Failing Test: Book One of The Shadow Series Page 10

  “Do you think Test will like it?”

  “Oh there’s no doubt,” replied Marcy. “You look hot!”

  Nicole began to get ready for the night while Marcy sat on the edge of her bed. They talked about nothing for a little while. Nicole had never felt this comfortable with a friend. It gave her a sense of pride that she had now become her own person. This was exactly where she belonged.

  After two and a half more wine coolers each, the doorbell finally rang.

  “There they are!” yelled Marcy as she turned to run downstairs. As she opened the door, Mark burst in.

  “Hey baby!” he honked with the smell of alcohol permeating on his breath.

  Marcy, initially ready to pull him in for a big kiss, paused as she smelled the beer on him. “Hey . . . Mark.”

  In a last-minute rush, Nicole checked her hair in the mirror, making sure that every strand was in place. Feeling the buzz of alcohol, she forced herself to settle down. In an excessively sober manner, she walked to the top of the stairs and could hear the commotion at the front door. She walked down the stairs, feeling like Scarlett O’Hara making her big entrance. Her eyes caught Test’s, and she was overcome with attraction at the look he returned.

  Test stared at her in amazement, only able to utter a single, unflattering word. “Hey.”

  Marcy turned with great enthusiasm to see Nicole’s reaction. “So much for the head start, huh?”

  Nicole giggled innocently. “What about you, handsome? You get a jumpstart, too?”

  He was speechless with a look of adoration on his face. He watched her seemingly glide down the stairs. He was certain that the look on his face was ridiculously skewed, but he couldn’t help it.

  “What’s the matter, Test?” she asked playfully.

  Mesmerized, he replied seriously, “You look amazing.”

  “Thanks,” she replied as she slipped softly into his arms. “So are you going to answer my question?”

  Flustered, he leaned back and looked down upon her beauty, his face only inches away from hers. “I’m sorry, I don’t remember the question.”

  She looked up to him with a flirtatious grin. “Did you get a jumpstart?”

  “Not me. I’m the good boy, remember,” he replied, overcome with comfort.

  “Oh, I remember all right.”

  With her arms still around him, she squeezed him tightly. She laid her head on his chest and listened calmly to his heartbeat.

  “So what have you two been up to, besides the obvious?”

  Quickly Test looked to Mark with wide eyes. “Uh, we were just hanging out.”

  Mark fidgeted. Marcy, noticing his nervousness, grabbed his hand.

  “Are you feeling any better?” she asked.

  Mark hesitated. He glanced back to Test. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

  Marcy positioned herself directly in front of him. “What was the matter?”

  Nicole quickly interrupted. “Hey, Test, can you come to the kitchen and help me with the cooler?”

  “Yeah; no problem,” he replied.

  Test looked over to Mark and patted him on the back as if to remind him that the secret was just that, a secret and not something that could be talked about. Nicole took Test’s hand and dragged him away to the kitchen. Once through the swinging door that separated the two rooms, she turned and gave him a spectacular kiss.

  Happily in shock, Test’s face flushed. “Wow. You really missed me, huh?”

  “No.” She stopped and shook her head to start over. “Yes, but I have a feeling that I know what you just did, and I’m sure it wasn’t fun for you. I thought that might make you feel better.”

  Grinning from ear to ear, he replied, “You’re right, and it did.”

  “So does Mark know?”

  “Yes,” he replied, quickly and cold.

  “Is he going to tell Marcy?” She winced as she asked the question.

  “No!” he snapped back angrily.

  “No?”

  “What do you mean, no?” he replied, mimicking her tone.

  Nicole tried to compose herself. How could he possibly keep that from Marcy? That’s going to drive him crazy.

  He was aggravated and surprised at her response. “I thought you would be with me on this?” he replied.

  “Come on, Test; think about it. They have been together for years now; plural, years. That’s a long time. You don’t keep secrets from someone you love like that. Sooner or later, she’s going to find out.”

  “What do you mean; sooner or later she’s going to find out?” He could feel the heat building inside. His pulse accelerated.

  Recognizing that he was getting angry, she gently leaned into him and attempted to speak in a rational and calm tone. “Do you honestly think that you can keep this a secret forever?”

  “What?” he replied, now clearly angry.

  Nicole put her hands on his face. “Sooner or later, Mark and Marcy are going to get married. He’s going to tell her. It’s inevitable.”

  Test hadn’t thought that far into the future. It was inevitable. And then it occurred to him, what if he and Nicole didn’t work out? Would she keep his secret then? The fire in him burned even hotter, and he fidgeted with the bottle caps that the girls had left on the counter.

  “Come on, baby, I didn’t mean to get you upset. I’m sorry,” said Nicole, running her fingers through his hair.

  He didn’t answer. He continued to fidget with the bottle caps. The thoughts were coming too fast for him to control. His emotions were rolling, and he couldn’t shut them down. His right hand was tapping the bottle caps on the granite counter top while he nervously slapped at his thigh with his left hand. Panic, anger, and love; the combination of emotions was overwhelming. With a blink, the room went into slow motion. The room was black, and the air that surrounded him hung heavy and motionless. And then as quickly as it had changed, everything returned to normal. His mind felt clouded and confused, like he had just walked through a fog and entered a strange room. Then he saw Nicole’s face.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  She was backing away from him with her eyes wide and white. Her mouth was agape, but no words were coming out. As she took another step backwards, she stumbled over her own feet.

  “Talk to me, Nicole. What’s the matter?” he asked again as he stood from the stool.

  Nicole diverted her stare and looked to the counter next to where Test was standing. That was when he realized that his right hand was very warm. Slowly he turned his hand over and realized that he was still holding the bottle caps between his index finger and thumb; only now, they were no longer bottle caps. What he was now holding was a tear-drop shape of metal. Instantly, he realized what Nicole had just witnessed.

  Stepping towards her with his arms open, he pleaded with her, “Nicole, I’m sorry. I didn’t—”

  “Stay away from me.” Her words were monotone and short.

  Test continued towards her, struggling with a way to make everything okay. The look in her eyes made him feel as if he was drowning. “Please. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

  “What just happened?” asked Nicole, her voice quivering.

  “It’s nothing. It’s just another part of the power.”

  She pulled her hair back with both hands. “I don’t know if I can handle this,” she replied.

  “Nicole, please. I promise it won’t happen again,” begged Test.

  As he spoke, he looked like a child to her. The innocence that she had always seen in him was still at the forefront. Her fear was replaced by a feeling of sympathy. She closed her eyes, and with a deep breath, arched her back and softened.

  She opened her eyes and looked at him wearily. “That was unreal, Test. I don’t know if I’ve ever been that scared before. It was like you were in another place.” With every word that she spoke, she could see the light return to his face.

  He gently took her left arm into his hand, pulled her in close to him, and gently caressed her cheek with
the back of his hand.

  “It won’t happen again,” he assured her as he brushed the hair from her face. “I promise.” He looked down upon her; her sad and fearful eyes searing through him. The only thing that he wanted was to make her feel safe. “You’re right. It isn’t fair to ask him to keep that secret.” He wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly. “She has to be the last one though, okay?”

  Still somewhat shaken by the event, she let him envelope her.

  “I know, and I understand why you’re frightened, but it’s the right thing to do,” she replied.

  Hiding behind her artificial words of understanding and comfort, she couldn’t make herself comfortable in his arms, as she had been only minutes before.

  “Will you help Mark and me tell her?” he asked.

  She released herself from his embrace and took a couple of steps towards the counter. “Yes, of course I will,” she replied.

  “Okay. So, do we do this now?” asked Test.

  “I think we need to before the party. Mark is just going to get drunk and tell her anyway,” replied Nicole.

  Test hated it, but he knew she was right once again. She was right about everything, so far anyway. He turned from Nicole and yelled loudly into the air, “Mark and Marcy!”

  Like an eruption, Mark burst through the swinging door and into the kitchen. “Marcy’s in the little girl’s room. What’s up?” he asked.

  Tact never having been one of his strong suits, Test blurted out, “We’re going to tell Marcy.”

  “About?” Mark replied with a hand gesture.

  “Yeah, about that,” said Test.

  “Are you okay with that?” asked Nicole sympathetically.

  Mark walked to the table, clearly excited, but trying to hide it from Test. “Yeah, that actually makes things way easier on me, but are you sure?” he asked.

  Struggling with the decision, he paused and nervously tapped on the counter top. “No. I’m really not, but it’s the right thing to do for you. I didn’t think about the situation I put you in, and I can’t ask you to keep secrets from her.”

  “Secrets from who?” asked Marcy as she walked into the room. “There are no secrets, right, Mark?” The tone in her voice was nervous and annoyed.

  “No, Marcy, there aren’t,” replied Mark in a soothing voice. “Test had something he needed to show you, beautiful. Now I want you to sit down and hold my hand. Don’t freak out okay. This is actually pretty cool once you get past the insanity of it.”

  Marcy stuffed her hands in her pockets and stood rigidly, glancing around the room at the three of them. “What’s going on with you guys? Nicole, do you know about this?”

  Nicole nodded and replied, “Yeah, it’s okay, Marcy.”

  Marcy walked cautiously over to the dining room table, pulled out a chair, and took a seat. Mark stood directly behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. Curling his lips in a strange way, he looked to Test.

  “Okay, buddy. You have the room.”

  The pressure was now on Test. What could he do to show her, but not scare her? He noticed a vase on the kitchen counter, and in it were white daisies intermingled with blood red sunflowers. He reached out his right hand, and as he breathed calmly, one of the daisies slowly rose from the vase.

  Marcy grabbed at the seat of her chair and slid backwards into Mark. Watching the flower hover in mid-air, she let out a high-pitched scream. Mark held her down in her chair and remained silent.

  The daisy floated over to the dining room table, only a foot away from Marcy. One by one, the petals came off and were placed by an unseen hand in front of her on the table. After all of the petals had been removed, the stem flew sideways into the wall across the room. Next, one of the sunflowers came to Marcy, and the event repeated itself. One by one, the petals were placed in front of Marcy and the stems discarded to the side into the wall. Tears welled up in Marcy’s eyes. She looked down at the petals. They were arranged into hearts, one white and one red. Slowly, she looked to Test.

  “This is you? You did this?” she asked quietly.

  “Yes,” he replied. “I did it.”

  “Please tell me that’s just a magic trick,” Marcy begged, with tears running down her face.

  “I guess a person could call it magic if they wanted to, but it’s real,” replied Test.

  “How?”

  “Honestly, I don’t really know.”

  Mark leaned over and whispered into Marcy’s ear. “It’s okay, babe. I was scared, too, but he’s still just Test. He’s not going to hurt you.”

  Test took a step towards her, wanting to ease her fears. Instead, Marcy thrust her chair backward, bouncing off Mark’s leg and into the wall. Test stopped mid-step.

  “Please don’t be scared of me, Marcy. Please don’t,” he pleaded.

  “Test, show Marcy our swing,” said Nicole.

  “Our swing?” asked Test.

  “You know, like at the park, but no equipment needed,” she said with a wink.

  Test turned to her, surprised and comforted by the change in her demeanor. With his right hand palm up, and his left palm at a ninety-degree angle to his right, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Slowly, she lifted off the ground. Every muscle in her body tensed, the sensation was unlike anything that she could have imagined. In seconds, she relaxed and found joy in the moment. The reality was that in the middle of her own kitchen, she was swinging on air.

  “It’s just not possible,” whispered Marcy. “It can’t be real.”

  “It’s real, Marcy,” replied Mark. “And it gets better from here.”

  Test put Nicole down gently. She walked to his side and looked to Marcy. “See, you don’t have to be afraid. He’s still Test. Maybe he could swing you?”

  “NO!” she yelled and spun behind Mark.

  Holding his hands up, Test hurried to diffuse her outburst. “Okay, okay. No pressure, Marcy. It’s whatever you want, okay?”

  Marcy peered from behind Mark’s lanky frame, and pulled on his shoulder. “Is this what you were upset about today?” she asked.

  “Yeah, it is. But I’m not scared anymore. He’s still my buddy; just now with a little twist,” replied Mark with an intoxicated grin.

  With a look of contempt on her face, she looked back to Test. “That’s putting it a little lightly! I don’t know what I’d call it, but I’d definitely say it’s a little more than a twist!” said Marcy, raising her voice as she stepped away from Mark.

  Test was exhausted. For the second time, within only hours of the first, he felt as though he were an accused demon awaiting persecution from the priest. Trying to explain himself, as well as secure comfort for the other person, was draining.

  “Are you going to be okay with this, Marcy? The last thing in the world that I want is for you to feel uncomfortable around me,” he said.

  “Test,” interrupted Nicole, “remember what I told you when you first showed me? A girl just needs some time.”

  “It’s okay, Nicole,” said Marcy in a somewhat reassuring voice. She then turned to Test and took a deep breath. “I’m okay, really I am. It’s just a lot to digest.”

  Turning to her, the exuberance in his voice was like that of a child the morning of a field trip. “You ought to see him fly, Marcy, it’s nuts!”

  With hands on her hips, Nicole quickly chimed in. “Wait a minute. I haven’t got to see that yet, what gives?”

  Discomforted, he replied to Nicole. “You’ve seen the punch, and he hasn’t. That makes it even, doesn’t it?” he asked.

  “Actually, I think I felt a punch, remember? So really, I think that I’m ahead,” Mark gloated proudly.

  Chuckling mischievously, Test looked at his friend with an amused grin. “No, trust me, you haven’t felt a punch,” he replied, shaking his head.

  “There’s only one resolution to this,” said Marcy unexpectedly and matter-of-factly. “Show me the punch and the flying, and then everyone here will be even.”

  �
�Oh, come on!” said Test feeling somewhat like a carnie. “There’s nowhere here to do that stuff.”

  “What are you talking about?” replied Mark. “You just flew from my driveway to my roof in broad daylight.”

  Test’s mood spun one hundred and eighty degrees. “Come on, man, seriously. Everyone has security cameras in this neighborhood. Someone will catch it on tape, and I’ll be the biggest thing to ever hit Maury!”

  “Come on, yourself!” replied Mark as he walked to the back door and scanned the yard. “It’s a two-story house, the back yard is almost an acre, and there are trees everywhere.”

  “Okay, it’s settled then; to the backyard we go,” said Nicole as she marched to the back door with a giant smile on her face.

  As she walked past Test, she curled her index finger playfully at him in a “follow me” motion. She knew that he was uncomfortable, but over the course of the day, there was no one in the room who hadn’t been. While she wasn’t a vengeful person, she did get some satisfaction in his discomfort.

  Test rolled his eyes as Mark and Marcy walked past. He picked up the disfigured bottle caps and put them into his pocket. He hoped that they would be a reminder.

  “Come on, handsome. Let’s get this out of the way so we can get to the party,” said Nicole as she opened the door leading to the deck.

  Test followed the three of them outside. The backyard of the Paxton home was truly impressive. It was like a pristine manicured golf green. Towards the back of the yard was a nice shed painted to look like a little red barn. Test liked it because it reminded him of the barn on his grandparents’ farm. Next to the barn was a large woodpile.

  As the four of them leaned on the railing, Test reluctantly chose his target. “Okay, do I really have to do this?” he asked.

  “Will it involve damage to property?” asked Nicole. “Keep in mind, my dad hasn’t met you yet. I do want him to like you, you know.”

  “No damage to property, but there will be a mess to pick up. Do we need some firewood for tonight?”

  “Wouldn’t hurt; I was planning on scrounging up some wood from the tree line out in the pasture, but if we can take some of this, that would be sweet,” replied Mark.