WHAT LIES BENEATH THE GRAVESTONE

chapter 5: Adela

Jamie's surprise was palpable as Adela Lopez, the popular girl from his 10th-grade class, stood before him in the dimly lit room, her presence both captivating and unsettling. His heart raced with a mix of excitement and trepidation, wondering if this was some elaborate prank orchestrated by his classmates. Adela had never paid him any attention before, and now she was here, her piercing gaze locking onto his with an intensity that made his skin prickle.

The room, with its sparse walls and faint scent of old books, felt smaller with her in it, the air charged with tension as if the very atmosphere was alive and vibrating with unspoken emotions. Jamie's voice echoed his confusion, bouncing off the walls as he asked, "What are you doing here?" The words hung in the air, a tangible manifestation of his bewilderment.

Adela's impatience was clear in her snapping tone, her motion to the chair urgent as she commanded, "Just sit down." Her eyes never left his, their gaze a weight that pressed upon him, making his skin feel warm and his pulse quicken. Jamie complied, taking a seat in the creaky wooden chair, its worn surface groaning under his weight like an old sigh.

His mind raced, trying to make sense of the situation, as he wondered why Adela, the queen bee of Crestwood High, was here, in this dingy room, talking to him, Jamie Thompson, the quiet, unremarkable boy who blended into the background. Why was she here? What did she want? The questions swirled in his head like a maelstrom, each one tangling with the next, refusing to be still.

Adela's confession came after a moment of tense silence, her words dropping like a stone into the stillness. "I sent you that text," she said, her voice low and husky, the sound sending a shiver down Jamie's spine. Jamie's brow furrowed in confusion, his mind struggling to connect the dots. "Why?" he asked, his curiosity piqued, his voice barely above a whisper.

Adela's words hung in the air, charged with accusation, as she said, "You ignored my note to meet at the football field." Jamie shifted uncomfortably in the creaky chair, his mind racing to make sense of it all, wondering what he had missed, what he had overlooked, and what Adela wanted from him.

"Why?" Jamie's voice trembled slightly, the word barely audible as he struggled to comprehend the situation. "Why would you want to meet me at the football field?" He wondered if it was a cruel prank, a clever ruse designed to humiliate him, or a genuine invitation, a gesture of kindness from the unlikeliest of sources. Adela had always been out of his league, a radiant star orbiting a different sun, and now she stood before him, her presence both captivating and unsettling.

Adela's frustration surged, her fingers clenching into tight fists on her lap as if she sought to contain the emotions threatening to spill out. The room seemed to close in on her, the air thick with unspoken words, heavy with the weight of secrets and untold stories. "I know you remember what happened on Thursday?" she asked, her voice a taut wire, ready to snap, the tension palpable as she awaited his response.

Jamie's heart raced as he relived the eerie events at the gravestone, the memory still fresh, still unsettling. Adela's sigh cut through the silence, carrying both anger and resignation, her shoulders sagging under the weight of her emotions. "You caught me with your brother in the kitchen," Adela murmured, her gaze fixed on the worn floorboards, the words hanging there, suspended, like a fragile bridge connecting their separate worlds.

Jamie's mind flashed back to that unexpected scene—the hushed voices, the way his brother's hand had rested on Adela's shoulder, the intimacy of the moment etched vividly in his memory. Shock had rendered him immobile, a silent witness to a moment that seemed both private and forbidden. "Honestly," Jamie blurted out, eager to deflect, to distance himself from the situation, "it's none of my business." The words tumbled out, a hasty attempt to reassure, to absolve himself of any responsibility.