Walking Into Shadows

Chapter Ten

It had been three months since Amber Summers had brought us all to The Academy. It has also been two weeks since I'd last had the reoccuring nightmare. So far, everyone seemed to be doing pretty well except for me. I wasn't too socialable to begin with, and now I was in a much bigger school. Many other courses were added on to cater to each students individual needs as a super. It didn't take long for me to realize just how many classes were available to each and every students individual needs. I had three classes myself centered around my ability to move water, and two more involving premonition and lucid dreaming. It was, after all, what helped me to discover my power.
Brandon and I had grown apart drastically since arriving here, but Caitlyn and I had never been closer.
I wondered constantly what my father would say to me if I asked him for advice.
I wondered how he was doing. Jessibelle had probably already transformed my bedroom into an office for herself. She'd only mentioned it a million times to my father 'for when she moves out'. Despite me wanting to believe that things back home were just business as usual, deep in my gut I knew that my father was more likely devastated by my absence.
What exactly did the AOLS rep. tell him?
I have to call him.
I shook my head and my thoughts jumped right back to Brandon. It was likely that he was just as confused and distracted by the changes as Cat and I were. I don't know why, but I'd been suspicious of him for a long time. He'd never given me any reason before to question him, and so why was it eating away at me?
He was so cold and shut off anymore, that it was impossible to be sure of anything.
He loves you.
I had to remind myself over and over that if I worried too much about my relationship, I'd fail all of my classes. I dropped my pen down onto my desk and rubbed my forehead.
"I can't focus!" I groaned.
"What's wrong babe?" Caitlyn asked from her bed, peering over her lap top screen at me.
I sighed and faced her.
"Does Brandon seem... strange to you?" I asked. Something in my voice seemed pleading.
"Strange? No stranger than usual." She shrugged.
I thought for a moment, trying to think of a way to describe how he'd been acting towards me.
"I don't know," I admitted. "He doesn't seem a little distant I guess? Absent? Am I being paranoid?"
Cat closed her lap top and gave me a strange look.
"I haven't noticed much of anything. I've been pretty distracted with school- I'm sure everything is fine. He loves you." She offered.
I stared back down at my desk and sighed. We were all drowning in school work, it made sense that Brandon was blowing me off.
"You're right. I'm just stressed." I said firmly. I was trying harder to convince myself that was true.
Suddenly, there came a loud knocking at the door. I jolted out of my seat and rushed to answer it. A distraction was exactly what I needed. When I opened the door, I found Justin standing on the other side.
"Can we talk?" His expression was serious and he sounded shakey. I was worried because he was never normally so nervous.
"Sure..." I replied, opening the door wider for him to come in. He stepped in and stopped when he saw Cat. Their eyes met and the room was quiet for a long time.
"I really need to talk to you alone." Justin glanced at me and spoke in a low voice.
"You can't just come in here and kick me out of my own room- I have homework I need to work on!" Caitlyn argued.
Justin stared at her intensely until she stopped talking.
"This is serious, Cat."
Caitlyn rolled her eyes and put on her shoes.
"Whatever, I'm getting hungry anyway." She grumped. She took her lap top away with her, leaving me alone with her brother. Justin closed the door behind her and turned his attention back on me
"Have you been noticing anything strange about your boyfriend?" He began.
Bad start.
"I... well sure I guess." I stamered, anxiously rubbing my arm.
"Like what? Blowing you off? Did he say something to you?" I was feeling a little attacked by all of his questions.
"No 'How've you been? How's school?' You just skip straight to my personal life?" I snapped, putting my hands on my hips.
Justin laughed at me for a moment before patting the top of my head.
"Oh come on, you know me. I like to get straight to the point." He shrugged. His joking expression was quickly replaced with a more serious one.
"Has he been acting weird to you or not?" Justin asked.
"Yeah... yeah I guess he kinda has been. Or at least I think he has. Cat hasn't seemed to notice anything." I mumbled.
"Annabeth, please don't hate me for what I am about to say," he started slowly after a deep sigh. "But I think that Brandon is sleeping with somebody."
I stared at him, unsure of what to say. He'd never lied to me before but to come up with something so outrageous... I felt sick to my stomach.
"You're serious?" I croaked.
Justin nodded.
"As the plague." He confirmed.
I blinked twice before the anger settled in.
"You know, Justin; you've got these shining, brilliant moments, and then you've got others like this, where you are a complete ass!" I started in on him. "Brandon isn't cheating on me! He loves me! Just because two people are too busy with classes to make a lot of plans together doesn't mean that one of them is being unfaithful!"
My hands were shaking. I'd never felt so angry before. I wasn't just angry. I was terrified. Terrified that Justin might be right. Terrified to have my heart broken, and terrified to be or feel even more alone in this alien place than I already did.
"Annie, I know this makes me sound like a jealous creep, but you've got to believe me! I would never make something like this up." Justin tried to convince me.
"Why should I believe you?!" I demanded. It was stupid for me to say at all. I, and everyone else knew that Justin was no liar.
That doesn't make him right.
Justin opened his mouth to speak but didn't say a word. His eyes were desperate.
"Prove to me that Brandon is cheating on me." I insisted.
Justin looked a little offended.
"You know what, forget it. Nobody ever believes me when I'm right. Just remember, when your heart gets broken, that I tried to tell you. I hope to god for your sake that I'm wrong." His voice was a lethal growl. I had to force myself not to back down from him. I had to remind myself that he wouldn't hurt me, even if he was beyond pissed at me.
"I think you should leave." I said evenly.
His face clearly showed his anger. Instead of speaking again though, he turned and stormed out of the room. Tears filled my eyes and I quickly blinked them away.
Brandon approached the open doorway, and hesitated before coming into the room.
"What's his problem?" He asked, motioning towards the hall, obviously referring to Justin. Instinctively, I shrugged, even though I knew exactly what his problem was.
"Weird," Brandon sighed, plopping down onto my bed. "Anyway, how has your day been?"
I let out a long sigh and looked at the floor.
"I'll take that as a 'Not so good', eh?"
"Let's just say that today seems to be a downward spiral for my mood." I said in a low voice before sitting down beside my boyfriend.
"Why?" He asked, rubbing my shoulder. I shrugged and fell silent for a while.
"Brandon, where did you come from?" I asked suddenly.
"Miami, why?" He joked.
I rolled my eyes.
"No where did you just come from?" I rephrased my question.
"Breakfast in the cafeteria. Why? Did you want me to bring you something?" He looked a little worried now.
I shook my head.
"No. I was just curious..." I sighed. Brandon gave me a couple of minutes before changing the subject.
"Listen, Daniel, Rose and Zack all think that you should come out with us to a party tonight." He started.
"Rose?" I hadn't officially met her yet, but I'd heard a lot about her from my friends.
Brandon nodded.
"Tell her thanks, but I'm not really feeling well. I don't think I can make it." I shrugged.
It was a test, but of course, if Brandon cared enough about the truth he'd just read my mind to find out. If he really cared, he'd stay with me instead of going to some party. He would prove Justin wrong.
"Oh," Brandon said. "Well, do you think you'll be okay without me?"
Of course he's blowing me off. Again.
"I don't know, I think I might need the company." It should have been obvious to him that I wanted him to be here with me.
"Oh... well do you think Caitlyn will stay here with you?" He asked.
"You... don't want to stay?" I squeeked.
"Babe, I have to go! Justin cancelled and so I have to be the DD." There was no reason for any of them to be drinking anyway. Despite that, I had grown up with Justin and knew better than to believe he would cancel on something like that. Ever since he'd gotten his license he always agreed to be the sober driver for his friends out of fear they might do something stupid and get hurt.
"Okay." I said plainly.
He must have finally realized that something was wrong. He sat down beside me and put his arm around me.
"When we get back, I'll come and see you, okay? I promise." He was trying to sound reassuring, and so I tried hard to appear at least a little uplifted.
"Okay." I sighed. I leaned in to kiss my boyfriend and he leaned back to avoid my lips.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"Whatever you have, I don't want to catch it." He chuckled, kissing the top of my head.
"Right..." I mumbled. "Sorry."
"I love you." He said before kissing my forehead.
"I love you too." I sighed.
With that, he left, and I was alone in my room.