Cleo Hart: Intelligence by Default

Suburban family

I woke to the sun warming my cheeks through the blinds which had been left open in the sleepy daze of the night before. I reached my arm slowly out of the warm duvet and felt around for my  watch on the bed side table. It was seven-thirty. Luke's driving meant I had been able to sleep long enough to feel alive. I rolled over, about to drift off until a little later, but flinched backwards slightly when I saw Luke lay on his back, looking uncharacteristically peaceful in his sleep. His chest rose and fell steadily with his deep-sleep breaths, filling me with a calm, safe comfort. I guessed that he was either too tired to find a spare room, or the Kingsleys didn't own one.

"Luke." I poked his shoulder lightly. He grunted and squinted his eyes open, before hissing at the brightness of the morning, and moving so he was face down on the pillow.

"Luke get up." I poked him again, harder, trying to keep the grin playing at my lips from showing itself.

"No crackers for you stupid goblin." He mumbled, before lifting his head and smirking devilishly. I attempted a largely unsuccessful glare and pushed him lightly, which he took as a cue to pretend to fall off the bed, creating a large thump on the floor.

"You hurt me," he pouted, grabbing his side melodramatically.

I rolled my eyes and stood on the carpet, shortly after clocking on to the fact I was in a shirt and pants, my jeans abandoned on the floor.

"Did you undress me Luke?" I gave him my best challenging look.

"Yeah I did, and with great difficulty. You wriggle like a fish in your sleep." He grinned and put his hands infront of his face as i threw my bag at him, laughing.

I grabbed a hoodie and some slightly dirty black skinny jeans and slipped them on.

Luke raised an eyebrow and shook his head. "Nuh uh, don't think so. Get changed."

"Why?" I looked down at what I was wearing. It wasn't provocative.

"You look like you just crawled out from a bin that's why. Put this on."

He chucked me a baby blue dress, followed by some gross strappy sandals.

"Um, no thanks."

"Put them on, or I'll put them on you."

With only ten minutes left until the arrival of the inspector, I didn't really have time to argue. I donned the gross clothes, ignoring how exposed I felt, and trudged downstairs.
A short, curvy, beautiful woman was sipping coffee, chatting about a cricket game to a tall, slightly hipsterish man.

"Hello, I'm Cle-, Mary." I announced, stepping in the modern kitchen and sitting at the table. They both swerved their eyes to me and smiled politely.

"Good to meet you Mary, I'm Christina, this is John. The inspector is due any time now. A man called Tom. I believe you're already acquanted with him."

"Unfortunately." I groaned. They both tittered a little.

"I believe our neighbour Luke is upstairs?" John said, he had square glasses and stubble that looked purposeful.

"Uh, yeah, he should be down any time -"

"Now." Luke finished, swivelling off the bannister into the kitchen.
They both smiled and went back to talking about cricket.

"Luke," I murmured, approaching him, his calm face soothed me slightly. He looked down at me, smiling in a questioning way. "I think i'm nervous."

He pulled me into his chest and held me. I froze, before returning the gesture, fearing I might have been melting in his arms.

"Don't be stupid, you're great at lying. Well, to most people." He winked at me.

"You're being awfully nice." I accused, narrowing my eyes and crossing my arms.

There was a knock at the door and everyone exchanged glances.

"Action stations kiddo." Christina chimed, approaching the door.

Luke squeezed my hand as I sat at the table.

"Hello Mary." Tom greeted, nodding when offered tea. I analysed him carefully. He didn't seem very happy to be woken at this time, not that I could blame him. I frowned, realising Mary was me, and shook my head.

"Hello Tom, so thoughtful of you to come at this hour, I was looking for a lie in."
He seemed to relax a little at my sarcasm, something familiar I suppose.

"Well, I was a little shocked at your attire but it's good to see you're still the same old you."

Luke sat next to me and got out some folders, opening them and chatting to me about a history assignment.

"You look a bit old to be doing school work young man, What's your name?"

"Luke sir, I had to resit a year because my father got ill."

Guilt washed over Tom's face, and he shut up.

I read through one of the work sheets and filled it in, relying on my general knowledge and what I learnt the few years I did attend school. Luke looked shocked at my capability and gave me a 'not bad' face. I smirked and looked back to Tom, who was now chatting with Christina and John. Satisfied he wasn't suspicious, I started leafing through more of the work. Filling in some Maths, English and Chemistry papers. Luke sat in silence, reading my answers and nodding. In some ways it made me miss school, but it mainly just made me want to lead a normal life, which I realised I couldn't mainly because of the boy sat next to me. I swallowed the anger swelling in me. He had no other choice.

Or so he said.

I shook my head and told my brain to piss off, focusing on a biology paper infront of me.

"Am I seeing things? Mary doing homework? Has god answered my prayers at last?" Tom's boring, pathetic sense of humour sent me up the wall.

I let out a low growl, which got me a shocked look from Christina, John and Tom.

"You alright there Mary?" Tom said, smiling sickeningly. I needed to seem relatively stable to get through this inspection, but my anger was swelling inside me, threatening to ignite.

Suddenly, I felt a cooling sensation, and my rage subsided. Frowning, confused, I looked to my lap and realised Luke had grabbed my hand and was stroking my palm with his thumb.

"I'm fine thankyou Tom. How're things back at the home?"

"Fine." Was he seriously irritated at the fact i hadn't exploded? Of course he was. If he couldn't change me no one was allowed to apparently.

"Well that's lovely to know, I had to leave in quite a rush last time I visited."

Luke snorted next to me, quickly trying to cover it up with a cough.

After an hour of futile, mundane tea talk I was ready to jump into an abyss, and as if reading my mind, Luke jumped up to leave.

"Mary, we have swimming in ten minutes, I totally forgot! I'll drive, go get all your gear."
I narrowed my eyes and nodded, picking up on the urgency in his untertones.

John and Christina looked confused, but smothered it with a smile when Tom looked.

"Yes, go and get ready Mary, you have the competition in a few weeks!"

I sprinted upstairs and packed everything I had brought in a case, changing into my usual clothes and putting Luke's hoodie on. I chucked both of our luggage out of the window and ran down the stairs.

"Later Tom, see you soon Christina, John."

I ran out of the door and threw the bags into the boot, diving into the car.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Can you drive? I'm too stressed."

I nodded and we switched places, driving was stress relief for me, and Luke looked verging panic attack.

"Jason's in trouble. I don't know, drive."