Flightless Bird

Chapter 18

"What are you two laughing about?" Jayson asked as Lexi and I sat down next to him, so she was next to him and me and I was next to her and Adam, opposite Jacob. Lexi tried to answer, but every time she started speaking she burst out laughing again, so I stepped in.

"Just practising for our auditions later," I told him as I leaned around a red faced Lexi, "and talking about her birthday party."

"Oh yeah!" he exclaimed, "it's next week. And I already know exactly what to get you Lex," he finished, smiling triumphantly.

"She won't care what you get her, as long as it's from you lover boy," Clark teased, flicking a porridge covered raisin at his brother. Jayson turned even redder than Lexi as all the guys started laughing. The bright side of this was that it made Lexi instantly stop laughing, and she jumped to Jayson's aid.

"Hey!" she cried, "he actually does get me the best presents." Jayson smiled at Lexi as Jacob joined in the conversation,

"That's because Clark always gives you money, and Adam just jumps in on whatever I get you, which is usually whatever my sister tells me to get you."

"Yeah," Adam said, "your 8 year old sister!"

"She's got better taste than you," Jacob retorted.

"Well," I said, "I'll help you this year. Maybe that way we can all give Jayson some competition for best present."

"Okay," Jayson said, "let's see. Next week, whoever gets Lexi the best present gets...what should the prize be?"

"Oh, I know!" Adam offered, "the winner should get a dinner with Lexi in town, paid for by everyone else."

"I like that," I said, "everyone else cool with it?" Everyone else nodded and sounded their agreement.

"Okay then," Lexi said, "I'm down, and of course I'll judge it."

"Okay then, but you have to promise you won't pick Jay just 'cause you want a date!" Adam laughed. Again, Jay and Lexi both turned red, and I shot Adam a 'look'. He smirked, and said,

"Sorry darling, I'll behave better in future." I smiled, but nudged Jacob under the table. I mouthed 'still on for later?' at him, and he grinned and nodded back at me. My smile grew. Everything was great at the moment, and I didn't want anything to change. Unfortunately, someone else had other ideas. A pale hand slid onto Jacob's shoulder, and he looked up to the cascade of blonde hair above him.

"Hey Anna," he said, nudging her hand off him, "can I help you?"

She smiled, and somehow she managed to look both completely evil and quite pretty at the same time.

"It's just that you said we'd have breakfast today," she said, stroking his shoulder again. She paused while she looked at each of us in turn, stopping to smirk at me and lick her lips. Then she carried on, saying the last part with a flick of the tongue that was, to me, distinctly reptilian, "For the project." Jacob looked at her hand again, but made no move to shrug it off. He merely shot me a look that I took to mean either 'I'm sorry' or 'Please Help Me' as he allowed Anna to lead him away. Looking away, I turned to catch Lexi shooting me a sympathetic look as Jayson subconciously inched his hand closer to hers. I smiled back weakly at her, and made to leave myself when a caught the smell of a subtle aftershave, almost an animal musk from behind me. I stood, before turning to see Charlie's green eyes looking out at me from under a wave of messy brown hair. The light didn't actually show them, but I could still imagine the attic light picking out all the golden highlights, giving him an almost golden aura.

"Kerri," he whispered, his voice deep, "good morning."

"Good morning," I replied instinctively, "how are you?"

I mentally kicked myself, and I guess he could see my agony at being quite so predictable as he smiled a sort of half smile at me and answered,

"Very well thank you. Looking forward to the auditions later? I hear you're going for Lizzie." I nodded,

"Yes, but so far I can't even get through my monologue so I'm not holding out much hope. Are you auditioning?" I asked.

"Yes, since I am still in Austen," he told me, his smile turning wry, "I thought I might go out for Mr Darcy."

"Really?"

"Yes. You find this odd," he said, and I knew it was a statement and not a question.

"Sorry, it's just you seem so much older than me. It still seems odd to me that you're here at school still." I couldn't tell if he was upset or not until he spoke, and even then I wasn't sure. He just sounded kind of...amused.

"Sorry to spook you, but you know, we're not as different as everyone would have you believe."

He walked away.