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art of my mind was going insane with his scent so near and his lips so soft on my neck. The better part of me was screaming ‘no, way too fast.’ And, although, Kole was so appealing, I had to agree with the screaming side of me. I had only known Kole for a day or two. If he wanted anything to do with me, it’d have to start off with a friendship first.“N-no,” I pulled away from his arms and leaned against the closed
refrigerator door. “I’m sorry; this is just…way too fast. I don’t even know you that well. I don’t know if we’re even friends yet.” My gaze was focused on the floor.
Kole didn’t say anything. He just stood there with his arms still stretched out and his hands lightly touching my waist. I decided that taking one glance at him to see his expression wouldn’t be so bad. I blinked my eyes up to him and saw him with a smirk upon his lips and his eyes soft and tender gazing at me. I was instantly trapped in the sapphires of his eyes. My hand gripped the handle of the refrigerator door to keep myself from falling. I wondered what to do. I didn’t know whether I should move away or wait for him to say something. I was just trapped.
Finally, he sighed and let his hands fall from my waist.
“You have a point. I’m sorry, I just couldn’t help myself. That was a stupid thing to do. You deserve more respect than that.” My eyes got wide. Damn. I didn’t want to make him feel like this.
“No, no it’s okay. Uhm…why…why don’t we just uh, start the tutoring?
I’m a slow learner, so the sooner we start the better.” I took small side steps away from the refrigerator and Kole until I was free and there was no possible way for me to be trapped again.
Kole stuck his hands in the pockets of his jeans and began walking towards me. “You suck that bad?” he joked. I exhaled, deeply grateful that it seemed like everything was back to normal.
“I’d say so.” I chuckled and gave him a small smile. “Well,” I clasped my hands together. “How about we go into the living room and we can go over all this music stuff?” he smiled back and nodded.
Kole was a great teacher, but I was a poor student. I was also shy. He would tell me to sing a note he had just taught me, but I was too timid and afraid I as bad.
He had an amazing voice and I didn’t want to make a fool of myself by singing out of tune.
“Look, I won’t laugh or make any faces if you get it wrong, I’m not like that. I’ll give you constructive criticism. Okay? Now, listen to the way I sing this and then repeat it.” His voice was amazing; I didn’t want to sing after he just showed off how great of a singer he was. “Come on, your turn.”
I was extremely nervous. My stomach began to twist, my hands started getting damp; I felt my face get hot. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, exhaled, and then sang. It was only a few seconds long, but it felt like an eternity to me.
When I finished, Kole didn’t say anything. God, I’m awful.
“Uh, gosh, say something, Kole. I know I’m bad. Damn, I told you I was.” I was rubbing my hands together anxiously. Silence was worse than getting
criticized. Kole remained motionless; I didn’t dare look at his face. With the silence increasing, I decided it’d be good to end the teaching lesson. I began to gather the sheets of music.
“That was…” I turned to Kole when I heard him speak and prepared myself for the worst. “Uh, how could you say you were bad? That was fantastic! Can’t you hear yourself when you sing?” I stared at him unbelieving.
“I thought you were gonna give me ‘constructive criticism’. Ugh.” I felt angry with him for lying to me. I could take criticism, but when someone lies just to be ‘nice’ it makes me so frustrated.
“Catalina, I wasn’t—”
“Just don’t say anything.” I gathered the music sheets untidily too frustrated to put them in order. My hands, then, started shaking making it that much harder to get the sheets of music.
“Catalina, will you just listen.” His hand came down on mine stopping me from trying to grab the music. I turned to face him with frustration clear in my expression. “I said I was going to give you constructive criticism, but only if you were bad. Catalina, you weren’t bad at all. Seriously.” He didn’t sound like he was lying, so I gave in.
“Fine.” I replied.
“Okay, well, I’d say your only problem is that you can’t read music, but other than that, you should just sing. Listen to the people around you, I’d suggest listening to me, and mimic the notes they sing. Okay?” I nodded.
“Uhm I’m sorry I thought you were lying.”
“It’s alright. Don’t be afraid to admit that you’re a great singer, don’t be modest.” He gave my hand a squeeze; I slowly pulled it from underneath his.
“Okay, well, thanks for trying to teach me how to read music, that’s going to be a long process.”
“You’re welcome. I’m a patient person and it also means I’ll be able to spend more time with you.” He smiled and winked at me, which made my cheeks feel hot and turn a light red. “Do you wanna keep the lesson going?” If that meant more time with Kole then…
“Yeah! Uh, I mean, yes, that’d be nice.” We, then, went back to my lesson on reading music.
We spent the next two hours in the living room as Kole tried to help me understand how to read the notes on the sheets of music. In two hours we made only a little progress, but it was better than nothing. I had learned how to read and then sing the right pitch of only three notes. I felt bad for Kole because he was going to have to put up with my slow learning for a while. Who knew until when his patience would last?
“I think that’s enough for your brain to absorb in one day, don’t you?” Kole and I had already begun to gather and organize the sheets of music.
“Oh yes. It’s only a little but the civil war had already taken up most of the space.” I chuckled lightly.
“The civil war? Well, through all that away so we can fill you head with music.” He looked like the spokesperson for reading music. It made me laugh.
“Uhm, should you call Aiden to pick you up or would you like me to give you a ride home?”
“Would you mind? It’s quite a ways from here, pretty much on the other side of town.” I shook my head answering his question.
“Let me just write a note to my aunt and then I’ll take you over there.” He nodded and I took off to find a piece of paper and a pen.
Just as I began to write the letter, Claudia stepped through the front door.
“Hello? Catalina, you home?” I walked into her view. “Oh, hi, sweetie how was school?” she took off her coat and hung that and her keys.
“It was good. You came just in time. I’m going to take one of my friends home. He came over to help me with some choir stuff. You don’t mind, do you?”
“Mind what, dear?” We began walking toward the kitchen.
“If I take him home, and well, now that I think about it, the fact that he came over.” I rested my hands on the table.
“Oh no, on both subjects.” She smiled. “So, who is this boy?” her eye brow rose with curiosity. At that moment, Kole stepped into the kitchen for Claudia to see. Her smile immediately turned into a frown, no it was more like a sneer.
“Hello, Claudia, how are you this fine evening?” Kole was polite despite Claudia’s look.
“Quite fine, Kole.” Claudia forced out. Wait, she knew Kole already?
“You met her already?” I asked Kole facing him with confusion.
“It’s a small town, everyone mostly knows everyone here and Claudia knows my parents, so to say.” Kole answered my question, but the words seemed to annoy Claudia.
“Yeah, what he said.” She then turned her back to us. “Best get him home, Catalina, it’s getting late.”
“Uh, yeah, that’s true. Alright, I’ll be back in a bit then.” Her back was still turned to me but she nodded.
Kole and I left the kitchen before the tension in there rose anymore.
Something about Kole bothered Claudia and I didn’t want to cause any arguments between them. I quickly grabbed my keys, cell phone and coat.
“Did you get your music?” I asked Kole at the front door as I put my coat on. It was amazing how cold it could get here. I was just so use to the warmth of California.
“Yep.” He answered patting his pocket where the rolled up music sheets were sticking out.
“Alright let’s go then.”
The drive was silent. There was so much going through my mind I couldn’t think straight. Kole and Claudia obviously knew each other, but I didn’t feel like it
was on good terms. When I first spoke about Kole and Aiden yesterday, Claudia had told me to stay away. I didn’t know that she actually knew them, although that should have been clear by what she had told me just last night. It was going to be hard to have Kole tutoring me after school if my aunt didn’t want him around.
Well, she didn’t exactly say that, but she sure gave off that vibe.
“I’m sorry for the way my aunt acted around you.” I finally said breaking that silence that was initiated after Kole gave me his address to put in the GPS. He had been staring out the window ever since we left the house, but now he
redirected his gaze to me.
“It’s alright. She was polite.” He replied warily and then turned back to the window.
I wanted to ask him more questions, but figured I shouldn’t bug him with my curiosity. I’d rather ask Claudia, herself, what it was about them that she didn’t like, assuming that she didn’t like them.
“Well, this is me.” Kole announced when we arrived at the gates of an incredible house. “Push that button there, it’ll open the gates.” I did as he said and then pulled into the driveway—if that was even the proper word for it. I stopped right at the front of the enormous house.
“Wow.” I coughed out when I had finally caught my breath. “What do your parents do for a living?” I probed amazed at the elegance and size of the house.
“Uh, Jane, Aiden’s mom, is in fashion and Charles, dad, is a lawyer.” I stared at Kole.
“A lawyer? Wow, he must be really, really, good. My father is a lawyer but he doesn’t own a house like this.” I still tried to see the entire house from inside the car.
“Uhm…family inheritance helps too.” He added quickly. “Lawyers, also.” I nodded understanding. “I should get inside. Thanks for driving me. I’ll see you tomorrow at school.” He got out of the car and crouched by the open door to look in at me.
“No problem. See you. Bye.” He smiled, closed the door, and walked away.
I drove away slowly to admire the house as I did.
*
When I had gotten home that night, Claudia told me, in the nicest way, that she didn’t want Kole, Aiden, or Elizabeth over at the house. I asked her why, but she excused herself stating that she had some business to attend to.
I told Kole about it the next day and he suggested that I’d go over to his house for tutoring. I agreed.
Rachel and Melanie invited me to lunch with them during gym class. Abe was bummed but he seemed pleased that I was making girlfriends and that I wasn’t going with Kole or Aiden.
The days went by quickly and before I knew it, the weekend had come and I still had yet to come up with some lie to tell Claudia—me + Kole’s house = angry Claudia.
“How was work?” I asked Claudia as we sat down to eat the dinner I had made.
“It was good. How was your day?”
“Good.”
“Hmm.” We ate in silence with only the clatter of the silverware against the plates as sound. My lie still wasn’t perfected but I needed to get it over and done with.
“Uhm, Claudia, I was wondering if it was okay if I stayed after school for a few hours everyday. There’s this afterschool painting class and I wanted to join it.” That wasn’t too much of a lie; there was an afterschool painting class.
Claudia chewed her food before she answered, but, by her expression, it seemed as though my lie had worked. “You like painting?” she probed. I nodded excitedly.
“Oh yes. I love it.”My lips formed a huge grin showing my enthusiasm.
“Well, I don’t mind. Just make sure to bring back some paintings. We could hang them up here.” I swallowed a big chunk of my food and almost choked on it.
“Uh, yeah, sure I’ll bring some back when I can.” Damn. I mentally slapped myself. I’d have to some how paint at Kole’s house so that my lie held up. “Claudia, do you mind if I go to the store and buy some paints and stuff? I want to get that for afterschool tomorrow.” Claudia smiled finishing the food on her plate.
“Oh, sure, you should get going before they close.” A few short minutes later I had said goodbye to Claudia and was out the door.
Not all of what I told Claudia was a lie. Actually, it was the truth, but I left one thing out: I was going to see Kole. I had to tell him about my new plan to cover my lie. After going to the store quickly to grab a few items, I drove to Kole’s.
“Kole, its Catalina, I’d like to talk to you.” I spoke into the intercom at the front door.
“I’ll be right out.” His voice rang out from the intercom. It didn’t take him long to get to the front door and let me in. The inside of his house could be
described in one word: astonishing! As we walked to his room, my head kept turning, changing direction from up to down to side to side; there was just so much to take in.
“So, where are your parents?” I asked out of curiosity.
“Oh, they’re out having a dinner party at a friend’s house.” He answered grabbing my arm to pull me along since my footsteps were slowing as I looked at the many items along the way.
“They won’t mind that I’m here?” I questioned remembering how bothered Claudia was because I had brought Kole with out her knowing. He waved my question off with a swift motion of his hand.
“No, they’ll be okay with it. That’s even if they get home while you’re still here. Those parties last for hours and hours. You don’t plan on staying the night, do you?” His inquiry caught me by surprise.
I shook my head many more times than needed. “Oh, no! Of course not.”
My eyebrows scrunched together as I tried to find the words to neutralize what I had just said. “I mean, no, I do need to get home soon. Claudia thinks I went to the store to by some paint supplies.” Saying that made me remember the reason for my visit.
“Paint supplies, you’re gonna start painting again?” He probed. We, now, stood in front of a closed door. “Do you mind coming in my room?” My eyes shifted from the door to his face. Once again, I shook my head quickly; my throat seemed to dry and I couldn’t find my voice. He grabbed hold of my hand and led me in. His room was twice the size of mine and much more decorated—three days in Portland wasn’t enough time to get a room fully decorated. The room was decorated in an Irish style and it made me wonder if he was Irish. He did have the bright red hair, porcelain skin, and amazing blue eyes, but then again I could have just been stereotyping him. I wanted to ask to make sure.
“Yeah, I’m going to start painting. Uhm, sorry for asking, but, are you Irish?” my voice was low and unsure. Kole chuckled lightly.
“Is it all the Irish things in here that give that away?” He chuckled once more moving towards a black leather couch he had opposite of his television and sat down.
“Uhm…yes, I didn’t want to just assume, that’s why I asked.” Although he was already comfortable sitting down on the couch and I was getting tired of standing, I didn’t want to be rude and sit down with out being asked.
“You assumed right, though. I am Irish. So, are you going to stand there forever or come sit down by me?” he patted the space next to him. It was hard for my eyes to focus in one place as I walked attentively toward him. In the past three days I learned one thing for certain: being that close to Kole made it hard to breathe, think, or speak.
I sat down leaving enough room for at least one other person to squeeze in and sit down. Kole didn’t seem to like the idea of having space between us; he inched closer and wrapped his arm around my shoulders letting it hang loosely.
“You said you needed to talk to me about something, didn’t you? Or was that just an excuse so you could come in and see me?” Breathing started
becoming a problem and I almost forgot how to speak.
“Oh, no, I mean, yes.” He moved toward me one more inch. “Wait, no I-I came to,” One more inch closer, “well I did want to talk to you about
something,” Another inch closer, “so I’d have to see you, right? Uh…” there was no space between us now; my whole left side was touching his right side. His body felt freezing against my skin it made me inhale quickly.
“I’m sorry, I can’t help my body temperature right now.” His voice sent tingles down my spine as he spoke next to my ear.
“T-that’s okay.” I could only just breathe out the words. Stop being so foolish, I told myself, you came here to tell him something. Now tell him! I mentally nodded to myself and then took a deep breath ready to speak. “Uhm, Aiden,” I made a huge mistaken then: I looked into his eyes. I was immediately
“T-that’s okay.” I could only just breathe out the words. Stop being so foolish, I told myself, you came here to tell him something. Now tell him! I mentally nodded to myself and then took a deep breath ready to speak. “Uhm, Aiden,” I made a huge mistaken then: I looked into his eyes. I was immediately