Stone Cold (19 page)

“Who is this guy?”

She tried to think if there was anyone who was paying particular attention to her lately in more than a friend capacity.

“I can’t think of anyone this could be. Maybe he’s a really awesome guy but then again he could be a big nerd
or jerk.”

She called Gina and asked her what she thought she should do.

“I think you should say yes. It’s not like you have anything to lose. If he’s really hot then you’re lucky but if you’re not attracted to him then you don’t have to let it go any further than a date to the dance.”

“Thanks Gina, that’s kind of what I was thinking too. I’m going to say yes just for curiosities sake.”

Hannah checked the “yes” box and put it in her backpack until the next afternoon.

She went to her locker after school as usual but this time she put the card on the shelf and left it unlocked.

After volleyball practice, Hannah returned to her locker and the card was gone but there were a dozen red roses left in its place with another card attached. Inside the card were a homecoming dance ticket and another note which read, “I’ll pick you up at your house at 6:00 P.M. for a night of dinner and dancing. See you then.”

She couldn’t help but smile.

“Whoever he is, he must really like me. A dozen roses aren’t cheap. But don’t get carried away here Hannah. You have no idea who he is yet.”

Still,
she had to admit, that the idea of someone being interested in her and the way he was going about it was giving her a thrill. Her stomach was in knots but in a good way.

“I just hope he’s someone I like and am not repulsed by.”

For a second she pictured herself spending the entire dance in the locker room crying while her friends surrounded her with their condolences.

“Shake it off girl. It’s just a date to the homecoming dance. It’s not like you’re marrying him or anything.
”

“
Get a grip,” she scolded herself.

*****

Weeks passed and homecoming had arrived.

Hannah was wearing a formal black dress. She’d gotten her hair
, makeup, and nails done and was waiting anxiously for her date to arrive.

The entire family was as curious as she to find out who her date was.

True to his word, at 6:00 P.M. sharp the doorbell rang. Her mother answered it.

“Hello ma’am. I’m
Josh Moore and I’m here to take Hannah to dinner and the homecoming dance.”

Hannah was waiting in the living room and she could hear every word he said. Her heart was in her throat now. Josh Moore was considered one of the hottest guys in school if not the hottest.

She could tell her mother was smitten from the start.

“Hello Josh. It’s so nice to meet you. Please come in. I’ll get Hannah.”

Sara came into the living room smiling from ear to ear.

Whispering, she
started in, “Hannah he’s the cutest boy ever! His name is…”

“I heard everything he said mom, just stop!”

She was annoyed at her mother’s reaction. It was always the same with every cute guy she thought would be suitable for Hannah.

“Okay, okay I’ll stop. Go ahead and get out there. Don’t keep him waiting.”

Hannah walked into the foyer where Josh had been waiting. She could see he was wearing a black tux and he looked even more handsome than usual.

Smiling, she said, “Hi Josh, I had no idea who my mystery date would be. I’m pleasantly surprised.
”

“Thank you Hannah. You look stunning. I’m really glad you said yes.”

He was smiling back at her, his eyes never leaving hers.

“We have dinner reservations and should get going.”

“Okay I’m ready. Let’s do it.”

Sara
saw them out the door and before she could say a word, Hannah quickly closed the door behind them.

*****

Dinner went well. They had more in common than she’d imagined they would and the conversation was easy.

When they arrived at the dance, it seemed as though everyone was staring. Josh was a popular senio
r and he could’ve chosen nearly any girl to be his date. No one including Hannah ever imagined he would’ve asked anyone other than a cheerleader or the like.

Gina was the first person to approach them.

“Hannah you look amazing.”

“Thank you.
So do you. Gina this is Josh. Josh this is my best friend Gina.”

Josh shook Gina’s hand and said,
“Hi, it’s nice to meet you.”

Unable to take her eyes off of him, she couldn’t believe Hannah’s luck.

“It’s nice to meet you too.”

Then, smiling at Hannah she asked, “H
ow was dinner?”

“It was rea
lly nice. Have you danced at all yet? How’s the D.J.?”

“Yeah
, we’ve been dancing and the music’s been great so far. Well don’t let me keep you. We can catch up later.”

Josh led Hannah onto the dance floor for their first slow dance.

She realized she’d never actually danced with a guy before but Josh seemed to know exactly what to do and she let him lead.

They continued to dance
and mingle with their friends for the next several hours. At the end of the night, Josh drove her home and walked her to the door. She knew her mom was probably inside watching so she thanked him for a lovely evening and after a quick hug, walked in the house.

When she was in bed that night, Hannah realized it was the first time sinc
e she met Conall that she hadn’t thought about him for more than a few minutes. That thought scared her.

“Does this mean I’m
not as interested in him as I have been all this time?”

She dismissed that thought as fast as it had entered her mind. A few hours of not thinking about him wasn’t enough to destroy the deep feelings she knew she still had for him.

*****

The next few months were a blur. She and Josh had become an item and they were seeing each other on a regular basis.

He was her first kiss - that is if she didn’t count Devon Marra. They were five and were supposed to be napping in kindergarten when Devon decided to plant a big one on her lips. The teacher yelled at him to find his own mat at once. He complied but ever since, Hannah couldn’t help but feel a bit violated by his unwelcome and unexpected advance.

She had to admit,
Josh was not only gorgeous, but he was an exceptionally nice and generous person. There wasn’t anything he wouldn’t do for her or anyone else.

Her parent’s thought the world of him. She was certain her mother already had them married off, after college of course.

Gina and her teammates were equally as smitten by Josh and kept telling Hannah to hang onto him because “he’s a keeper”.

She knew all of these things and yet there was still something missing, something nagging at the back of her mind that told her she wasn’t quite as satisfied with her relationship as everyone else was.

Although afraid to admit it to herself publicly, Hannah knew she had been trying to suppress something from the very start.

Her feelings for Conall were still there.

“I don’t understand how I can have feelings this strong toward a guy I met for a few minutes. What is wrong with me?”

The answer to this ques
tion never came. All she knew was that the feeling wouldn’t stop. No matter how many times she kissed Josh, no matter how many flowers or presents he gave her, no matter what.

“Any girl would give anything to have what I have in a relationship and here I am ready to give it all up for a guy I may never see again in my life.”

Hannah continued to go through the motions and for the most part she was pulling it off. She was happy with Josh and if she needed to she could make it work for the rest of her life.

It was now the end of March and her 16
th
birthday was near. It was also just about time for the annual trip to see Aunt Grace.

Her heart raced at the thought of what might happen that day. The memory of last year had thankfully passed and she was looking forward to a new beginning.

If things turned out the way she expected them to she would have to break up with Josh when she returned from the trip.

“I’m an evil person. How can I even think this way? I don’t know how I can do this to such a sweet and nice guy who has been the best boyfriend in the world. Everyone is going to hate me. No one will understand.”

It crossed Hannah’s mind that maybe there was some way she could date them both at the same time.

“I have no idea what Conall i
s really like. What if he turns out to be a horrible boyfriend? What if he is no where near the great guy that Josh is?”

She was starting to get cold feet.

“Maybe I should stay home this year or maybe I should go with mom and visit Aunt Grace but not go to the ferry landing.”

She was looking for a way out of her dilemma.

“Mom isn’t going to let me go to the landing again anyway. I’m certain about that – not after what happened last year. She may even ask Josh to go with us and that would completely ruin any plans for me to meet Conall.”

Hannah secretly hoped her mom would foil her plan somehow so that she wouldn’t have to decide between Conall and Josh. It was too big of a decision for a 16 year old girl to have to make.

*****

Another
birthday came and went. Josh went all out and had an enormous surprise party for her that nearly the whole school attended.

She had a great time but felt guiltier than ever.

“Josh I really appreciate you giving me this party. No one has ever treated me as good as you but it’s really too much. You’re spoiling me. I don’t deserve it.”

“Hannah, you’re the best
and you do deserve it. I’m so in love with you and this is only the beginning.”

“You’re going to college in less than a year and I still have two more years of high school.”

“None of that changes the way I feel about you. I think we can make it work. Oh, and before I forget, I want to ask you something.”

“What is it?”

“I know your mom and you always go alone to visit your aunt but would you mind if I went with you this time?”

Hannah was taken aback by his request.
She had to take a moment before she answered to think of an acceptable response.

“
I would ask you to go but this is something I still want to do alone with my mom. I know it sounds selfish but it’s a tradition and I’m not ready to share it with you yet. I hope you understand.”

Josh was obviously hurt by her answer
but he handled it well.

“I completely understand. We can go another time.”

Hannah could see he felt rejected.

“It’s not that I don’t want to spend time with you. It’s just that my mom enjoys the time she gets to spend alone with me – it means a lot to her. We can hang out when I get back.”

He hugged her and kissed the top of her head.

“I’m fine
, but I’m going to hold you to that.”

She
had managed to keep her plans intact.

Three days later, with her mother on their way to see Aunt Grace, Hannah couldn’t get Josh’s words from the party out of her head.

“I think we can make it work.”

If she failed to see Conall today, maybe she’d make more of a concerted effort to make it work with Josh.

She didn’t ask her mo
m to drop her off at the park. This time, she decided to tell her mom she wanted to do a little shopping and that she’d be back in a few hours.

Sara
reluctantly agreed but went through the same safety precautions with her, call every half hour on the hour and no talking to strangers.

Hannah agreed and after walking a few blocks until she was out of sight from Aunt Grace’s house she hailed a cab.

“Where to?” asked the cab driver.

“Drop me of
f at Grosque Garden in Battery Park please.”

Not more than fifteen minutes later Hannah was at the scene of
last year’s fiasco.

Standing there
alone, she experienced a few flashbacks to what had taken place nine months ago.

Shaking it off, she noticed it was exactly 1
:00 P.M. This time, she made sure she stayed near the crowds of people waiting to board the ferry. Her eyes scanned the entire area, first to look for Conall and second to look for Jack and his body guards.

She would wait for
exactly one half hour which is when the ferries would be leaving the dock. If Jack was there she doubted he would make his move on her with a crowd of witnesses.