Discoveries Page 3

  Did she have something against foster kids? She’d seemed friendly until Min mentioned that.

  Once she’d introduced herself as Mrs. Halloway, she spoke with Min about enrolling me, leaving me out of the loop. The woman’s gaze periodically strayed back to me, and while she didn’t look mean, she never smiled at me. But that was okay. I would finally have the experience of going to school! Where I’d get homework, and I might even make new friends!

  Mrs. Halloway stood. “If you’ll follow me, Haylie, we’ll go ahead and do some testing. Normally I’d have you schedule the testing, but since we’re so close to the beginning of the school year, we’ll do it now.”

  That was fine by me.

  The tests covered everything from what I’d learned about English to the periodic table of elements. Each one seemed to get progressively more difficult.

  After I finished them, Min took me back to the house, where I spent a good portion of the day reading one of the books from the office while lying in the backyard.

  * * *

  Two days later, I sat in Min’s silvery-blue car on our way to the mall. Was this what it would have been like if I’d had a mom? Or at least been normal?

  Once we climbed out of the car, Min locked it and we went inside.

  “What exactly will we be shopping for?” I asked

  “You don’t have much in the way of clothes. I would like to change that for you.”

  I shook my head. As much as I appreciated the thought, I couldn’t let her go crazy. Lacey had mentioned that it took hours of hard work to earn this money. “I don’t need much. Really, I can get by with what I own right now.”

  Min sighed, gently laying an arm across my shoulders. “Sweetie, your clothing is a good start, and there’s nothing wrong with it, but you’ll need more than one pair of jeans, a couple of T-shirts, and a pair of shorts.”

  Nervously biting my lip, I gave a small nod. What if she expected me to pay this back later? I’d have to find some way to make money, then.

  “Trust me on this.” She glanced sideways, studying me as we headed toward a store that sold mostly undergarments. “Phil and I have a decent income, and we have more than a modest savings. I have more clothes than I really need, so I’m not lying when I say you’re doing me a favor by letting me shop for clothes for you.”

  I hesitated before nodding. “All right.”

  With a grin, she linked her elbow in mine, leading me to the front counter. I flinched, unused to the physical contact. My gaze wandered around the store before stopping at a pair of shimmery pink panties and a matching bra. They looked like something a mermaid would wear, and while they were pretty, I refused to wear anything like that. No one but me would see them, but that was one person too many. I wouldn’t be caught dead in anything that girly.

  Before I could continue looking, Min nudged me toward the fitting room. “Clarice will be taking your measurements so we can find a bra that fits.”

  A young, thin woman with hair such a bright red that it couldn’t be natural led me into a dressing room and had me remove my shirt before she expertly whipped her measuring tape around me. I didn’t even have a chance to feel embarrassed before she was telling me what to look for in a bra, then she left. What the heck had happened? I wasn’t sure if I should feel violated or impressed.

  Min came in as Clarice left. “All right, let’s go grab a couple of bras in your size, just to see how well they fit.”

  She led me from the dressing room, and I died a little when I saw what she loaded my arms with. Pink? And lace? Oh God, was that pink lace? I held up a bra, studying it, when movement outside the large window caught my attention. My neck prickled, as if I were being watched. I scanned the walkway outside, trying to figure out what I’d seen, but nothing was there. Was I hallucinating? Or just paranoid, maybe? A chill ran along my spine.

  Taking a deep breath, I reminded myself I was perfectly safe. The mall was crowded and getting busier by the minute. Besides, why would anyone be watching me?

  When I turned back to Min, who was completely oblivious to my concern, my jaw nearly hit the floor as I saw the pair of panties she studied. At least, that was what I thought they were. A little triangle of cloth tapered off to become a string. I could imagine where that string would go, and thinking about it made me flinch.

  Finally nodding, she added them to the pile, and my horror grew. Did she actually expect me to wear those? Shuddering, I followed her across the store as something else caught her eye.

  Moments later, with my arms loaded with various bits of lingerie, I was back in the changing room, trying things on.

  I didn’t take long to choose the pieces I wouldn’t mind wearing. The stack of undergarments in my hands was considerably smaller than what I’d started with.

  “Min?”

  “Is something wrong, Haylie?” Her voice floated through the door, sounding close.

  Opening the door to let her in, I said, “I don’t think these will work.” My eyes scanned the hallway, trying to figure out what to do with the reject pile. Should we go put them all away? I wasn’t even sure where we’d gotten them all from.

  “Oh, here.” She took the small stack from me, and I grabbed my other selections, hurrying after her.

  I thought for sure she was headed to put them all away, but instead, she handed them to a lady who stood behind a counter at the front of the dressing room.

  “Why did we do that?” I asked as we moved toward the cash registers.

  “The employees will put them away to make sure they all end up where they belong.”

  Ah. That made sense, although I felt kind of bad for the employee. She wasn’t the one who’d pulled all the garments from the shelves.

  As Min paid, my gaze drifted to the large window again. Nothing caught my eye this time.

  Then we were heading for the next clothing shop, where Min led me to a small display of swimsuits. “Let’s get you one of these as well. You never know when you might need one.”

  “Where would I wear one?” It wasn’t as if Min and Phil had a swimming pool.

  Shrugging, she held out a top that looked as though it would barely cover my girls. I’d never worn a two-piece suit before, and I didn’t know how I’d feel about so much of my body being on display.

  “We might head to the beach for a day at some point, or we could go to the indoor swimming pool not far away,” she said. “If nothing else, it’s still rather warm out. You can sunbathe.”

  I couldn’t see myself lying in the sun wearing that, but if it made her happy to get me a swimsuit, I wouldn’t argue.

  After I followed her around for a bit, she ushered me into another changing room. I tried on so many different pairs of shorts and pants, not to mention shirts, and in the end, we left with another couple of bags.

  Min even bought me some cute dresses. My favorite was navy blue and came a little past the middle of my thighs. The top was lacy, but it didn’t feel too girly.

  I’d never worn a dress before, since they hadn’t been practical for training. What if a strong wind blew it up around my ears while I was wearing it? How did one keep that from happening? While I hadn’t been the most modest person in the institute, the idea of potentially showing the world my underwear was enough to make me swear off dresses.

  I started to ask about the odds of flashing strangers while in a dress before I realized how happy she appeared. There was a bounce in her step, and her lips were stretched into a smile. Did taking me shopping truly make her this happy, or was there another reason for it?

  She spoke, startling me out of my thoughts. “I believe we got most of what you need, so now we’ll go look for shoes and then get lunch.”

  At the mention of food, my stomach growled loudly. Exhaustion clung to my limbs, making me wish we were headed home now, but voicing my thoughts would make me appear ungrateful, and I definitely wasn’t. Back at the institute, I’d trained for hours on end, but shopping had worn me out in a way I’d never
experienced before.

  As we headed to the next store, the hair on the back of my neck stood on end again.

  Was someone watching me? It felt like it. I turned around, glancing everywhere. I didn’t see anything that stuck out as odd. A couple of screaming kids were being pulled along by a mother with dark circles under her eyes. A group of teenage girls stepped out of a store filled with displays of different lotions and nearly walked into me, oblivious to their surroundings.

  I stepped closer to Min. She glanced at me then at the surrounding area. More than likely, she was attempting to figure out why I’d suddenly crowded her.

  That prickly feeling came back, and as I turned my head to look behind me, something slammed into me from the front. The thin bits of silver around my wrists shocked me as my body flickered. My heart pounded as the bags slipped from my fingers and I put all my effort into staying solid.

  “Oh, excuse me.” The deep voice had my gaze flying up to meet his. A guy in his late teens stood in front of me, his bright blue eyes looking me over as if to make sure I was all right.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to—” The itching moved to my spine and I quickly took a couple steps back.

  Before I could gather my thoughts, he said, “No, the fault is mine. That was terribly clumsy of me.”

  Without bothering to respond, I picked up my bags.

  The guy gave me the creeps, but I wasn’t sure why. He appeared to be a regular guy.

  Min appeared next to me, taking some of the bags, when he spoke again. “Come here often?”

  His question startled me into looking at him. A smirk appeared at the corners of his mouth, and for some reason, I had to resist the urge to punch the expression right off his face. I wasn’t a violent person, so I wasn’t sure where that came from.

  Min snorted. “Does that pick-up line ever work for you?” With a roll of her eyes, she gestured for me to follow her.

  I stepped around the guy without looking back.

  When we’d walked past a few shops, I softly asked, “What just happened?”

  Min shook her head. “No real idea. If I had to hazard a guess, I would say he was either hitting on you, or he’s naturally flirtatious with anything that has boobs.”

  “He didn’t even know me. Why would he hit on me?” I felt as if I was playing a game without knowing all the rules.

  Taking a deep breath, I put those thoughts in the timeout box to examine later. I didn’t have the time to think about it right now.

  We ducked into the final store as Min said. “He probably just liked the way you looked. Some people don’t really care what another person is like, so long as they’re impressed by that person’s looks.” She shrugged. “Besides, that guy gave me the creeps.”

  I nodded. At least I knew it wasn’t just me.

  She led me through a store filled with shoes, and the feeling of someone’s eyes on me returned, sending a chill down my spine.

  Trying not to make it obvious, I glanced around. I didn’t expect to see anyone watching me, but my gaze collided with the guy I’d run into. He ran his tongue over his teeth, as if he was checking to make sure nothing was stuck in them, then pursed his lips. I recoiled. Did he seriously blow me a kiss? I didn’t even know his name. Nausea settled in the pit of my stomach.

  He ran his hands through dark blond, curly hair and gave me a head nod. Quickly turning back to Min, I tried to put him out of my mind. He might not have meant me harm, but that didn’t mean I wanted his attentions.

  As I followed Min through the store, my eyes widened, and the mysterious man was forgotten. There were so many shoes! I might not be a girly-girl, but this was like a dream come true!

  After getting my feet measured, Min handed me three different boxes and had me try on the shoes inside. They were all more stylish than my plain black ones, and I loved them.

  After trying on another couple of pairs, we paid, and Min asked, “Ready for some lunch?”

  Making Friends

  On Tuesday, I got out of bed bright and early. It was the first day of school! After a quick shower, I was ready to go in record time.

  Min had had to leave for work at five, but when I opened the fridge to get a drink, a small sack with my name on it caught my attention. With a smile curving my lips, I pulled it out.

  The first thing I found in the bag was a note.

  Haylie,

  Here’s some money if you decide to get breakfast at school. Since it’s your first day, I wanted you to have a special lunch. Enjoy, do well in school today, and you and Phil will be fending for yourselves for dinner since I work late.

  Keep the sound on your phone off, and no using it at school unless it’s an emergency.

  I’ll see you tonight.

  -Min

  Oh yeah! My phone! Min and Phil had given it to me the day before. Although I’d tried to give it back and tell them I didn’t need one, they’d insisted. They didn’t have a home phone, so if I didn’t accept it, they’d have no way of reaching me.

  Back upstairs, I studied the cell phone for a moment, thinking about Kat and my rescuers. As much as I wanted to call them, I knew I shouldn’t. If they were in the middle of something dangerous, or even sleeping, I didn’t want to interrupt them. I already had Lacey’s number programmed into my phone. After Min had shown me how the calling and texting features worked, I’d added Lacey’s number because I was worried I’d lose the piece of paper it had been scribbled on.

  After another moment of hesitation, I finally decided to text her.

  Then I made sure my phone was on silent before I shoved it into my back pocket.

  Downstairs, I grabbed an apple from the fridge before pulling on my shoes and leaving the house. They’d even given me my own key! After finishing the apple, I tossed the core in the garbage bin outside and headed for the bus stop.

  It was a bit of a walk, considering Phil and Min lived on the edge of town, surrounded by a small forest.

  I stopped abruptly as I realized a guy around my age sat on the sidewalk. A dark green messenger bag was on the ground next to him. Dark hair fell to his wide shoulders. My gaze ran along the street, trying to figure out which direction he’d come from, since I couldn’t actually see any other houses from here.

  Presumably hearing my footsteps, he turned to look at me, a smile tugging at his full lips. His eyes, a few shades darker than his hair, lit up as he stood. I was eye level with his chest, making him taller than I thought he’d be. He wore a tight green T-shirt. A silver band wrapped around his left bicep under the cuff of his sleeve, and some sort of ivy tattoo trailed up from his wrist, disappearing under his shirt.

  He cleared his throat and my gaze flew back to his eyes. Taking a deep breath to quell my nerves, I grinned and stuck out my hand. “Hi! I’m Haylie.”

  He smirked, taking my hand and holding it a little longer than necessary. “I’m CJ. You must be new in town.”

  I nodded. If he’d lived here for a while, the fact that I was standing at his usual stop would have given that away. Sinking back to the ground, he tossed a sweatshirt down next to him and patted it.

  He wanted me to sit on it? Gingerly lowering myself, I raised a brow. What was the next step after meeting someone?

  He smirked again. “Where’d you move from?”

  “Boarding school. A couple states over.” Lacey hadn’t told me not to reveal which state I’d moved from, but I hesitated to talk about it.

  “Boarding school? But didn’t you just get off summer break?” He moved his fingers through his hair, brushing the long strands out of his eyes.

  With a shrug, I muttered, “I lived there year round. Are you glad to be going back to school, or will you miss summer break?” Hopefully, he wouldn’t mind me asking questions.

  Grinning, he replied, “Had you asked me yesterday, I would have said I was disappointed to see the end of summer.” His gaze dipped down before slowly traveling up my body. Unlike the creepy mall dude, his attention didn’t make
my hair stand on end. “However, I can now see the benefits of going back to school.”

  My heart did a flip as my cheeks heated. Unsure what to say to that, I wracked my brain for another topic, but he beat me to it. “What grade are you?”

  “Uh…” Mrs. Halloway hadn’t mentioned a grade, I didn’t think. It took me another few seconds to remember what Min had said when we received my testing results. “Junior?” I cringed at the question in my voice.

  “Me too.”

  As he spoke, I spotted the bus coming down the road. He got to his feet before offering me a hand. When I took it, he helped me up, but didn’t release it immediately. Instead, he met my gaze and winked before stooping to grab his sweatshirt.

  “Thank you,” I murmured, blushing at the intensity in his eyes.

  The bus pulled over at the curb, doors swinging wide to reveal a serious looking woman, her dark hair pulled back in a bun so tight my head ached just looking at it. There weren’t many people on the bus yet, and CJ dropped into a seat near the front. Before I could step past him, he caught my arm and gently pulled me down next to him. My heart jumped as he turned sideways to watch me.

  “Tell me about yourself, Haylie. What’s something no one else in the world knows about you?” He gently tugged on one of my light brown curls, watching as it sprang back into place.

  Blood drained from my face and I swallowed hard. He couldn’t know my secrets, right? After crossing multiple state lines, even if people were searching for me, I wouldn’t have been found this quickly.

  I licked my lips before asking, “Wh-what do you want to know?”

  He tilted his head, studying me, until a small smile tugged at his lips. “Do you enjoy spending time outdoors?”

  Really? That was what he wanted to know? Why? It took me a few moments to recover from my surprise, and his eyes never left my face.

  “I love being outside.” My gaze dropped to the floor, heat flooding my face and making my skin feel prickly. “This will probably sound stupid, but I love being outside at night when I can see all the stars.”