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Dreams by Starlight By Staci Stallings "I talked to Mark today," Nick said as he sat down at the cafeteria table Wednesday afternoon. "Oh, yeah?" Camille asked, forking some meatloaf into her mouth. "About what?" "About you," he said as though that should be obvious. "About Friday." "Oh, yeah," Camille said as she wiped her mouth with her napkin. "I was going to talk to you about that." "Cami," Lexie warned softly. "No." Camille smiled at her friend in reassurance. "It's just I don't need you to find me a date anymore." "You don't?" Nick asked uncertainly. "Why not?" "I got my own." Lexie's eyes widened. "You did?" "Who?" Nick asked clearly suspecting some slight of hand trick. "Jaylon," Camille said before she bit into her roll. "Jaylon?" Nick asked in horror. "Quinn?" Lexie asked, her eyes going even wider shock. "Yep, Jaylon Quinn," Camille said with a defiant nod. "Aren't you proud of me?" Nick looked at her for a long moment, and then a smile formed at the corners of his mouth. Like the sunshine following a rain, he laughed. "That's funny. That's a good one, Camille. You had me going there for a minute." "I'm not kidding," Camille said as heat seeped up her cheeks. "I asked him, and he said he'd go." "Jaylon?" Lexie asked, still stuck on the name. "Jaylon Quinn? The Jaylon Quinn?" "Yes," Camille said in growing annoyance. "The Jaylon Quinn. What? Is that so hard to believe?" Both friends looked like the answer to that question was a definite, positive, unequivocal yes, but neither had the chance to say that. "Hi, guys," Jaylon said suddenly appearing at the end of their table, and all three gazes snapped to his face. "Mind if I join you?" Lexie looked positively shell-shocked, and fear over what Nick might actually do if he got in close range of Jaylon jumped to Camille's mind, but those concerns were outweighed by the fact that Jaylon was standing there, looking utterly vulnerable and totally gorgeous. "Have a seat," Camille said as though gorgeous, perfect guys routinely came up and asked to sit by her. "Cool." Jaylon slid his tray onto the table next to Camille's and swung one leg over the bench seat. "So, Nick, you feeling better?" "Oh, uh, yeah," Nick said, wholly unprepared for the question. Jaylon nodded. "I'm glad." He looked down at his food and then back across the table. "And you must be Lexie." When Jaylon extended his hand across the table, Camille thought Lexie might pass out right there. Finally though she accepted Jaylon's hand. "So, you're the one with the birthday. Right?" "Uh, yeah. Right," Lexie said, choking on every syllable. "That's cool," Jaylon said with a smile. "The big one-eight. Huh?" Lexie nodded as Jaylon turned his charm on Camille who was only moderately more prepared for this visit than her table companions. "Did you work on the script last night?" he asked. "Oh, yeah, a little. You?" He picked up a forkful of lettuce. "Some. I'm just worried about how she's going to choose who we try out with. You know? The wrong partner could sink a whole audition." "Maybe she'll let us rotate or something," Camille said, surprising no one more than herself. "I just wish I could memorize better. I mean give me some elements or formulas or something, and no problem, but this stuff is just so different." "Not really. You just take it one chunk at a time-just like everything else." "I don't know. I'm just glad I'm only going to have to memorize the try-out stuff." "Why's that?" Jaylon asked, sounding genuinely confused. "Why? Because I'm not going to get a part. That's why." "How can you be so sure?" Camille's gaze traveled across the table, and she found her two friends looking like a rapt audience. "Well, I'm not going to be there next semester for one thing." "Oh, come on, you're not still thinking about dropping out. Are you?" Jaylon asked with some concern. "No, I'm not only thinking about it. I'm doing it." She flipped the last of her roll back onto her tray. "Besides, Ariana will get Lauren, and Tessa or Jill will get Dominique." "Tessa or Jill?" Jaylon asked as if that was a horrible idea. "Ariana's a synch for the lead, and the only other major part is supporting." Camille shrugged. "Unless Mrs. Allen totally goes bonkers and names Tessa as Lauren or something." She waved her milk carton in the air. "Now, you know, I can see that working. Although Ariana would probably chew the curtains down if that happened." At that moment her gaze crashed back to the table. Had she really just said that out loud? By the looks she was getting from across the table, it was apparent that she had. Sheepishly she set her milk down and gathered her sanity. "Sorry. I didn't mean it like that." With a soft smile Jaylon ducked his head and then looked away. "No, you're right. Ari would probably freak out." The cafeteria sounds enveloped them as Camille struggled to find a new less volatile topic. "Well, Lex, have you decided where you want to go Friday?" Still wide-eyed Lexie looked from Jaylon to Camille utterly speechless. "I thought we might go out to eat somewhere and then go over to the observatory for their eight-thirty show," Nick supplied, looking at Lexie as though he wished that the opposite side of the table would be hit by a wayward asteroid. "Oh?" Jaylon asked. "But we don't have to," Lexie said quickly. "No, that sounds great," Jaylon said, and Camille could've sworn his smile was genuine. "I've always wanted to see that. I've heard really great things about it." "Yeah," Nick said with not one iota of enthusiasm. Above them the bell sounded, and all four of them looked up at it like it was the first time they had ever heard it. Nick was the first to stand, followed closely by Jaylon who offered a hand to help Camille untangle herself from the table. However, his hand touching hers was making her brain do funny things so that she wasn't at all sure how much help he actually was. She started for the tray depository feeling him following her, which sent her reasoning right out the window. "I see you're ankle is better," Jaylon said, appraising her. "Oh, yeah, five ice packs will do wonders." They stacked their trays along with the others. Jaylon fanned his hand through his hair. "So, I guess I'll see you in drama?" "Yeah," Camille said completely unsure of anything at the moment. "Well, take care." He took three steps away from her and then turned back around with a wink. "And watch out for those stairs this time." Stopping the smile that jumped to her face was impossible, and for one second too long she stood there. And then Jaylon disappeared into the crowd. The brush with a shoulder shoving its way passed her startled her back to her senses enough to realize that Nick was no longer with their little group either. "Jeez," Camille said with annoyance. "Watch where you're going!" But Nick just kept right on walking. "What's his problem?" Camille asked Lexie. "Forget about him. Let's talk about Jaylon Quinn," Lexie said, angry and curious at the same time. "How is it possible that you're friends with Jaylon Quinn, and this never came up in conversation?" At their lockers they traded out their books, and Camille made sure to grab her Physics book this time. "What's the big deal? So I know Jaylon Quinn." "Hello! This is me you're talking to. Remember? Me. Lexie. You're we-tell-each-other-everything best friend." Camille pushed through the crowd to catch up with Lexie who hadn't bothered to wait for her. "What's that supposed to mean?" "It means I can't believe you never said a word to me about this, and now all of a sudden you've got a date with the most gorgeous guy in school, and he shows up at our table to chat? What? Did it never occur to you to say, 'Oh, yeah, by the way I got to talk to Jaylon Quinn today.'" "We're just friends," Camille said, swinging into her English desk behind Lexie. "We're in drama together, and we happened to get to know each another. No big deal." "Oh, really? Well, when you get finished justifying keeping this little, itty-bitty piece of news to yourself, let me know. Okay?" In exasperation, Camille sighed. There was no point in arguing with Lexie when she got like this. Jaylon was just being nice. That's all. There was no big conspiracy to keep Lexie in the dark, and there was no good reason for her to be so mad. In fact, Camille was quite sure that Lexie left out quite a few details when they talked about Nick too. This was no different. Anyway, none of that mattered. Lexie would get over it. Jaylon would get bored and go back to his super cool friends. And Camille would go back to her former existence-unnoticed and totally invisible. She just hoped that all happened sooner rather than later.
Two seconds before she actually convinced herself of that, she heard Ariana's voice dancing down the aisle. Instinctively Camille shrank further in her seat and dug her way into her book. "I was just thinking that we should get together and practice later-you know for old time's sake," Ariana was saying as she passed, and when Camille looked up, her heart plummeted. With one arm firmly tucked in Jaylon's, Ariana looked more like she was walking down the red carpet at the Oscar's than just showing up for drama class. Everything inside her made Camille want to run, and her gaze did a passable job of it even without her feet. It wasn't until the bell rang that she realized Nick wasn't sitting beside her. Careful not to allow her gaze too much rein, she scanned the other students around her. With only a cursory survey she located him, the next row up sitting next to Tony and obviously engrossed in some kind of intense conversation. Trying not to feel the hurt, she pushed up her glasses. Somehow she had managed to simultaneously alienate both Jaylon and Nick, and the worst part was she had no idea how she had accomplished that feat. "Good afternoon," Mrs. Allen said, sounding far too chipper. "As promised I'm going to give you the last half of class to work on your scripts, but first, I want to explain how I'll be grading this last six weeks." Camille shrunk further in her seat. Invisibility had never looked so good. When Mrs. Allen finally finished with grading procedures and an outline of the humiliation to come, she held up her hands. "Well, I guess that's it. If there are no questions, you can have the rest of the time to practice." From the middle of the darkness around her Camille glanced around. Nick was talking with Melissa, Jennifer, and Tony, and it was abundantly clear to Camille that partnering with him today was out. She peered across the auditorium and watched as Ariana linked arms with Jaylon and led him up the stage steps. With a solid sigh Camille reached down and retrieved her script from her backpack. "Hey, Camille," a soft voice from the darkness in front of her said. She looked up and had never been so glad to see a friendly face. "Hey, Steph." "You want to work together?" Stephanie, a small, dark-headed girl with pixy-like features, said. "Sure," Camille said. She looked around and the only place not taken was the actual seats. "Have a seat." Stephanie smiled gratefully at her and plopped down into the seat next to her. "Isn't this just the biggest pain in the world? I wish Allen would just let us sign up for the crew and be done with it." "I hear you there," Camille said, relaxing instantly. "You're not excited about this audition either, huh?" "No way. I didn't sign up for this class to get a part. I just wanted something to do besides schoolwork all the time." That much Camille understood perfectly. "You want to start with the Dominique-Lauren thing?" "Sounds good." "I'll take Dominique. You take Lauren, and then we'll switch." "Go for it." Although Ariana was reading the same words Camille had read only the day before, somehow they sounded very different coming out of her mouth. "It doesn't matter," Ariana said brusquely. "I'm going to be something. Something big. Something powerful. Something so important that people can't make me feel like I'm not enough." "Enough?" Jaylon asked, feeling like he was just reading some words on a page. "How can you not be enough?" "Oh, you've seen me," Ariana said, stretching the drama to its breaking point. "The only time people even notice me is when I make a fool out of myself. All the other times it's like I'm just invisible." As his gaze searched out passed the lights of the stage, he wished only that Ariana was invisible. Non-existent would be better. He shifted his body, trying to keep his mind on the script. "But you've always got your head in those books of yours. You don't even give people a chance to get to know you." "Why should I?" Ariana scowled derisively. "They're all a bunch of losers anyway." It was the first line he actually believed. "That's pretty strong coming from somebody who's going to become some benevolent boss some day." Ariana looked down at her fingernails in bored frustration. "Oh, I won't be like that then." "Well, you're sure practicing pretty hard for the part right now." The snort of contempt he exhaled with that line was no act. It wasn't how Hawk was supposed to read that line, but it was the way he, Jaylon, felt. Ariana's scowl deepened. "Come on, J. We're supposed to be in love. Remember?" When he looked at her, all he could think was, 'That will require the biggest acting job of my life.' "Yeah, I remember."
"I went to fashion camp over the summer, and we got to make our own gowns," Stephanie said as they walked out into the blinding light. "You make your own clothes?" Camille asked genuinely impressed. "Yeah, my mom taught me when I was like seven, and I've been designing and making stuff ever since." Stephanie put her hands out. "I made this shirt." "You're kidding." The shirt was a patchwork of several different fabrics, but in form, style, and proportion, it was perfect. "That is so cool," Camille said. "You're going to have to show me some of your designs sometime." Stephanie's excitement jumped to the surface. "I'd like that." "Well, this is where I get off," Camille said. "I'll see you tomorrow." Happily Stephanie smiled and nodded. "Take care." Fully expecting another confrontation with Nick and Lexie, Camille strode to her locker; however, neither was anywhere in sight. She wasn't sure if that was a good sign or a bad one, but it was better not to think too much about it. Quickly she retrieved most of her books and slammed the door. "Give me books any day." Pushing the depression away from her, she walked out into the bleak November afternoon and made her way to the bus stop. Strangely making friends was becoming rather easy these days, it was keeping those friends that was becoming cloyingly difficult. At the bus stop, she leaned against the pole and re-examined the day. One moment she had a friend, the next she didn't. It was like there was some kind of revolving door on her life, and her friends just kept walking right through it. Seeing no way to change that, she tightened her arms around her books. If she could just figure out what she was doing that was wrong, maybe life would quit spinning out of control. "I'm sorry," someone suddenly said, leaning down into her space, and Camille jumped. "Jaylon," she said, blinking, sure he was a mirage of some kind when she turned around. "What are you doing here?" "I saw you standing over here." His gaze fell to the concrete between them. "I just wanted to come over and say I'm sorry about today." "Sorry? Why?" Through the fringe of his eyelashes, he looked up at her. "I noticed Nick seemed kind of mad." "Oh, you noticed that too?" she asked mildly smirking. "Yeah, and I thought maybe that was my fault." Camille wasn't sure what to say. "He was just a little surprised." "Looked like more than surprise to me." She shrugged and bobbed her head. "Well, I think he would've rather picked my date for me." Jaylon shifted his two books to the other hip. "Maybe it would've been okay if you'd chosen someone other than me." Her heart wanted to argue, but her brain knew differently. "He just doesn't know you." "Maybe he knows me better than you do." Slowly her eyes narrowed with concern. "What does that mean?" Sad understanding slipped into his eyes. "I just seem to bring out the worst in people." "That's not true. The kids love you." "They're different. They don't know what I'm really like." As she looked into the vulnerability in his face, she smiled softly. "Or maybe they're the only ones you let see who you really are." Liquid-softness fell over his eyes, and when he looked at her, there was a gratefulness in them she didn't remember having seen before. "So, you going home now?" She nodded as the bus swooshed up to the curb, and the air brakes exhaled. "What do you say I take you home?" Jaylon asked, and the vulnerability of his eyes jumped into his voice. With only a single glance at the bus, Camille knew she couldn't leave him out in the cold like this. "Maybe we can run lines." His smile beamed at her
from his eyes. "I'd like that." Camille wasn't at all sure where her sanity had disappeared to, but he had a way of making it vanish like a lady in a magic box. "Make yourself comfortable," she said when they entered the apartment in tandem. "I've got to start some supper." However, instead of sitting down on the couch like she'd expected, he followed her right into the kitchen where she dropped her books to the table. "Jeez, big day in school?" he asked, surveying the stack. She opened the refrigerator to survey supper options. "I don't like to get behind." "I can see that." He glanced around the apartment. "So, Dar's not home yet?" Camille pulled out the chicken she had left there that morning. "It's Wednesday, so she won't be home 'til about six." "Oh, what's Wednesday?" "Mrs. Heirsh, the lady that brings her home, takes her own daughter to piano on Wednesdays, and rather than take her to piano, run Daria home, and try to be back in an hour, she just takes Dar with her." "I bet that's fun to sit there for an hour." Camille ripped the chicken package open. "Gives her time to get her homework done." Jaylon stood examining Camille's books as she clanked and clattered around the kitchen. "What do you say we get started?" Camille asked as she began pulling the skin off the pieces of chicken and laying them in the baking dish. "How are you going to read and cook at the same time?" "Well, I worked on the Ethan-Dominique thing last night, so it would give me a chance to see how well I've got it down." With an impressed nod, Jaylon pulled out his own script and rather than sitting at the table, he walked over to the cabinet and vaulted up onto it. "Let's see." He paged through his script until he came to the passage. "Well, well. What have we here?" "Hi, Ethan," Camille said even as her fingers yanked the chicken skin free. "Now here's a question," Jaylon said as he shifted on the counter. "How is it that you know my name, but I don't know yours?" "You're reputation precedes you," she said with precisely the right words but missing the tone completely. Jaylon stopped and looked at her for a long moment. "Do you know you sound like a piece of wood?" "That wasn't the right line?" Camille asked as she glanced over her shoulder. "No, I mean yeah. It was the right line, but that's not enough. You've got to feel the line. Be the character. Be Dominique." Camille turned on him with a skeptical look. "I don't want to be Dominique." "I know, but if you want a decent grade, you'd better find a way to want to be her." With a frustrated sigh, Camille ripped the skin off of the last piece of chicken. Why wasn't it enough that she knew the words? What did he want? Sophia Loren? "Let's try it again," Jaylon said. "And this time think about the most annoying, obnoxious, flirtatious girl you know. Then be her." Camille tore the aluminum foil away from its box and wrapped it around the pan as her mind searched for a role model. Ariana. The one and only Ice Queen. "Okay." "Well, well. What have we here?" "Hi, Ethan," Camille said, reaching for the tone she had heard in Ariana's voice. "Now here's a question," Jaylon said, turning his body and script so he could watch her as she put the chicken in the oven. "How is it that you know my name, but I don't know yours?" "Oh, you're reputation precedes you," she said, and the heat and ice melted perfectly in the middle of her voice. "That's my kind of answer."
"That's it," she said, waving a white flag with her words as she laid an exhausted head on the table. "I'm shot." "Well, I'm impressed." He folded his script up and then followed her up from the table, watching her pick up her books. "I bet you're the only one with that much memorized." "Oh, yeah, right." "I'm serious." She dumped her books on the living room coffee table and straightened the ragged pillows on the couch to keep her hands busy. "But the words are just part of it. You know? I mean I don't know how you all do it." "Do what?" "Be someone else. Become someone else. To me, I know the words, but I'm still me. I'm not Dominique...or Lauren." Jaylon laughed. "You just have to find the parts of them that are in you." Camille leveled a skeptical gaze at him. "Me and Dominique? Uh-huh, yeah right." "Haven't you ever wanted to be like her though? To be the center of attention, the one all the guys are after, and have your pick of any guy you wanted." A slow heat crept up Camille's cheeks. "Hasn't everybody?" "That's what I mean. You've seen them, and you've wondered what it would be like to be that person." He held up his script. "This is your chance. Find that part of yourself that would like to be them for a day, and then let it go." Her face creased skeptically. "That's a lot harder than it sounds." "Not once you figure out how." At that moment she wished she could figure out how to do a lot of things-like how to stop thinking about him, and how to make sure her heart knew this was nothing more than a mirage that would disappear as quickly as it had come. "Well, I appreciate you coming and helping me. At least maybe now I won't totally bomb out." Jaylon smiled and shook his head. "You've really got to work on that being humble thing. You know that?" "Hey, you do what works." The grin fell from his face. "Yeah, you do." Camille's gaze traveled passed his shoulder to the clock. 5:50. "Well, I'd better get the rest of dinner ready." He stood for one more moment before nodding. "I had fun today-reading with you." "Yeah, so did I." They stood awkwardly for an interminable moment. "Well, I'd better get," he finally said as he stepped to her door and then stopped and turned back to her. "Oh, I thought I'd tell you, if you want to take back your invitation for Friday, I'll understand." That statement stopped Camille cold. "Take it back?" His gaze dropped to the carpet, and even without looking in his eyes, Camille saw the vulnerability in them. "I don't want to mess up anything with your friends." She wanted to reach out to him and pull him into her arms, but she just stood, firmly planted on the carpet. "Well, you're my friend too. So, I guess they're just going to have to deal with that. Now, aren't they?" When he looked up, there was gratefulness written all over his face. "So we're still on then?" "Yeah, we're still on."
By the time she finished the test, the bell for lunch had long since rung. Quickly she gathered her books and walked up to the desk to turn in her paper. "Have some trouble?" Mr. Shelton asked. "A little," Camille said, dropping her paper onto the stack and fleeing for the door. Taking the test was bad enough, taking a pop quiz about how bad the test was would be worse. In the cafeteria she got her tray and walked uncertainly to the table occupied by Nick and Lexie. "Is there room here?" They both looked up at her, and annoyance followed slowly by acquiescence gazed back at her. Lexie held a hand out to the other side of the table for Camille, who sat down and forked her food around the tray squares for several seconds. Talking might not help, but not talking certainly wasn't doing much better. "Look, I'm sorry I sprung the whole Jaylon thing on you guys yesterday," Camille said without ever looking up. "I guess I should've said something sooner. I just didn't know how. I mean I know how you feel about him." She looked at Nick. "And I wasn't sure how to tell you, or if you'd even want to know, which I guess you didn't." "So you're really serious about this then?" Lexie asked still not wholly convinced. "You and Jaylon are really friends?" "Yeah." Camille looked at her friend. "And it would really mean a lot to me if you guys would give him a chance." She looked back at Nick. "He's really not as bad as you think he is." Nick snorted softly. "I'm serious," Camille said pleadingly. "He's really a nice guy." "Look, Camille," Nick said with a sigh. "I know you think he's great guy and everything, but trust me, okay? The guy isn't worth the DNA that it took to make him." "But you don't know him." "No," Nick said, and harshness ripped through the word. "You don't know him. Believe me, the only person Jaylon Quinn cares about is Jaylon Quinn. If he has to use you for a step ladder to get what he wants, he will in a heartbeat and never so much as say thank you for your trouble." Camille's face was set in a permanent frown. "He's not like that." "Yes, he is." "How do you know?" Camille challenged. Nick shook his head. "Forget it. Okay. Just forget I said anything." "No." She had come this far, and she wasn't about to back down now. "Either you tell me what is so unbelievably terrible about him, or I'm going to get up from this table and walk away right now." Her mind was made up, and when Nick made no move to explain himself, she laid her hands on either side of her tray. "Fine. If that's the way you want it." When he looked up, there was fire in his eyes. Then his gaze slid over to Lexie, who looked like she might cry at any moment. "Okay," he finally said. "If you want to know the truth, I'll tell you the truth." Slowly Camille let go of her tray and told her brain to prepare for the worst. Nick glanced at her. "I told you I'd had some parts in some community stuff?" Camille nodded. "Well, so did Jaylon," Nick said as bitterness dripped from his voice. "Every time I'd show up for an audition, he was there-all spit-shined and polished. And he was good, too. Real good. Used to make me sick." So Nick was jealous, big deal. Everybody got jealous sometimes. "He'd walk up to the center of the stage like he owned the whole blasted place. The judges, the casting directors-they all went ga-ga over him. The great Jaylon Quinn. He could do no wrong." The corners of Nick's mouth crushed themselves together. "I hated him. "Then one summer we got cast in this play together. I guess that would've been right before freshman year. Anyway, my part only had like three lines, and his was like a hundred. Then just before the show started, he got an invitation to go to this acting camp in California or something like that. He was all excited about it. Kept telling everyone how cool it was that he was going to get to go to California. Hollywood here I come." Nick's jaw set. "I was just glad he was leaving. You know? That way the rest of us second class losers wouldn't have to hear about the great, almighty Jaylon Quinn and how wonderful he was." Softly Nick laughed as his fork spun circles on his plate. "The casting director was a wreck. Jay really left him in the lurch, but I'd been to every single practice. Every one. And I'd stand in for Jaylon when he didn't show up. But nobody noticed that-they were all just so happy when he was there, like he'd decided to grace everyone with his presence or something." Nick shook his head at the thought. "But then Jaylon told them he was leaving, and they had to find somebody else, somebody to replace the great Jaylon Quinn. I mean two days before the performance really isn't the best time to try to find a replacement for something like that. They were even thinking about just canceling the show." He picked up his head ever so slightly. "So, I went to the director and told him I could do it. At first he wasn't so keen on that idea, but then we did a run-through and I didn't screw anything up, so they figured they'd just found their solution, and everybody was all happy again. They were calling me their hero, and saying they just didn't know what they would ever do without me." Camille's gaze was locked on Nick, who never so much as glanced up from his tray. The hurt in his voice sent an ache right through her. Still, however, she held onto the hope that he was just making too much out of some petty little kid problem that ultimately meant nothing. "Man, I was so excited. I called everyone I could think of. My grandparents even drove two hours to come for it. I practiced night and day for two solid days, and I had the part down. Then the night of the first performance, I walked into the dressing room, and there stood Jaylon and the director. "'Oh, Nick,' the director said like we'd just been saved from certain death. 'Jaylon's decided to stay and finish the performances. Isn't that great?'" "Ouch," Lexie said softly. "Yeah, ouch." Nick glanced at her and then back to his tray. "'Tough luck.' That's what he told me, 'Tough luck, McGee.' Like that made everything all better. I know, it was four years ago, so get over it already. But I'm telling you he gets his kicks out of doing stuff like that. He'll get your hopes up, and then he'll yank the carpet right out from under you. Wham! And you never even see it coming." Camille was struggling to get the Jaylon she knew to fit into the box Nick was painting, but try as she might, he just wouldn't fit. "Maybe he's changed." "Nobody can change that much," Nick said, and then he looked at her. "Look, I know you think he's so wonderful and all, but trust me, he's not who you think he is. I guess what I'm saying is watch out. Okay? Don't get too close, and don't start thinking that you're anything other than some piece of furniture in his life that he can replace any time he decides to. That's just how he is." Her gaze snagged on the hand across the room as it feathered through a fall of soft brown hair. Sitting by himself, Jaylon was reading something laying on the table, and she wondered for a moment what it was. When had he come in? Had he been here before she had arrived? Or did he see her sitting with her friends and decide to sit elsewhere? Questions with no answers tumbled into her mind. "Well, I guess we have a problem then," Camille said, still unwilling to turn her back on him. "I asked him out for Friday night, and I'm not going to tell him he can't go now. So, I guess either we go with you guys, or we go out by ourselves." She looked back at both friends. "It's your choice." Lexie's face crumpled as she stood on the line Camille had just drawn. Fearfully, Lexie looked across the table at Nick. It was obvious that Nick wanted to tell Camille that Jaylon simply wasn't welcome, but then he caught Lexie's gaze, and he withered. "No, if you invited him, and you still want to bring him along, I guess that'll be okay. I'll just have to restrain myself from knocking his block off." "I'd appreciate that," Camille said with only the slightest of laughs.
"Hey," Jaylon said, sitting down on his heels by her chair, startling her pencil into an arc across her paper. "Sorry." "You know, you're really going to have to stop doing that," she said with a laugh. He smiled and then grew serious again. "I was just wondering if we're still on for tonight." "All systems are go," she lied brightly as she erased the errant line. "We'll be there to pick you up about six." "Cool," Jaylon said, and then he glanced passed her, and his face fell. "Well, I guess I'll see you then." Gently he laid a hand on hers for one second, and then he stood, pulling her gaze up with him. She watched him as he strode down to the front and took his seat between two empty ones. "Still under the influence, huh?" Nick asked with the resentment right under the surface. She looked up at him, and her heart fell. "Yeah. I guess I am."
It was true, she was excited, but she was also so nervous that she thought she might very well throw up at any moment. In a not-too-comfortable silence, they rode to Jaylon's with Camille praying the whole way that both guys would behave themselves and not make her apologize to her best friend forever for ruining her 18th birthday. Nick's car pulled up at the curb, and somehow Camille hadn't really realized that it would be her job to go up to the door and get him. However, she quickly figured out that they couldn't very well sit out in front of his house and honk, so she pushed out of her door and forced the strangling fear in her throat down. Taking one more breath, she hit the doorbell. Anxiously she looked back at the car, going through a quick escape plan should the next moment be the disaster she was expecting. With a crack the door opened slightly, and then swung full open. "Hi," Camille said to the stern-looking man with salt-and-peppered hair who stood on the other side of the threshold. "Umm, is Jaylon here?" "Camille." Jaylon descended the staircase that led up from her view into obscurity above. "Sorry. I was running a little late." "Oh, that's okay," Camille said with a cursory glance at the older man. "We're probably a little early." Jaylon grabbed his jacket out of the closet and joined them at the door. "Oh, Dad, this is Camille Wright. Camille, this is my dad." "It's nice to meet you," Mr. Quinn said, extending his hand without ever cracking so much as a smile. She tried to make a smile form on her own face, but she was sure it looked far more like a grimace. "Nice to meet you." For one long awkward moment they stood there, and then Jaylon looked at Camille, and she was sure it was a sigh she heard. "Well, we'd better get going." "Yeah, they're waiting." She glanced back out at the car-wholly unsure which place would be the most awkward. "Twelve-thirty," Mr. Quinn said, and there was a slight edge to his voice. Jaylon nodded. "We'll be here." Quickly they ducked out and shut the door behind them. With only the walk down the sidewalk as their safety zone, instinctively they huddled closer together, bracing for the coming storm. At the car, he opened the back door, and she got in. "Hi," he said by way of general greeting to the car's occupants. "Hi," Lexie said, and silently Camille thanked her for at least trying to sound happy. "Happy Birthday," Jaylon said as if that statement might get his head chopped off. Nick pulled away from the curb without saying a word. "Thanks," Lexie said, and Camille heard the awestruck tone of her voice, just as surely as Nick did. "Well, how does it feel to be 18?" "Good," Lexie said with a nod. Car sounds overtook the conversation as Camille sat straight up wishing this didn't feel so much like getting her teeth pulled. "Tell him what you got, Lex." "Oh, yeah. I got a CD player from Mom and Dad. It's a 100 changer," Lexie said, warming to the topic. "And Camille gave me this hair clip." She turned her head so he could see. "Nice," Jaylon said. "And Nick gave me this necklace." She tried to twist enough for Jaylon to see it, but she didn't quite make it far enough. "I think you'll have to show me when we get there," Jaylon said with a laugh. "But I'm sure it's beautiful. Nick seems to have really good taste." Lexie smiled brightly, and this time Camille was almost sure it wasn't a fake. "We were thinking we might go see the galaxy show at the Discovery Center after dinner. What do you think?" "Sounds great to me," Jaylon said as he settled back next to Camille.
"Hey, I heard the choir is going to D.C. in April," Jaylon said, and Camille was grateful for the effort. "Yeah, but they're only taking half of us," Nick said. "I'm sure I won't even make the cut." "Oh, why not?" Jaylon asked, looking genuinely surprised. It was at that moment that Camille realized the dilemma Jaylon Quinn presented. He was such a good actor, it was impossible to know if his interest was sincere and how much was just a good show put on by someone who couldn't really care less. "They're only taking four baritones. I'm number five." "Oh. So, how do you get to be number four?" "Impress Mr. Jacobs." "Ah," Jaylon said, nodding as though he understood that perfectly. "And that's a problem?" Camille asked, not sure of anything at the moment. "Jacobs plays favorites," Jaylon said, filling in the gray area. "If you're not one of them, tough luck." The hairs on Camille's neck stood on end as she saw the look of revulsion slide across Nick's face. "Yeah, tough luck," Nick said barely concealing the anger. "You know though," Jaylon said slowly, "it'd be a shame to give up now and let Jacobs win. I've heard you-you're really good. I'm sure if you just put in a little more work..." Nick shook his head. "No, I've already decided. I'm just going to concentrate on drama. That'll give me enough to do for the spring." "Oh? What part do you want?" Jaylon asked obliviously, and alarm bells sounded in Camille's head. "I'd really like to get Hawk." Nick shrugged. "But I'd settle for Ethan." Jaylon nodded. "I can see you as Hawk before Ethan." "Why?" Lexie asked as she twirled her spaghetti on her fork. "Hawk's a nice guy," Jaylon explained as though that should be obvious. "Ethan's just a jerk." "Yeah," Nick said with a small laugh, and Camille was thankful he didn't add what she knew he was thinking. "How's that lasagna?" Camille asked Nick, grabbing the conversation steering wheel and turning it for all she was worth. Nick looked down at his plate. "It's great. It's got some kind of seasoning on it. Kind of garlic or oregano. It's good."
On one side of her Jaylon sat up twice, shifted, and then settled in. On the other Lexie snuggled in to Nick with little trouble. Between them, Camille felt like she might be sick. It could be worse, she told herself. Nick and Jaylon could've started a food fight right in the middle of Orlando's. That thought made her laugh softly. Jaylon turned his head to gaze at her. "What?" "Nothing." The melancholy settled back over her. "You know I was really worried about tonight," he said as he leaned in closer to her. Then in an inexplicable instant his hand bridged the gap between them and took hers gently. "But I'm glad I came." "Me, too," Camille squeaked out just as the lights cut off, plunging them into total darkness. Her gasp was drowned out by a hundred others. Suddenly her heart took over her being as Jaylon's hand worked its way over hers. Fingers to palm he massaged the edge of her hand, and she had to fight to remember Nick's words. Be careful. Don't let yourself get carried away. He's only in this for himself. At that moment the entire screen above them was suddenly covered in a blanket of light points. Thousands upon thousands of them, and the last shred of forced sanity in her brain was whisked away. In awe she gazed above her, trying to take it all in. Then as though he'd practiced it a hundred thousand times, Jaylon pushed the armrest between them up, and his arm came around her shoulders. With her nerves right on the surface, she pushed her glasses up onto her face even as her head lay into soft crux under his collarbone. It made no sense at all, but for that moment, she really didn't care what Nick or anyone else thought about them. In fact, she couldn't even bring herself to care that this fleeting moment would be gone in a blink, and Jaylon would go on with his life without her. No, for this one moment she just wanted to be here, with him, and forget everything else, and if it lasted forever, that would be all right too.
"That was awesome," Jaylon said, following her up to a sitting position still gazing up at the ceiling screen that had gone back to gray. "I'd give anything to know how they do that." "It's fiber optics," Camille said as she stretched her neck so it could remember how to move. "They use a lamp power of 400 watts, but with the fiber optics they can project the stars at ten times the illuminance of a 4000 watt projector." Jaylon stared at her perplexed. "How do you know that?" Camille shrugged. "Science field trip. Fifth grade. That's when I decided I was going into Aerospace." He smiled and lifted his chin back to the dome above them in understanding. "Well, I can see why you were inspired." It was a good thing it was fifth grade and not now Camille thought. Now she could barely pay attention to anything other than keeping her breathing at a semi-normal pace. "Hey, you two," Lexie said over Camille's head. "Was that some show or what?" "Great," Jaylon said, reaching over and taking Camille's hand, which did nothing for her breathing situation. "Where to next?" By the look in Lexie's eyes, Camille knew she hadn't missed the gesture. "How about Slurpies all around?" Lexie asked with a wicked gleam in her eye. "Slurpies?" Nick and Jaylon asked simultaneously incredulous. Nick looked at them with uncertainty raining down his face. "In November?" "Of course," Lexie said with a shrug, and then she looked at Camille who joined in with her laughter. "There's no line!" Both guys looked at them like they had just lost their minds. "Come on." Camille wrapped her arm around Jaylon's. "It's tradition." Still with raised eyebrows, Jaylon nodded. "Tradition, huh? And who came up with this tradition?" "Who do you think?" Camille asked, tilting her head demurely. "Well, I think whoever came up with it should have her head examined," Jaylon said but he couldn't contain the smile. "Hey," Lexie said as they all exited the row. "Watch what you say about my friend." "Yeah." Camille shouldered into Jaylon. "Watch what you say about me." With a wink only she saw, he smiled. "I'll be careful. I promise." Camille ducked her head as she followed her friends out. "So, what, then Zazoo's?" Nick asked still looking somewhat mystified by the request. "Zazoo's!" Camille and Lexie both said, dodging into each other and collapsing into giggles although each of them still held onto a guy's hand. "Just don't let Lexie get too close to you," Camille warned, gazing at her friend with a teasing smirk. "One time!" Lexie said in mock hurt. "One time and she'll never let me forget it." "One time, yeah. And the next year, what happened?" "Okay, one time, and then a small accident." "Grape Slurpie on a new white shirt. That's a little accident?" "I said I was sorry." "Yeah, and that took that stain right out," Camille said with a serious nod. Then she ducked her head to address just Jaylon. "I'm telling you don't get too close to her." "I'll take your advice, but I think our friend here may have some trouble with it," Jaylon said, grinning at Nick. "Hey, what are you two whispering about?" Lexie asked, fighting to keep a frown on her face. "Oh, nothing," Camille said, swinging Jaylon's hand at her side. "Uh-huh." Lexie narrowed her eyes at them. "You just watch it, or I might have to wake you up." Camille flung one hand in front of her face. "Oh, please, no. I'll be good." Then she leaned back to Jaylon and stage-whispered, "Whatever you do. Do not fall asleep with her around. Lexie's got a unique way of making sure you don't oversleep." "Oh, yeah? What's that?" Jaylon asked, looking from one girl to the other obviously thinking the insane asylum might be a better destination for them. "A baseball bat!" both of them said, falling into another round of giggles. "What did you put in their dinner?" Jaylon asked Nick with concern. "I don't know, but I'm beginning to think they're on something," Nick said. "Yeah," Lexie said, giggling anew. "First we were on the car seat." "And then we were on the restaurant seats!" Camille continued, following Lexie's lead. "And then we were on the theater seats!" they both said, dissolving again into giggles. The guys looked like they weren't quite sure what they had stumbled into. At the car Nick opened Lexie's door, and she unlocked the rest. Camille tumbled inside with Jaylon right behind her. Nick started the car. "So you really want to go to the Zazoo's?" "Zazoo's!" both girls said, and once again they collapsed into giggles.
"I had fun tonight," she said as they ambled up his walk. "So did I," he said. "It was fun seeing you like that." She looked at him puzzled. "Like what?" "I don't know." At his front door he turned to her and ran his hands down her arms until at the bottom he grasped both hands in his. "Happy? Relaxed?" "I'm relaxed," she said instantly defensive. He laughed softly and then grew serious. "No, most of the time you're a kid trying to make everyone believe you're an adult." The smile fell off of Camille's face as her head fell forward. He waited a moment, but she couldn't bring herself to respond. "Hey, I didn't mean to bring you down." He lifted her chin gently. "I just meant I'd like to see more of you like tonight." She smiled, but it wasn't the unstoppable one she'd had before. "Thanks for coming." "Thanks for asking." And then in a split second he leaned forward and brushed his lips over hers. "I'll see you tomorrow." The shock from the touch of his lips reverberated through her, sending electric waves through her body all the way down to her toes. When she regained consciousness, she realized he was gone, and with great effort she forced her feet to turn and carry her back to the car. "Home?" Nick asked when she got in the car. She nodded unsure she had even moved. "Home."
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