Change of Possession (2 page)

Caty found me after class and stopped me. “Hey, so how many more classes do you have today?”

“Three. What about you?”

“Same here. Hey, there’s a party tonight, not a big one, but just something where a few of us are getting together and meeting some new people. Kinda like our way of celebrating the fact that we survived the first day. So what do you say; you wanna go?”

I shifted my weight and looked everywhere but at her. Did she know about me and my past? Was it some cruel joke to ask me to a party? “I, um, I don’t know.”

“Well, if you have other plans I totally get it. I just thought since you were new to the area and all, maybe you could use some friends. A lot of us grew up here, so it’s nice to add fresh faces to the mix. We’re a pretty welcoming group.”

“Ah, you mean like that other girl in class? She seemed awfully welcoming,” I scoffed.

“Oh, Alison? Yeah, she’s not so bad, usually stays to herself.”

I smiled. “I can do that. I know all about second chances.” I hesitated. “So, this party, what time?”

She clapped her hands together like a little girl excited about Christmas. “Oh my gosh, it’s at seven. Jonah will be off work by then so we can swing by and pick you up or you can drive down and meet us there.”

“I, ah, I don’t drive. I mean, I can, but I don’t.” I chewed on the inside of my cheek.

She waved me off. “Psh, that’s fine. Just give me your address and we’ll come get you.”

“Okay, but who’s Jonah?”

“He’s my boyfriend. We’ve been together for years. Well, only about one and a half, but who’s really counting, right?”

I couldn’t help but relax around Caty. Her whole demeanor put me at ease.

I gave her my address, which wasn’t too far from campus. I needed a place I could walk to and from school. I wasn’t sure I’d ever want to drive again. I only got my driver’s license back in Maine because I needed an ID, especially since I was moving to a new state. Who knew what would happen on a bus trip with a bunch of strangers and pit stops? Caty and I also traded cell numbers in case plans changed.

I hefted my backpack and walked around slower than I did that morning. My next class wasn’t for another thirty minutes, and it was a nice day, so I decided to check out the campus. Footsteps fell in behind me and I resisted the urge to look over my shoulder. It’s not like I was the only one using the sidewalk, except for the old ghosts who followed me everywhere.

I spotted an empty bench and quickened my steps to get there before someone else saw the same thing. I pushed past a group of slow walking girls and almost groaned out loud when I saw two guys walking closer to my seat. I made it to the bench before them, and couldn’t help but feel a tad victorious, even if it was over a stupid seat. It wasn’t that I was unsociable, but I needed some time to adjust to my new surroundings and peers. I took a seat on the bench and relaxed back, enjoying the towering trees that created enough shade to keep me from melting in the hot August sun.

That’s when I spotted him. Clad in black jeans tucked into unlaced leather boots, a gray tee, and a black cuff around his wrist, he was dark—mysterious. His hair was black and spiked randomly, as if he grabbed fistfuls of hair and glued it in place. His right arm had some sort of tattoo that I couldn’t make out from the distance. Everything about this stranger called to me. The world slowed down to a crawl as I stared. He stood in the corner of two buildings, under the shade of a low-hanging tree. Dark glasses covered his eyes so I couldn’t see where he was looking, but my insides fluttered because his attention was directed my way.

I smiled at him and he smiled back. Oh my gosh, he
was
staring at me. Heat from my cheeks made me acutely aware of how red I must be, and I looked away. I brushed my pants off self-consciously and dropped my pack down to the grass. When I glanced back over he was gone. Spinning around in my seat, I scanned the area, but I couldn’t see him anywhere. My shoulders slumped.

Who he was? Maybe I had a class with him. I clung to the hope that would happen. I didn’t care how or where, but I knew I wanted to see him again.

Two

It was my third lap around my small living room before I realized I was pacing. I wrung my hands as butterflies filled my stomach. Maybe it was too soon to go to a party.

A knock on my door made me jump. I looked over at the digital clock on the microwave. Six thirty-eight. This was it.

I exhaled long and slow before opening the door. Caty looked cute in jeans and a shirt that said ‘I love books’. I ran my hands down the side of my hips, wiping the anxiety-driven sweat off.

“Oh, sweetie, you look awesome! I could never pull off that vintage look, but you really rock it,” she said.

I didn’t do much. I rolled up the bottoms of my jeans into wide cuffs and wore my favorite Toms. I curled my hair and twisted it up, letting the curls fall down, and placed a fun bandana around my hair, giving me the rockabilly look.

“Thanks, I think.”

Caty squealed and took my hand, pulling me out of my house. I barely had time to grab my keys and shove them into the pocket of my jeans.

“You’re gonna have fun. Trust me, you’ll get to meet so many people!”

I knew she meant well, but that did nothing to settle my nerves. I climbed in the backseat of the Ford Focus and buckled up.

“Hey, I know you.”

I snapped my head in the direction of the driver. “You? You’re Jonah?”

He laughed. “Yeah. Small world, huh? Hey, babe, this is the girl I told you about earlier. The one who almost killed me by running me over.”

I cringed.
He didn’t know
, I chanted to myself. I couldn’t let a simple joke upset me.  I wondered if I’d ever go a day without my past tagging along. “Yeah, you got me.”

Caty smirked. “Well, you just had a great day for first impressions, didn’t you?”

I leaned back against the headrest. “You have no idea.”

We arrived promptly at seven. It was at a house on a hill right outside of town. It felt strange, yet surprisingly normal to show up for a party.

Caty opened the door as soon as Jonah pulled up on the grass in the front yard. “Come on, Keeley,” she hollered over her shoulder as she got out of the car. She squealed as Jonah slid over the hood of his car and caught her around the waist.

I took a deep breath, preparing myself before I followed them to the house. My nostrils filled with the smell of fresh-cut grass as we walked across the yard, and a continuous thump of bass came from inside the house. The familiar warm buzz that floated in the air carried me away to another place—to another me—when life was fun.

“Hey, Jonah. Dude waz up?” a tall guy said as we walked through the door. He and Jonah bumped fists, then shoulders. The other guy was almost six feet tall, towering over Jonah, and his pale skin made me think he never got enough sun, matching his bleach-blond hair.

“Hey, man.” Jonah replaced his arm around Caty’s waist and pulled her close, making her giggle. He turned to me. “Steve, I want you to meet Keeley. Keeley, this is Steve Yarnell. This is his house. Come on, let’s head in so we can let other people.”

“Oh, um, hi.” I was suddenly swimming in an unknown feeling as I was they ushered me closer to the middle of Steve’s home. I was never really the bashful one. I usually was the life of the party, the one who everyone gathered around and wanted to hang with. The girl who could out drink the guys. My heart hammered in my chest. What was wrong with me? My thoughts returned to the last party I was at. I was with Celeste, my best friend. That last party was the one I chose to drink and drive. I wanted to run away; this wasn’t right. I shouldn’t be here. Panic rose inside me.

“Keeley, you okay?” Caty touched my arm, bringing me back to the present.

“What?”

“You okay? Steve’s been talking to you, but you zoned out.”

I waved her off. “Oh, yeah, I just had this thing… I’m sorry, Steve, what were you saying?” I desperately tried to forget my thoughts, paying close attention to Steve. His mouth moved but I swore no sound came out.

He laughed and handed me a red Solo cup. I took it with a shaky hand. His pale blue eyes sparkled as he smiled at me. “I was just asking how you liked Orem.”

I stared at the red liquid in my cup and scrunched my brows, wondering what it was. It didn’t smell like an alcoholic drink, but I didn’t want to take the chance. I held onto it, not wanting to be rude.

Jonah laughed with Steve. “It’s not alcohol, if that’s what you’re thinking,” Jonah piped up. “Steve’s dad would kill him; besides, if either of us got kicked off the football team, college would be over for both of us. Scholarships, ya know. It’s our third year, and this year is gonna be the best.”

“Woo! Wolverines!” Steve did another fist bump with Jonah and Caty rolled her eyes.

I relaxed, the tension in my shoulders dropping. I took a sip and smiled widely. Cranberry juice and 7up. I chuckled a little at how dramatic I was being. I was twenty years old and spooked by my teenage mistakes. Celeste’s death hovered over me, reminding me, but holding that cup I realized life still went on. I needed to relax. I couldn’t start over if I never gave life a second chance.

A deep bass beat thumped through the house, and Caty grabbed Jonah by the hand, pulling him away. “Come on, let’s dance.”

Steve stayed behind. He gestured to my cup. “Most of us don’t drink.  The coach would have our asses. There are a couple of people around here I could find that brought their own if you’d like…”

“No,” I cut him off. “No, I’m great without it. Promise.”

He smiled, not taking his gaze off me. “I think you’ll fit in more than you know here.” The song changed and a new rhythm reverberated up through my shoes. “Wanna dance?”

I gulped down the rest of my drink and nodded. “Yeah, that’d be nice.”

He led me to a large living area where couches and furniture were lined up against the wall, leaving a cleared space for dancers. Someone’s iPod was connected to the surround sound system, with a great playlist of upbeat and hot new songs pumping through the speakers.

I let loose for the remainder of the song and danced as if life was worth living again. My shyness wore off and I felt normal, like my old self. The next song came on but it was slower. I started to walk away, but Steve pulled me to him. “You can’t leave yet. We just started.”

Steve placed his hand on the small of my back and pulled me in. I wasn’t comfortable being this close to him, but I didn’t want to make a big deal out of nothing either. I inched back as far as I could without being seemingly obvious. “So, how long have you been in Orem?”

I looked up at him, keeping my distance. “For about a week or so. How about you?”

He smirked. “I’ve been here my whole life. I wanted to leave, but it just didn’t happen. I went where the scholarship went.”

I nodded. “So, football, huh?”

He gave me a cheesy grin. “Yeah. I’m like the best quarterback Utah’s seen since Steve Young.”

I gave him a puzzled look. Did he expect me to know who that was?

“Aw, girl, don’t tell me you don’t know who Steve Young is.”

I pressed my lips together in a tight line as I shook my head. “Sorry. I never really watched football. Only high school games.”

He let his head fall back as he groaned. “This is horrible.” He nodded at Jonah, who came closer with Caty.

“What’s up?” Jonah asked.

“Keeley here really needs to be schooled in the art of football. She has no clue who Steve Young is!”

Jonah laughed. “Did he try to tell you he was a better quarterback?”

I nodded.

Steve slugged Jonah in the arm, eliciting a grumble. “Hey, watch it, man, I’m the reason you get the ball down in the end zone. You should be nice to me.”

Caty and I laughed as they squabbled over who was the better player. The song changed again but I was too thirsty to dance. “So, if you’re done schooling me in the art of football, could you tell me where to find another drink?”

“Yeah, Jonah, you just go dance with your girl. I got this.” Steve took my hand and led me to the kitchen, where it looked like everyone else congregated.

The crowd of about twenty or so people parted and I felt a few people staring, but other than that, no one seemed to notice us.

He lifted the lid on a large blue cooler next to the stainless-steel fridge. “Want another cranberry 7up, or something else?”

“Yeah, that sounds good.”

He pulled out a couple of cans of soda and set them on the counter. He mixed the drinks, and then handed me one.

“Mmmm. This is really good.”

“Yeah, it’s not bad. I mean, sure I could throw an epic party with booze and smoke wafting through the air, but it’s not my thing.”

I smiled. “Oh, trust me, I don’t mind. Actually, it’s refreshing. Back home everyone is afraid of saying no to any alcohol, and after a while, things just get out of hand.” I tried to keep my smile as I said the last part, but it was forced.

“Hey, Steve, you gonna introduce us or you gonna keep her to yourself all night?” a shorter, not-so-slim guy asked from across the island. He wasn’t fat, but I couldn’t tell if he was thick from muscles or on the portly side. He ran his hands over his face and the short stubble covering his chin that closely matched his military style buzz cut 

“Brick, this is Keeley. Keeley meet Brick. He’s our middle linebacker.”

I laughed. “Brick? Really? More football schooling might be needed.”

Brick walked over and sat his cup down with a slosh of brown liquid dumping over the side. Whatever he was drinking was definitely not 7up. The smell of alcohol burned my nostrils. My mouth watered but my stomach twisted. I couldn’t tell if I desperately wanted a swallow, or if I wanted to quit breathing so I wouldn’t get sick.

He smiled. “It’s Brick ‘cause I’m built like a brick shithouse.” He slurred the last two words together but smiled wider and lifted his cup in a cheer before downing the rest of the contents.

Steve gestured with his cup. “Brick here is one of the best linebackers we’ve got. He’s the one who gets the ball to me and protects my ass while I throw it all the way down the field. He’s also the one who’s gonna have a major headache, and I’m gonna laugh through all of tomorrow morning’s early practice as he tries not to puke.”