Limerence - Alana Curran (100 books to read .txt) 📗

Elora invited the new girl to join us at the table. The weird new girl with the boy name. The fact that she had coloured hair irked me. I hated when girls dyed their hair fluorescent colours, it just made them seem as though they wanted to look more unique and interesting than they actually were.

It was just typical of Elora to be so generous as to invite her to sit with us, though, not that I had any objections but she didn’t exactly look like the kind of girl who was in to the same stuff as us. Sure, she basically looked like a manga character from straight out of the book, what with the hair, the eyeliner and sparkling, blue eyes; but that didn’t mean anything.

“What school were you attending before here?” Elora asked, head resting on her hand and staring intently at Evan.

The girl shrugged one red, wool covered shoulder, “I was home schooled for the majority of my primary school life and eventually attended a public high school. I haven’t been to school since June.”

“Really? What have you been doing for the past month?” Barry asked.

Another shrug, “Been helping my mother out with her work,” she replied, “She had fired her assistant and I offered to help her out before she found a new one.”

“So here you are, that’s cool,” Elora smiled.

I wandered over to my pigeon hole to get my sketchpad, it was full of still life drawings. As much as I enjoyed the ability to sit and draw mindlessly whilst chatting to my friends, I was looking forward to the next assignment.

I glanced at Kerry, she was sitting in the seat next to mine: short, black hair revealing the sexy curve of her slightly tanned neck. Surely her choice of clothing was on purpose – tight blue shirt with  straps.  It was almost painful not to come onto her.  I wasn’t going to get into the same old rhythm. It wasn’t going to be the same, old story where Desmond Norton asked a girl out and strung her along until he got bored or creeped out by her.

I tightened my grip on the pad as I sauntered back to my seat. I was starting a new piece of artwork, focusing on sketching my favourite book. It had been my haven over the summer as I bought it in Michigan and wasn’t able to put it down. It distracted me from my awkward breakup with Carey and sexy, possible girlfriends wearing bikinis on the American beaches and at friends’ pool parties.

Peace of the Mango Trout. Contrary to its name, it was an action novel – no romance attached, by my new favourite author: Pauline Theresa Montgomery. I pulled the book out of my backpack and admired the black, velvety smooth cover with the white print of fish bones on the front.

I set it on the table and pulled out my pencils. Kerry reached over and ran her finger along the black cover. “Any good?”

“Any good?” I repeated, horrified, “It was amazing, never before have I been so enticed in a book.”

She glanced at me, her grey-blue eyes glittering, “I didn’t know you were such a passionate reader,” she sniggered.

“I’m not,” he insisted, “It’s just...this book. I hope there’s a sequel.”

“There won’t be,” Evan replied from across the table. I stared at her, she seemed serious. The others stared at her too, but only because she suddenly decided to be so outspoken. She tossed her pink braid behind one shoulder and sighed. “The author said publishing a second book would tarnish the reputation of the first. It remains a singular tale, so the readers can use their imagination to make up what the characters do afterwards. It pleases everyone.”

“How do you know all this?” I asked, narrowing my eyes, testing her.

She seemed hesitant for a moment. “I’m a fan of her work,” she eventually answered.

Her response was satisfying, but as I glanced down at the book, I realised I held within my hands the passageway to brilliance and imagination. Surely, the author had more books for me to read. “Do you know if there is any more of her work?”

She smiled, “I suggest Tears of Sculpture and Passion in Greenery – personal bests.”

“Are you sure the main characters in those books can beat the genius and sheer brilliance of Carl J. Marley?” I asked, throwing her a winning smile.

Something in her eyes lit up, “Perhaps...perhaps not.”

She glanced down at the paper Elora had given her and began sketching a pen she had lying in front of her. I couldn’t help but notice the end of her lips had tugged into a weirdly adorable half smile.

Awkward

We met up with Aaron at lunch. He was seemingly cool about the fact I had new friends which joined us every day . We often went to Subway but I never really ordered anything. I don’t know what it was about eating in front of people that made me feel uncomfortable. I usually just binged on junk food when I got home anyway.

Aaron sat opposite me at the table while the others were ordering and he seemed pretty shocked about Evan’s presence. “I can’t believe she’s here,” he sighed, “It’s been so long since I last saw her.”

“So I’m guessing you know her,” I jeered.

“All too well,” he admitted, nodding his head and glancing in her direction. “I used to date her when we were first year at high school.”

My mouth dropped open, “That’s the girl you moped over for like two years?” I asked. “You told me she was, like, eighteen.”

He nodded, swallowing, “I was twelve!” he exclaimed, “I wasn’t exactly going to tell my best mate that my GF was ten years old and wore colourful wigs.”

“That’s a wig?” I repeated, lowering my voice so she couldn’t hear me.

Aaron nodded, “She broke my heart like it had never been broken before.”

“She was your first girlfriend,” I reminded him, “You never had your heart broken before.”

“Technicalities,” he hissed quietly as she approached with a cookie in her hand.

She slid in beside me and the scent of green apples wafted against me. I was sure I was melting, it was so sexy. I don’t know why, but if a girl smells good it makes me tight around the jeans, even if the girl is ugly as sin. I could help but stare, looking for evidence of a wig on her head, but she glanced at me. Her azure eyes glistened the moons reflection on a smooth lake.

“Want a bite?” she lisped, mouth full of white chocolate cookie.

“Why are you wearing a wig?” I asked.

Her eyes widened, “It worries me that you know that.”

“I told him,” Aaron added in. She peered at him, staring blankly in confusion. “It’s me: Aaron...Aaron Partridge?”

“Are you one of my sister’s friends?” she asked, not getting the hint.

“We dated for five months back in 2006!” he snapped, he looked positively furious.

I didn’t blame him. If a girl forgot she had dated me at some point or another, I would have been fuming. I also would have been surprised, I always left an imprint on girls than never faded, no matter how long they spent trying to get over me.

“Oh,” she sighed, cheeks burning red. At this point, Kerry, Elora and Dustin had joined us, pulling over a couple of chairs so there was room. “I’m sorry, I try not to think too much about my exes.”

“Exes?” Kerry repeated, narrowing her eyes and raising an eyebrow that I found unbelievably cute. “Did we miss something here?”

“Evan and Aaron used to date, apparently,” I informed.

“Oh, wow,” Kerry said, seemingly shocked but trying to seem nonchalant about it. I knew she had a crush on Aaron since she first met him back in September and it drove me absolutely insane with jealousy. He didn’t even know it. Why would a woman like someone who was so ignorant of the truth?

“It was years ago,” Evan insisted, biting her lip. “We’ve both changed a lot – last time I saw you, your head was shaved and you were a lot chubbier.”

“Last time I saw you, you had long, turquoise locks,” Aaron added.

“I still wear that wig on occasion,” she muttered, cheeks turning from red to scarlet. “I’m sorry.”

“You don’t have to apologise, I’m just a little offended that you didn’t recognise me,” he insisted.

“Still,” she sighed, “I hope we can be friends now.”

“Of course,” he insisted, “I have a girlfriend now anyway.”

“You do?” Kerry asked in disbelief.

Her eyes widened with both shock and disappointment. Despite my envy, I felt kind of bad for her.

“Yes...Roxy,” he replied, popping a tablet of gum into his mouth and offering her some.

Roxanne was a nice girl too, she was the first girl to actually make Aaron feel good about himself. He wasn’t as obsessed about her as he was for Evan, but I thought that was better for him. I only met her three times. The first time was on Halloween the previous year and they dressed up in matching costumes: Batman and Robin. Needless to say, it was sickeningly sweet.

I was with another girl at that time and I didn’t even bother to wear a costume. She, however, decided to dress up as a sexy pirate and was peeved that I didn’t cooperate. Kind of a bitch.

“Good for you,” Evan smiled, it was a genuine ‘good for you’ too, not a narcissistic retort.

“Will we get to meet her anytime soon?” Elora asked, mouth full of meatballs.

Aaron shrugged, “Maybe – she works a lot, but as soon as she’s free we can arrange something, I’m sure.”

I glanced at Barry who was standing outside, he dropped his cigarette on the ground before crushing it with his shoe and sauntering in. “What the crack?” he smiled, squeezing his skinny butt in next to Kerry and Aaron.

“Aaron used to date Evan,” Elora replied bluntly.

“Don’t blame him,” Barry crooned, winking at her. Evan raised a well trimmed eyebrow in response. “But, sure, aren’t you dating that Russian girl?”

“She’s Romanian,” Aaron sighed. “And only half Romanian.”

“She still has the accent,” Barry argued, a half smile tugging at the end of his lips. “Sexy.”

“You knew about her?” Kerry asked. Barry nodded. “How come this didn’t come up before?”

Aaron shrugged and Dustin squeezed in to the argument, “Why do you care so much, Kerr?” he swallowed, picking a hair out of his sub and tossing it back in the paper packaging.

“I...I don’t know,” she stammered, shrugging and cheeks beaming red, “Just...thought it would have turned up in conversation.”

I bit the inside of my cheek. I hated witnessing such awkward encounters. In fact, I found myself staring down at the table for the next five minutes before conversation brewed up again.