A Proscriptive Relationship (51 page)

I turned around to see a small, black car creeping up behind us. It was going slow, and looked like it was going to stop.

“
Maybe they’re going to apologize?” Casey guessed.

“
Doubt it,” Lance said.

As car grew closer and I squinted to try to make out the driver, but it was to no avail. I turned to Lance, whose eyes narrowed at the car. The window started to roll down and horror filled my veins when I recognized the driver of the car that nearly made us crash.

Shawn was smiling and gesturing for us to roll down the window.

“
Lance,” I whispered.

Casey leaned across me, attempting to reach for the window control button. “He wants us to open—”

“
No!” I cried, quickly slapping her hand away. “Lance, drive!”

“
On it!” he responded, turning back around in his seat.

Shawn’s attention went from me to Casey, who smiled back at him. It took all my will not to shove her away and flip off Shawn—right now wasn’t the time to make Casey suspicious. But I had the feeling she was anyway.

There was a roar from the car’s engine and soon we were speeding away from Shawn’s car. I turned around quickly to see if he was following us. Luckily, he wasn’t. I breathed out a sigh of relief, slumping back into my seat.

“
What’s he doing here?” Lance hissed, glancing at me through the mirror.

“
Who is he?” Casey asked.

“
No one,” I told her. “And I don’t know!”

Casey rolled her eyes. “He’s obviously someone.”

“
Forget about him.”

“
Holly.”

“
Casey, please.”

“
Why are you keeping a secret from me?” She asked, pursing her lips at me and frowned.

“
Okay,” Lance sighed from the front. “Since Holly won’t tell you, I will.”

“
Lance!”

“
Holly, it’s fine. Casey should know.”

“
But . . .” I protested, trailing off with a frown.

Casey turned to Lance, looking curious. “Did you know that guy?”

Lance nodded. “A while ago, he was following Holly around.”

What? I gave Lance a confused look, but he ignored me. Casey blinked at Lance in confusion.

“
Like a stalker?” she asked.

“
Not
like
a stalker,
a
stalker,” he told her. “And that’s it. That’s how we know him.”

“
Creepy,” Casey muttered, glancing at me. “How come you didn’t tell me about your stalker? I could have helped.”

“
It was, um, not a big deal,” I told her, shrugging. “Next time I can tell you.”

Casey laughed. “Hopefully there won’t be a next time.”

“
Hopefully,” I agreed, looking at Lance once again.

Why was he lying flat out to Casey? Well, it was better than telling the truth—telling her about the gang would put her in danger. Letting out a sigh, I shook my head. For now, I’d just stop thinking about it. Casey bought the lie, so she’d be satisfied.

“
Well, if he bothers you again, you can tell Mr. Heywood,” Casey suggested, nudging me in the ribs. “Eh?”

I rolled my eyes at her. “Again with Mr. Heywood?”

Casey snorted. “Please, Holly. I already know you’re head over heels for him, and he’s definitely got something for you. Don’t try to tell me that something won’t be going on.”

“
Don’t be nosy,” I scolded, feeling my face redden. “Nothing . . .” I trailed off.

What was going on? Sure, I professed my love for him a week ago and last night he made it obvious he loved me. But I wasn’t his girlfriend or anything.

“
She’s not being nosy, Holly,” Lance commented, rolling his eyes. “She’s being concerned.”

I glanced at Casey. To my surprise, she looked hurt by my comment.

“
Casey, I’m not trying to be mean . . .”

“
I know,” she responded with a sigh. “You don’t have to tell me anything. I just thought you’d want a girl to talk to about, you know, things you wouldn’t want to Lance about. But like I said, you don’t have to.”

I smiled slightly. Leave it to Casey to care about something she shouldn’t have to. “Casey, you’re my best friend—”

“
And as your best friend, I can wait until you’re ready to tell me about you and Mr. Heywood,” she finished for me. “I’ll stop prying.”

“
Casey, it’s fine—”

She held her hand up, silencing me. “Nope. Don’t say anything. I am being kind of nosy.”

“
But that’s why we love you,” Lance interjected. “Your nosiness comes in handy sometimes.”

Casey grinned at him. “I hope so.”

Lance suddenly took a sharp right, once again sending me into the window. “Hey,” I protested, pushing myself away. “That hurts . . .”

“
Sorry,” he apologized, sounding amused. “I almost missed the entrance to the fair grounds.”

Lance found a place to park and I peered out the window. The only thing I could see was the back of a fun house and the lights of various rides in the distance. A smile crept onto my face as I located the Ferris wheel—the very same one where Mr. Heywood and I had our first major conversation. Even though I knew now he had been lying the whole time, I still looked at it with fond memories.

“
I can’t wait to get some cotton candy,” Casey chirped excitedly, unbuckling her seat-belt in anticipation.

“
I want a baked potato,” Lance and I commented at the same time. We exchanged looks and grins in the mirror.

We piled out of the car and he locked it, shoving the keys into his pocket. Cool air nipped at my face as I stretched, pausing to run my hand over my sore forehead. Lance and Casey went ahead of me, laughing and talking in excited voices. Pulling my jacket tighter around me, I took a few steps towards them but stopped when my phone started vibrating in my pocket. I quickly pulled it out and flipped it open, clicking on the new text message.

Oh, you finally made it. I didn’t realize how much farther ahead of you I got. Can’t wait to talk to you in person!

I froze, my eyes staring at the message on the cell phone screen. The name above the message read “Lance.” Which meant Shawn. Which meant he could see me. Which meant he was close. Which meant I was in danger.

My head snapped up and I quickly spun in a circle, my eyes wide and wary. Where was he? Nothing appeared out of the ordinary. But then again, it was dark, so he could very easily be hidden. Instead of standing still like a target, I hurried towards Lance and Casey. The bright lights and crowds from the festival would keep me safe. Shawn wouldn’t try anything while there were so many people around, would he?

I thought about texting Mr. Heywood. But when I realized he would call the police that idea was out of the question. That was the last thing I wanted him to do. What about Jeremy? No, he’d probably tell Mr. Heywood. I just had to be cautious, and never leave Lance or Casey.

“
How much does it cost to get in?” I heard Casey asking Lance as I grew closer.

“
Five bucks.”

The feeling of being watched suddenly washed over me.
Great
, I thought,
now I’m going to be paranoid all night. Stupid Shawn
.
He has to ruin all my fun.
I finally caught up to Lance and Casey at the gate, and paid for my admission to the festival. I hooked my arm through theirs—a surefire way to make sure we wouldn’t get separated.

“
Where to first?” I asked cheerily, trying to get my mind of Shawn.

“
Should we just walk around and see what there is?” Lance suggested.

“
Sounds good to me.”

A familiar buzzing from my pocket made my heart leap into my chest. I debated on whether to ignore the new message or not, but curiosity got the best of me and I let go of Lance to pull out my phone. What did Shawn want now?

Don’t make any plans for tomorrow. You and I are going to talk.

My eyes narrowed in confusion. What was Shawn talking about now? If he wanted to talk, wouldn’t he just demand to do it tonight since he seemed to be here anyway?

“
Oh, so you text Mr. Heywood now too?” Casey asked me, making me jump in surprise. “And you’re meeting tomorrow?”

I glanced at the top of the message and realized that it was indeed from Mr. Heywood and not Shawn. Relief washed over me, and I didn’t even feel embarrassed about the fact that Casey had read his text message.

“
Oh shoot,” Casey suddenly muttered. “I’m prying.”

I laughed. “Casey! Don’t worry. It’s fine. I’ll tell you what’s going on when I know exactly what’s going on.”

“
So something is going on?” Casey and Lance asked at the same time.

I gave Lance a questioning look. “Why do you want to know?”

“
I’m just curious about how things will turn out,” he told me with a shrug. “Good for you.”

Now I blushed. “It’s not . . . It’s—”

Casey laughed, slinging an arm around my shoulder. “Holly, you’re too cute.”

I sighed as a large crowd of people walked by us. Lance grabbed my hand quickly so we wouldn’t get separated. There were a lot of people out tonight, which made me feel much more safer. I could scream if I had to, and someone would hear me . . .

But nothing is going to happen
, I told my self firmly.
Right? Right.
 

My phone vibrated again, and I rolled my eyes.

“
You’re popular tonight,” Casey commented.

“
Guess so.”

I quickly typed
okay
to Mr. Heywood and closed his message before reading the next one.

It was from Shawn.

If you think you can lose me in the crowds, you’re wrong. I can still see you.

I nearly dropped my phone. It was going to be one long, paranoid night.

LESSON thirty-five

“
What should we do now?”

Lance and I shrugged simultaneously. The lights from all the rides lit the dark sky, creating an amazing sight. Casey, Lance, and I had walked around the whole festival twice already. We had hit a few of the rides as well. Now we were taking a break and eating—well, at least I was.

The hot baked potato in my hands warmed them, which was a nice break from the chilly air that had been nipping at them. It was time to start wearing gloves at night. Lance and Casey sat across the picnic table from me, watching me eat. “I want to go on that,” Casey stated, pointing her finger at a ride that looked like a big zipper.

“
Me too,” Lance commented, looking up at it with a grin. “How about you, Holly?”

I raised an eyebrow at him. “Are you kidding me? I don’t want to die.”

Lance and Casey laughed, making my face heat up.

“
Holly, you’re scared to go on every ride that leaves the ground,” Lance commented, rolling his eyes. “Live a little.”

“
I am,” I told him, “by not going on that ride.”

Casey chuckled. “Come on, it won’t be that bad.”

I shook my head. “No.”

“
You’re no fun,” Lance commented.

“
Look, it’s a ride for two. Why don’t you and Casey go on while I finish my baked potato,” I suggested, holing up my half-eaten potato. “I don’t mind waiting here.”

Casey frowned at me. “Holly, I don’t want to ditch you.”

“
It’s fine,” I assured her. “This way I don’t have to wait around by myself like a loser when you guys finally decide you want to go on.”

Lance nodded, nudging Casey in the side. “Let’s go, Case.”

“
Are you sure?” Casey asked, looking hesitant.

“
It’s one ride,” I responded. “It’s not that big of a deal. I can handle being alone for a few minutes.”

Lance pointed behind me, towards the ride. “It might be a little longer than a few minutes. There’s a line.”

“
Then you’d better hurry up before it gets any longer,” I advised. “I’ll wait here. If you guys aren’t back when I’m done eating I’ll meet you by the exit of the ride.”

Casey and Lance finally set off for the ride and I dug into my potato again. Rides that left the ground really weren’t my thing. Just looking at them made me feel sick. Except the Ferris wheel, but that was a different story. I watched the crowds of people that walked by the picnic table. Oddly enough, I hadn’t run into anyone from school yet. It was Friday night. There were supposed to be gaggles of students here, and yet the three of us seemed to be only ones from our school. It felt weird.

   
Something to my right suddenly moved. I snapped my head around so fast I cricked my neck. Wincing, I rubbed my neck, and then proceeded to glare at a small, black crow loitering on a trash can. My heart began to slow when I realized that it was just a crow. If there was one thing I hated, it was being paranoid.

Without warning, a pair of hands grabbed my shoulder. I let out a strangled cry of surprise, struggling out of the person’s grasp. When I turned around and saw Lance looking at me curiously, I relaxed.

“
Casey come back yet?”

“
Hmm?”

“
Casey,” Lance repeated. “You know. Short. Brown hair. Our best friend—”

“
I know who she is,” I snapped, rolling my eyes. “Weren’t you just with her?”

Lance frowned. “No. We ended up having to sit with different people on the ride. I thought she came back here, but I guess not.”

“
Where would she have gone?”

Lance shrugged. “Maybe she got lost. Or maybe she went to meet Willis. I think he was supposed to come out tonight.”

“
Huh,” I commented, pushing myself away from the table. “We should probably find her . . . You never know who could be here.”