The Understorey, Book One of The Leaving Series (6 page)

    “So, what does Samuel like
to eat Karen?”
    “Oatmeal. He loves banana oatmeal.”
I hear box after box toss into a cart. Karen laughs.
    “He doesn’t need that much,” she says.
    “ I’m sure he doesn’t but I just want to make
sure. Alright, how about these? I remember when my little sister
was about Samuel’s age she couldn’t get enough of these.”
    “Okay,” Karen says, her voice teetering on a
sob.

I bring my hands to my face and feel
something wet on my finger tips.
Oh great, you’re a sap Julia
Jacobs.
I hear Elliott give her some space. I remember thinking
how thoughtful it was for him to want to give her back her dignity
and how that small gesture wasn’t lost on me. Even as vulnerable as
she has made herself, Elliott still treated her with respect, never
taking advantage of her like some men would or treating her like
she’s incapable of taking care of herself or her baby. To him,
she’s just a woman down on her luck at the moment.

    “What size diaper is he in
Karen?” I hear him raise his voice so she can hear him.
    “He’s in a size three now,” she says, then
sniffs.
    “Alright.”

I hear a box slide underneath the cart. After
a few seconds, I hear him pile things inside. He’s not even asking
if she needs it, he’s just doing it.

    “Elliott,” Karen’s shaky
voice says, “that’s enough. You’ve done more than enough.”
    “You’re denying me a glimpse of what this will
be like in my future,” he laughs. “It’s fun Karen. Gonna’ deny me
that?” He teases.
    She laughs.
    “Alright, well, do you think we have
everything?”
    “I think he’ll be able to eat for a month.” She
sniffs. “Thank you.”
    “Don’t mention it. So, what about you? What will
you eat?”
    “I’m fine. I can figure it out on my own. You’ve
done more than enough.”
    “I believe you,” he says. “Indulge me though.
Follow me.”
    I hear his cart rumbling down the aisle and I
haul my ridiculous feet to the end cap opposite the direction
they’re traveling. When he passes my aisle, I almost trip over
myself racing to the other side, trying to eavesdrop yet again.
Grandma is plainly gawking at me now. I shrug my shoulders and lean
down to get a better grip on their friendly conversation while I
trail him all around the market.

He gets her all sorts of non-perishables.
Smart
, I think, but he also gets her a few staples like milk
and eggs. When they head towards the checkout counter I follow
closely and lean near the end cap to listen in.

    They talk about her life
at home, where she works, and what Samuel’s habits and talents are.
Elliott comments on what a well behaved baby he is, how smart he
seems to be, and what an amazing disposition he possesses.

I find myself drawn to Elliott then, like a
string connects our hearts and that string is coiling tighter and
tighter, drawing me closer and closer to him. I realize that I’m
seeing Elliott at his best and the ironic part is that he isn’t
even doing this in show. This is genuinely who he is. As far as
he’s concerned, no one knows what he’s doing and that melts away
one of the protective layers I’ve so carefully built around my
heart.

It clamors in that instant and I begin to
daydream what it would be like to run my fingers through his hair
and hold his face in my hands.
If I could, I would let him know
just what I think of what he’s doing. Perhaps I’d do just that with
a kiss. What would that be li....

    “Boo,” I hear from behind
me.
I jump and shriek. Everyone’s eyes turn my way. I can’t see Elliott
but I’m more than positive he and Karen are looking our direction,
as curious as the rest of the store’s patrons are. I hit
Sawyer.
    “Sawyer!” I whisper yell.
    “Julia!” He mocks, holding his gut in laughter.
“What the heck are you doing?”
I start laughing with him.
    “Nothing. I’m just a big buffoon. Hanging on the
end cap like an overgrown monkey.”
    “Oh, is that why you were dragging your knuckles
on the ground outside?”
I hit him once more and start laughing again.
    “What are you looking at?” He asks, trying to
peek over my shoulder at the checkout lines.
    “Nothing. Nothing,” I say, pushing him towards
Dairy.
    “Uh, huh.”
    “Seriously Sawyer. Stop.”
    “Alright, alright.”
    “My early man poses are just between you and me.
Agreed?”
    “Alright but it’ll cost ya’.”
    “Yeah, yeah. Put it on my tab.”
    “Where’s your bell pepper?” He asks studying my
empty hands.
    “Uh, I haven’t gotten it yet,” I say, shoving my
hands in the back pockets of my jeans.
    “Where’s your list?”
    I square my shoulders, “In my pocket.”
    He raises an eyebrow, “Alright, let me see
it.”
I sigh in frustration and slump down in defeat.
    “Okay, there’s no list. I was trying to avoid
someone.”
    He raises another eyebrow, “The same someone you
were trying to avoid in French?”
I don’t answer.

“You do know that to
avoid
someone you
must steer
away
from them right? Following them around is
clearly not avoiding them, just thought you should be aware of the
rules of avoidance because I’m pretty sure you’re doing it
wrong.”

    “Okay. You’ve had your
fun. Now scoot.”
    “See you around
Julia Jacobs
!” He yells
as loud as he can.
    “Sawyer!” I grit through teeth and push him
further away from Elliott. “Shut up. He’ll hear you.”
    “
He
? Well, well. It’ll cost ya’ indeed!
See you tomorrow
stalker
.”
    “Bye
Tut
.”

He frowns but I can’t tell if he’s angry,
hurt, or playing around. Either way I don’t have time for it
because I’ve been gone half an hour for a simple bell pepper and my
mom is going to flip when I walk through the door. Her dish will be
ruined now. Yikes.

    The next day, I spot Elliott on my street after
school. While passing my living room window I am pulled back into
my previous step. Elliott Gray is standing in Ezra Colston’s yard
just staring in my direction. I hit the floor like a soldier and
belly crawl to the window, peeling two blades of the shutter open.
Oh my goodness. Oh my goodness. Oh my goodness. Wait, chill
Julia.
I lean into the window.
What is he doing? Does he
even know Ezra?
I pause, noticing Elliott in all his glory.
My God he is a fine specimen. Hooah!
He wore a pair of faded
jeans and a long sleeved black t-shirt with the sleeves pushed up.
The wind picked up his hair and dragged it across his perfect face.
He ran both his hands through his hair to control it and the
muscles in his forearms flexed, sending me into a frenzy.
Jeez.
Get a grip Julia.

Elliott turned toward the Colston's front
door. Ezra Colston got into an auto accident his senior year and
broke his back. He barely finished high school and has been
confined to a wheel chair for the past two years. His friends used
to come around a lot but when they all went their separate ways to
college, Ezra was sort of left on his own.  He attends classes
at the local community college and plans on transferring to
university as soon as his lengthy rehabilitation is over. He can’t
live on his own right now because of it and is forced to bide his
time at home until then. At first, Ezra was sort of lonely I think,
but then last year nineteen year old Delphine moved across the
street and now I’m not so sure he regrets living at home.

He loves her. She loves him. But she’s stupid
and won’t take a chance, too scared to let him make the first move.
Dunce.

Hypocrite.

What? Who said that?

I visit Ezra once a week but he’s never
mentioned Elliott to me. I start to think he’s using Ezra as an
excuse to see me but when Ezra opens his door Elliott hugs him and
they do this secret handshake thing that makes me think otherwise.
Hmm.
They stand on his porch and joke and laugh for what
seems like forever.

    Ezra points my direction
and Elliott drags his hand back down which sends a secret thrill
through me, though I'd never say it out loud. Ezra starts laughing
and Elliott jokingly wheels Ezra’s chair into the house.
You
surprise me Elliott Gray.
I still suspect that Elliott is using
Ezra for information despite their obvious friendship and decide to
wait him out but I fall asleep on my mom’s stiff sofa instead. My
dad wakes me for dinner.
    “What are you doing sweetheart?”
    “I’m on a stake out.”
    “Oh, okay,” he says, comfortable with my
idiosyncrasies.

I gaze out the window and Elliott’s truck is
still there.
Huh.
I decide I’m going to go to Ezra’s after
dinner only if Elliott’s out of there. I stuff my face much to the
dismay of my mother and run back to the window to see Elliott’s
truck gone.
Yes! And
no
? Get it together Julia.
I
dash out the front door and march up Ezra’s porch.

I pound on the frame of the screen door,
“Ezra! Open up Ez!”
    “What the bloody heck are you doing
creature?”
Ezra’s like the brother I never had. I annoy him, he annoys me, but
we'd do anything for each other.
    “Why was Elliott Gray at your house all
afternoon?”
    “Because he’s my friend,” he says, a small smile
twists up the side of his mouth.
    “How come I’ve never seen him here
before?”
    “Maybe because you’re blind? I don’t know. He
comes here like twice a week Julia. We hang out and stuff. He’s
cool. Why?
You like him
?” An eyebrow raised.
    Immediately, I’m on the defensive, “No!”
    “Doesn’t appear that way to me girly. You’re all
flustered and red in the face. Looks like you’re ready to huff and
puff and blow my house down.”
    “Ezra Colston!
What
are you talking
about?”
    “Go home, look in the mirror Julia. You’re
smitten with Elliott Gray. Boy, that
is
hilarious. Never
thought I’d see the day that Julia Jacobs was a smitten kitten!
Kind of always pegged you for a panther myself but heck I’ve been
wrong before.”
    “I am not! I am not as you say a smitten kitten!
I’m.....I’m....”
Doing a fantastic job of defending
myself?
    “Alright Julia, whatever you say,” he says
closing the door.

I heard him chuckling through it and marched
myself back over to my parents’ home. I stop in the foyer and
glance in the mirror.
Darn. He’s right. I
am
a smitten
kitten. Can makeup fix this?
    Thursday proves rather difficult at school. Now
that Sawyer is on to me he’s paying very close attention to
everything I do.

Friday rolls around and to be perfectly
honest, I was exhausted. Between avoiding Elliott, wanting to find
Elliott, wanting Elliott to find me, avoiding Sawyer, listening to
Ezra taunt me about how Elliott and I are sitting in a supposed
tree, school, homework, and parents I’ve had enough. I’m glad to
have the week over with and plan a visit to Koan’s, my favorite
indie book store in Charleston. I want to load up on books and camp
in my room until school starts back up the following Monday; a
little mini-vacay from my impossible life. No more Elliott. No more
obsessing.
    Koan’s is amazing. Only the hippest cats in town
know about it. Okay, that’s sort of a stupid thing to say about a
bookstore but let’s just say it’s off the beaten path. I head in
and inhale the sharp smells of fresh ink. The earthy smell of paper
permeates the air around me and I close my eyes for just a moment
enjoying the temporary escape. I greedily finger the display piles
and run my palms over the covers. If I were wealthy, I’d swim in a
pile of books. I wouldn’t even mind the paper cuts. Nothing like
them in the entire world, books that is, not paper cuts. They truly
are like nothing in the entire world; that’s not necessarily true
but you get what I mean.
    I’m surrounded by university students and a few
professor-types. Chuck, the cashier waves at me. His name isn’t
really Chuck. I just call him that because he’s got these kick-butt
bright red Converse he always wears.
    “What’s new Chuck?”
    “Not much, got the new Stefanie Conrad in. I
saved you a copy.”
    “Chuck, you know the way to this girl’s heart,”
I said, feigning a light head.
    “Snoop around. I’ll get it for you when I get
rid of this line.”

I wink.
It’s gonna’ be a good day.
I
hum a little ditty under my breath and scan the titles of each
aisle while I wait for Chuck. I wonder into the self-help section
and almost trip over myself. I absently trail my fingers along the
titles, praying there would be one that read ‘You’re insane Julia
Jacobs. Stop obsessing about Elliott Gray’ or ‘He’s just a normal
boy dummy, a surprisingly kind and sweet boy who just happens to
share literal electricity with you but that’s nothing to get so
worked up about’. There wasn’t, but there was one ironically titled
‘Getting over the one you’re obsessed with’. I laugh out loud and
get a few shushes. I almost pick it up but meander over to the
Fantasy section instead. I pick up a random book and start reading
the first chapter.

My head picks up when I hear the jingle of
the door. Someone just left. My heart tingles slightly but I shrug
it off. I take the book I’m reading over to the checkout line when
Chuck waves me over with Stefanie’s new book in hand. I stand there
waiting for my turn when I hear the door jingle again. I look up
and suck in a breath.
Elliott
. My eyes widen then narrow,
trying to figure out if he’s been near me that entire time, if he
was the reason my chest ached. My heart tingles yet again. I lock
eyes with him.

Elliott trips over a chair. His face and neck
turn a brilliant red and I feel so sorry for him. The girl in front
of me laughs. That infuriates me. I fight the urge to pull her
hair.
Violent. Why so violent?
That’s not like me. He yanks
his coat from a chair and storms toward the door without so much as
a second glance. My heart aches for him, cries for him.