Beautiful Demons

31. A Demon On His Back

Mrs. King's house was huge considering she and Coach King didn't have any children. They were barely out of college, really. As I looked up at the large brick house with its perfect yard and big bay windows, I wondered how two teachers could afford something so expensive. I dreamed that someday I could have something like this with a husband who loved me and a job I was good at.

Maybe I would settle down in Peachville someday. If Drake and I stayed together, we could certainly afford whatever kind of house we wanted. I mentally kicked myself for having thoughts like that. I wasn't even Drake's girlfriend yet and already I was planning our wedding and spending his family's millions. I had never thought of myself as that kind of girl. You know, the materialistic kind who liked people for their money. A pang of guilt shot through my body.

I guess that was just one of the side-effects of being friends with all these rich popular kids who had everything handed to them on a silver platter. It put my head in the clouds and made me feel like I was entitled to things I had no business daydreaming over.

In the backyard, the cheerleading squad assembled to run through the routines. All of the sophomore wannabes sat in the plush grass and watched. The sun faded in the evening sky and I had to put my jacket on to keep from shivering.

"Demons. Let's do it again. Fight. Demons fight!"

It amazed me how together they were. Completely synchronized down to every movement. Even if I made the team, how would I ever look as polished as they were?

When it came time for us to run through the dance with the squad, side-by-side, Mrs. King put me in the front next to Brooke. She was by far the best and most beautiful on the squad, so standing beside her made me super nervous. I fingered the black diamond under my shirt.

The music began and suddenly, I felt an energy buzz through my muscles. All of my nervousness left me and it was like instinct took over. I smiled bright, just like the girls had told me to, and ran through the routine flawlessly. Where I'd frozen earlier in practice, this time I didn't even have to think about the moves. It was like my body already knew it so well. I felt so incredibly coordinated and energetic. Strong and confident.

"Great job!" Mrs. King clapped her hands together, then stepped forward and whispered, "Especially you, Harper. That was awesome. Keep it up."

I felt giddy. High on raw energy and adrenaline. If Mrs. King had asked me to do a somersault back-handspring across her lawn, I could have done three of them in a row. Against my skin, the diamond was now so warm it almost burned.

When the squad started a new routine, I excused myself to go to the bathroom. I needed to catch my breath. The power in my veins was exhilarating, but it was also a little scary. I teetered on the edge of excitement and losing control. I knew what it was like to go over that edge and lose control. It always seemed to end with me being sent off to yet another foster home.

I opened the sliding glass door and stepped inside the warm living room. I heard voices in the next room and paused, not wanting to interrupt by passing through. Coach King stood in the middle of the kitchen with one of the cheerleaders. Ella, I think. Her brown hair was pulled into a loose ponytail and she was sitting on top of the granite counters, giggling. Coach King leaned in toward her and whispered something in her ear that made her squeal.

I backed up a step. I needed to go through the kitchen to get to the bathroom, but this was obviously something I wasn't supposed to see. Definitely not your average teacher-student relationship. As I backed up, I bumped into something and almost knocked it over. When I turned to catch it, I saw that it was a coat rack.

I gripped the round middle of it and steadied it, but one coat fell to the floor in a heap. I grimaced, then glanced to the kitchen. They hadn't heard me. Quietly, I leaned over to pick up the coat.