One Touch

2: A School of Paparazzi

It was pelting outside. I woke up to the drumming of rain on my windows. Gushing wind rattled the shutters, signing a wild thunder storm in a pleasant neighborhood such as mine. It wasn’t like any other night, and it wasn’t every night I woke to a thunderous sky. This moment was different, and I felt my heart pound with every rumble.

Fear crawled down my body in the form of sweat, begging me to stay in the comfort of my bed. Yet the more I waited, the more curious I got about the creeping shadows on my walls.

My legs felt numb as they took me out the bed and towards the window. I spread apart the curtains to reveal a murky sky. Lightning flashed among the clouds as thunder echoed seconds later. In the empty darkness of the storm, I saw two glowing specks of red among the howling wind and angry rain.

I lifted my window, a wet wind sweeping my hair back as I squinted towards the gleaming light far into the darkness. They were frozen, the glowing red eyes that seemed to stare at me. I began to see the outline of a face, but it was distinct and camouflaged into the night. I saw the gentle sway of hair above the eyes, and nothing more.

I shut my window and draped the curtains over it. My eyes must be playing tricks on me, but I couldn’t stop myself from shuddering. They might as well be random lights, but I’d never seen them before today.

I fell asleep and by the next morning, the image of those eyes had vanished from my memory. It had to be an illusion, because I didn’t know what they were if it wasn’t.

Mom had gone to work already, leaving behind a dreary house with vast emptiness and silence. Rick must have also gone to college. Dad would be alone in the house, like every other day for the past five years.

With my backpack hoisted on my shoulders, I padded along the corridor towards dad’s room. A beam of light shone out from under his door. He was awake, or he might’ve let some sunlight in.

My fingers stalled on the door and I knocked once. There was no answer on the other side, but I heard faint shuffling.

“I’m going to school,” I said through the door, hoping he heard me. “Mom should’ve left you something to eat in the fridge. You…you do you.” The shuffling stopped and I fiddled with the strap hanging from my bag. “If you discover something new, then maybe, you can share it with me?”

Utter silence. I wasn't interested in those discoveries one bit, but if it got me closer to dad, I would go to any lengths. Disappointed, I stepped away and descended the stairs to eat breakfast before heading off to school. It was like this all my life, and I had never experienced a direct conversation with dad. A proper, father-daughter conversation. With him, I was hoping for too much.

Once cheer returned to my mood, I locked the front door of the house and crossed the street to Odelia’s house. I finished my morning routine a couple minutes early today to meet up with the twins. They had some plants on the porch, lined up in a row of colourful flowers. There were chimes hanging from the roof of the porch, a metallic parrot hanging from the center.

I rang the doorbell and waited, examining the other embellishments they added to their new house. I heard the door open and turned back to see Caspian holding it open. He seemed as stunned as me. It was the sight of his face that plain surprised me, but I didn’t know why.

“Hi,” I said, quieter than I meant to. He didn’t greet me back. “I came over to see if you guys would like to go to school together.” For some reason, it felt bland in my mouth, like I shouldn’t be asking that.

“We have a ride,” he declined, his eyes mused. It was as if he’d never seen me before, or he didn’t expect to see me again.

“Who is it?” I heard a call from inside the house. Before Caspian could reply, Atlanta’s head popped through the opening above his arm. She grinned when she saw me. “Hi, Eve!”

Atlanta wanted to go to school with me and she pleaded Caspian to go in my car. Caspian refused but she held a tantrum until he agreed, but I felt bad for him as I took them to my car. With one look at the hideous, outdated thing, Caspian wanted to go take his own car parked on the driveway. Atlanta didn’t care the least bit as she sat in the passenger seat. She was jumpy in the car and super bubbly.

“I still have to take my G2,” she said, opening the flap to check her face in the mirror. I didn’t know what she found on her flawless face, but she rubbed her finger along her cheekbone.

“I can help you practice,” I offered, reversing the car. “Maybe you can take the test in Downtown.”

Atlanta was about to agree when Caspian interrupted. “No thanks. She’ll do fine on her own.” I glanced at him through the rear view mirror, and our eyes met for a split second before I looked away. Why did he have a harsh response to everything I said?

“No, I want to!” Atlanta whined. “But anyway, Eve, how do I look? It’s our first day in Castlebrooke so I want to make sure I dressed okay.” I took a glimpse at her outfit, and it was as colourful as the first time I’d seen her.

“I like it. You’ll have some boys looking at you,” I commented, and her smile fell. Did I say something bad? It was a general phrase, but the thought of boys didn't appeal to me. Her face drooped and she stared out the window. I didn't expect her change of mood. “Are you okay?”

She straightened. “Yeah.” Just like that, her eyes brightened with excitement once more. “I wore my favourite yellow shirt, painted my nails pink, and also put this cute tie in my hair.” Wow, she really was a gumdrop.

I parked beside the school in an overfilled parking lot and attempted to keep my car as straight as possible. Damn, I sucked at parking. I hoped Atlanta wouldn’t make any mistakes on her driving test.

“s**t driving,” Caspian murmured before he got out. I wasn’t flat out hurt but was offended to some degree as I turned the engine off. Atlanta told me to ignore him, and I planned to do just that.

***

I could not ignore Caspian; it was impossible. Not even half of school was done and all the classes I had with the twins seemed to revolve around them. It was hard to ignore.

I couldn’t blame the crowd of students, though. The first time I had met the twins, I myself was awestruck. They had that kind of charm, a glow of attraction no one, as I observed, could resist. But apart from the crowd, the twins were closed off. Well, Caspian was. He didn’t even flinch at the noise directed at him, and he didn’t bat an eye when his name was called.

Atlanta, on the other hand, was beaming as she greeted everyone. Once in a while she’d peek at Caspian and her elation would die down. As I had predicted, a dozen boys had flocked to her desk in the past two hours. Other than a nervous giggle, she’d shy away from them.

Caspian spoke during the last period before lunch, and Atlanta wasn’t in our class. He was approached by the famous Ryuki Tanaka, or Ryu, and his sidekick, Zavian Deangelo, along with Emerald Jane and Amber White. The four were the noisiest bunch in all of Castlebrooke.

Ryu was the man of the ladies, or so I heard. He was the epitome of a dazzling, Korean boy-band member and the pollen to fan-girl bees. It was a false label since I could bet a fortune that Ryu was Japanese, not Korean...not like it mattered to them. Zavian was more of a goofball who rotated from person to person and got along with everyone. He was always seen beside Ryu, and the duo were known as the "The Asian African Charmers". Both had their own kingdom at school.

Emerald was a well-known cheerleader and an athletic role model for most girls in the school. Her friend, Amber, leaned more towards arts and music, and was a specialist in make-up design and violin. The two girls were a part of their kingdom. To ever be approached by one of those four would mean you had something they needed or you were aesthetically pleasing. Some students didn’t give a flying crap about them, and I assumed Caspian wouldn’t either.

Within a minute, Ryu had created a complex handshake with Caspian and they talked for the entire period. No one dared speak or go to Caspian’s desk as he conversed with Ryu.

Upon closer look, I noticed how incredibly relaxed Caspian was. All four members of the kingdom chattered with ease, and Caspian replied as if he’d known them all along. Sure, they were all engrossing in appearance, but their closeness was too unnatural.

When the bell rang, I packed my books and stationary as everyone filed out the room. I took a last peek towards Caspian’s desk, and it was cleared from his new friends. He was alone and to my surprise, he was already looking at me.

Turning away, I grabbed my backpack and sped out the door, making a beeline to the cafeteria. What was that about?

I saw Haiti and Luna at the table near the glass wall, and put my backpack on the seat. I didn’t have many friends at the start of high school, and spent my time alone in the classroom and got some of the highest marks. One day at lunch, Haiti came up to me and said, “You like the God of War games, don’t you? Girl, I don’t know your name, but I love your taste!” It was my freshman year, and it was all it took for us to stay friends to this day. Or, I thought it was why were were still friends.

I stood in the cafeteria line, training my eyes on the ground as the noise level rose around me. The kingdom of stars entered the cafeteria and they marched by like celebrities on a red carpet. They had a pretty big fandom at school, but the murmur today was about the new people part of the crew. My eyes sailed towards Atlanta and Caspian, who avoided the intrigued looks from everyone. Atlanta saw me waiting in line and her eyes widened for a bit before she disappeared to the other side.

“Celery?” the lunch lady behind the counter asked. I nodded and she dropped a few sticks onto my plate. I returned to the table and put my tray down.

“Did you see them?” Luna whispered to Haiti. She nodded to the table several feet away from us. “I think Atlanta might be prettier than Amber. That’s insane.”

“So mesmerizing,” Haiti added, holding her carrot in midair. “They’re acting like they met since they were babies. Wait, did you see that?” I twisted my neck just in time to see Amber looping her arm through Caspian’s.

“Dude, Zavian’s been trying to ask her out for the longest time,” Luna said, frowning. “And then Caspian comes along."

“Hey, he is better looking. I can’t blame Amber,” Haiti argued. For some time, no other topic than the people around that table was raised by my two friends. I hadn’t said a word to engage the conversation, because I lost sudden interest in it.

It wasn’t until someone walked up to our table did the two of them shut up. Atlanta stood with her feet planted to the ground, still and anxious. Setting aside my astonishment, I smiled at her.

“Hey, want to take a seat?” I asked. She broke into her own smile and sat beside me. Luna and Haiti watched with their jaws hanging, watched the princess step from her castle into an old, tattered shed.

“Hi. I’m Atlanta,” she introduced herself. Haiti and Luna didn’t react beyond a nod. I told Atlanta their names as they were in no condition to speak for themselves. “Sorry to drop by. I…” she paused. “Things were getting a little tight over there.”

“Is everything okay?” I asked her.

She was unsure when she shrugged. “I’m not supposed to be here, but I mean, I get to do whatever I want right?” I didn’t understand her, but she was relieved and happy so I didn’t press her on it.

However, I had a hunch on who might’ve told her to stay away from us. I looked over my shoulder to Caspian’s table, and our gazes met at the same moment. There was no worry on his face, or annoyance. He was impassive but I could tell he wanted his sister back at their table. I didn’t know what he was so cautious about.

The ride back home was filled with eerie silence as both twins had a hard line on their faces. Atlanta’s lips were turned down, and all the cheeriness I knew her for was absent in her face.

When we stopped at an intersection, I rubbed the steering wheel and glanced at her. “So, how was your first day at school?” I asked. Obviously it was bad, but I didn’t like seeing her the way she was now.

“A drag,” she said. “I want to be a normal teenager who’s going to school to make new friends and do some homework. I don’t want to be followed around like that and praised for my beauty.”

“Well, you got me, Haiti, and Luna,” I told her, and a weak smile formed on her lips. “My friends are a little dramatic when it comes to having someone like you at our table, but I promise they’ll return to normal if you give it a few days.”

“I know.” Her voice livened up a bit. “And you don’t mind me at all, do you?” I shook my head, relieved to have her back. “Man, thanks a lot Eve. I can’t wait to tell mum about everything.”

“You have friends, Atlanta,” Caspian said from the back, bursting her bubble of happiness. She pouted in her seat, her brows furrowed in a deep arch. “You don’t need more.”

“Why are you so overprotective?” I blurted out. I shouldn’t have, but it was too obvious seeing how he seemed to make all her decisions for her.

“Keep your eyes on the road,” Caspian told me with a fierce glare. Fear crept up my skin as I immediately focused on the road ahead. He was cold with his words, but I didn’t expect him to get this scary.

“She is right, you know,” Atlanta scoffed, but he put an end to the conversation before she could say more.

I dropped them off at their house and Atlanta thanked me once again for the ride and letting her sit with me at lunch. Caspian tapped his foot until she was done speaking to me. Atlanta walked towards their porch, but Caspian stayed.

“We don’t need your service from tomorrow onwards,” Caspian told me. I couldn’t say anything, and he probably didn’t want me to either. His eyes turned to a shade much darker as he gave me a menacing look. “Don’t get too close to Atlanta.”

I had to speak against that. “What? Why?” I asked. I didn’t get an answer as he walked away. Who was he to tell me what to do?

Her brother, he was her brother. But even then, why did he not like the friendship between Atlanta and I? Oh, it might be because I wasn’t an alluring superstar who drowned in her wealth.

Let him watch. I wasn’t staying away from Atlanta. He could go sulk in a corner. I wanted to see what he’d do.