Limbo's Child (39 page)

“So what’s your name?” he eventually said.

“My name?” She had a crazy thought about giving him some elaborate alias, like Natasha or Lolita, but then she just blurted out, “Lucy. My name is Lucy.”

“Lucy. That’s a nice name. Hey, isn’t that Latin for ‘Light’ or ‘Shining?’”

“Um…yeah…I think so.” Lucy didn’t think, she knew. It came from the Latin,
Lux
, for light or shining or dawn, but she didn’t want to seem too pushy or like a know-it-all. Guys didn’t like that. Her mother had told her a dozen times what her name meant. Her mom had chosen it especially for her, because she was born at dawn, and because her eyes were bright green. But more importantly, he knew Latin! Most people just made the connection to the character from Peanuts, so it pleased Lucy that this boy wasn’t just some dumb airhead at least.

“Well, it fits you, ‘cause your eyes are so bright,” he continued.

This sounded a little patronizing, like the kind of thing older boys said to tease younger girls, but she didn’t care. Lucy’s stomach flipped and she nearly swooned.

“Well, it’s nice to meet you, Lucy.” He stuck out his hand again. She looked from his hand to his eyes and to his hand again. “I better take it, before he thinks I’m a weirdo,” she thought. She reached up and took it roughly. It was strong but gentle, if a bit cold. She had a flash of fangs and fiery eyes, and then she had that fantasy about him biting her neck again. Ok, she guessed she really had to read that book everyone was talking about now. It obviously had impacted her more than she thought. She pulled the hand away awkwardly.

“My name is Schuyler.”

“
Schuyler
.” She didn’t know why, but when she said the name it sounded like poetry. She put too much into it and it sounded a bit too melodramatic when she said it.

He laughed. “Yeah, it’s a bit pretentious for a name isn’t it?” She blushed. Oh no! She hadn’t meant to make him feel bad about his name!

“Um…no…it’s a great name…I mean, it’s a beautiful name, a lovely name…no really, I… I knew this girl in Texas who was called Schuyler!” Egad. Had she just told him he had a girl’s name? She had. She was really blowing it.

“It’s ok.” He laughed a little. “You can just call me Sky – everyone else does.” He was being really nice.

“
Sky
,” she said once. “Sky – like the blue in your eyes?” she thought, but she didn’t dare say it out loud. Why was this boy having such an effect on her?!! It was almost like
magic
.

“So…Lucy,” he started again, “Was that your mom in here with you earlier?”

“Hmm? Oh…no…that was…my…” Lucy paused. “Aunt. Yep, that was my aunt.” She said it twice, just to convince herself she believed it.

“Really?” Schuyler replied, acting somewhat dubious, “Cause I wouldn’t have put the two of you together.” He eyed the exit to the gift shop and seemed to be calculating something in his brain, but whatever it was, Lucy couldn’t guess. “Are you two together a lot?” he finally asked.

“I guess so,” she said. She didn’t really know what more to say to this, so she just stood there rocking on her feet idly.

There was another long pause before he spoke again, “Well, I think the cashier wants to close up.”

“Oh!” Lucy turned to look at the cashier. The little old lady was already sore at Lucy and Amanda for their mocking of the pajama selection, and she was looking rather testy at the moment.

“Um…ok.” Lucy walked awkwardly towards the checkout counter. Schuyler was just a step behind her. She desperately wanted to turn around and look at him again but that would be too awkward so instead, she just slowed down a little to force him to walk
just
a little closer to her. Once they had arrived she stood there holding her “Congratulations on the Twins, Stepdaughter” card like it was a failing report card she was trying to hide from her mother. She didn’t really want to buy it, but she didn’t know what else to do with it.

“Um…you can go first,” she said at last.

“That’s ok, you can go first. I’m in no hurry.” The cashier gave them a look –
she
was obviously in a hurry.

Great. There was no getting out of this. She turned to the cashier and relinquished the card hesitantly. Only then did she realize she didn’t have any money when the cashier announced the price: two ninety-five. She ran through the pockets of her robe, but she already knew she had nothing to pay with. She looked up at Schuyler anxiously and then back to the cashier.

“Um…I’m sorry…my
Aunt
…just stepped out…and…she’ll be back soon…and…”

“That’s ok…I got it,” Schuyler interrupted.

“Oh..no…that’s ok!! You don’t…” she tried to protest but he was already asking the cashier to ring it up with his card.

“Um…thanks,” she said as she pulled her hair behind her ears for the forty-seventh time.

“No problem.” He just smiled back at her.

While the cashier was ringing up his items, Lucy looked at the card he had purchased for his grandmother. It had lilies and silver writing. It was a beautiful card for a grandmother.

“So your grandmother’s ok?” she finally asked.

“Hmm? Oh yeah, she’ll be fine,” Sky responded. “She caught a spot of pneumonia, and they decided they wanted to watch her for a few days, so it’s just precautionary. The doctors say she’ll be fine.” He got quiet and his eyes looked just like a lost puppy dog’s eyes. He was obviously considering sharing something more with her. His voice got a little shaky when he finally spoke, “My parents both died years ago. I live with my step mom in Philly now. She doesn’t like me taking the trip, but
y’know
…” he trailed off.

“Prince Charming complete with wicked stepmother,” thought Lucy, “How perfect.”

Schuyler went on, “I don’t get to see her as much as I should, but I try.” He looked a little sad. Lucy felt the need to cheer him up.

“I’m sure you’re being modest,” she said, “How many other teenagers would visit their grandmother?”

He shrugged humbly. “Well, I’m the only family she’s got left. If I didn’t look out for her who would?”

“Well I think it’s really sweet,” Lucy said.

He smiled. It was hard to believe this guy was for real. He was really nice and kind and sweet. He wasn’t arrogant or bossy. He was just too good to be true. She thought about him and her for a minute and tried to force the crazy daydreams aside. They were both alone – like her and Yo-yo or her and Amanda. So many broken and unfinished lives. She certainly felt broken, but having him near made her feel better. Maybe all the broken and lonely people could find a happy place together. Then she imagined they were living in a big house together in the country and that he did housework for her without his shirt on while she sat on the couch reading and watched. “WHERE DID THAT COME FROM?!!” she thought. She quickly shoved that daydream back into the recesses of her mind and looked away. That wasn’t like her at all.

“Well I think it’s really great that you come to visit your grandmother,” she said trying to shove the previous thought from her mind.

“Thanks…that’s really nice of you to say that.”

“Oh no, I mean it,” she said perhaps a little too anxiously. He just smiled.

As she looked back, their eyes locked. He paused and then leaned in towards her very slowly and reached a hand behind her head. “OMIGOSH!!” she thought, “Is he going to
kiss
me?!! Do I
want
him to kiss me?!!” She panicked and closed her eyes. From behind her slammed-shut eyelids there was a deafening silence and then…nothing. Lucy opened one eye.

“Um…I was just reaching for the gum,” he finally said. He was holding up a pack of sugar-free gum. Of course he was just reaching for the gum on the counter behind her! She felt like such an idiot. If she could have shrunk down to the size of an ant and crawled away she would have done it right then, but still he just smiled.

“Do you want anything?” he finally asked. She shook her head “no” vigorously, too afraid to speak. If she opened her mouth who knew what would come out of it!! Probably something awful like, “Hey…my mom died in a car crash and her body was stolen from the morgue in Philly, do you want to take your shirt off and do some housework?” Oddly, she
did
feel like sharing the first secret with him, as if it would help relieve the burden. She just felt instinctively that she could trust him, but she didn’t know why.

The cashier bagged up their items and he started to slowly walk to the entrance just a few feet away. Her card was in his bag so she had no other choice but to follow.

“You ok?” he said as they walked to the door.

“Hmm? Oh, yeah…fine. Why wouldn’t I be?” she said defensively, but as she thought to herself she realized there was plenty to worry about. Other than losing her mother, hearing that her mother’s body had been stolen, and being chased by a mysterious longhaired phantom and a small crisis of conscience involving her mixed feelings for a potentially wonderful new guardian and a small boy she had only just met, but who desperately needed her, why, aside from that, Lucy was fine. But she didn’t dare say that, though she really wanted to.

“Really?” he seemed incredulous, “You look worried, is there something wrong?”

“Nah,” she tried bluffing, “I’m probably just a little nervous about the…y’know…tonsils.”

“Appendix.”

“Right.” She cringed from embarrassment and rolled her eyes. “That’s what I meant to say.”

They reached the door and he paused.

“Well, it was nice meeting you, Lucy.”

“Over so soon?” Lucy thought, but she didn’t know what to say so she just stood there awkwardly pulling her hair behind her ears and then forward again. Then he pulled his hair behind one ear too. She smiled. And then the oddest thing happened. Just as she was certain he was going to lean in and REALLY kiss her this time, or at least give her a brotherly hug, he paused and a look of disgust crept across his face. At first she was horrified she that she must have had a booger hanging from her nose or something worse, but then she noticed he was actually looking past her, at something beyond her in the lobby. She turned around to see what was the matter was. There in the lobby waiting room were two strange young men – well one was a teenager really. One was tall, the other short and they were loitering about without a purpose and only occasionally did they sneak furtive peeks in her and Schuyler’s direction.

“Um…do you know those guys?” Schuyler eventually asked.

She turned back to face Sky, “Um…no…why do you ask?” Lucy said genuinely surprised.

“Well…it’s just…I dunno…they’ve been staring at you for the last several minutes.”

“Really?” Lucy said. She turned back to look at the two strangers. Instantly they both turned their eyes away the moment she saw them. They
were
looking at her. She turned around, frightened. Sky looked concerned too and slightly angry. She slowly turned around to look at them both one more time. They were looking at her again. They tried to pretend that they weren’t of course, by staring at their shoes or the ceiling, but they were acting really suspiciously. Lucy took a long, hard look. They were the oddest-looking pair she had ever seen. The short one on the right was thick and stocky with spiky red hair. He looked young, maybe fourteen or fifteen tops. He wore a dirty jeans jacket and dirty pants smeared with filth. He looked like he had spent the night in an alley. His face was pock marked and acne scarred and heavily freckled. He had a blunt, squashy nose; heavy brow; thick, bushy eyebrows; beady eyes and boxed ears. His jaw was broad and massive but his lips were thin. His mouth hung open in an expression of perpetual cluelessness, revealing his crooked teeth. He looked like he hadn’t learned to breathe through his nose yet. Despite his heavy jaw and brow, he looked doughy and indistinct, like a sculpture made by an alien from another planet who only had a vague idea of what a human should look like. He was positively ugly and brutish looking. He looked mean, stupid and threatening.

Lucy instantly hated him, but as unpleasant as he was, he wasn’t anywhere near as disturbing as his odd companion. The one on the left was tall and lanky with pointy knees and elbows. He was not what Lucy would call handsome, but compared to the other red-haired one he was positively attractive. He appeared to be in his mid-to-late 20s. “Some kind of slacker, loser or gamer geek for sure,” thought Lucy. He had a few days’ growth of beard and straggly, unkempt, dark-brown hair, pointy features, and saucer-like eyes with an expression that was lost somewhere between horror and exhaustion. He looked like those pictures of soldiers that had been at war too long, but the strangest thing about him was his outfit.

He was wearing ragged sneakers, blue-green scrubs for pants and a gray hoodie zipped up all the way to the neck with the hood up. Weirdest of all, on top of the gray hoodie he was wearing a crisp, white-silk blazer that looked like it must have cost a fortune. It was the kind of blazer you only saw on male models in fashion magazines and he wasn’t that type at all. It was glaringly white and shimmering like a snowman in a coal mine. He looked positively ridiculous. Maybe he was trying to be ironic, Lucy thought. It certainly stood out. To top it off, he was holding up a large, lurid, electric-blue lollipop, but he stared at it like he didn’t know whether to suck on it or throw it away, so he just held it loosely between thumb and forefinger as if he were holding it for someone else.