What Goes Around (15 page)

“I need you to take us to 3241 Murray Street immediately,” Lauren said, settling into the shadows of the car.

“Yes, ma'am,” the driver said, practically screeching past the crowds.

Jermaine watched the crowds until he could see them no longer—well after the driver pulled the car out of the fortress that was Brookhaven Prep.

Not another word was exchanged between Lauren and Jermaine.

Not one.

Lauren's hand had barely touched the knob, but the heavy wooden door creaked open as if she'd pushed it. Just beyond the large, round mahogany foyer table decked with a fresh arrangement of bloodred poinsettias was Dara, posted up on the steps, bent over with her head in her lap. She lifted her head when she heard Lauren's heels click on the immaculate white marble floor.

“Lauren?” she asked weakly.

Lauren reeled back when she saw Dara's bloodshot, eyeliner-rimmed eyes. “Dara? What—what's going on?” Lauren asked, walking slowly toward her ex-BFF.

“I tried to call Marcus but he wouldn't answer his cell phone,” she said, struggling to get the words out.

Lauren moved a little closer. “What were you calling Marcus for, sweetie? Dara? What…”

As wide open as Lauren's mouth was, the words refused to come. Dara had stood up, and all Lauren could see was the red on her hands and her winter-white Grecian minidress and the step she had just been sitting on.

“I think I need to go to the hospital,” Dara said, bursting into tears.

“Omigod, omigod, omigod!” Lauren screamed, shaking her hands like she'd just touched something hot. “Oh, oh, we should call—we should call someone,” she began.

“Call Marcus…” Dara said weakly.

Lauren rushed up to Dara—her arms outstretched; she could feel Dara's tears on her bare shoulder. “Baby, we don't have time to call Marcus,” Lauren said gently, trying her best to sound calm, even as her heart thumped against her chest. “We have to get you to a hospital.”

“But if I just wait a few more minutes, and he sees your phone number, he'll come…” Dara cried.

“I'll call him, I promise,” Lauren assured her. “But right now, we have to get out to the car.”

“The car?” Dara asked, seemingly confused.

“Jermaine is outside waiting for us in the car. He'll help us, okay?”

“Oh, Jermaine is here? Oh, I ruined your date,” Dara said.

“No, no, honey, it's fine,” Lauren whispered. “Want to meet him? Come on, he's in the car,” she said, putting Dara's arm around her shoulder. “It's a little cold, but it's warm in the car. I have a jacket there.”

“Okay,” Dara whimpered. “Lauren, I need you to know that I'm sorry. I miss you so much…”

“Not now, honey, not now,” Lauren said.

“But I need to hear you say you're okay with me—that we're good,” she said, forcing each word through her lips.

“Dara, it's okay. Jermaine!” Lauren yelled as she ushered Dara down the stairs. “Jermaine! Help us!”

Jermaine opened the door and hopped out of the car in
one quick motion, followed by the driver. “Oh, shit, what happened?” he yelled.

“This is Dara,” Lauren said, practically carrying her friend on her back down the stairs. “Don't just stand there, help us!”

Jermaine rushed up the stairs and put Dara's other arm over his shoulders, and together they dragged Dara down the staircase. When they got to the bottom, Jermaine took Dara into his arms and carried her to the car, where the driver was waiting with the door open. The three of them piled into the backseat.

“Please,” Lauren said to the driver, “get us to Piedmont Hospital as fast as you can.”

“Yes, ma'am,” he said. “Right away.”

No matter that he rushed through the stop signs, past the red lights, down the quickest side streets like a bullet in the night; to Lauren, it seemed like the driver could not make it to Piedmont fast enough.

Sydney entered Principal Trumbull's dimly lit office hesitantly. “Have a seat, Ms. Duke,” the imposing-looking man with thick glasses instructed brusquely from behind his desk. A strong wind blew the door closed with a loud slam as soon as Sydney sat down on the uncomfortable, brown pleather armchair. She almost jumped out of her skin with fright. “So do you have the money,” the principal demanded as he leaned forward over the desk.

“I, um, I don't know where the money is,” Sydney stammered.

“I didn't ask you that! I said, do you have the money?” Principal Trumbull now glowered. His eyes seemed to glow with a supernatural-looking, fiery red.

“No—no, sir, but I didn't take the money,” Sydney stuttered as she tried to move back from the principal's burning eyes. She could feel her feet pushing against the cheap industrial carpet that covered his office floor, but for some reason the chair seemed to be moving closer and closer toward his desk. “I swear to you, I looked and I looked,” Sydney insisted frantically, when out of nowhere handcuffs locked her into the seat.

“I
told
you what would happen if you didn't get me my money,” the principal roared like a wild banshee as his entire face morphed into a werewolf-like creature and he leaped over the desk, mouth agape, at Sydney.

Completely terrified, Sydney struggled against the handcuffs and screamed for her life, “No, please, noooooo!” Sydney screamed so loud, she finally woke herself up.

“Omigod, omigod,” she panted as her chest heaved in and out. Completely tangled in the sheets and dripping in sweat, she sat straight up in the bed. “It's just a dream, it's just a dream, Syd,” she said, trying to talk herself off the ledge. Despite the reassuring words, her heart felt like it was going to explode at any moment. She slowly surveyed the semidark room as she tried to bring her heart rate down. When she was finally convinced that she was in her own bed and not about to be eaten alive by the angry werewolf Brookhaven principal, she allowed herself
to lie back down on the mattress with an audible sigh of relief.

She turned her head and looked at the iHome clock. Its digital numbers read 10:45
A.M.
There were still two hours before she was supposed to meet Jason and some of his boys from the football team for a post-party brunch at The Flying Biscuit. And considering she'd only gotten home at three
A.M.,
her achy body could definitely stand another thirty minutes of rest. Sydney closed her eyes and tried to conjure up some of the deep-breathing techniques she learned in yoga class. “Om,” she murmured to herself, desperately trying to erase all the scary flashes of the nightmare from her mind. The sound of her exhaling through her nose filled the room. And still, she just couldn't relax. Sydney flexed and wiggled her toes under her comforter. The balls of her feet throbbed from dancing the night away in her gold Christian Louboutin evening shoes. Despite the gel pad she'd inserted beforehand, it was obvious her little piggies were in need of some serious TLC. Finally, giving up all hopes of falling back to sleep, Sydney sat up and started massaging her right foot softly.

As she surveyed the room, her gaze fell on her dress hanging across the back of her desk chair. A small smile momentarily played on her lips. As expected, the Sadie Hawkins Benefit was a success—the decorations were lovely, the food was delicious, and DJ Kiss was on point
from beginning to end. Aside from a couple of unfortunate wardrobe choices—China Hayworth's bedazzled sea-foam taffeta ball gown, which made the naturally curvy girl look a thousand pounds heavier—Brookhaven's young, rich, and sexy student body turned it out with their designer frocks and accessories. By the end of the night, everyone who was anyone had showed up with their boy of choice in tow. There was not a single thing amiss except the missing fifteen thousand dollars. And every time Sydney accidently made eye contact with Principal Trumbull, the searing side-eye he shot at her wouldn't let Sydney forget it.
It was probably those beady eyes that caused my nightmare,
she thought bitterly, switching feet.

Someone else that seemed a little shady to Sydney was Marcus. His phone had been off, and he hadn't returned any of the voice mail messages that she left before the party started. But she figured he was probably busy getting ready and reassuring Dara that she didn't look like a beached whale. And then, he had arrived late, alone, and looking extremely stressed out. Normally, Marcus made it a point to arrive on time to any school function where there was going to be a red-carpet arrival, especially when he had been a part of the planning process. Not to mention, while the entire student body couldn't seem to stop complimenting Sydney's appearance, Marcus said nothing.

Sydney had hoped she'd find a moment to pull him aside so that they could compare notes on the missing money, but it never happened. Sydney wasn't sure if it was because Jason was stuck to her side like glue or what, but Marcus went out of his way to make sure that he was never anywhere near Sydney all night. And to that effect, as soon as they had finished saying their official co-chair welcome to the guests, he disappeared into the crowd, not to be seen again for the rest of the night.

Sydney looked at the clock again; this time it read 11
A.M.
There was no way she was going to be able to go to this post-party brunch if she didn't speak to Marcus and get this mess cleared up. She took a deep breath and stood up. Sydney padded over to her desk, where she had thrown her clutch when she finally came in earlier that morning. She fished her iPhone out of the bag and tried to turn it on. No juice. Sydney put it in the charger and waited a few seconds before turning it on. She immediately pulled up Marcus's number and pressed the dial icon.

“Come on, come on,” Sydney muttered under her breath as she twirled a strand of hair around her right pointer finger and waited for the call to connect. The phone rang once and went directly to voice mail. “You've got to be kidding me,” she cursed, ending the call without leaving a message.

Of course his selfish butt is still sleeping,
she thought
bitterly,
he ain't the one about to be expelled from Brookhaven!
Sydney slammed down the phone with a thud. She started to pace the length of the room. Feeling absolutely frantic, she realized that she had no choice but to go to Marcus's house. Sure, Jason was going to have a fit when she canceled their plans, but there was no way Sydney Duke was about to wind up flipping Krystal burgers for a living because of somebody else's bullcrap.

She rushed into the closet and hurriedly pulled on her favorite pair of Citizens of Humanity jeans, a white Gap tank top, and a tangerine-colored Ralph Lauren cashmere sweater. She untied her head scarf and shook out her head full of two-strand twists. Then she grabbed her silver hoops and rushed into the bathroom. After washing her face, brushing her teeth, and applying some Dove deodorant, she was ready to roll. Grabbing her chocolate-colored Tod's tote from the handle of her bedroom door, she tossed in her wallet, phone, and a small makeup kit. She quickly glanced around the room and bounced.

“Where you going?” Lauren asked, coming out of the kitchen holding a huge cup of hot cocoa and still wearing her outfit from the night before.

Sydney stopped dead in her tracks at the sight of her sister. “What happened to you?” she asked, momentarily distracted by Lauren's disheveled appearance. “I
didn't see you at all after you rushed out of my room last night…”

Lauren sighed and looked at the floor. “It's a long story…Dara had…She called me last night when we were on our way to the party. She lost the baby,” Lauren admitted quietly as she cradled the mug.

Sydney's mouth dropped open. “Oh, my God, I'm so sorry,” she said in shock. “I don't even know what to say. Is she okay? Where was her mom?”

A million emotions rushed through Sydney's mind as she processed her sister's horrific words—shock, sorrow, pity, and as much as she hated to admit it, relief. While she could only imagine the devastation of losing a child, a small part of her knew neither Dara nor Marcus was ready to be an underage parent.

“There's nothing really to say,” Lauren said with a shrug. “As usual, her mom was away. I think she's at the
SET
Magazine ski weekend event in Tahoe. I think calling me was really Dara's last option. But I do know that I'm just glad I didn't ignore her messages, and I'm even happier that you left Marcus. 'Cause trust me when I say, that boy ain't about nothing. Ya dig? As of this morning he still hasn't called her back. What a loser.” Lauren struggled to stifle a yawn. She felt as if she'd aged at least ten years in one night.

Hearing the boy's name snapped Sydney back to reality. “Yeah, well, something tells me that what you know is just the tip of the iceberg,” she said.

“Yeah, I'm sure,” Lauren responded wearily. “Anyway, I'm going to get me some sleep. I told Dara I'd head back to the hospital later on this afternoon when I woke up.” Sydney looked at her sister with raised eyebrows. “Try not to judge so quickly, Syd,” Lauren said softly. “Everyone deserves the benefit of the doubt. And not for nothing, she's really alone right now.”

“I hear ya,” Sydney replied as she walked out the front door. She just hoped that Principal Trumbull would be as merciful to her come Monday morning if she didn't straighten this mess out.

“Morning, babe.” Jason answered Sydney's call hoarsely. Sydney could hear him clear his throat several times.

“Morning, sunshine,” Sydney replied as she switched lanes on Georgia 400. “How did you sleep?”

“Um, okay. How about you? You seem wide-awake considering I just dropped you off at three o'clock in the morning,” Jason replied.

“So-so,” Sydney admitted. “I had a really weird dream that woke me up.”

“Oh, yeah? You think it was all the fried food we were
eating at Tim's after party?” Jason asked with concern. Sydney could hear his sheets rustling as he changed positions in his bed.

“Maybe,” Sydney responded as she hit a stretch of bumper-to-bumper traffic. She sighed out of frustration.

“Where are you?” Jason questioned curiously. “Why do you sound like you're in the car?”

“Um, yeah,” Sydney said hesitantly. “That's actually what I was calling you about…” Jason remained silent. “I had to, ah, run out this morning. And I'm not sure that I'm going to make the brunch.”

“What you mean?” Jason said sharply. “Where you running to on only a few hours' sleep?”

“There were some issues with the Sadie Hawkins account, and I need to take care of them before Monday,” Sydney offered, bracing herself for the inevitable backlash.

“So you're on your way to the bank? To school? I'm confused, Sydney,” Jason responded.

“No, not exactly. I'm on my way to Marcus's—”

“You're kidding, right? This is some type of joke. Because I know you're not canceling our plans with my friends to go hang out with your ex-boyfriend.” Jason's voice started to rise.

“Jason, I am so sorry but there's nothing I can do,” Sydney pleaded as she saw the exit sign for Marcus's house ahead. “Trust me, please.”

“Trust you? Are you for real? How could I ever trust you? You're a liar! You're not over your ex, you're just playing me out so that he'll take you back!”

“Jason, I swear to God that's not true! The last thing I want is to cancel our plans but I have to take care of this,” she insisted.

“Take care of what? You still haven't told me what is so important that you need to go see Marcus, at his house, on the first Saturday morning we've had planned to spend together since we started dating!”

“I can't discuss it.” Sydney struggled to keep her voice steady. She knew Jason was going to be upset but hadn't expected this. She turned off the exit and made a right-hand turn. “If I could, I would, but I just can't.” For a moment, the only sound coming from Jason was his breathing.

“I'm not doing this with you anymore, Sydney,” he said finally. “It's either him or me. You can't have it both ways.”

“But it's not—” Sydney tried to cut in, to no avail.

“Stop lying, Sydney,” Jason insisted loudly. “I'm sick of you making excuses. You think I'm a fool or something? Well, I'm not. If you want to be with Marcus, then so be it. I'm done.” And then Jason hung up the phone.

“Why, Sydney, what a surprise,” Ms. Green exclaimed as she opened the front door. She opened her arms for a
hug. Without a moment's hesitation, Sydney stepped right into them. “I am so happy to see you! Come in, come in,” the attractive older woman said as she pulled Sydney into the foyer and closed the door.

“Hey, Ms. Green,” Sydney said shyly, suddenly remembering everything that had happened the last time she showed up at her ex-boyfriend's house unannounced. “I'm good. How are you?”

“I'm making it,” Ms. Greene replied as she pushed her reading glasses onto the top of her head. “I'm just going over some budgetary bills that I intend to introduce at the top of next year.”

Sydney nodded and smiled. As one of the more powerful City Council members in Atlanta, Ms. Green was always championing a new cause. “Wait, where are the babies?” Sydney asked curiously about the councilwoman's two teacup Yorkies, Pork and Chop.

“Ha! Belinda took them to the groomers for their monthly bath,” Ms. Green said with a smile. “Lord knows I can't deal with bad, stinky dogs. Bad dogs perhaps…but definitely not bad, stinky dogs.”

Sydney chuckled because she knew how much Marcus's mom loved those two little terrors. “I hear ya,” she said with a smile.

“So is everything okay?” Councilwoman Green asked curiously. “Like I said, I haven't seen you in a while. Every
time I ask about you, Marcus makes up some lame excuse. I know the affairs of the heart can be a little tricky, but I certainly hope that it's nothing you two kids can't fix,” she continued sweetly.