Five.....visitor

the story continues

He pulled out a chair and sat down, Genny cautiously taking one beside him, while her friends remained silent, waiting.

Looking at him, the expression on his face was peculiar, Genny thought, his eyes looking lazily angry and a darker shade, as if he was so passionately furious that he had gone past the point of expressing it in his face. The set of his jaw was strong though, tight and tense, as was his brow. But the real tell-tale of his anger, or sadness " Genny knew all too well the two came hand in hand " was the way his fists were clenched, reddening in his grip, beads of sweat dripping down them. All the pain or rage Will Davenport felt in this moment were localised to his hands. She found it quite enviable, she hated emotional displays, crying in front of others, heated outbursts, even getting overexcited about something, she loathed it; that he could be evidently in so much anguish and confine it to one discreet area of his body was genius really.

“C’mon,” he said without warning, “It’s time for an adventure; you’re not doing anything today right?”

She glanced around the cafeteria, “Besides school?”

Suddenly he was part of the present again, and peered around at the rest of the faces in the room. “It’s not an adventure unless we’re breaking some rules, like eating ice-cream in dead winter,” a hint of a smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

Genny looked over at all her friends praying for someone to give her a reason not to, and their faces said it all; they’ll be school again tomorrow.

“W-what do you wanna do?” she said, as they began out of the room.

“I need to go some place I’ve never been, never taken Naomi, never-,” he paused, “how often do you take boat rides,”

He was looking at her now, glancing from eye to eye imposingly waiting for an answer.

“Not often enough I’m guessing,” she replied, pushing up her glasses.

“Let’s go on a trip. Naomi never got to go on Landon’s yacht, it’s new, 18^th birthday present,”

“Oh,” Genny said in astonishment, “I was hoping for a moped for mine maybe,”

“He already got a Ducatti for his 17^th,” he paused, “S-sorry,” Will replied, after realising what he was doing, usually people were impressed or trying to one-up him in school. He’d forgotten she couldn’t, and probably had more integrity than that anyway.

Before she could reply she spotted Summer striding purposefully across to parking lot to meet them.

“Wilbur,” she said, before spotting Genny, “Hi Gen,”

“Hey,”

“Will,” she said before pausing and recalculating, “Where on earth are you going?”

“Boat ride,” he shrugged.

“So the whole schools talking about you, and laughing at you, and you’re gonna run away, like a p***y,” she said, arms folded, eyeing him up. He said nothing, but his jaw was tensed. “You see? This is what happens when you get involved with- with certain types of girls,”

She didn’t need to say anymore for him to know exactly what she meant, and the two of them knew running off with Genny as a rebound girl probably wouldn’t help that.

“She’s right Gen,” Will said, his face suddenly a lot cooler, “I’m gonna go to the rest of my classes, I just need to talk to my sister first,”

“Okay,” she said, resting her hand on his arm, “I’m here if you need me,”

Summer waited until she was out of earshot to speak. “You’ve always been an emotional kid Wilbur,” it was true, Will got a bit babied being the youngest and Summer always tried to prove she was as tough as the boys, “but there are times when you need to cut your heart out of your chest and leave it alone. It’s unnecessary, and you should’ve done it a long time ago with Naomi. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

He sighed at her dramatics, “You’re saying if I wanna keep seeing Genny I need to cut my heart out of my chest,”

“No human should be able to reach it. I went out with Brett the whole of freshman year; I still could’ve killed him in a heartbeat if I needed to,”

“Don’t lie to yourself,” Will replied.

“I could’ve let him die,” she amended, “And that’s what you need to be able to do,”

 

Genny found herself marginally disappointed, how often did she let herself do anything spontaneous? There was what happened at Marni’s party, but she didn’t count it because it was fuelled by an inexplicable amount of rage. The real answer was not often enough. Will felt like spontaneity personified. And he’s single now hopefully, she thought to herself as she climbed through the skylight in her attic.

There was no longer any snowfall, the worst of it was over, just frost lining the untouched surfaces of the neighbourhood. When the sun shone right, it looked quite dazzling before it melted. Cars periodically whizzed past, 2 families, a lone driver with a cigarette hanging out the window, and a couple of teenage guys Genny spotted.

Cooling off, she was just cooling off. She thought meditation in the invigorating chill would calm her down. Not that she had any reason not to be calm, but even the slightest irritation from someone around her and she very realistically envisioned slamming a head into a wall, or gouging out eyeballs. Genny had to count backwards in Spanish before the fury dissipated, and after it felt as though someone else had occupied her mind, surely she’d never snap the neck of the person who harshly but accidently bumped into her? It didn’t help that after the gatecrash she pulled, most of the sophomore class thought she was a psycho, barring the few who knew and loathed Marni Griffiths and Antonia Warrington like she did.

Her head fell into her gloved hands. “I am a psycho. I’m actually an insane person. Why?”

“Are you talking to yourself?” came a voice from the loft.

Peering behind her she could see David now standing under the skylight. “Yes. Discussing and deciding the degree of my insanity hermano,”

“Who in all of history got to decide exactly how sane they were for themselves?” he asked.

Genny considered this. “Then tell Natalia to contemplate professional help,” she said as she climbed back down into the attic, “You studying?”

“Gotta earn that scholarship,” he replied, dropping into one of the chairs and flicking open a textbook.

They weren’t rich people but Natalia had high aspirations for her kids, she could never afford to put David through prep school, but if all went well this summer David would have a scholarship to Cal Tech. Recently he lived in his history books.

“I’ll leave you with your space,” she said, surreptitiously knowing it was her own space she was seeking. She decided it was time for a walk in the park, her headphones and nothing else.

 

It had been a long time since Will had got the call from Blake, about twenty minutes after sundown, telling him the Aphotians were lose and they needed him standing by in the lower area. He’d geared up for the second time and waited and waited. He got a mocha and a cookie and waited some more. He sat at this particular Starbucks up until it closed, and continued to stand outside it, looking like a weirdo or a guy determined that his date will show up to anyone watching, smoking a cigarette periodically in nothing warmer than a red flannel jacket.

It was all quite excruciating, it left his mind free to wonder and it kept bringing him back to how mad he was at Naomi. But there was nothing he could do about it now; he wasn’t allowed to be distracted while on a hunt, yet at the same time what he needed most was a distraction. Music was also prohibited, it engages one of your senses and leaves you vulnerable " or you simply might not get the job done because of something you should’ve heard but didn’t. Yes, Will needed this to end as soon as possible.

It was pitch black when his phone finally buzzed. “Blake?” he asked, only hoping for something to do.

“Go home Will, it’s over, they’ve evaded us again,” she said before hanging up, clearly bitter.

Immediately he put his headphones on and headed back to the Hall. His Triarn knife was waiting for him in the weapons room, still covered in blood. It was ritual that everyone handles and washed their own blades; so he cleaned his and put the last of them away, before taking a run home.

At least I got to stab someone today.

 

All it took was one click, and Genny was semi-sure it was from Will, one click and their relationship status changed and everybody knew it. Seeing Will single got over a hundred likes from the girls in their school, and Will as a laughingstock didn’t last too long, too many girls thought he was hot and they knew laughing at him was no way to get his attention.

Genny spied him from a little ways down the hall talking to Rachael Weinstein. She was giggling and flipping her hair like she was in junior high, Genny thought. She pushed up her glasses and adjusted her bag before going over to him.

“Coming to lunch Will?”

“I really hope you can make it,” Rachael said, ignoring her, “bye,” she ended with another giggle.

“Whenever I see you you’re flirting with another girl,” she commented as they reached the cafeteria.

“No, they’re usually flirting with me,” he said with a smug grin.

She rolled her eyes.

“Look, I don’t wanna come off all victimy or pathetic when Naomi gets back, she needs to see I’m fine without her,”

“But she’s not here yet,” Genny said without thinking as she picked up a sandwich, instantly regretting her slip of the tongue.

Will smiled at her blush. “You know, Rachael asked me to be her date at her brother’s bar mitzvah,”

“Are you going to?”

“Do you want me to?”

“Do I care?” Genny spluttered, with a laugh too hard for someone who didn’t care.

“Well I don’t know, but now the choice is yours, take your time, it’s next month,”

“Wait Will, what?” she asked, watching his devilishly wild Cheshire cat smile.

“I have more recent things to worry about, like my party on Saturday, it’s semi-formal dress by the way,” he said as they sat down

“You’re having a party on Saturday?”

“Yeah, you’ll be there, whole sophomore class will be invited, and my brothers’ friends,”

“I can’t come, I already have plans,” Genny replied, withholding that her plans entailed a movie and going out for some pizza with her friends, all of which wouldn’t mind postponing for a Davenport house party.

“You’re breaking my heart Gen!” Will exclaimed loudly as he grabbed his chest and held out his arm, startling her.

“Alright, alright, if the others are cool with it we’ll cancel and come to your thing,”

“What thing?” Freddie asked as he and Eden sat down.

“My house party, Gen said you guys already have plans for Saturday though,”

Genny’s face immediately began heating up.

“Genny, we can do a movie and pizza’s any night, we’re definitely going,” Eden said to her, to Will’s immediate laughter.

 

Genny felt sharps pangs of déjà vu course through her as she hastened to Jay’s house, vaguely remembering to pay enough attention to avoid the ice. The memories of the last time she’d made this journey were spiralling through her mind and she feared that she’d never be able to make it to Jay’s without images of the scarlet snow forcing themselves back into her mind. She thought she was okay with it, it was just something that happened but as she neared the place where it occurred her pulse was rapidly inclining and the temperature inside her parka intensified.

Breathe, she told herself and before she knew it she was at Jay’s door. Calm down, you didn’t really think it was going to happen twice?

“Gen, hey,” Eden said upon opening the door, “Okay we’re having a superhero argument, Jay wants to watch Transformers, Freddie is adamant on The Amazing Spiderman and Paige told me to get everyone to agree to Thor, what do you think?”

Happily back in the present Genny thought about it, “I’m with Jay, nothing beats Optimus Prime and Megatron,”

After hanging up her coat Genny flopped down on a Leather sofa next to Freddie whose hair all but shielded his face from sight while he scrawled on a blue note pad.

“Writing songs again?” Genny said while reaching down for one of the Dunkin’ Donut’s in the dozen Jay’s mom had left from them, “You’re gonna forget all about us when you’re a big recording star, and you’re out womanizing with Justin Bieber,”

Freddie cringed. “If I ever become ‘one of them’ shoot me, shoot me in the knee cap,”

“With pleasure,” she replied, pushing her glasses up, “but seriously, that book must have like a hundred songs in it, how many of them have you recorded?”

“About 5,” he said, flashing his invisible style braces.

Genny gave a meaningful look and opened her mouth before and buzz from her phone interrupted her; ‘725 N Kingsbury street Gen, I know you haven’t forgotten about the party you’re so excited and honoured to attend Saturday night ;) do your best to contain yourself,’ it read.

“Is that from Will?” a soft voice said from above Genny

“Jesus Paige, where did you come from?”

“Jay just let me,” she said, not appearing to comprehend Genny’s shock, “he gets so cocky in such an endearing way, I guess that’s why he gets away with it,”

“He does not,” she argued back.

“He does,” the other girl replied, “It’s that cute face of an Angel, sewn onto the flesh of a demon. That’s how Rachael describes him. I think I agree, if not understand,”

“Rachael Weinstein?”

“I don’t know any others,” Paige said taking a seat beside Genny.

For reasons Genny declined to think too much about she held onto that peice of information, that imagery of Rachael swooning over Will and knew she had to keep an eye on her on Saturday.

 

For the rest of the week she finally thought her random bouts of steaming anger had disappeared when a girl from her neighbourhood bumped into her, and her violent streak peaked, like the raging torrent following the calm of the eye of the storm. All it took was that momentary contact on the frosty day and before she knew it Genny was on the floor grappling with the other girl. Soon she found herself being pulled off her by none other than her older brother.

“What the hell Argent?” he said as he pulled her into the car.

She said nothing; she simply wiped her nose which dripped blood on her sleeve.

“What did she do? You don’t just fight with people over nothing, I swear I heard you screaming in Spanish,” he looked at her and she still said nothing, “something along the lines of puta, que te jodan lagarta,”

Genny laughed a little. “I’m sure she understood everything I said,”

“So what happened? What could she have done to deserve my little sister kicking her a*s, when she’s never kicked anyone’s a*s before,” he said.

“I’ve been in fights before,” she replied, defending herself, though she knew she was far from having a fighting reputation.

“But not like that,”

“David you’ve been teaching me to fight since I was seven,” she replied, attempting to accredit it to him, “Why on earth did you stop me?”

“You’d already won by then, and it was clear you weren’t going to stop yourself,”

“I had...” she thought aloud, not able to remember whether or not that had happened, but she could no longer even picture the girl’s face before David pulled her off of her.

“Yeah, you had. How did it start?” he asked again.

“She bumped into me...” she said, feeling stupid hearing it out loud.

“So you went all incredible hulk on her a*s?” he joked.

“It’s not even like that! I said ‘hey, watch it’, and she said, ‘watch what? Puta fea,’, so I said, ‘I don’t think I heard right, what did you just call me?’, then she repeated it, then the rest is a blur,”

They’d pulled up to the house by now and were sitting in the driveway. David’s eyebrows were furrowed; he hated being the responsible one.

“No more fighting Genny, please, can’t afford to be worrying about you, and if Tia Natalia catches you you’ll have a real fight to face up to,”

She sighed exaggeratedly. “Fine David,”

 

The night was relatively clear, which was pleasing seeing as it had rained and rained hard for the past four nights. It was almost four o clock and Genny was up in her room on an out of the ordinary day. She rarely spent too long in her house, she neither enjoyed the chaos of the house nor being cooped up in her personal sardine can, but today she was alone. Natalia and Jorge had taken Marta and the boys to Six Flags, and Alma had gone to the cinema with friends. David’e whereabouts were, as usual, unknown. His mantra was work-hard play-hard so despite only seeing him study when he was home, Genny couldn’t remember the last Friday night he got home before midnight, and he was usually out again by midday. As an adult Natalia let him choose not to come to church, so he usually slept in on Sundays.

When her laptop came to life she semi-automatically opened facebook before the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end to the distinct tapping sound on her window. Her head impulsively snapped up as her eyes widened, and she wondered for a brief moment in time if her hallucination were returning. Peering in at her from outside was a girl in nothing but a tank top and leggings.

She is at my window. There is girl at my window. Outside my second story window is a girl. There is a person waving at me from outside my window.

Author's Note

This isn't my most exciting chapter, honestly it's more about growth with the character than continuing the plot, I promise it gets more exciting, this chapter was actually so boring to me it took ages to write. Helpful suggestions welcome/