Chapter 2

Wren made sure to get out of bed when her alarm went off. She heard Mattie snoring as he slept on her way to the bathroom. She giggled to herself. Her amusement was interrupted when Russ walked out of the bathroom and scared her half to death in the dim light of the hallway. She gasped; her hands flew up to her mouth.

            “Sorry, Wren,” Russ laughed. Wren joined him in his laughter, thinking how silly she had been to let a little thing like that scare her.

            “No, it’s fine, Russ,” Wren whispered.

            “You want me to wait for you?” he asked. Wren nodded.

            After Wren was all done getting ready, she walked out onto the front step as silently as she could, hoping Mattie would over sleep. “All Ready!” she presented herself.

            “You look cute,” Russ complimented her. “Who are you all dressed up for,” he teased.

            “Shut up,” Wren said wrinkling her nose, “You sound like Mattie!”

            Russ laughed, “I just thought maybe…”

            “Seriously! Stop!” Wren laughed. “You are being just like him!”

            “We are twins,” he reminded her. She looked up at him, his calm brown eyes, rain drops of freckles and red mop of hair. He was nothing like Mattie, Wren decided. They were like fire and water, complete opposites.

            She laughed. Russ gave her a puzzled look. “You two are almost nothing alike. Mattie is a big pain and you are actually mature,” she smiled. He smiled back at her big blue eyes, but somehow he felt he didn’t mean it.

            Wren looked at the green umbrella in her locker. She had left it in there, not wanting to tell Mattie and being unable to find Jack.  She grabbed her books, closed her locker door. Mattie was standing beside her locker.

            Wren scowled. “Aw, Bonnie what’s that look for? You’re sad I’m not late?” he grinned.

            “No. I just hate when you sneak up on me like that. You are like a ghost,” she lied.

            “Maybe I am a ghost, boo!” he whispered in her ear. She glared up at him, he grinned.

            Mattie dropped Wren at her classroom like a worried parent. He always kept a close watch on his Bonnie. She was the world to him. Like a little sister. Since her parents had disappeared when she was five, he had always been her protector. He always checked under her bed, in the closet, outside the window to make sure there weren’t any monsters when they were younger. Now, now he walked with her to all her classes, drove her wherever she wanted to be, like a shadow he was always there. Wren didn’t mind, they were almost inseparable, everything they did, they did together.

            Wren stared blankly at the chalkboard lost in one of her daydreams. She tapped her pencil off the desk. She looked out of the corner of her eye toward Jack, who she realized happened to have the same schedule as her. The brown haired boy sat next to her with his arms crossed. He glanced over at her. She quickly looked down at her paper and pretended to doodle as her cheeks burned. Wren looked down at the doodle she had made the previous day. It was an elephant. She smiled as she looked at it. It was something she had once read in a book.

            Wren stretched as she got out of her seat. It was finally lunch time and she was starving; she had skipped breakfast in her attempts to get Mattie back for making her late. She strolled into the cafeteria and looked around for Mattie or Russ. She spied Russ talking to a girl she had not seen before. The girl reminded Wren of a scarecrow, the way she swayed back and forth as she talked. Wren began to walk over to the pair, but then someone was saying her name clearly a boy’s voice, couldn’t be Mattie, he never called her by her name. She turned slowly on her heels, maybe it was just Jaimy. It was Jack. Her stomach churned as he came closer to her. She looked up into his icy blue eyes, “Here,” he said shoving a notebook into her hands.

            Wren looked down at his extended hand. He held her green sketch book, “T-thanks,” she stuttered as she took it from him.

            “You’re awfully forgetful,” he informed her, his mouth almost turning up at the corners. Wren blushed, making her blue eyes brighter; she smiled up at him hoping he wouldn’t notice. He turned around without saying another word and began to walk away.

            “See you,” Wren said more for herself than him.

Author's Note

Constructive criticism please! :)