Discovered (11 page)

That Friday before
school, Layla stood in the doorway hugging her mother tightly. “Have a great
time, Mom,” she said, feeling guilt wash over her for bailing out on the trip
to New York.

“Happy birthday,
sweetheart,” her mother replied before kissing Layla on the forehead. “Have a
wonderful time at the dance tonight.”

“Thanks,” Layla
mumbled. “And thank you so much for the beautiful dress and shoes. It was the
best birthday present.”

“I’m just glad I
got to see you in your outfit before I left.”

“I’m glad too,”
Layla said sincerely.

“Remember, James
will be here until Wednesday afternoon,” Cheryl stated. “You’ll be on your own
for four days after that. I’m trusting you to act responsibly now that you’re
officially an adult.”

“I always do,”
Layla reminded her.

“I know,” Cheryl
said, getting misty eyed. “I can’t believe my baby girl is all grown up.”

“Mom…” Layla
huffed, rolling her eyes. “Don’t start getting all mushy again. I have to go.”

“Okay. Don’t forget
to keep in contact with James and let him know where you are at all times.”

“I will,” Layla
promised. She kissed her mother on the cheek and ran out the door to Julie’s
waiting car.

“Happy birthday,”
Julie said when Layla was settled beside her. She grabbed an envelope from her
bag and handed it to her friend before pulling out into traffic.

“Ah, you shouldn’t
have,” Layla said, tearing it open. Inside was a gift certificate for a manicure
and pedicure. “Thank you so much. It’s so appropriate.”

“I figured we could
go right after school,” Julie said.

When they pulled
into the school parking lot, Jay was waiting outside his car, arms folded over
his chest. He smiled broadly when he saw Julie’s car approach.  He walked over
and opened the passenger-side door then held out his hand to help Layla up.
“Happy birthday,” he said, planting a kiss on her cheek. He dug his hand into
the inside pocket of his jacket and pulled out a long, narrow, black velvet
box. “I heard from a reliable source that you would be wearing black tonight,
and I thought this might go with your outfit.” He handed the box to Layla.

Layla pulled the
lid off to see a short string of black beads resting inside. “Thank you so much,”
she said, overwhelmed by the generous gift.

“It’s not much,” he
admitted. “It’s just a little something for tonight.”

“No, it’s
wonderful,” she said sincerely. It was the first gift she’d ever gotten from a
boyfriend, if that was even the correct term for their situation.

There was a buzz of
excitement in school all day, the upcoming holidays being one factor, but also
the excitement of the formal dance the students would be attending that
evening. Even the teachers were in better moods than usual, including Mr.
Schultz, who actually cracked a smile during English class—a rare phenomenon.

When school ended,
Layla ran to say good-bye to Jay. “We’ll pick you up at six-thirty,” he said
before hugging her goodbye.

Layla and Julie
drove straight to the nail salon and spent the next hour having their hands and
feet fussed over.

They stopped at
Julie’s to pick up her dress and accessories before heading to Layla’s house
where they would both get ready for the big event.

When Julie pulled
up into the driveway, Layla noticed that the door was slightly ajar. Assuming
that James had failed to close it properly, she walked inside and called his
name.

No answer.

She ran upstairs,
straining her ears for the sound of the shower, calling to him two more times.

Nothing.

“Is he here?” Julie
asked when Layla reappeared downstairs.

“He’s not in the
house,” Layla replied, making her way to the kitchen en route to the back door
that led to the patio and garden, surmising that he was probably working on his
perfect lawn, one of his most prized possessions.

When she reached
the kitchen, she stopped short. There was broken glass scattered on the floor
next to the sink and spilled fluid that looked like cola or ice coffee. “What
the heck?” she mumbled.

Layla and Julie
walked out the back door and checked around the garden.

No James anywhere.

Walking back into
the kitchen, a sinking feeling hitting her stomach, Layla opened the door that
led to the garage. James’ car was parked there sitting untouched, and in front
of it, a shiny, yellow, brand new Volkswagen Beetle with a giant red ribbon on
the windshield. “Oh, my God,” Layla gushed, rushing over to run her hand over
the top. 

“Oh, wow!” Julie
yelped, walking over to stand next to Layla.

“I can’t believe
this!” Layla muttered. “I’m assuming this was meant to be a surprise.”

“Just pretend you
didn’t see it,” Julie advised. “Wow, I’m really delighted for you. What a great
present.”

“This is really
weird, though,” Layla said quietly. “I wonder where he went, and without his
car.”

“Maybe someone
picked him up,” Julie commented, looking over Layla’s shoulder.

“Maybe,” Layla
agreed. “But I can’t imagine him breaking a glass and just leaving the debris
on the ground.”

“His ride probably
showed up, and he didn’t have time to clean it,” Julie suggested. “Maybe he
went to have your new car registered or something.”

“Probably,” Layla
answered, walking around the adorable vehicle. “Wow, I’m in shock,” she added,
opening the door and looking inside.

“Come on,” Julie
coaxed. “You don’t want him to find you in here when he gets back.”

 Layla grabbed the
dust pan and hand brush and swept up the broken glass while Julie worked behind
her with a mop. When they were finished, they ran upstairs and laid their
dresses flat out on Layla’s bed.

Layla showered
first while Julie set her large collection of make-up out on the broad chest of
drawers.

Twenty minutes
later, both girls sat in robes, hair up in towels, helping each other apply
makeup.

With hair and
makeup perfect, they decided it was time to put on their dresses.

“You look
gorgeous,” Julie gushed, gazing appreciatively at Layla’s short, tight,
strapless dress.

“So do you,” Layla
replied, taking off her necklace and replacing it with the black string of
beads. “Red is definitely your color.”

“I know,” Julie
teased, clapping her hands childishly. She turned Layla around to face the
large mirror. “Look at us,” she gasped.

At that moment, the
doorbell rang.

Layla nodded to
Julie and walked awkwardly down the stairs, one hand gripping the handrail for
support as she cursed her new five-inch heels.

She opened the
front door to see Jay and Joey looking ravishing in formal suits.

Jay drank in Layla
from head to toe, and his eyes swelled. “Wow,” he blurted out.

“Julie, you look
incredible,” Joey piped in, also with an overwhelming look of appreciation for
his date.

“You look so
wonderful in a suit,” Layla said, staring at Jay, overcome by how handsome he was
standing before her. She was looking forward to the envious glares she would
receive when she walked into the dance with the most attractive guy in the
whole school—childish, she knew, but what the heck.

Jay smiled warmly.
“Coming from a beautiful girl like you, that really means a lot,” he answered.

Julie rolled her
eyes. “If you guys are finished drooling over each other, we should leave.”

“Seriously,” Joey
agreed. “By the way, happy birthday, Layla,” he added, leaning over to give her
a tight hug.

“Thank you so
much,” Layla replied. She pulled away from Joey and looked over his shoulder,
spotting an enormous, black, super stretch limousine sitting in her driveway.
“What did you do?” she screeched, glaring at Jay.

He laughed at her
petulant expression. “It’s the second part of your birthday present.”

“It’s too much,”
she said firmly.

“It’s not every day
that a girl turns eighteen, so stop looking at me like that,” he replied.

She smiled. “Thank
you, but it really is over the top.”

“Yeah, thank you,”
Julie butted in, making a bee-line for the limo.

Jay took hold of
Layla’s hand and led her to the driveway.

The chauffeur
opened the door for them. “Sir, your date is lovely,” he said as Layla climbed
in.

“Thank you, Frank,”
Jay replied, climbing in beside her.

“Do you know him?”
Layla asked.

“Why would you ask
that?” Jay questioned.

“You called him
Frank.”

“Would it be so
strange if I asked him his name?” Jay replied.

“No, I suppose
not,” Layla mumbled. Then she quickly filled Jay in on her surprise birthday
present from James and her mother.

Joey pulled a couple
of sodas from a small refrigerator built into a space between two plush leather
seats and handed them around. “Here’s to a great night,” he said, holding his
can up in a toast.

“To a great night,”
Layla, Jay and Julie repeated.

“And to a great
eighteenth birthday,” Joey added, nodding toward Layla.

“Happy birthday,”
Jay whispered into her ear.

The entrance of the
school was decorated with many silver and blue balloons, creating an archway
over the front door. 

Jay kept a tight
grip on Layla’s hand as they descended the stairs to the large gymnasium which
also coupled as an assembly hall. There were a half-dozen more silver and blue
balloon archways on the way down. Inside, hundreds of the same balloons were
bobbing against the ceiling, their long strings creating a festive atmosphere.
The loud booming of a hip hop tune, played by the DJ, reverberated around the
walls.

Layla and Julie
made their way over to a group of girls they knew from different classes while
the guys went to fetch a few drinks.

“Wow, Layla, I
didn’t know that you and Jay Logan were together,” Molly Demato, a girl from
math, commented.

“Um,” Layla
answered, nodding.

“He’s so cute,”
Molly added. “I know a few girls here that would kill to be in your position at
the moment.”

“Seriously,” Jordon
Helpin from history agreed. “Rachael Newman practically throws herself at him
in our science class, but he never seems interested. Don’t say I told you that,
though.”

“My lips are
sealed,” Layla replied, grinning.

“Rachael’s here
with Kevin Hartley,” Julie stated, gesturing to her left.

“Fitting,” Layla
mumbled, looking over at the couple in question. But then her eyes drifted to
the vision moving in her direction. She watched Jay walk forward, admiring the
view. His shirtsleeves were pulled up past his wrists, and his tie hung loosely
around his neck. “Where’s your jacket?” she asked when he reached her.

“I put it in my
locker along with Joey’s,” he replied. “It’s kind of stuffy in here.”

They spent most of
the evening socializing with various classmates, not bothering to hit the dance
floor until the DJ finally decided to play a slower, romantic song.

Jay held out his
hand. “May I have the honor of this dance?” he asked, smirking at Layla.

She let him lead
her to the dance floor. He put one hand on her waist and placed his other in hers
gently. He looked down into her eyes as he led her around in circles. “I have
something I’d like to say to you,” he said, narrowing his eyes as though trying
to collect his thoughts.

“Yes?” she
questioned.

“I wanted you to
know that I’ve never met anyone like you before,” he said as though he meant
every word. “You’ve affected me in a way that I’ve never felt.”

Layla was a little
taken aback by his words. Weren’t they supposed to be taking it slow?
Regardless of how much she liked hearing what he’d said, she wasn’t about to
let her guard down again completely, not this soon, or at least that’s what she
tried to convince herself, anyway.

When Jay looked
down into her eyes again, Layla felt her heart break a little for some unknown
reason. He looked at her as though he’d never see her again, as though he was
saying good-bye somehow. “I’ve never felt this way about another girl before,”
he admitted, and then he bent down and kissed her for a long moment. 

Against her better
judgment, Layla felt her heart swell.

 “I just wanted you
to know that, to remember that,” he said quietly after pulling back from her.

“Are you…?” She was
about to ask him why she felt as though those last words were some sort of good-bye,
but decided against it, realizing that she was being ridiculous in her
assumptions.  Where the heck could he be going?