CHAPTER 6
JESSICA WANDERED into the courtyard at lunch time, having no desire to sit alone at a table in the cafeteria so that she could be assaulted by the stench of the day’s mystery meat.
Her thoughts traveled for a moment to Alex; she remembered how he had caught her eye. Then she mentally chided herself for focusing on a guy who probably had already forgotten she existed. And even if he hadn’t, he would never be desperate enough to risk his social standing by associating with the leper of Ramsa High.
She pulled an unlined notebook and a mechanical pencil from her backpack and proceeded to sketch, simply for something to do with her hands, as she discreetly watched the people around her.
Shannon was standing with a few of her friends, but instead of talking to them, she was staring intensely across the courtyard at Alex. Alex, leaning casually against a tree, was smirking slightly as another boy berated him. Jessica recognized the guy as Shannon’s boyfriend, and she judged by his posture and tone of voice that he had heard about Shannon’s conversation with Alex that morning.
Finally Alex seemed to lose his patience. He locked eyes with the other boy who, though a few inches taller than Alex and much broader, took a step back. The boy said something Jessica couldn’t hear and left quickly.
Jessica shook her head, not surprised. Something about Alex made it evident he wasn’t someone to mess with.
As Jessica had watched the confrontation, she had continued to draw. Now she looked down at the pencil sketch and felt a chill run through her.
Even though her model had been nearby, the likeness was remarkable. But the thing that struck her the most was the pendant, which she hadn’t yet been able to look at closely but had somehow drawn in careful detail.
The cross was upside down and carefully molded with a viper twined around it. It was the same design as the one that Aubrey wore, and it startled Jessica to see that she had drawn it into her portrait of Alex.
“Mind if I join you?” someone asked.
Not just someone. Alex. Jessica recognized his voice and whipped her notebook shut. His tone was confident, unmarred by adolescent awkwardness. Hearing his silk-smooth voice made her shiver, because she was once again assaulted by a wave of familiarity.
Snap out of it, Jessica ordered herself. Over her mental argument, she heard her voice calmly reply to Alex, “Go ahead.”
Suspicious of his motives, she couldn’t immediately come up with anything more to say. The last time any guy had tried to talk to her, he had done so only on a dare. With that painful memory in mind, she kept her expression cool, waiting for Alex Remington to explain himself.
As he sat down near her, she studied his appearance. The pendant was exactly as she had drawn it — exactly like Aubrey’s.
“Do you always keep to yourself out here?” he asked.
“Do you always go out of your way to talk to people who look like they want to be alone?” she answered, instinctively defensive. She bit her tongue after speaking the words. If Alex actually wanted to get to know her, she was an idiot to try to chase him off.
He just looked amused. “Would you prefer to be alone, or are you avoiding someone in particular?” As he asked this, he glanced over at the windows of the cafeteria. Jessica followed his gaze and noticed Caryn sitting inside with a group of other seniors.
“If I was trying to avoid anyone, it would be Caryn,” she answered truthfully. “She seems convinced that my inner child needs a friend.”
A mixture of empathy and annoyance crossed Alex’s features. Jessica felt confident that the annoyance was reserved for Caryn.
“It’s her nature to try to draw people out of the dark,” he said.
“You two know each other?”
“Unfortunately,” he answered. The scorn in his voice was palpable.
He silently watched Caryn for a moment, until she looked up as if she could feel his gaze. When she saw Jessica and Alex sitting together, she stood, gathered her belongings, and hurried away.
“She sure doesn’t try to draw you out of the dark,” Jessica commented.
“They’ve tried, and they’ve failed miserably,” was his reply.