Accordance (34 page)

Dad was talking to Rachel and Peter about something over a newspaper. Ralph was playing his DS and Beck was reading a magazine someone had left behind. She was still mad.

Jen and Bish were sitting across from each other and pretty much just staring miserably into each other’s eyes. How had no one else but us noticed the strain on their faces all day?

I lifted my head and looked at them. I didn’t think I’d ever seen a more pitiful pair. I wished there was something I could do. I tried to think of anything but that. I smiled when my mind flashed to the 25 Hour Skillet and Big John and Smarty. I chuckled and Caleb smiled as he saw the day Big John chased him with a meat cleaver in my mind.

“You’re enjoying that memory a little too much, I think.”

I laughed and then remembered the bracelet; the bracelet that the Watsons took from me. I rubbed my wrist at the loss. Caleb sighed beside me.

“What?” I asked.

He cocked his head to the side and smiled.

“Well, I was going to wait until your birthday to give this to you.”

“What?”

He reached in his bag and gave me a little white box with a red ribbon and leaned forward to whisper in my ear, his lips touching my lobe.

“Happy early birthday, Maggie.” I looked at him funny and opened the lid to find a bracelet…with a star charm; the exact replica of the one that was stolen from me. I looked back to him and he smiled, lifting his hand to wipe a tear from under my eye. “I wasn’t trying to make you cry.”

“Thank you, Caleb. This bracelet means a lot to me.”

He took it out of the box and put it gently on my wrist. He looked at it and then lifted my hand to kiss my wrist.

“Perfect,” he whispered.

“Thank you, babe,” I said and hugged his around his neck tight.

“You’re welcome.” He chuckled into my hair. “I would have given it to you when I got it if I knew you’d be this happy.”

I had a thought.

“That day…that you went into the store and left us in the Jeep; you were doing math in your head so I couldn’t see what you were thinking.”

“Pretty smart trick, huh?”

I nodded. I reached up and right before I touched his lips they called our flight number over the intercom.

We both sighed and sat back.

“Come on, gorgeous.”

He grabbed my bag and his and we made our way to stand in line. Bella was somewhere in the back with the luggage. Beck came right up behind me and sniffed in a way to get my attention but to show me she was peeved as well. I couldn’t help it. I turned around to face her.

“Beck, look, there are so many things going on right now that you don’t know about and I can’t tell you about. But know that I love you and I wanted to spend time with you but there are some things I have to do first. Please don’t be mad at me.”

“You kissed Kyle,” she hissed quietly to me. “The Maggie I knew would never have kissed someone she wasn’t dating and then drag some drug addict home with her.”

“Beck, please. It’s not what it looks like.”

“Says every person ever caught doing something they shouldn’t,” she sneered.

“Lynne was in trouble but not the drug kind. We’re taking her with us to keep her safe.”

“Uhuh. And kissing Kyle? The same Kyle that you promised me nothing was going on with.”

“That’s it isn’t it,” I realized. “You’re mad because you think I kept it from you that I was seeing Kyle, which I wasn’t.”

“You kept everything from me!” she yelled but bent her head when everyone looked at us curiously. “You cut your hair and didn’t tell me, you slept with your boyfriend and didn’t tell me, your dad
lets
you sleep with your boyfriend and you didn’t tell me! You left for California and didn’t tell me until you were already here. I was the last person you called when you got back form being kidnapped and you haven’t even tried to tell me about it. You barely speak to me anymore.”

“You didn’t ask anything about it,” I rebutted lamely.

“I shouldn’t have to. I’m your best friend, or I was. Now I guess you have a cuter more male version,” she said and rolled her eyes at Caleb’s back.

“That’s not fair, Beck, you have Ralph.”

“Yes, but I don’t talk to him!” She turned to him. “No offense, babe.” Then she turned back to me. “I have plenty of things to tell you about but now I’m going away to school and you’re gonna go get married or something and have babies and I’ll have no part in it.”
I took a chance and pulled her to me for a hug. She resisted for a split second before she gave in with a begrudged sigh.

“I was taken by some jerks who wanted something I didn’t have. I’m not traumatized about it but they’re still after me. That girl right there,” I pointed to Lynne who was oblivious and still talking to Kyle, “her father is a drug addict and she was looking for a way out. I know that sounds crazy but I had to help her. I just sleep with Caleb, nothing else.” I lifted my eyebrows to accentuate my point. “And as for kissing Kyle, it was stupid, I thought it was helping. I know that makes no sense but… I’m sorry.”

“You know you really didn’t answer any of my questions. Not one,” she said but her steam seemed to be dissipating.

“I know but I’m trying.”

“Are you in trouble?” she asked and grabbed my arm gently. “You’re not pregnant or are you? You’re sure?”

“No,” I whispered so I wouldn’t yell.

“So you and Caleb are seriously serious.”

“Yes,” I said and heard the laugh entering my tone.

“Are you going to marry him?”

“Yes.”

Her eyes bulged slightly but she kept it together.

“Are you still going to college?”

“Mmhmm.”

“Will you promise to tell me everything one day?”
“If I can,” I said carefully. “So you and Ralph, are you seriously serious?”

She cracked her first smile.

“I think I love him,” she whispered and looked over her shoulder at him as he talked to Caleb. “I’ve never said that to anyone and it’s a little scary but…I do. I love him.”

“Have you told him?”
“No, are you crazy!” she said incredulously.

“If it’s true, you should tell him.”

“Do you love Caleb?”

“Beck, I just told you I was gonna marry him someday.”

“That is so not an answer.”

I laughed in exasperation.

“Yes. Of course I love him.”

“Have you told him?”

“Yes.”

“What?” she said loudly. “It’s been like a couple weeks or something.”

“I know, but it is what it is.”

“Aww… Mags. You love him,” she crooned.

I scoffed.

“So marrying him is no problem but my loving him is something to shout about?”

“Yes! Oh, I love you, Maggsie.” She hugged me again. “I’m sorry I got mad. I just want to be in your life. I’m gonna be your maid of honor right?” She looked at me with a look of horror with the thought that I could not choose her.

And I wasn’t going to have a real wedding so I just smiled.

“I love you too, Beck.”

“Rebecca, it’s our turn, babe,” Ralph called back to us.

“Ah, I love it when he calls me Rebecca,” she groaned and we giggled as we made our way to the boys.

“I see you’re back in her good graces,” Caleb said into my ear from behind me. “I guess I was wrong to tell you not to try.”

“It was a whim and I went with it.”

“Well, I’m glad. I hope it lasts.”

“Me, too.”

The plane was similar to last time except for there was no sweet confessions or story time for Caleb and I, and I didn’t freak out about the plane taking off. Caleb and his family had once again opted for First Class and we were all piled into the left side together in rows of three. Lynne was next to me in the aisle seat and was going on and on about how First Class was so awesome as she drank her third glass of free orange juice. In truth, I just wanted to sleep but it didn’t look like that was going to happen. Caleb on the other hand was dozing next to me, his seat back with one arm behind his head and the other in my lap as Lynne talked endlessly to me.

“This is the best orange juice I’ve ever had, I think.”

“It’s pretty good,” I told her and I tasted the sweet/sour of the pulp in her mouth in her mind to mine.

“I know I’ve been saying that a lot but you guys live the life!” she said and laughed in genuine happiness.

She was in complete awe of her surroundings.

“It’s not all glamour,” I muttered under my breath.

“I can’t wait to get there,” she said absently. “Kyle’s family sounds awesome.” She turned to me. “Thank you, you saved my life.”

“It was nothing,” I said and she grabbed my hand.

“Yeah, it was. I know you’re tired and I know you checked on me all night. Go ahead and go to sleep. I’m going to watch the movie. They’re about to show ‘Airplane’.” She laughed hard. “Hilarious, right?”

I just laughed as I leaned over to lay against Caleb. He sighed when I did and pulled me closer, kissing my forehead in his sleep. I closed my eyes and couldn’t wait to be home.

We all parted when we landed. Dad and Bish went back to his house and Beck and Ralph went to theirs. Bish and Jen’s goodbye was bittersweet. It was strange to have everything out it the open and yet it such a sad and sticky situation.

“I guess I’ll see you later?” Bish asked her.

“Mmhmm,” she answered. “I’m sure you will. Maybe I’ll see you before we leave for London.”

He swallowed painfully.

“Yeah,” he said gruffly and rubbed his upper arm self-consciously. “I’ll come by your place and see Maggie, maybe.”
She waved and went to wait in the car with her parents.

I hugged him and Dad. Dad wasn’t happy that I wasn’t coming home with him. I explained that we’d spent every night with him so far and had never spent time at Caleb’s home.

He let me go but I figured it was only because he didn’t think he could stop me.

We put Bella in the SUV and I climbed in with Kyle, Lynne, Caleb, Peter, Jen and Rachel. We would drop Lynne and Kyle off at his house after someone explained everything to his parents.

I checked my phone messages in the car and was surprised to find one from Chad. I listened to it and he told me about getting his apartment ready and how much he missed me, asked me to call him soon. I closed my phone and bit my lip.

I glanced at Caleb and saw him trying not to look annoyed. I just didn’t say anything. When we pulled into the driveway Uncle Max came out and greeted us. I hoped that they didn’t make a huge fuss about me being the Visionary.

As soon as I got out Uncle Max greeted me with the bow. Ugh. Caleb immediately told him to stop but Max’s eyes were glued to the mark on my neck. I begged them to please not treat me differently and after some persuasion, they agreed.

After introductions, I showed Lynne where the bathroom was and when we were coming back down the stairs, she tripped on the bottom step and grabbed my arm to stop her fall.

And I was blasted, to my dismay, with yet another vision for her.

The vision was of her and a guy. They were standing in a kitchen together but the background was fuzzy and I couldn’t really see it that well. He was wiping something from her face, flour I thought. They were laughing hard and grabbing onto each other as if they would fall over if they didn’t. The guy was turned and I couldn’t see his face but as they got serious I saw in her eyes that she loved him. He pulled her closer and kissed her gently. She dropped her bowl of flour from her fingers to the floor to grasp his arms. Then when they pulled back they both said ‘I love you’ at the same time.