Finding Home (2 page)

People were milling all around me, a sea of gently undulating green and grey. I quickly checked my watch: eight thirty. There was still 15 minutes before class — 15 long, torturous minutes of trying to blend in with a group of people I’m sure I had absolutely nothing in common with. I saw a toilet block ahead and picked up the pace, eager to kill some time before class with a quick hair check.

I marched inside, thankful to be out of the masses.

It stank as only school toilets can. In fact, this bathroom seemed to be worse than any other I’d ever been in. A sickeningly putrid stench wafted from the interior.

The design was off, too. Why had they installed such a long sink on the floor?

My stomach dropped. I realised that, in my haste, I hadn’t checked the sign on the door.

I was in the boys’ toilets.

Hoping I’d be able to leave before anyone saw me, I turned and ran back through the doors, eager to inhale some fresh air.

‘Hey, check out the chick in the boys’ toilets!’ was what a long and lanky guy began to yell to his shorter mate as I emerged. They burst into hysterics at the sight of my horrified face as I bolted past them.
Oh God, oh God. Why do things like this always have to happen to me?

I tried to act as if nothing had happened, and to regain my confident stride, walking once more in the direction of my first class.

‘Hey, come back! We can hang in here if you want, toilet girl,’ the first guy yelled, poking his head out of the bathroom and attracting the attention of literally everyone in the area. I felt heads turning, gazes boring into my back.

Fantastic. Apparently, I was starting my Cherrybrook career as ‘toilet girl.’

I picked up the pace, one foot leaving the ground as soon as the other touched down. Why care what the people around here thought of me, anyway? I was probably only going to go to my first few classes before skipping off for the rest of the day.

‘You’re new,’ said a deep voice to my left. I spun around to meet it.

Here was a fantastic reason to stay in school. Standing next to me was one of the most gorgeous looking guys I had ever seen. He was movie-star hot, a cross between boy-next-door and surfing God, with luscious dark hair that was tinged with little blonde peaks. He was tall and had a football player’s body, golden skin, and chocolate brown eyes that were twinkly and clear. There was a cheeky grin on his face, revealing a set of solid white teeth with the tiniest little gap in-between the front two. I was hooked.

‘Y-yes,’ I managed to stammer. I found myself praying.
Please, God, don’t let him have seen the bathroom incident. If you keep that secret from this one guy, I won’t drink again until I’m 18
.

‘Don’t worry, I don’t think anyone saw.’ The mysterious stranger winked at me and jerked his head towards the toilets, which were now a few metres behind us.

Ouch.
I wished I could melt straight into the concrete. My first encounter with a super-hot high school guy and I’d already managed to look like an idiot. On the plus side, I guess my drinking had come back into play.

‘Um, at least I know what a urinal looks like now.’ I cringed as the words came out of my mouth.

Luckily, the sexy stranger didn’t seem to notice how stupid I was being. ‘You’d never been in the guys’ bathroom before?’

I shook my head.

‘Well, now you’ve had the grand tour, how do you like Cherrybrook?’

‘So far I’ve only visited reception and the boys’ toilets. I’m kind of hoping things will start to get a bit better from here on in.’ I smiled up at him. I was sure I looked pathetic and overeager, but for some reason this hot specimen of manhood had fallen into step beside me.

‘What class have you got?’ he asked.

‘English, I think, somewhere over’ — I paused to look around me and gestured to my right — ‘that way?’

‘Well, since the English rooms are all to the left, and the area you’re pointing to is the Science block,’ he said, not unkindly, ‘you’ve either got the class or the location wrong.’

‘Oh. Well, it’s definitely English.’ Even if it wasn’t, it was too good an opportunity to pass up.
Please offer to show me? Please, please, please, please?

‘I can take you, if you want,’ he offered. ‘You’ll be a bit early ‘cause I’ve got to get to my own class, but I don’t mind dropping you off. I’m Luke, by the way.’

‘Hey, I’m Amy.’ I delivered the words with confidence, but I felt my insides turning all wobbly as I checked out his shapely arms and broad, strong shoulders once more. He had to be a football player. I wondered how he’d look in a tight-fitting uniform — or, better yet, without it.

I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts. I’d been in school five minutes and I was already losing it for someone I’d just met. This couldn’t be a good thing.

We walked along in companionable silence, navigating our way through the crowd of students. A young kid jostled past us and pushed my body closer to Luke’s. As my arm brushed against his, tingles rushed up and through my spine. I was officially in lust. Somehow, I’d developed a mini-crush on the first guy who’d introduced himself to me at my new high school. I didn’t know if that made me desperate or lucky, and I didn’t care.

‘So you just moved here?’ Luke asked.

‘Yeah, to my aunt’s place.’

‘Oh, cool. What about your folks?’ He slowed to a stop when we reached a nondescript brick classroom.

‘My dad has to travel a lot for work.’ I wasn’t lying. I just wasn’t exactly telling the truth.

Since Dad had become famous, I’d kept the fact we were related quiet. The one time I’d told someone — a guy staying in our hotel who I’d been enjoying hanging around with by the pool — he’d promptly laughed at me, teased me, sung at me, and had then left me in the pool to hang out by myself. I wasn’t going to risk that happening again. Not here. Not when I didn’t have to.

‘Fair enough.’ Luke smiled. ‘What classes are you taking?’

‘Um, English, Math, Business Studies, Drama and Music.’

‘I take Music, too. We’ll be in the same class,’ he said, a slight smile playing on his lips. God, he was good-looking. I analysed his words. Had he sounded happy about our having a class together or sad? And was it too soon to start planning a beautiful duet together? I smiled up at him once more, wondering what new bargain I could make with God in order to win him over.

‘Luke, who’s this?’ A tall girl with straight, shiny blonde hair and a smile so sparkling you could pick out your reflection in it bounced over to us.

‘This is Amy. She’s new. Amy, meet Coral.’

‘His girlfriend,’ Coral added pointedly. Her lips were curved in a smile, but her eyes glittered like stones.

‘Nice to meet you,’ I lied. I was using my monotone voice again.

‘All right, I’m off to class, but I’m sure Coral will help you out if you need anything. See you later, babe,’ he said, completely oblivious to the venomous glance that Coral and I now shared. He ducked in for a quick peck on Coral’s cheek and then strode away, his calf muscles flexing beneath his school shorts.

I watched him leave, completely unable to take my eyes off him.

‘We’ve been dating for two years,’ Coral purred, despite me not having asked a question.

‘He seems nice,’ I remarked.

‘He is. And just so you know,’ she started, but paused as the school bell rang. Students flooded the corridor and soon we could barely move. The noise of other kids filled the hallway, so much so that I had to strain to hear Coral’s next words, but I was fairly sure she said, ‘Flirt with him again, and I’ll kill you.’

* * *

School passed by in a whirlwind of new faces and new names, but there was a distinct lack of new boys who grabbed my attention like Luke had. There was just something about him. I’d seen him in the corridor twice more that day, and each time we’d made eye contact I’d felt a warmth deep inside me. Why did he have to have a girlfriend?

By the time the last bell rang, I was tired, but not tired enough to want to go back to Lou’s. I didn’t want to tell her all about my first day at school. I wasn’t her daughter, and I had no intention of trying to be either.

Instead, I stopped at a dirty burger joint a few blocks away from school and ordered some fries. Possibly the only good thing about living in a small town was that I could walk to the shops any time I wanted. Well, as long as it wasn’t after noon or later on a Sunday, when the whole town apparently shut down.

I grazed on the salty potato sticks and stared out of the window, my eyes glazing over. My phone beeped, signalling I had a new message, so I pulled it out of my bag to check.

Hey Ames,

Hope your first day went well. I’m sure you nailed it!

Will drop ‘round this weekend and check out your new pad.

Love Dad x

I went to write back something asinine about how ‘pad’ was hardly the word you’d use to describe Lou’s place, and that if he didn’t drop by he’d be doing me a massive favour, when one of his songs started blasting out of the radio at the back of the shop.

‘And then she told me that she loved me…’

Was nowhere sacred? Would I seriously have to listen to my dad’s stupid voice mooning on and on, even when I wasn’t on tour with him?

I threw my phone back in my bag, stuffed a chip in my mouth and left, throwing the few remaining fries and their newspaper wrapping in the trash on the way out the door. I stopped on the street to get my bearings and let the fresh sea air hit my face.

‘You’re new, then?’

A girl stood to my left, slumped just outside the doorway to the shop. She was puffing on a cigarette, her cherry-coloured fingernails bringing the nicotine straight to her matching red lips. She had long, black, shiny hair and snowy-white skin with a smattering of light brown freckles across her nose. She wore the green Cherrybrook uniform with a pair of black ripped fishnets and high tops, and, somehow, made it all look good.

‘Yes.’ I smiled. She radiated cool, which made me a little nervous, and she didn’t smile back. That didn’t surprise me.

‘I’m Lily.’

‘Amy.’

She sized me up, giving me the once-over, and said, ‘I know,’ as she strolled forward.
What the hell?
I fell into step beside her.

‘How did you know?’ I asked, curious. ‘Are we in any of the same classes?’

‘We could be.’ Lily shrugged and flicked her cigarette butt into the gutter. ‘But that’s not why.’

I wracked my brain. Surely I would have remembered if I’d met her before, which left only one horrible option. She knew the truth about Dad.

‘Look, please don’t tell anyone.’ The words tumbled out of my mouth. I cringed, wishing I’d been able to keep my secret a little longer.

‘I think the people who matter already know,’ she said.

‘Um…sorry?’

‘Don’t play dumb,’ she responded. ‘I saw you having words with Coral outside the English block this morning.’

Panic flooded through me. She didn’t know about Dad, but getting attention because I’d pissed off Coral was only marginally better. I could already tell that Coral was popular, and I didn’t want to be socially blacklisted on my first day.

‘That? That was nothing.’

‘Oh.’

We walked in silence for a few minutes.

‘I hate Coral,’ Lily finally said.

‘What?’

‘I hate her. So I asked around and found out your name, ‘cause I figured we should be friends.’ She stopped walking and turned to face me. She grinned, and I smiled right back.

‘I’m not here to make enemies,’ I said simply.

‘When Coral feels threatened, you don’t often get to choose.’ She got out her phone and thrust it into my hands. ‘Put in your number. I have to go now, but we’ll hang later.’

Something in her tone, something authoritative, made me do as she instructed. Then I handed her my phone to do the same.

‘Keep Friday free,’ Lily yelled as she walked over to a beat-up yellow car and opened the door.

I didn’t have a chance to reply before she’d sped up the street, leaving a trail of fumes in her wake. Lily sure had attitude, but I was in no position to judge her for that. One thing was for sure: my Friday night plans had just gotten a whole lot more interesting.

I woke up Tuesday morning a lot more excited than I’d been the day prior. My last class of the day was Music. I was excited for two reasons: one, I loved music, despite Dad’s attempts to ruin it for me; and two, because even though I knew nothing would ever happen and that he had a girlfriend, I wanted to see Luke.

Even though I’d tried, I couldn’t get him off my mind. His killer body, those deep, brown eyes…I’d thought about maybe hanging out and getting to know him better. I could be his friend. After all, homeschooling for three years didn’t leave me with a lot of guys to practise flirting on. Or even a lot of friends, for that matter.

I found the Music classroom with no trouble and chose a seat at the back of a big horseshoe-shaped arrangement of chairs. Posters of old band gigs lined the walls, and I could see a few guitars hanging in a small storeroom off to the side. Shadows flickered and papers rustled; someone was moving around inside. Finally, a young guy wearing a pair of jeans and a white button-up shirt emerged, drumsticks in hand.

‘You’re new,’ he said, his voice deep and gruff.

‘Yep. I’m Amy Detrinella,’ I replied, giving him the once over. He looked younger than most of the other teachers and, with his stubble and fitted shirt, kind of good-looking. I blushed.

What’s wrong with me? Am I going to check out every male that comes within ten feet of me now that I’ve started high school?

‘Aren’t you that Stevie D guy’s daughter?’ His eyes narrowed.

Oh. My. God.
How embarrassing. He’d heard of my Dad.

A list of possible answers flew through my head.
No, I’m not; I’m adopted, but I’ve got a twin sister out there somewhere; No, I was born through immaculate conception.

He must have already had a definite idea of the answer, and I didn’t know if lying to my music teacher would be the best way to start my Cherrybrook education, so I decided to fess up.