don’t want anyone else getting hurt.”

“What an ass” Jett replied
and Declan agreed with him.

I put both my hands to my
face and rubbed it. Jett's hand was rubbing my neck and moved down
to my back and I felt a tingle go down my spine. “I rather it all
just goes away,” I murmured.

Jett started talking to
Declan but was replying to my statement, “Cale is scrawny and I
could take care of him easily, but I’d bring back-up just in
case.”

“No, no, no.” I said “Declan
is right. If all this weird stuff is happening we may as well go to
the police and try to have him put away so no one else gets hurt.
The last thing we need is for one of us to get arrested over this.”
Declan smiled at me like a cat that just ate the canary because I
finally agreed with him.

Declan started filling Jett
in on all the details. Class was a bust with everyone jabbering. I
tapped Jett's hand and he took the ice pack off and put it on the
desk, my shoulder was numb. He and Declan were still talking; he
was still rubbing my back with his one hand, just small gentle
circles; after he put the ice pack on the desk and pulled my
sweatshirt back on, he moved behind me and rubbed my neck with both
hands. The bell rang.

At wrestling when, Jett came in the room, I
caught his eye and looked at him and he nodded at me with a smile.
So at least I know we are on talking terms, what I want to know is
why his big muscular hands were rubbing my neck in class today. He
did it like he had known me forever and we'd been dating for years.
Maybe he was a playboy and just knew how to get all the girls to
lust after him.

Declan came up to me “I'm driving you and
Jett home after practice.” I nodded and smiled, as he walked away,
I shouted a little “What about Nic?” He turned around putting his
head gear on and gave me the thumbs up.

Nic, the poor girl was cleaning the mats
again, so I thought I would empty the bucket. There was a low sink
in the utility closet, I could dump it no problem. She was just
about done so I got up and rolled the bucket toward the closet,
Jett came running over. “I'll do it.” he said.

“Are you sure? You wouldn't want the other
wrestlers to think anything was going on.” I held my arm across my
waist like it was in a cast. I held the door open so everyone could
see what was going on. He dumped it, I'm sure I could have managed,
but it was nice seeing him bend over to dump it. I tilted my head
and watched him walk away when Nic walked in and said, “It is a
nice view.”

“I know isn't it? I think my arms going to be
sore for a while.”

Jett just stood up, rolled the bucket to the
back of the closet, and looked me up and down smiling and slid his
hand around my waist as he exited. I just took a deep breath as he
walked by, he didn't wear cologne but he always smelled good. He
didn't notice, but Nic did, “Girl, you are bad.”

“I know.”

As Nic and I waited in the lobby we wrote
down all the dates we thought Cale had hurt someone, including all
my incidents. No one knew about my dreams except Nic, oh and
Detective Grey, and darn it possibly Storm too, but no one else and
I was planning on keeping it that way. We had no idea when Cale
first spotted or started stalking me, but I would guess around the
first dream I had about the shiny pay phones – with the guy at the
phone with a baseball cap on.

When we got in the car, Nic and I sat in the
back and the two guys in front. As soon as the doors closed, I just
started talking. I had decided to look at all this as if we were
figuring out a mystery and it wasn't really about me; I was
thinking it would make it easier. “Nic and I made a list of all the
dates we would like to know the whereabouts of Cale. We also think
that maybe we should go to the police, tell them I was attacked
several times and that we suspect Cale, and that he may be
responsible for other incidents. We could give them our timeline
and maybe someone could question him about the dates and see if
anything comes up.”

Nic continued from there “Of course like on
TV, if he’s really good and pre-plans all this he could have fake
alibis, so this may not even help us.”

Declan said “You watch way to much TV.”

I looked at Nic and said “I forgot about the
raccoon date, let's write that down.” She took her pen out and said
“Do you remember the date.”

“You dated a raccoon?” Jett asked
laughing.

“Ha ha ha. No, I heard noises like someone
was on our deck and found a dead raccoon, well it actually wasn’t
dead yet.” I said.

“Seriously?” Jett replied.

“I know it was on a Thursday and in
September...where's your calendar?” She pulled it from her bag.
Looking at it I knew it had to be September 17
^th
.

Jett turned around in his seat “This guy’s
been stalking you since September?”

Declan replied, “We think June or July.”

I looked back at Jett, held his gaze,
shrugged my shoulders as best I could and said “I guess I’m just so
irresistible he can’t….”I laughed at myself mid-sentence and then
continued, “or maybe he has too much time on his hands.... We only
think that because of what Topher said and because of the weird
things that have been happening to me, like on our date. Weird,
right?”

“Hmm” he said “We should ask my Uncle Grey
the detective what to do, maybe he can help us. What do your
parents say?”

“Whose, mine?” I replied, “I haven't told
them anything because I'm not sure what to tell them, but I guess I
should just in case Cale comes around the house again.” I said it
but I wasn’t sure I meant it.

We arrived at Nic's house, as she was closest
to the school.

“Jett, I think you should pretend you and
Addie are boyfriend and girlfriend because she can't afford to be
knocked around anymore. You should also introduce her to Kyle so
everyone thinks she's a friend of the family. This way they'll
think if you mess with her, you mess with the McGaven's.” Declan
schemed. Jett chuckled “True.”

“I think that would be a good start, and
Addie you shouldn't go anywhere alone until we know for sure what's
going on.” Nic added. “Plus, we’ll tell Detective Grey.”

“So you, Jett and Declan will be my
bodyguards then, and we aren't going to tell anyone else about this
until we talk to Detective Grey. If he thinks it warrants other
actions, I'm sure he'll let us know, right?” I questioned.

“Yeah” Jett explained “I forgot you've met
him. He’s a really cool guy and has always helped us out when my
brothers and I have gotten into trouble.”

“How do we schedule a meet with your uncle?”
Nic asked.

“Good question my dear Watson!” I looked at
her with a smile. “What?” I said to Declan and Jett who looked back
at me funny. “I don't think I'm Sherlock – I was just jokin'.” I
blurted out.