The Mystery Girl - Rebecca Sawyer (romance book recommendations TXT) 📗

Chapter 1

It was that silent girl that nobody knew about, who held the most secrets. Nobody knew why she didn’t talk or why nobody had snatched her up into their group. She had all she needed to be one of the popular girls, a good body, a pretty face, she is just, quiet. I don’t know, maybe she just doesn’t want to be a part of a group, maybe people ask if she wants to hang out and she just shakes her head and goes back to starring at her phone.

               

 

She is leaning up against the brick wall of the school waiting for her bus to pull in so she can get on and sit in the seat right behind the bus driver. I want to go over and talk to her, she looks like she needs a friend. She smiles for a brief second and goes back to the plain expression she normally has on her face and taps around on her screen. Most likely responding to a message… maybe she does have friends.

 

 

“Malinda!!” someone calls out pulling myself from my thoughts and making me snap my head around to look for who called my name out. I see Max walking my way smiling so I quickly flash one back.

               

 

Max is a good friend of mine, well he is like my best friend and a brother figure who always looks out for me, which is nice because otherwise I might have been in lots of trouble with lots of people. “Hey!!” I yell back before he gets to me

               

 

“What were you starring at? You have been looking that direction for like 10 minutes” he asked curiously with a hint of concern. I turn back around and notice that she’s gone, most likely on her bus. I think about who she was talking to, whoever it was got her to smile. They must be important to her. “HELLO!” someone says which snaps me back to the conversation again, shoot, what did he ask again? Oh right, he asked what I was I starring at.

 

 

“Sorry, I was just thinking” I answer softly.

 

 

He looked at me skeptically as if pondering my answer “what about?”

 

 

I glanced back at the spot she was standing at, then looked back at Max “just things. I better get to my bus before I miss it.” I say hurrying off to my bus waving to Max behind me. He looks at me confused for a second then just sighs and waves back and walks off back to his buddies. I get on my bus and sit down in my seat behind the heater. I take out my headphones and plug them in to my phone and put them in my ears.

 

 

After about half the stops it was my stop next. We started to pull up to my stop when I got a text from Max but I decided not to look at it until I got off the bus, I said thanks to the bus driver and got off. I started walking up to the house but already heard my dad yelling at my mom so I just kept walking, and instead went to the park at the end of my road. It’s where I like escaped to, and sometimes even slept the night there in the summer season. I looked at max’s text finally while sitting on the swing lightly swaying back and forth.

 

Max: ‘what was all that earlier?’

 

Me: ‘like I said, I was just thinking’

 

Max: ‘and starring off into space?’

 

Me: ‘yeah of course’

 

Max: ‘oh, it was just strange, kinda unlike you.. and running off like that’

 

Me: ‘yeah sorry, just didn’t want to miss the bus.’

 

Max: ‘I don’t believe you but I’ll let it slide for now, what you up to?’

 

Me: ‘swinging’

 

I replied simply but truthful. I know he understands this because we talk about everything, and like I said, he is like my big brother.

 

Max: ‘*sigh* they are at it again, I’ll be there in a bit’ he said meaning he is coming to the park.

 

Me: ‘you don’t have to’

 

Max: ‘yes, I do. We don’t need you sleeping in the park again and getting sick.’

 

 

I didn’t respond because I knew it was useless to argue against him, he is coming no matter what I tell him, I’ve tried it before. As I sit swinging a car pulls up and at first I think that it was max but I was wrong. Three teenage boys get out of the car. They go to my school, I’ve seen them around and they hang around Max a bit. There the skaters, but the good ones, by that I mean the ones who don’t do drugs. They go to parties but they only have a cup of beer. I’m not going to lie they are hot and the one with the brown hair who is taller I’ve had a crush on for a while.

 

 

They look over toward me and one of them nudges the brown haired one and smiles, he nudges him back and says something I can’t hear. They look like they are walking towards the outdoor skate park that’s right next to the small playground, but instead one of the other guys with light sandy brown hair stops and calls out to me

 

 

“Malinda! Come hang out with us in the skate park” I look around kind of skeptically then he calls out again, “come on its not like you’re doing anything else.”

 

 

He does have a point, I’m just sitting here wasting away, might as well do it in the company of others. “Alright” I call out as I slowly get up from the swing and make my way over by them. I pick up on their names as they are talking back and forth to each other, tall one I have a crush on is named Owen but I knew that already. Jack is the one who called me over, and the other guy has midnight black hair and his name is Chad.

 

 

Owen sparked up a conversation with me since he realized that I was quiet and not really ‘in’ on their conversation. “Do you know how to skateboard?” he asked curiosity filling his voice completely.

 

 

I looked up at him to only see that he was staring at me and I was then realizing that I had been walking with my head down. “No, I mean I know the basics, but who doesn’t?” I said not really knowing where this was leading up to.

 

 

“Yeah I guess you’re right.” He said kinda chuckling. He walked in silence for a second before he asked another question “do you want to learn, I can teach you, that is if you want.” He rambled on a bit.

 

 

“Sure. It might be fun.” I said smiling at him.

 

 

All of a sudden it looked like he relaxed a lot, I didn’t even notice he was tense. He grinned big at me, while we walked through the fenced in outdoor park. “First you’ll need a skateboard. Follow me” we walked back out of the park to a small building with someone standing in the cut-out window. He went to the window and told they guy I needed a board.

 

 

They talked back and forth a lot, about wheels, brands, types, and a bunch of other stuff. Owen turned around “what’s your favorite color”

 

 

“pucky green” I said

 

 

“What?” he asked laughing “are you serious?”

 

 

I shake my head laughing “no, I’m just kidding, it’s orange.”

 

 

He laughs a little before turning around and going back to talking with the guy. I sat down on the ground because I figured it would be awhile and looked at my phone. I got a text from max saying he couldn’t make it and that he was sorry for not coming, so I told him it was alright and that I was with Owen, Jack, and Chad. But he didn’t reply.

 

 

I look up to see Owen pulling out his wallet “what are you doing?” I ask really confused.

 

 

“Paying… What else would I be doing?” he said as if it was the dumbest question in the world.

 

 

“You don’t have to, I have money.” I said, not wanting him to waist his money on me.

 

 

“Just think of it as a gift. A present for your birthday” he says like no big deal as he passes over the money and the guy hands him the board. I just shake my head not wanting to carry this out.

 

 

Owen sets the skateboard on the ground and hops on. He does a few laps around me before hopping back off and says “well it rides well, that’s a good thing.” He stands in front of me and extends his hand down to mine to help me off the ground. I take it and he pulls me up like I weigh nothing, don’t get me wrong, I’m a skinny girl, medium height with light brown hair. To him it’s like he picked up a feather. He kicked the skateboard up and caught it with his other hand then handed it to me.

 

 

“Thanks, but you really didn’t need to buy it.”

 

 

“My pleasure, and I wanted to buy it, end of subject. Now let’s teach you how to skate.”

Chapter 2

A few hours later and one scraped knee I was finally starting to get the hang of it but of course something always has to happen and a little kid comes running out in front of me. I try to stop but end up falling forward right onto my face. I lay there not wanting to get up as my face is stinging. I hear Owen ride up next to me then ask “are you okay?” concern leaking out with every word.

 

 

“No.” I say a little snippy still not wanting to move. “My face hurts.”

 

 

“Let me see” he demands with worry.

 

 

I roll over onto my back and wince as the fresh air seeps into my open wounds “is it bad?” I ask

 

 

“nah.” He says relaxing a bit “you just scraped up your chin and left temple a bit” he explains like no big deal. “Can you stand? You should probably get that washed up. I’m sorry.” He rambled like it was all his fault.

 

 

“Shhhh!!! You’re going to give me a headache. Help me up, and it’s not your fault.” I explain. He helps me to my feet and I get a bit dizzy so a brace onto him until I can see straight. He helps me over to the bathrooms and sets me down on a bench outside the men’s room. He disappears behind the big wooden door and reappears holding damp paper towels. He sits next to me and twists me so I’m facing him and then gets to work on washing out the small rocks stuck to the red flesh.

 

 

When he’s done he kisses me on the forehead and tells me I need to be more careful. I just laugh and shake my head. He smiles a bit and again he relaxes. I still don’t know how he can hide it so easily, I want to learn how he does it. “Want to head back to