Tear (A Seaside Novel) (4 page)

I hated that I was curious about Alec. It made me uncomfortable to know that he was so closed off. It was like crack to me. I wanted to be the girl to figure out his secrets. And I knew that never ended well for anyone.

With a yawn I placed the phone on the nightstand and went to sleep.

****

I felt dead on my feet as I opened my locker the next day at school. I hadn’t seen either of the guys, but I knew they had to be somewhere if the shrieks echoing through the hallways were any indication.

I sighed and shoved my math book in the place of my history book.

“Nat.” Demetri breathed down my neck.

I swore and turned around. “You scared the crap out of me!”

He grinned unapologetically and held out my pathetic phone. “I made a few changes to your settings and stuff. Hope you don’t mind.”

I looked down to see my screensaver a picture of Demetri’s naked chest. Awesome. I felt a hot blush wash over my cheeks.

“Thanks.” I grabbed the phone and shoved Alec’s into his hand.

He didn’t move.

I waited.

He looked at me like I was a puzzle. “Wanna walk to class?”

If he kept looking at me like that I was going to pass out and he’d have to carry me to class, only to have me pass out again because he was carrying me. “Um, sure.” I grabbed my books and walked with him.

The class was only a few feet away, but it felt like miles. People whispered behind their books as we passed, and then Demetri put his hand on my lower back.

I nearly jumped out of my skin.

“Chill.” He chuckled as we made it into the classroom.

All eyes darted to us.

All except Alec’s.

I gulped and took a seat. Once the teacher began taking roll I stole a glance at him. Alec was staring at me. He wasn’t smiling. In fact he looked irritated, either that or angry. I wasn’t sure. I offered him an apologetic smile. He ignored me and turned back to the teacher.

****

By the end of their first week, the other kids were beginning to return to normal. Girls stopped fainting in the hallways and the guys weren’t signing near as many autographs. Demetri walked me to class every day and Alec found great pleasure in brooding all the time. It made me uncomfortable how much he backed off once Demetri and I started talking more. If I was being completely honest, a part of me was a bit upset that he and I couldn’t have the same relationship Demetri and I did. But then again, who was I to be upset about anything? I mean he was everything. I was nothing.

I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn’t hear anyone approach.

Someone tapped me on the shoulder. I dropped all my books to the floor.

“Geez, Nat, you’re so jumpy.” Demetri knelt down to pick up all my books and then dumped them in my locker. “I need help.”

My eyes narrowed. “With?” I always had to be direct with Demetri. He was the type of guy who could get even the most moral of girls into bed.

“Math. Remember? I suck?”

“You’re asking me for help?”

He shrugged. “We’re friends.”

Oh. I suddenly felt kinda guilty. I was officially going to delete all the gossip sites from my computer. The guy couldn’t be as bad the media made him out to be, and he’d been really nice the past week. At least when he wasn’t trying to get me to go to parties or flirt back with him.

“Well…” I studied him for a minute. He didn’t seem to have any ulterior motive. In fact his eyes shone with desperation. “I guess I can help you, I have to finish all my stuff first. Do you mean tonight?”

“I mean tonight.” He chuckled. “How about I come over around eight, would that be okay?”

“Yeah, um… sure.” I choked on my words.

“Cool. Thanks, Nat!”

He hit me in the arm and ran down the hall, leaving me to wonder what the heck just happened. Crap, I was under his spell just like everyone else.

I banged my head against the locker. Maybe it would jostle my memory, remind me why I shouldn’t get close to a guy whose idea of prioritizing included picking which girls he would sleep with before leaving Seaside and putting them in a chronological list.“Headache?” A smooth voice said from behind me.

Maybe it was all a game? AD2 thought it would be fun to torture the local girl and make her life confusing and hormonal.

“Alec.” I breathed.

He licked his lips and then looked down at the floor. “Do you have any more taffy?”

“Huh?” Not what I was expecting.

“You mean now?”

He nodded.

Was he for real? “Um, I have a few pieces in my bag, why?”

His shoulders sagged in relief.

Without waiting for him to answer, I pulled out a few pieces and handed them over. He popped all three in his mouth and moaned. I felt the rumble of his moan all the way down to my toes.

“Thank God.”

“So brooding Rock Star has a thing for taffy?”

Alec grinned the first grin I’d seen since his first day at school. “You could say that. Or maybe Rock Star just needs something in his mouth ever since he quit smoking.”

“And the world makes sense again.” I nodded. “Ever try lollipops?”

“Yup.” He cursed. “Too much sugar.”

“Gum?” I offered.

Somehow we had gotten from my locker to the front doors.

“Loses flavor.”

I nodded again. “So taffy is your best bet.”

He grinned again. He was beautiful. Even more beautiful than Demetri when he smiled. Crap! I needed to help him with his homework and I still had to work and finish mine! “I gotta go, Alec!”

His eyes narrowed. He looked unsure, and then he nodded and walked off in the other direction without even saying goodbye.

By the time my work shift was over, I only had a half hour to do homework before Demetri came over for help.

Wait.

He didn’t even ask for directions and he just invited himself to my house. Wasn’t that a bit strange? I knew he had my number saved so maybe he was going to text me for directions later?

I leaned against the truck. I seriously had no more energy left after today. Maybe I liked boring better than interesting. I still couldn’t figure out why these two guys were even giving me attention.

I shrugged and walked into the house.

Chapter Five

I had officially turned into “that girl”. The one who watches the clock as the hand goes around and around. It was eight, and he still wasn’t here. He was going to be late. By one minute. And I, being the boring, paranoid, oh so socially-sheltered girl that I was, allowed myself to sweat over that simple fact.

Maybe he found another girl to help him?

Or guy, it didn’t always have to be about girls.

I tore my gaze from the clock and went to the fridge to grab a soda. If he wasn’t coming it was fine. I would be fine. It’s not like I didn’t have stuff to do.

Like watch Wheel of Fortune, or scream at The Bachelor. How depressing.

I looked at the clock again.

One minute? It had only been one minute?

I banged my head against the counter loud enough to make a noise.

“Rough night, beautiful?” The voice crooned from across the hall.

My head jerked up to see Demetri walking toward me from my mom’s office. What the—?

“What are you doing here?”

My mom walked out of the office, Alec followed her.

It was like all my nightmares come true.

“Oh, hi, Honey!” Mom adjusted her glasses and walked to the fridge to grab a bottle of water. “My next client should be here in about ten, so I’ll be up late tonight. Have fun studying!”

She walked back into her office and shut the door.

“Explain. Now.” I directed my voice toward both of them, since they were both guilty, and looking anywhere but at my face.

Alec was the first to open his mouth. “I have…” He looked down at his feet and cursed.

Demetri laughed. “He has a little problem.” He offered Alec a shrug and walked over to where I sat. “It’s why we’re here.”

“Aren’t their psychiatrists in L.A.? Canada? I mean, why my mom? Why here?”

Alec mumbled something under his breath and walked out of the house slamming the door behind him.

“Sorry.” Demetri put his arm around my shoulder in a side hug then released me. “It’s kind of a secret, though I don’t think it’s going to stay that way for long.”

I clenched my teeth and backed away. “Mind filling me in?”

“If you are the math genius I’m hoping you are then yes, I promise I’ll fill you in. After homework.”

“That sounds an awful lot like bribery.” I glared.

Demetri shrugged. “It is. Hey you got any food? I’m starving!”

It was like having Evan in the house. If Evan happened to be so good looking it hurt your eyes to stare at him, and had a body of a god. Yeah, it was practically the same thing.

I walked to the fridge and searched out the leftover pot roast. “This is pot roast. Those,” I pointed, “Are potatoes, and these are carrots.” I grabbed his hand and led him to the plates. “This is a plate.”

He glared.

“You put the food on the plate, and then you come over here.” I opened the microwave and put the food inside. “Think you can handle it from here, Rock Star?”

His glare should have frightened me. Instead it made me even angrier than before. Both of the boys just barged into my life without any explanation, and now they’re seeing my mom? Neither of them will answer any questions, and Demetri thinks he’s some sort of god!

He shut the microwave and pressed all the right buttons. “I’m trying to decide if I like you or if you irritate me.”

I shrugged like it didn’t matter and walked to the counter.

He ate in silence, like he really was starving. But that was silly. He was a rock star. Didn’t they pay people to cook for them?

“Thanks,” he said, picking up his plate and cleaning it before placing it into the dishwasher. He picked up my empty plate and did the same thing, then made a grand gesture of washing off the counters.

Pretty sure I wanted to get hit by a truck for my mean attitude.

“Sorry.”

“I swear.” He threw the dishrag down. “It’s always the same!” He roughly tugged the chair out and sat down in it. “Either girls want to screw my brains out, or they think I’m a freaking idiot! Like I don’t know how to get my own food or iron my own clothes. As if everything’s been easy for me. No struggles, nothing. Just a golden boy with a damn golden guitar.”

His mental break down made me feel like the worst type of person in the world. I kind of wanted to cry.

“I-I’m sorry.” I put my hand on his and exhaled. “I didn’t mean to assume anything.”

His brow furrowed. “Are you actually apologizing, Miss High and Mighty?”

“Yes?”

“Good.” He grinned. “Because I was totally kidding. I love my life and I deserve to be kicked in the balls right about now for making you almost cry.”

I lunged for him.

I blamed the soda I had chugged minutes before his arrival.

His shocked expression turned into laughter as I pushed him to the ground and began using all my MMA class moves on his sorry ass.

His arm was locked before he even knew what was going on.

Feeling kinda cocky, I shot him a smug smile.

“That’s how it’s gonna be, huh?” His muscles flexed.

I nodded.

“Fine.”

“Fine.” I squeezed, making the arm bar tighter.

He chuckled, and maneuvered himself out of the hold faster than I’d seen anyone in my life, including Evan who regularly took classes at the local gym.

In seconds he was straddling me, looking quite pleased with himself.

“Not that I didn’t deserve to get my ass kicked,” he said out of breath. “But, I kind of like this position better.”

I squirmed beneath him.

“And better… and better.”

I yelled. It didn’t help. If anything it made him laugh harder until exhaustion set in and I joined him.

He leaned down and kissed the top of my forehead. “Math?”

“As long you refrain from making me cry or wanting to punch you, then yes, we can do math.” I sighed, a little breathless from the fact that the rock god had just kissed my forehead.

He seemed to think about it for a minute then nodded his head.

Minutes after starting math I realized two things. One, he was dead serious about needing help, and two, he was actually serious about wanting to get things right.

While he was working on the last problem I stole a glance at the clock, it was already ten.

“You live here your whole life?” he asked not looking up from the paper.

“Uh, yeah.” I nervously started tapping my pencil. “You always live in Canada?”

Dumb question, everyone knew they resided in L.A. now, but I wanted to hear it from him.

“Five houses.” He erased his problem and squinted. “One in British Columbia, a beach house in Malibu, a penthouse in New York, a flat in London, and finally a cottage in good ol’ Seaside.”

I’m sure my mouth was open in shock. That’s more houses than me and my friends put together.

Once I was able to get my thoughts back on track I asked, “Why Seaside?”

“And that, I do not have to answer until after homework. You promised.”

“Fine.” I sighed then grabbed the paper. He folded his hands behind his head and leaned back in the chair.

His work took him a long time, and I could see why. His hand writing was meticulous, every word formed perfectly. He wrote how he talked. It was impressive, to say the least. Usually it was impossible to read guys’ handwriting. The work was perfect except for one.

“This one.” I pointed it out. “You used the wrong formula.”

“I know.” He shrugged.

“Not following, Demetri.” I smacked his arm with my pencil.

“I’m just tired of being perfect, so I figured I would create a small flaw in my homework. Adds character I hear.”

I nodded my head. “And you’re officially impossible. All right, if you want imperfection who am I to disagree?”

“Come on!” He jolted from his chair and grabbed my hand before I could say anything except a slur of “Huh?” The guy was bipolar! How did we go from discussing math to running to my door like there was a fire?

I nearly tripped over my North Face as I pulled it off the coat rack. I was beginning to suspect that the guys were on drugs. Why else would they be so all over the place? Almost erratic in their behavior?