Palm to Paw

Chapter Three

I dropped my bag on the kitchen counter. "Mum, I'm home," I called out. My mother, Elaine, came out of her art room, wiping her paint-stained hands on her apron.

"Hello darling, how was your day?" she asked, pulling out a bottle of lemonade from the fridge. I could feel the cool air from the fridge, contrasting with the warm spring air.

I sigh, "It was weird..."

Mum raised her eyebrows, "Really? Why?"

"There was this random guy out in the car park after school," I replied.

She poured the lemonade, "A guy, huh?" she teased.

I blushed, "Mum, seriously?"

She just chuckled, "Was he cute?".

"Mum!!" I cried. She raised her hands in surrender.

"Yes, he was" I added shyly. A smile played on her lips, "So what was so weird about him?"

I frown, "I dunno, he kept looking at me and when we kinda locked eyes I got this really intense feeling."

Mum choked on her lemonade.  "What kind of feeling?" she asked, both worried and suspicious. "I dunno, like, I've known him my whole life and I need to be with him. Stupid, I know," I reply, my cheeks tinging pink, "Why?"

Mum had gone pale, "No reason, just curious". Her face changed from worried to calm in an instant. I hated it when she put on masks. She doesn't fool me.

To avoid conflict, I decided to change the subject, "I have homework to do Mum, we'll have to talk later."

She nodded and went back into her art room. Suspicious about her random outburst of concern, I wandered into my room. Why was she acting so weird?

****

I was right about Candace, she managed to make my life worse at school than it already was. She had somehow managed to spread the news about the mysterious guy around the whole school, and today everyone sneered and giggled at me, saying things like, "He'd never want you" or "Don't get your hopes up". What does this bitch have against me?

My spirits lifted when I walked out into the car park. He was there...

Wild blonde hair and all. God, he was so attractive. He flashed a dazzling smile and my heart skipped a beat. I quickly looked around, checking that Candace wasn't around. She wasn't.

I let out a breath of relief and turned back to the guy. He was still smiling. I fell into his dark gold eyes, swimming with charm. That weird feeling washed through me again and I gulped nervously, I had never felt this way.

Then I noticed Candace stalking down the front steps and my heart sank. The guy was looking at her with the same expression.

He got on his bike again and turned back. This time his plump lips mouthed, "Bye," before driving off. He hadn't spoken to me but it was enough to make my heart flutter like a swarm of butterflies. I walked to the bus stop a happy girl, I could deal with Candace later.