Fayre

Chapter V - Collision of Dream and Life

I hear Emmet letting out a relieved sigh, I don't know whether from being released from the intense staredown or from the uncomfortably burning temperature returning to normal. "You already know all the guys," he says to them. "Next to Remy is his girl, Cecelia." CeeCee's not too thrilled to be introduced as Cecelia nor as Remy's girl but she smiles coyly at them, nonetheless. "Next to her is Georgina, over there is Lauren and Hailey, and this is my girlfriend, Melissa."

Georgina waves and the rest of us nod and say hi before Emmet adds, "Melissa is Luella's sister. I supposed, you already know that, don't you?"

Finley blinks in surprise and says, "Sisters? We didn't know you have a sister." Ruen looks as equally astounded.

Luella frowns, looking annoyed. "Adopted sister. We're not really related," she says quickly. "We don't even share the last name." There's a note of bitterness in her voice.

It's true, mom and dad never got around to have her last name changed after they adopted her. She remains Luella Miller instead of becoming a Crawford.

Ruen and Finley weren't really interested to know anyone in the school or at the table. Before now, their attention was solely on Luella. Until a minute or two ago, I was pretty much invisible to them just like everyone else. Now they're staring at me with more than just a little interest.

Emmet leans closer to me as if he wants to shield me from their stares. "The tryout is this afternoon, be there after school." He sounds irritated.

"Are you going to be there?" Ruen suddenly asks me. His blue eyes are intense on my face. Searching.

"She is not!" says Luella sharply. Her eyebrows come down into a frown and her lips thinned. Her eyes narrow when she looks at me, warning me not to say anything and to stay away. When Ruen doesn't say anything, she pouts and says, "You don't need everyone to be there, Ruen. I am going to be there to cheer you on. I'll be your best cheerleader."

Something that looks like confusion crosses his face as energy crackles between us as we keep staring at each other. Something else flashes in his features before he rips his reluctant eyes away from me to look at her. It disappears very quickly. He smiles at her and the look is gone. To me, it looked like guilt. I don't know how I know, but I feel like I can read him somehow.

"Yes, of course, you are, sweetheart," he says to her.

Just like that, Luella is smiling again. She leans in as if she's about to whisper a secret into his ear, but when she talks, its loud enough for everyone at our table to hear. "Besides, you and Finley are taking me somewhere special tonight. Somewhere secret."

"So much for our secret," I hear Finley mutters underneath his breath. I don't think anybody else apart from Ruen heard him.

I could have told him that Luella couldn't keep a secret if her life depended on it. Her need to brag and be the center of attention makes her spew secrets out like they gave away stale donuts at Mrs. Mahony's bake and sale last week.

"You both are going to be on the team and I'm going to be there for you." Luella pulls Ruen's arm up and winds it around her shoulders as she tucks herself into him. The sleeve of Ruen's crisp white shirt lifted up to reveal something around his wrist and I gasp.

The little girl pulled something out of the pocket of her pretty lavender dress. A bracelet made of shiny black onyx beads, stringed together by a black cord.

She carefully tied the string around the boy's wrist. "I made this myself. Do you like it, Ciarán?"

His raven black hair ruffled in the wind. His electric blue gaze took in the bracelet. His lips curled up into a smile. "I love it," he said, turning his bright, bluer than the sky eyes to look into hers.