Better Off Alone (BOOK 1)(Wattys 2016)

Remember... That Wedding?

The bell that signals the end of English rings and I quickly walk out of the room.

Not quick enough though, because Larkin is right there next to me, smiling. "Looks like we'll be spending time together, Gem."

I stop walking and groan loudly, looking at him. God, why is he so hot? "Seriously, Larkin, my name is Gemma. You barely know me - no, you don't know me, so don't act like you do."

He smirks again and I strongly resist the urge to slap him. "Oh," his voice is too damn sexy, "but I do know you so well, Gemma."

I run a hand through my hair, frustrated beyond measure with him. "Larkin, leave me alone." I start walking for my locker, knowing I have to get to the last period of the day - art.

"Someone bothering you, sis?" Clive sidles up on my other side and I give him a grateful grin, but it's somewhat strained.

"Hey, Clive."

Larkin narrows his eyes, but doesn't say anything to Clive or me.

Clive gives me a funny look. "Is he bothering you?" He repeats.

I very much want to scream yes, but for some reason I glance over at Larkin and shrug. "Nah, he's Eddie's cousin. This is Larkin. Larkin, this is my twin brother, Clive."

Larkin's eyes widen and he relaxes before smiling. "Ah, I see. Nice to meet you, Clive."

Clive smiles back. "Nice to meet you too, Larkin. Nice shirt. Hey, I'll talk to you later, Gem. I gotta get to class. See ya, Larkin."

As Clive disappears and I continue on to art, Larkin calls after me. "So he can call you 'Gem'?"

I don't reply.

***

When I get out of my personal art period, I slowly put away the supplies I had been using. My paints. My apron. My brushes.

The familiar rhythm of cleaning up, helps calm me down from the whole Larkin fiasco. As I'm putting my canvas on the drying rack, I hear someone come into the art room, letting out a small sound.

I look up to see Laurene Martelli, the art teacher of our school and my personal mentor in the world of art. Today, she's dressed in a bright red smock and has her ebony-colored hair pulled up tightly in a bun. She smiles at me and crosses the room, her heels clacking against the floor.

"Laurene!"

"Gemma! I've missed seeing you!" She wraps her chocolate-colored arms around me and engulfs me in a perfumed embrace that calms me even more.

"What are you talking about?" I ask as I pull away, smiling at her. "I was in here nearly every other day during summer." It's true, I was here all the time. I couldn't last the entire summer without working on my art.

The school board granted me special permission to use the arts rooms in the school year round, even summer and breaks. They even gave me a key, thanks to Laurene's persuasion.

Laurene smiles at me. "I know, but now I'll see you every day of the week."

"That is true." I laugh.

She motions to the canvas I just slid away. "What are you working on, sweet pea? Anything permanent yet?"

I shake my head, letting my hair fall down. "Not really... I'm just touching up my kind-of abstract piece from the summer."

"Oh! The one of Olive?" Laurene beams.

I blush slightly. "Yes, that's the one."

The painting was a profile of Olive that I had started at the beginning of the summer. It was only from her eyes up, mostly her hair which was the abstract part of the painting. Her eyes are closed in the painting, the makeup being dramatically done. Her hair is my favorite part. I applied the same techniques that Van Gogh used in Starry Night. I piled layers of paint onto the canvas and then used different tools to make various swirls.