Lilly In The Storm

Chapter Eight

       Monday at school, Hannah is very quiet, quieter than her usual, shy self. In fact, almost nobody wanted to talk to me. Mrs. Wallis didn't call on me, Fiona and Gracie aren't friends with me anymore, and of course Gabe has been out for a couple days now. Hannah told me she was scared, scared that she would be next. She tells me she wants to be my friend and to not freak out. Why would I freak out on her? She didn't do anything. She tries during class to convince me that the rest of them were innocent, but I know the truth. The attitude, wanting Gabe back, all signs pointed to them wanting me out.

       I am sitting in class doing a worksheet with Hannah when I am called down to the office. As I walk down, I am clueless to the reason of my summoning. I enter the office and am greeted by Mr. Erikson just as I was yesterday. What did I do this time? There were no fights, no confrontations. Does he just want to watch me fail? He'll probably just have some made up reason prepared for why I should be in trouble today.

       He lifts his hand a little off his hip to wave. "Hello Lilly, how are you today?"

       "Um." I look up at his face, waiting for me to continue. "Good?"

       He nods. "You're probably wondering why I called you down here." I nod, waiting for the answer. He keeps a casual face, stopping me from having any inclination of what this may be about. He continues. "Well, I just wanted to know more about your friend." He thinks for a second. "Jezz, was it?"

       I smile with excitement in my eyes. "Yeah, sure. What do you want to know?" Finally, someone who acknowledges Jezz. Nobody has bothered to ask me about her, this fact is made more annoying by the fact that everyone is so quick to label her as an imaginary friend. How do they know if they haven't heard her story?

       He takes out a clipboard and pencil. When he finishes adjusting his shirt and glasses glasses he speaks in a calm and collected manner. "Who is she?"

       "She's my friend." I answer. "Other people don't really talk to her much."

       He writes something down on his board. I make an attempt to peek over the board, it is nothing but chicken scratch. Why do teachers have the worst handwriting? The glance doesn't last long as he angles it toward himself then clears his throat. "Alright, where does she live?"

       I fidget in my seat a little out of discomfort, he's starting to get more personal than just asking her name and who she is. I figured he'd realize where my problems with Gabe truly lie by asking Jezz about it. She would back me up on it for sure. "Well, she lives at my house. She sleeps in my room."

       His eyebrows rise a little. "Oh, so she's a friend of your family? A relative perhaps?"

       "Um, no and no?" I look at him for a reaction, he just looks confused.

       He writes down what I assume is my answer. "So, where does she come from?"

       His words stop me in my tracks. I can't tell him, can I? How do I know I can trust him? Would Zero approve to me telling? I can't lie, that would be wrong. I should not have opened up in the first place, Zero and Jezz only want me to know. To them, I am a special gem among society. I hesitate before deciding on a vague answer to throw him off. "Um, she was kinda given to me by someone."

       "By who? Your parents?"

       "No, they don't understand any more than you do." I tell him with a little sass in my voice, not enough for him to be mad at me for, but the conversation was just becoming tedious as I attempted to keep my secret. "She was given to me by the lost boy."