Cursed (8 page)

Suspended in the awkward position, Adrienne found herself gripping his vest hard, in case the arm supporting her gave way. His skin was the color of milk chocolate, his eyes warm brown. He reminded her of a magazine cover model with chiseled features, large eyes, and an athletic frame pressed against hers that was muscular and warm. Even before he flashed a huge smile, his charisma was apparent in his confident, sparkling gaze. Tall and strong, he held her whole body in one arm, as if she weighed no more than a doll.

“Hey,” he said. His baritone voice was naturally husky.

“Uh hey,” she murmured. She carefully pulled her feet beneath her, uncertain why her insides felt like they were shaking. Or melting. Maybe both?

He grimaced. “I think that’s your soda.”

She felt it then, the cold wetness of the drink crushed between them. It was running down her skirt and one leg. Humiliated, she pushed back from him. His grip loosened without letting her go completely.

Yeah, it was her soda all right. The front of both of their white shirts were soaked, along with the front of his pants and a strip of wetness down her skirt.

“I am so sorry,” she said. She gazed down at her lunch on the floor, dismayed.

“I needed the cold shower.”

Adrienne looked up, startled. Was he … was he
flirting
with her?

He was grinning. His dazzling smile held her mesmerized for a second, before her face felt too hot under his direct gaze.

“I, um, I can … buy you a new …soda,” she said. She started to the station that held the utensils, straws and napkins, only to realize he was still touching her. He drew her back to stand before him.

“No, but since I ruined your lunch, I’ll buy you a new one,” he replied. “My treat.”

“Oh, no,” she said quickly. “I was done.”

“It doesn’t look like you ate anything,” he said, his gaze on the mess on the floor.

“Yeah,” she murmured, admiring his features again.

“Then I’ll buy.”

She shook her head. Adrienne took a few steps back, slipped, and found herself clutching his arm. He steadied her.

“You sure? I feel totally lame,” he said.

“No, I’m okay,” she answered. “I’ll just go …um, away now.” She turned and hurried to the hallway.

Outside the cafeteria, she released her breath. She had no idea who he was, but he was beyond attractive. Not the kind of guy who’d ever give her the time of day. Not only was she probably the poorest kid in school, but people tended to freak out when they discovered that her sister was murdered because of a voodoo curse placed on her family hundreds of years ago. She’d kissed one boy at a party one of her friends had, but she’d never been held by a guy before, and definitely not by one who looked like him.

Handsome. Strong. Intoxicating.

Wow.

“Can I get your name at least?”

She turned, surprised to see him paused in front of the door to the cafeteria. For the second time in two days, someone was asking her name. She wasn’t certain why she felt a tremor of unease. After all, everyone at school would be talking about her after her embarrassing fall in the cafeteria. She didn’t sense the threat from this guy that she had the man in the alley.

Still, she hesitated.

“Come on!” he said. “I saved you from certain death in there! You were almost eaten alive by French fries. Just a name.”

She giggled, drawn in by the charismatic smile. She shook her head and whirled, all but fleeing down the hallway. Adrienne ran into a bathroom to try to clean up her clothes. Her hands trembled from the interaction. She felt silly – then devastated when she looked in the mirror.

She bought her two uniforms off of craigslist. Neither fit well, and she couldn’t afford to ruin one on her first day of school. She grabbed paper towels and dabbed at her shirt.

A flash of red drew her attention towards the mirror.

A robed man in red stood a few feet behind her, his face hidden by the depths of his hood and his robes rippling as if he stood before a fan.

The figure from Therese’s journal.

Adrienne’s pulse surged.

She whirled, only to find no one behind her. She scanned the bathroom quickly, but he was gone. When she returned to the mirror, she didn’t see him.

Maybe I shouldn’t be reading that journal before bed.
She stared at herself, waiting for the vision to return.

“Oh no, what happened?”

She looked towards the open door at the familiar voice, pleased to see the only person who’d spoken to her all day. Emma was a pretty girl with honey-colored skin and large eyes. She walked with a pronounced limp and kept to herself in the first class they shared together.

“I ran into someone in the cafeteria,” Adrienne replied, forcing herself to relax. “Ruined my whole lunch.”

“I’m headed that way now. We can go together.”

“I’m not very hungry.” Adrienne’s attention returned to her clothes. She hadn’t expected lunch at the cafeteria to be twice what it was at McDonald’s. She’d spent her whole ten dollars on a cheeseburger and fries.

“I can buy, if you want,” Emma said.

Adrienne’s face was warm again. “No, I’m okay. Thanks.”

“You look like you’re having a rough day,” Emma said. “Besides, you’re the first person who’s talked to me this year.”

“Really?” Adrienne looked up at the note of vulnerability in Emma’s voice. She realized Emma hadn’t been trying to take pity on her, which made no sense, since she was cute and slender, the kind of girl who had been popular in her old school. “You eat alone?”

“Yeah.” Emma’s face grew red. “It’s been like this since last winter. I um, got in a car accident, and people kind of don’t want anything to do with me.”

“That’s awful. But it’s not like it was your fault, right?” Adrienne asked.

“Well, yeah, it was. I was drinking after a Christmas party. All of us got hurt,” Emma explained. “I used to eat lunch every day on the school grounds, but it’s raining, so I can’t today. I have to go in there and face … everyone.”

“I know that feeling,” Adrienne said with a frown. Emma was clearly uncomfortable talking about the accident, so Adrienne steered the conversation away. “I went to the same all-girls school my whole life. When I walked in a few minutes ago, I was like, no way can I do this every day.”

“We can eat together on the campus when it’s not raining.”

“And today, we can face everyone together?”

Emma nodded.

“Okay,” Adrienne said. “You can buy me lunch today, and I’ll buy tomorrow.” She finished drying up what she could of the soda then walked with Emma down the hallway. Part of her dreaded seeing the handsome guy again. Another part of her prayed she would.

One of the things she didn’t miss about her old school: there were no guys at the all-girls Baptist school. She’d seen so many handsome boys here during the first half of her day and now, she knew what it was like for one of them to touch her. She liked it. A lot.

“What’re you smiling at, Addy?” Emma asked.

“Oh, nothing. Just … whatever.”

“Ugh, don’t look. It’s the stupid cheer squad.” Emma ducked her head.

Adrienne glanced up, curious. The six girls were slender and gorgeous, all in too-snug school uniforms with carefully manicured faces and hands. The sight of them laughing and talking made them almost approachable, if they weren’t so perfect. Adrienne glanced down at her pink nail polish. It almost seemed … childish compared to the fashionable colors of dark blue and maroon they wore. Even their eye shadow colors and lipstick were sophisticated. A cloud of expensive perfumes enveloped them.

She felt plain, ugly, with the clothes that didn’t fit and her chipping nail polish. Her vanilla scented lotion came in industrial-sized bottles.

“I wish I could look like that,” she said wistfully as the girls passed.

“But then you wouldn’t hang out with me.”

“Of course I would, Emma. You’ve been so sweet to me today.”

“No, you wouldn’t. Girls like that don’t hang out with girls like us. I know. I used to be one of them. Kimmie had to have her nose redone after the accident. She never forgave me and kicked me off the cheer squad.”

Adrienne sensed there was more to the story of why Emma was so alone at the school, but didn’t ask. She glanced down at herself, depressed to find herself agreeing that she at least didn’t fit in with the popular clique. She was too poor. At least the stranger in the cafeteria had made her feel good for all of two seconds today.

She searched the cafeteria for him when they entered, relieved he wasn’t there. His intensity left her speechless.

“I’m trying to keep at a size zero. It’s hard when one leg doesn’t work right,” Emma said. “You like salads?”

“Sure.”

Emma led her to the salad station, and they ordered. They sat away from everyone else.

“You’re here on scholarship, right?” Emma asked.

“Is it that obvious?”

“Sorta. We always hear rumors about the new kids before they get here. Whose daughter or son it is, who their parents are,” Emma explained. “When someone randomly appears, it screams scholarship.”

“Yeah, I was referred I guess. I got scouted in Atlanta. Went to one of them talent contests they have at the mall,” Adrienne said with a sigh. “Said I was good, but not what they wanted. One of them knew someone on the board here, and I got an audition with Christy for the scholarship.”

“Wow. You must be incredible,” Emma said enviously. “I used to dance, before the accident.”

“You have better talents. You’re gentle and sweet and nice.”

“Those aren’t talents.”

“Um, okay, if everyone was like you, we wouldn’t be stuck sitting in no corner.”

Emma laughed. “You’re so weird.”

“You see? You are special,” Adrienne said, smiling. “I’m poor, Emma. Real poor. But it’s made me appreciate the little things.”

“I want to be poor, too.”

It was Adrienne’s turn to laugh. “Oh, no you don’t! It’s plain awful!”

They ate quietly.

The talent scouts hadn’t wanted her, but she’d figure out how to break into the music scene on her own. This school and its renowned vocal instructor was the first step. The money she was saving from her weekend job as a tarot card reader for Madame Estelle’s Psychic Arts, located two wards over, was second. She had almost two thousand dollars scrimped away from tips and wages. When she had enough, she could put together her first album in the hopes of catching the attention of music producers. New Orleans led the jazz music industry.

The warning bell rang, and they ate faster so as not to be late to the next class. Adrienne got lost on her way back to her locker and ended up late anyway. She tried to cover the stains on her clothes with her books as she crept into class. Everyone stared at her, and she slunk to the only open seat, which happened to be right up front.

“Nice of you to join us, Ms. St. Croix,” the instructor said. “Class, meet Adrienne St. Croix, a new transfer from New Orleans.”

“Definitely a scholarship student,” one of the girls nearby said loudly enough for everyone to hear.

“Let’s start the school year with some positivity, shall we?” the teacher chided her.

“She crawled out of the bayou to be here,” another snickered.

“Swamp girl!” the girl behind her whispered.

They laughed.

Adrienne stared straight ahead. Once they heard her sing, they’d stop laughing. Even if she never really fit in, they’d soon understand why she was there. She leaned down to her book bag to dig out the gris-gris her mother made her before she left Georgia. It was a simple cross her mother had dressed with oils and powders meant to give Adrienne strength and comfort her when she missed her family.

The rest of her day passed quickly. In the next class, another girl made a crack about the scholarship status. Adrienne went to the bathroom twice more to stare into the mirror and wait for the Red Man to appear. Was there a chance he wasn’t as threatening as the journal seemed to make him? Did he know something about her sister’s disappearance?

He didn’t reappear and she suspected she’d been imagining things.

Fortunately, Emma was in her last class and saved her a seat. Grateful, Adrienne sat near her new friend, happy to have almost survived her first day of her senior year.

Until she saw how right Emma was about the rain. It was pouring before the final class was over. Dismayed, she hurried to grab her things then walked off the campus in the sticky, Southern downpour and waited at the crowded bus stop down the street. She sank back from the road into the crowd, not wanting any of her classmates to see her and have yet another reason to ridicule her.

The bus was packed, and she didn’t get to her stop until almost five o’clock.

Rain greeted her when she reached the sidewalk. Adrienne glanced up, hoping her iPad didn’t get ruined. The money she was saving was to help her produce her own album, not replace her school-issued iPad every time it rained.