Four: Carmella

By the time Wednesday had come (leaving behind the discovery of Audrey's body on Monday), I had left all my sadness behind and replaced it with something very well known to me. 

I sat my butt down in Chemistry II, next to the ever-smiling Emelia. This girl was the definition of happiness. She could be standing in the middle of a downpour, having been mugged three minutes before, and she'd still smile that big smile of hers. It was really infectious. In fact, when I walked in the classroom, just seeing her figure at our table made me drop the frown on my face and replace it with a grin. She was like that. She just knew how to make someone's day with a simple expression. 

I dropped my books on the table as she turned to me. Her soft eyes watched me with excitement as I took in the beakers and testing tubes. 

I didn't care speak, though. Our chem teacher was a real jerk if we didn't do the Bellringer on the board before the bell. I grabbed a loose sheet of paper from my binder and scribbled a note to her. 

What chemicals do you think we're messing around with, today? 

She read the note and scribbled back. She passed it quickly and put her head down as the teacher looked back up at us. He was always watching our table. I read the note over quickly as I wrote down the answers to the questions. 

I don't know. But something tells me you'd find a way to make it explode. 

Oh, Em, you know me so well! 

The bell rang and Emelia had decided halfway through the questions to just copy off my paper. She dropped her pencil and turned to me. 

"So, did you hear about the accident on the field yesterday," she questioned me. I chuckled into my hand, trying to keep the teacher's attention off of us. 

I'd heard about it. Xavier Bane had been walking into the locker room when he heard two football players harassing a freshman girl. If there was anyone in this school who was famous for a heroic temper, Xavier Bane. 

Speak of the devil, and he shall appear, for the gorgeous b*****d stepped through the door two minutes after bell with Kaden in tow. They were halfway to the table when the teacher scolded them with a deep, gravelly voice. 

"Why are you late," he growled. 

I listened to Xavier give him a sad excuse about his locker not opening when we all knew the church two blocks away gave all their fundraiser proceeds to the school to update our lockers, computers, and a bigger library. The books on the other hand... 

"DETENTION!" The teacher was red-faced and angry, spitting as he yelled at my best friend and the messy haired-boy. "You both have it! Never be late to my class again!" 

And just like that, his emotions switched at the flick of a switch. "Alright, class, let's turn to page 216 for our lesson today on covalent bonds..." 

Our chemistry teacher is a psycho. 

"Hey, Em," Xavier whispered as he sat at our table, right across from me. Kaden took the seat on front of Emelia and nodded at us, not wanting to offset our bipolar teacher. I smiled big as I cooed at Xavier, "What, no greeting for me, Avi?" 

"F**k off, Carmella." 

Let me give you a few facts about the boy sitting in front of me. He was a god-sent to all warm-blooded females out there. Or, at least, to me he was. Xavier (Or Avi, as I preferred to call him) was a tall boy with nice, lean muscles and very strong arms. His fingers were worn out and calloused from his extensive cello playing. He'd offhandedly commented to me once in sixth grade orchestra that he'd been playing since he was four. That year I played violin, but quit after I'd broken my arm in one of our ridiculous bow fights. I blamed him. He blamed my bad eye-to-hand coordination. In the end, he got the music, I got the skateboard. 

If the cello playing and strong arms weren't enough, he had these golden-toast colored eyes that melted when he laughed. It was hard to see them half the time, as his floppy brown-blonde hair was always falling in the way of his sight. 

Xavier and I had always been the kind of friends where we didn't admit we enjoyed the other's presence. We had too much pride for that; oh, yes, we did. We would fight, insult each other, beat each other, but it always came down to the fact that at the end of the day, we'd laugh about it. That was, until I made him mad. It was a hate-hate relationship. If anything, it was just as entertaining as the friendship Kaden and I shared. 

I winked at my frenemy as I whispered to him in return, my face right in his, "Oh, hush. You love me." 

He grumbled something under his breath before flicking my nose and pushing me back into my seat. I laughed behind my hand and passed my paper to Kaden as Emelia passed hers to Xavier. They both copied diligently before turning to the book to page 216, as the teacher spoke about covalent bonds and such-and-such. 

Yeah, it was a good day so far. 

-_*_- 

CaramelSensation: Who's ^ 4 sum chat! 

CandyCane237: Just log off, w***e. Ur not wanted on here 

CaramelSensation: What do u want, Candy? 

CandyCane237: 4 u to just f****n leave 

CaramelSensation: Not gonna happen, b***h. I'm here 2 stay ;) 

CandyCane237: Sure u r, after I tell every1 bout what happened at the Conways' party over summer ;) back at ya 

QB57: Wat happened at the Conway party??? 

CaramelSensation: Candy you b***h! I swear to God I will rip you to shreds!! 

CandyCane237: U can't swear to God, remember? U don't believe in him anymore XD 

CaramelSensation: F**k you, I hope you die. 

-_*_- 

Candy Melendez was a pain in my a*s. 

We'd met in sixth grade in orchestra, due to the fact that Xavier thought we would hit it off and leave him alone. Of course, we did hit it off. But, sadly (on Xavier's part, actually, not ours), we didn't leave him alone. If anything, we made it worse on him. 

When I wasn't having Friday Fright Fests in my garage with Kaden, I was shopping with Candy. If I wasn't reading books in the library with Mushu, I was scouting potential boyfriends with Candy. Truthfully, when I wasn't with Kaden, I was with Candy. And it stayed that way for two years. 

Eighth grade was the fall out.  

All the eighth graders going to Melody Hills High after summer were invited to the Conway Manor. The Conways were freshmen twins who would be sophomores the year we all became freshmen. Conner and Carter Conway were not the first set of twins. In fact, whenever Marian Conway went to the doctor for an ultrasound, it was always the same. "Congratulations, Mrs. Conway, you're having twins." It was news in our town the first two times. The third time, it wasn't as interesting. Then the fourth time, we just kind of ignored her Twin Madness. Then she got pregnant a fifth time and popped out triplets. 

Basically, the Conway Twins were keeping a tradition. A freshman Conway would host a party for high school students and any upcoming freshmen in the eighth grade class of Melody Hills Jr. High. Kaden, Candy, Xavier and I attended as a group. I lived a block away from the Conway Manor. This resulted in a co-ed sleepover that night after the party. Candy was not involved. But my nearness to the manor wasn't the only reason Xavier and Kaden bundled on my king size bed with me all night, either of them refusing to eliminate physical contact while we slept. 

It was the mess Candy got me into the night of the party. 

I remember smoothing down my vintage polka dot dress circa 1943. The cotton of it stuck to my skin and went just above my knees in a crème white color. The soft lavender polka dots were little targets for Xavier, who continuously jabbed his pointer finger into me all night. My hair was down in waves and flipped to one side. Candy had slathered green eye shadow over my lids to "accentuate their weirdness." She'd tried to put me in heels. But seeing as I preferred not to start the sophisticated high school girl look just yet, I stuck to my flat, dark brown oxford shoes. I tied the laces tight into ribbon-like bows. I looked gorgeous. Or, at least, that's what Kaden had said. Candy told me I looked hot. Xavier stammered repetitively before turning red at his neck and turning on his heel, walking down the block to the Conway Manor. 

Before we walked through the door of the large home, letting Carter Conway throw us into the crowd of drunk, sober, high, and dancing, high school kids and eighth graders, Kaden stopped me at the top step to place a purple flower in my hair, pinning the left side of it back to leave my bangs in my face. He kissed my forehead before he murmured a soft, "Nothing more beautiful than a pretty girl with a pretty flower." 

I giggled at my best friend before whispering in his ear, "Thanks, Mushu." I kissed his cheek, and ran inside after Xavier, who was already ordering my Diet Pepsi at the house's bar. It was normal for him to do that. We'd fight, beat, yell, break each other, but he always knew that if we were out with friends, and there was a distribution of soft drinks, he was the one who ordered my fix. Kaden used to do this, but then Xavier took over. Even now, when we can't stand each other as juniors, he still orders my Diet Pepsi. 

Xavier turned around and leaned his back on the counter, crossing his lightly muscled arms over his chest. His hair fell in his eyes, and it was due for another trim soon. If he didn't trim it soon, he'd fumble on his cello, not being able to see his music. I pushed it back lightly as we waited for our drinks. 

"Look at her," he scowled. "Not even in high school, and she's already acting like a freshman w***e." 

I looked over at the crowd and saw his gaze was fixed on Candy, flirting with three freshmen boys. They ranged from scrawny to buff, ugly to gorgeous, sleazy to sweet. I laughed at him. 

"Oh, Avi," I chuckled. "She's just a little boy crazy. Like you're not girl crazy?" 

"Just because," he started as he grabbed our drinks. He handed mine over. "I have a few dates with a few cute girls from school, doesn't mean I'm girl crazy. Candy, on the other hand, is already letting guys get a good look at her boy-magnets." He was talking about her b***s. Candy and I were both gifted with our natural Latina body shapes. Thickly curved, with wide hips, and perky round breasts. But Candy was a lot shorter than me, which meant her b**b-butt ratio was proportioned a little thicker than most. Guys thought I had big b***s and large a*s? Wait until their eyes set on the sexy monstrosity that was Candy's body. 

"She's already started sexting with one of Audrey's brothers," he spat. Xavier doesn't like w****s. He doesn't like anything with an appearance like the one Candy possesses. I understand why, now. 

I shrugged my shoulders at him and grabbed his hand to drag him onto the dance floor. He refused for a half minute, before he sighed, putting down his drink, and joining me in on a Rihanna song. He wasn't a good dancer, but he knew when to stay still and let a girl do all the moving. My Cuban roots taught me how to dance like I was going to make him mine, yet not seem like a total s**t. He just rested his hands on my waist and moved his hips with mine. 

An hour or two later, I was catching cool air on the balcony upstairs when Carter Conway walked up to me. 

"What's a sexy girl like you doing here all alone," he purred. I didn't think it was possible for a human to purr, much less a guy like Carter Conway, with his golden hair and stormy gray eyes. 

"I'm not alone," I replied. "I came here with some friends." 

His eyes sparkled with recognition. 

"You're Carmella Velazquez." He chuckled. "You set the backwoods at Melody Hills Jr. High on fire." 

I groaned and dug my face into the palms of my hands. "Please, don't mention that, like, ever." 

He laughed deeply into the night. "Why? I think it's cool. Not a lot of free spirits like yours running around this dump." 

"Not one of my finer moments," I muttered. "And I'd kinda like to be known for something other than the Girl Who Plays with Fire." 

It continued on like that, laughing and conversing on his balcony. And I couldn't feel any better. I was standing on the Conway Manor's balcony, talking with Carter Conway, one of the sexiest twins around. And he wasn't even trying to run for the hills. 

He'd touch my hair, pulling at a lock, run his hand down my leg, and poke a polka dot on my dress, all these cute little things. It was driving me crazy. My mind was reeling with things I could to this boy. I could kiss him, hold his hand, kiss him, play with his hair, kiss him, poke him back, kiss him. I wanted to kiss him. 

And I did. 

I kissed him. And then, the next day, Candy wasn't my friend. 

-_*_- 

It wasn't new for me to hear Candy's name in the halls. It was something I became used to. Candy Melendez is such a s**t. 

She'd gotten a nasty reputation, though it was well deserved. 

So when Friday knocked on my door with new gossip, I didn't think twice about hearing Candy's name in the mill. Until someone said something strange. 

"Candy Melendez? Yeah, she's so out of it! She's not talking to anyone." 

"Are you serious?" 

"Totally. She's so MIA in the universe. It's like, she's there, her body and everything. But her mind isn't." 

"So weird." 

I was heading to see Rob for lunch. The hallways were empty save for the two gossiping sophomores at their locker, skipping whatever class they didn't like. 

That's when I heard it. That's when I heard Kaden scream.