CHAPTER 4

Bryant looked over at Clarise and then gave a nervous laugh, he opened his mouth to say something buy my aunt beat him to it.

"Look who came by!" she gushed. "That guy who hit your cat. He wants to apologize and has a present for you. Isn't he so sweet?"

"Very." It took every bit of self-control not to glare at him as I moved back and let him in the room.

"Well you two have fun, I still have some guests over." She went to turn back down the hall. "Oh, and Indy, I can't wait to hear all about it."

"Okay." Nice. I shut the door and looked at him.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey."

All at once I felt incredibly uncomfortable with Bryant Bailey in my bedroom. He was way too tall for this little space and made the whole place shrink. Before I died of claustrophobia I quickly opened back up the room and left the door wide open. "So why are you really here?" I asked.

He took a deep breath. "I knew you'd say no, so I came without asking."

"Caught that. So what do you want?"

"I'd like to be friends."

I blinked. Was this some sort of joke or something? "What?"

"I want to get to know you. Be your friend."

"No." I walked out of the room and down the hall to the cold unused den. At least it was a bigger space than my tiny creepy room. The den had a couple of brown couches and a large TV. It was supposed to be used for football games and movie nights, but everyone else had TV's in their bedrooms so the family really didn't get together for much. Hence the reason why the den was pretty much always cold.

Bryant followed me. "Look, do you have something against having guy friends?"

"Of course not, Maxton Hoyster is one of my best friends." I plopped down on the smallest couch and put my feet out, so he'd have to take the larger one. "Guys are way easier to get along with than girls."

"So?"

"Bryant, you're only being my friend out of pity. No one wants a pity friend-or a pity date for that matter —we'd all like to have stuff in our lives that's genuine."

"Well, I'm genuinely worried about you. Is that a start?"

I rolled my eyes and sat back. "You're not worried about me anymore than my aunt and uncle are. You don't even know me enough to be worried about me. What's in that bag you're holding? It smells good."

"This?" He dangled it out with a long arm. "I figured you'd been in bed all day, because of what a jerk I am, so I brought you a peace offering in a brown bag."

"Food?" I scooted forward.

"Captain Jack's famous burger."

"You're kidding." My mouth was already watering

"And fries." He grinned. "See? I knew I could get on your good side eventually."

"You have no idea. I'm starving!" Without another word he handed the whole bag over for me. Inside were two burgers and two packages of fries. Still warm. "You will be blessed by the Gods for this." I pulled out one of each and tossed him back the bag.

"Are you sure you don't want more? The way you're digging into that burger, I have no problem handing over mine too."

For the first time in a long time I laughed. It was around a bite of food, but I laughed anyway. After I'd calmed my ravenous appetite and began to eat like a normal human being again, I asked, "So how did you know I'd be hungry?"

"Because I'd spent a good chunk of my morning lying in bed feeling sorry for myself and thinking of you, and when I realized I was hungry, I figured you were probably hungry too. It was a simple math equation really." He grinned a devastatingly handsome grin and leaned back on the couch, holding the rest of his burger.

"I have three sisters and I know when they get upset they tend to avoid all food and live in their rooms. And then once they finally emerge the next day they've turned into ornery wolves desperate to eat anything

they can get their hands on." He took a bite. "So one plus one equals two. I knew if I was hungry. Chances were you'd be too."

I stared at him for a long time before I said anything. I honestly didn't want to trust Bryant. I didn't want to be his friend either, or anything else for that matter. Not that there'd be anything else I just didn't understand him, I guess. After the last of my fries were gone I asked, "So why me? Why have you decided to stalk me?"

His eyebrows jumped up. "You think I stalk you? Like I'm a crazy stalker-person?

Well if the shoe fits... I didn't say anything and eventually he nodded.

"Okay, I guess I can see why you'd find me a little odd."

"Ha. I wish you were odd. Odd I could handle."

He smirked. "Fine, scary then. From your perspective I guess I can see why."

"Okay? But why are you here? You didn't answer that."

He finished off his burger and tossed his empty wrapper in the brown bag and then chucked it over to me to do the same. "I don't know why. Beyond feeling bad about-er, hitting your cat."

"The word is murder. You murdered my cat."

He smiled ruefully. "Alright. Beyond feeling bad about murdering your cat-I don't know why I'm here." Shrugging he continued, "I know I need to be. Something about you about this-I'm not done. I should be here. Be next to you, so I am."

What in the world? "You say that like you're part of some disturbing psychic movie or something."

"It's not psychic, it's just a feeling. You need me. Or maybe I need you -something here clicks and it hasn't ever clicked before."

"Right. Now, I'm just terrified. You can leave anytime."

He leaned forward and put his elbows on his knees.

"Indy, stop. I'm not a psycho. You know I'm not a psycho. I-you asked me, I figured you're the type of girl who wants the plain truth-no sugar coating-just what it is. So I'm here. Telling you the truth. I don't know. I only know I feel better talking to you."

"Ugh. Bryant, this is some weird feeling you have to make yourself feel better. You think if you're talking to me and getting me to be your friend, then yeah, you'll feel better. You will, because we're friends, this has nothing to do with me. So please, let's stop this. If you need to come over here to feel better about killing my cat—then fine. You can placate yourself and show up, I guess. But to say this is for me too that's where I call you on it. If this was about me, you'd walk away and leave me alone."

Those dark eyes bore into mine and for an instant I could hardly breathe. What was it about this guy that was so fascinating anyway? Something about him, about his stupid need to be here—all of it, was oddly intriguing.

"Indy, you're wrong. You think you've got the whole world sorted out. And everyone is placed in these little boxes you put them in. Teachers, classmates, family, me, we've all got our own box. And when someone

steps out of that box and does something you aren't expecting them to, you try your hardest to push them back in.

"Well, I don't fit. I'm not meant to fit where you want me. Your walls are high and thick, but I'll get through them somehow. Wait and see."

A flash of irritation swept through me. "So much for thinking we were getting somewhere. When are you leaving again?" I pretended to look at a watch I most definitely didn't have on. "Now?"

Bryant stood up and for a second my heart dropped. I didn't know why but I didn't want him to go. I shoved the feeling down and stood up too. "Well, thanks for the lunch. You rock." My attempt at a thank you was so awkwardly lame, but I said what I should and that had to count for something. I couldn't even look him in the eye as I started to walk out of the room.

"Indy, what are you doing?"

I turned back. "Showing you the door."

One corner of his mouth rose up in this semi- adorable grin. "I'm not going anywhere."

"What? But you stood up."

"Yeah. I thought I'd change it up a little. You're not getting rid of me that easily."

"But?"

"So, I found something out last night."

I blinked, not sure where he was going. "Okay?"

"It's kind of important. So do you want to go somewhere else to talk? Go get ice cream? Maybe a walk in the park? Maybe a drive, somewhere?"

"I—" I think my jaw may have hit the ground. Bryant wanted to take me someplace to talk. Was that his way of asking me out on a date? My aunt would lose her mind especially after this morning. "I really don't think I can."

He sighed. "Look, Indy. I'm not trying to make things weird here. But I'm serious. My dad told me something, and I'd like to talk to you about it."

"Okay. Aside from the fact that you're totally weird and I don't trust you and all that, I really mean I don't think I can. As in, I'm not sure I'm allowed to leave this house with you. My aunt is—uh-things are... well, anyway. I don't think I could leave. But I'm curious what did your dad have to say?" I walked back over and sat down on the couch. This time he came and sat right next to me. I should've kicked him out when I had the chance. Dang it.

Bryant leaned back, probably because I was acting like a dork, but I didn't care. I preferred to have my own personal space.

"So you were saying?" I folded my arms.

"This is gonna be unusual so hang in there."

I laughed again. I couldn't help it. "Bryant nothing about you has been usual yet."

"Yeah, well, okay. I'm just going to jump in there and say it." His dark eyes looked right into mine. "So about five years ago my dad came home from a car accident, where he tried to save a woman. He'd been the car behind her when she was struck by truck and then swerved into oncoming traffic and hit again by a semi."

Oh my gosh. I put my hands to my mouth. "Stop."

"No. Let me finish. Please."

I closed my eyes and promised myself I wouldn't cry.

"Okay." My voice barely came out as a whisper.

He was the one to call 911. He was the one who stopped traffic and rushed to her. My dad never said how bad it was, only that she was dying. And he knew she would never make it to the hospital. So while the ambulance

came and the firefighters and the cops and everything, he held her hand. And she spoke."

"Mom." I began to cry. I couldn't help it. I was grateful someone was there for her, but so mad it wasn't me.

"She said, 'Please tell Cindy I love her. Tell my Indy that she is and will always be a princess. Tell her that no matter what life throws at her that she's loved and I'll be with her, I wouldn't leave her. She'll be alone, and scared that I've left her like her dad tell her I didn't. Tell her I wouldn't and I'm there.'

"She clung to my dad's hands and begged him to relay the message to you. When I told him I'd hit a girl's cat and she went to school with me and her name was Indy-he told me the rest and asked me to come to you."

I wiped at my face. "So that's how you knew my name was Cindy?"

Bryant nodded, his own eyes were wet. "My dad told me, because your mom told him. You're Cinderella."

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