Unraveling Sarah Cresley, Marisa Maichel [thriller books to read .txt] 📗

irritate me. Yes, we had something, and now it's over. It's been over for five months. I know that we didn't end on the best terms, but still. I'm in love with somebody else.

~~~~~~~~~~~

"Even so, I have Ariella and Sarah to think about."

"You have their numbers. You text them constantly."

"Oh. I'm sorry, Father," I said. He took my face in his hands and kissed my forehead.

"You are forgiven, my son. Now, come inside. You must be starving." He had no idea.

I really tried to concentrate on my research. I really did. Sarah was in my thoughts instead. I finally decided to give up and swim for a bit. We have a massive indoor temperature-controlled pool and a hot tub. I undressed, pulled on my swim trunks, and grabbed a towel. My father was doing his usual laps around the pool when I got there. He smiled at me as I jumped in. I stayed underwater for a few minutes until I felt myself being pulled to the surface.

"Don't scare me like that!" Father cried.

"I'm a vampire," I reminded him.

"You're my child. My instinct is to protect you," he explained. He wrapped his arms around me.

"I'm not going to be your little boy forever," I told him.

"Yes you will be. You may almost be an adult, but you will always be my little boy." He began to purr. "I will love you no matter what."

"I love you too," I said.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Evan called me. I had been in the pool when he called, so of course I couldn't answer. He called me a few minutes later.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Reese."

"What's up, Evan?"

"I...I'm still in love with you. I miss you, I need you, I crave you."

"Are you drunk?"

"Maybe. The point is that I'm desperate. I love you. I crave your body next to mine." I hung up after that last part. I took my time in the shower, washing myself slowly. Evan called me a few times, crying and apologizing. I eventually blocked him, not knowing if I felt smug, disturbed, or irritated more. I thought about calling Ariella, but it was close to bedtime. Hers, not mine. So I settled for reading I Am Number Four by James Frey.

~~~~~~~~

Sarah was gone the next day. I tried not to concern myself with it. Still, I worried. I was so focused on my future mate, I ran straight into Evan.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey," I said uncomfortably.

"I'm really sorry about last night," he continued. "And I'm sorry our relationship ended the way it did. I miss you."

When I was three years old, a strange woman approached me on a playground. She asked my name, my favorite colors, about any pets I had,. Next, she asked me where my mother was. I said "I only have Daddy" at which point my father intervened.

"If you want my son, you'll have to kill me first," he said. Then he bared his teeth at her, and his incisors grew. The woman's jaw dropped open, and she took off. Luckily, I never saw her again. Father gathered me up and took me home. I felt the same way I had felt when that woman approached me now. Uncomfortable. Unsure. My father has never let me forget that day, and now Evan would not let me forget our breakup.

"What we had was...great," I said. "But it's over now. I'm sorry." Way to rub salt in the wound, Reese.

"You don't mean that!" Evan said. He looked like he was about to cry. He went into the bathroom. I mentally scolded myself for being too blunt. But at the same time, he was getting on my last nerve. I didn't see Evan for the rest of the day.

When I got home, Father was mowing the lawn.

"How was your day?" he asked.

"Terrible. I feel awful."

"Why is that?" I sighed and told him what had transpired between myself and Evan. "You did the right thing, son. He's clearly obsessed with you." Father's words soothed me a little bit. "By the way, you'll be starting the weekend early. They want your testimony."

"Oh." I had not forgotten about that, though I tried. My sweet, beautiful Sarah had nearly been destroyed. I couldn't let that happen. She was my world now. I called her absentmindedly. To my surprise, she did not answer. I wondered if I'd done anything wrong. I quietly did my work, finishing in under an hour. Two hours after that, Sarah called.

"I'm glad you called,"

"Sorry, I was busy all afternoon. What's up?"

"I've been missing you. What have you been up to?"

"I've been working mostly. My lawyer and I have been talking. The trial will be next weekend." Interesting development.

"Intriguing. My father hinted that it would be this weekend."

"I never said that!" Father shouted from the garage.

"He must have gotten the dates wrong. It's next weekend."

"Well, I'll be there. I promise." I heard her let out a breath.

As we continued to talk, I found out her favorite movie was actually Beauty And The Beast, not Twilight. She told me she liked to sing and draw, and she hoped for a career in either the beauty industry or animation. I told her I also liked to sing, write songs, and listen to music. She asked me to sing for her, so I chose "Californication" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

"Wow," she said when I was finished. "Your voice literally blows me away. I didn't know you could sing."

"I'm in the choir," I told her. "In the bass section."

"I bet all the girls flock to you," she teased.

"I wish," I said with a chuckle. "Um, Sarah, would you sing to me?"

"If you want me to." Yes, I did. She chose "Halleujah" by Rufus Wainwright. And I must say, her voice is incredible.

"Sarah, I...I've never heard anything more beautiful." STUPID!

"Oh, well, thank you."

I asked her what she was doing at the moment, she said she was drawing. I asked her to send me a picture, and she did. The picture she send was of a cat looking over its shoulder. It was beautifully sketched, and she even included small details such as fur and whiskers. I asked her what the significance was, and she said it was personal.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" I cried. "I didn't mean to pry."

"It's okay. Do you like it though?"

"I love it. I love cats."

"My favorite animal is actually the owl and the fox."

"Interesting. Both of those are a symbol for nocturnal activites and intelligence."

"That is interesting. What about you? What are your favorite animals?"

"It's a tie between the raven and the wolf."

"That's also interesting. Look, I've got to go. I'll talk to you later."

"Goodbye." As we hung up, I was certain about one thing. I was unequivocally in love with Sarah Harper Cresley.

~~~~~~~~

My stomach groaned as I entered the cafeteria. I'd begged my father to let me come to school, which he finally did. Many of my schoolmates gawked at the Rolls Royce he had driven. I heard someone say "I didn't know he was rich."

It bothered me. Everything bothered me, especially that my father didn't want me in school. He would not tell me why, which made me more suspicious. Sarah was back in school, which made me happy. I saw her in the cafeteria, eating a BLT. I smelled the lettuce, bacon, tomato, and mayonnaise. I picked a book out of my bag and sat on a bench.

"He always sits by himself," someone said.

"Reese Emerson?" a girl said.

"Yeah. You notice how he never eats? Like, ever. And he always sits by himself."

"Well, invite him over here." I heard boots on the linoleum, beckoning me to look up. It was Mason Godfrey, a goth kid with whom I'd once tried to be friends with in elementary school.

"Hey, Reese, we want to invite you to sit with us," he said. I wasn't sure what to make of this. I would probably make a complete fool of myself.

"Okay, sure," I said. What am I thinking? Why don't I just kill myself now? Ahem. I followed him to the center table, where Amara Raincourt, Jody Williams, Duke Taylor, and Noah Johnson sat, waiting for us.

"Dude," Noah said, "Where's Sarah?" Sarah? My future wife?

"She's sitting by herself again," Amara noted. Yes, she was. Mason went to get her, and the butterflies attacked again. My belly twisted as she sat beside me.

"Hey, Reese," she said.

"Hey, Sarah," I said. She sipped a Pepsi.

"So, how do you two know each other?" Jody asked. Amara gave her a pointed look.

"Reese and I have the same free period," Sarah said. "We got to know each other in the library."

"Isn't he also the one who helped you last weekend?" Jody pressed. Now Amara downright glared at her.

"Yeah, he did," my love confessed. "I don't know what I would do without him." I noticed Duke and Noah looking at each other. Amara chewed on a piece of her dark purple hair. Her brown eyes looked between me and Sarah. Jody didn't seem to know what to say. She twisted her bottled blond hair into a braid.

"So, Reese," Mason said, "What kind of music do you like?" I mentioned that I like rock and heavy metal, and we discussed music for the rest of the hour. Amara liked pop and dance, Jody liked rock, and the guys preferred metal. I already knew what Sarah liked, and she and Amara talked about pop and alternative music.

Mason eventually asked for my phone number, so I gave it to him. The others also wanted my number, which I found odd. If I dwelled on it, maybe I would figure it out. But right now, my head hurt too much.

~~~~~~~~~

Our free period was spent reading. She was reading Romeo And Juliet, which was required. I was reading a mystery from the point of view of a cat, which was interesting, although I was still distracted by Sarah. My new realization seemed to have cause a change in me. She was all I could think about.

"Um, Sarah?" I said shyly after the bell rang.

"Yeah?" She paused at the door.

"Um...I'll text you tonight." What am I, an idiot?

"Okay..." she replied. She went outside the front entrance, only to get a foot in the stomach and a punch to the nose. And then she was jumped by two masked figures, both female. She tried to fight back, but she could only dodge their repeated blows.

Two security guards pulled the assailants off of her. One of the masked clones kicked a guard in the crotch, and she and her comrade took off. I went over to Sarah and helped her up. Already bruises were forming on her chest and face.

"Are you okay?" I asked. She gave me a dark look. Of course, stupid question. I was such a moron when it came to Sarah. Of course, I had no one to blame except myself. She refused to see the school nurse, citing that she didn't want to be a "snitch". I carefully led her to her car, a 1998 Toyota. If my heart could beat, it would have been pounding.

The pit of my stomach dropped to the asphalt. There was a boy walking toward us. He was as tall as me, with broad shoulders, blue eyes, and blond hair. I recognized him as Jonathan Picsun, one of Sarah's guy friends. He was definitely better-looking and more popular than me. He was a potential rival.

"Hey Sarah, are you okay?" he asked.

"Fine," she snapped. He looked unsure.

"Are you sure you'll be okay?" I asked her.

"I'll be fine, Reese!" she said. I knew enough to end it there. I patted her shoulder and told her I'd call her later. I couldn't help but wonder if I could keep that promise when I saw a familiar car. My uncle Soren was here at least. I wondered if Grandfather would be at the house. There has been a long-standing rivalry between my uncle and my father. My grandfather was thrown into the rivalry before I was conceived. Now my uncle, father, and grandfather barely speak to each other.