Do You Have A Qlue?

Chapter 10: The Boy From my Dreams

A/N: Hey guys. I just want to say that this chapter took a long time for me to work on because something happened to my computer and I lost EVERYTHING. A thanks to my friend Mary347 for not only getting the answer right (on the hundredth try) for my previous quiz, but for being a friend when I needed one. This chapter is dedicated to her.

*Amy's POV

Aunt Lucy's Orphanage stood alone in the middle of nowhere in front of me. Unlike the last time I've been here, the children had, most likely, went back inside the orphanage due to the darkness still displayed outside.

I yawned causing my eyes to water, for I have skipped an entire night (almost) without sleep. Actually, I should say I was having a yawning attack, with each inhale getting bigger and stronger to resist. I was on my third yawn when Wendy walked into my blurry field of vision. She made her way to the front of the empty bus and disappeared down the steps. I, too confused and tired to think straight, followed her lead in the midst of my fourth yawn.

By the time my feet hit the ground beside Wendy, the bus's doors closed, trapping whatever different air that I hadn't recognized in the vehicle. I turned around, as the engine started, to watch the mysterious bus drive away...only to discover that the driver's seat was empty! I gaped at the space where I had missed a detail of the bus. An important detail. If there was only a brick on the paddle, we could have died! I sighed and rubbed my temples in an attempt to bring back my focus. Probably just too tired and desperate to have somebody—a friend—with me.

When I turned back to face the orphanage, Wendy was already walking towards the entrance on the side of the square building. So much for being a friend.

I chased after her and stepped inside the door she opened for me. Now that I took care of my clumsiness, not a fly is going to escape my sight.

Inside the orphanage was quiet besides our clapping footsteps. As we headed down the hall, I heard and counted each and every one of our steps. One, two, three…. On my 8th stride we stopped at a door to the left. Wendy raised her hand to knock but instead dropped it and faced me. “I should have mentioned this to you on the bus. You are to live here, for now, for your own safety.” Before I can fully absorb what she said, the door opened up a second later and a plump, red eyed Lucy ushered us inside. I heard the door groan and clicked shut after us.

“Hello Miss Qlue and Miss Lin,” she sniffed and rubbed her eyes with her hands. “Sorry for my appearance. You probably know by now that…” she trailed off. Wendy put a hand on her shoulder and turned to me. “Excuse me; I need to borrow her for a moment.”

Wendy led Lucy to the opposite side of the room from where I took a seat with my back facing the doorway. This section was where I assumed Lucy did her work and other things I’m supposed to keep my nosy self out of. As they talked in hushed voices, I needed something to keep me occupied in the meantime.

I looked around the room and saw there were profiles of orphans along the walls. The kids and teenagers couldn’t have been more different than each other. Even the Kingsly twins looked like, oh I don’t know, people who weren’t twins. But since I’ll be living here, that will make my part on memorizing their names a lot easier. That thought made me pause, waiting for the homesickness and grief to take over. But nothing happened as I stared into space, thinking about my emotions. Am I happy that I’m moving out of the place where the IPC are currently searching for a murder suspect? Or am I just too shocked that all of this just happened in less than 24 hours? All I know is that right now, I don’t even know what my feelings are for my situation. So I’m deciding to move on—to get familiar with the faces and names of, hopefully, not annoying future acquaintances.

I was on a mischievous girl’s name—Dara Dare—when I heard, or rather felt, somebody behind me. I turned to the doorway in a flash and saw a boy staring right at me. Goose bumps raised upon every single one of my limbs.

He look about my age, maybe a year or two older judging by his height. His eyes claimed the center of my attention though. They were like a pool of glowing water surrounding the pupil in the dark. They. Were. Mesmerizing. In fact, it took me quite some time to break free of his stare. I have never been the boy-crazy-type but his soft black hair was nice, really nice, not too long and not too short for my taste, even though it was a little messy, and curved just right at the tip. From his body and down, he wore a red t-shirt, long faded denim jeans with a rope as a belt, and beat up tennis shoes. There was a hole below the knee part of the pants, showing his pale skin underneath. It was a little hole, but it was also enough to make my cheeks heat up. I balled my hands and dug my nails into my palm, willing the blush not to show. Stop it! But there was no going back when my eyes are already on him. It was like he was calling to me, welcoming me to take him all in. So I did just that with my eyes traveling back up his lean body. Even though his outfit is cheap and possible donated, I think he’ll be the only person who can “make it work”.

I was admiring the way that he was not as muscular as a wrestler but still strong enough to lift a fair amount of weight when my attention snapped to his shirt. Red. I looked back to his arms. Pale skin.

“Who are you?” I ask out loud. That was a mistake.

The last thing I saw from him was his hypnotizing eyes widening before he ran away down the hall. His steps were surprisingly quieter than I thought was possible for him. Lucky for him, the two adults were looking at me and by the time they turned towards the opened door, he was gone.

Wendy frowned and tilted her head a little to the side to look at me and back towards the doorway. I knew what she was thinking; somebody might have overheard their conversation. And that somebody broke in.

Lucy on the other hand looked a lot better and the two adults took some time talking in an even quieter voice as they made their way to the front. I, unaware of their presence, was staring into space again. I know him from somewhere. Oh, that boy. Suddenly, I was in reality again, this time with Wendy was shaking me gently on the shoulder. I wasn’t quite in to focus yet when she tried to tell me something, but I saw Lucy with half of her body outside, looking after the direction the boy had ran to. When I was, she was already heading outside. I shot out of the chair, squeezing past Lucy and carefully tiptoe-ran down the hallway. When I caught up to her, I asked, “Are you just going to leave me here?”

She gave my shoulder a squeeze. “You’ll do fine. I know you will. Just listen to Lucy and stay away from trouble.” She pointed her index finger at me like I was already guilty.

“Okay,” I reply reluctantly. There was something else I needed to ask her. “What was in that envelope you gave me?”

“Your belongings that are a necessary for you to live here. Don’t worry, I packed it myself. You’re good to go.” And with that, she picked up a section of her black cloak and spun around in a circle, leaving nothing of herself behind except of the rest of the unevaporated rain water that soon mixed in with the air.

I sighed and walked back into the office and slumped down into a seat next to the door. Lucy looked sad, but otherwise, well, like I said, better than before. She cleared her throat.

“Um, Miss Lin has filled me in on some things and I believe you are in despite need of rest. So, shall we proceed to your living quarters?”

“Ah, sure,” I said uncertainly.

Lucy nodded. “Please follow me.”

We stepped into the hallway and as I went by her, I put my hand on her shoulder and said in a soft voice, “I am very sorry.” I didn’t wait for her response because I wouldn’t be able to stand it if she broke-down again. Instead, I stood patiently behind her and look at the portraits and names again.

Before Lucy closed the door, I had spotted who I was looking for.

As we made our way deeper into my new home, I repeated his name over and over in my head. Quentin Alex…Quentin Alex…