The Watcher

I went to my locker before class. When I opened it, a small brown paper bag fell out. My name was written on it in tidy cursive script. Inside was a delicate silver pendant, an ornate upside-down hand with a blue glass eye in the middle. Clear gemstones bordered the outside.

I was examining the bag for a clue as to whom it might be from when Heather approached. Her eyes were puffy and ringed with gray, this time not from studying.

“We’re still going to the movie tonight, right?” she said.

With all that had happened I’d totally forgotten about the movie. I didn’t think anyone would want to go. “Is it still on?”

“Yeah. We don’t want Dean to be alone tonight. Though he won’t admit it, he’s pretty shaken. He can’t see Fiona yet either.”

“Have you heard anything?” I asked.

“Her mom called and told me she’s awake now and going through some tests. She’ll be home tomorrow. I’m go

“Can I come?”

“Of course!” she replied, then noticed the necklace in my hands. “Oh! Where’d you get that?”

“I don’t know. It was in my locker. There’s no note.”

“Maybe it’s from Damiel.” Heather handled the necklace carefully, admiring it. “For your date tomorrow night.”

She handed it back just as Elaine came down the hall, and I quickly slid it into my school bag. I didn’t need to give Elaine a reason for more gossip. If Damiel was giving me gifts, he could be more serious than I thought. I should give it back to him and break off the date so I wouldn’t lead him on.

As if on cue, Damiel came to see me before English class to confirm our plans. It was the perfect opportunity to cancel our plans and return the necklace, but I hesitated. I could hear my name being whispered in the back of the room; I’m pretty sure it was Elaine. Michael nodded at me encouragingly, as if he knew what I was about to do. Damiel turned to him and wordlessly touched my hand. A rush of heat shot through me so fast it made me queasy, and the smile Damiel gave me melted  my worries.

It was di

“You still want to come, don’t you?” he asked. “It’ll cheer you up.” When I nodded my assent, his smile grew even bigger and he went back to his desk.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw disappointment on Michael’s face as he sat in the row adjacent to mine. I didn’t want to disappoint him, but I also hadn’t agreed to anything. I’d been warned, though, whatever that meant. But why had it been so hard to say no to Damiel in the first place? Michael had said it would be. I was so embarrassed I couldn’t bring myself to look at either of them for the rest of the class.

***

As soon as I got home from school, I sent Bill an e-mail asking him if he could look up Damiel online to see what he could find out. If he had a criminal record or a dangerous past, surely there would be some clues out there. I gave Bill all the information I had on Damiel: his approximate age, a physical description, and the fact that he had recently enrolled at Westmont High. I wasn’t surprised to find Bill online. He messaged me immediately, asking Who is this guy? and Is he a new boyfriend?

Recalling how he’d offered to “take care of” any guy who hurt me, I reassured him not to worry, that this was just someone at school. He didn’t need to know I had an actual date, but I wanted to find out what I could. Damiel seemed so open, and yet his side of the story was so different from Michael’s. Could he have been lying, as Michael had said?

My online chat with Bill took longer than I expected, so I had to rush to get ready for the movie. Mom and I had such opposite schedules lately that we had taken to leaving each other notes on the fridge. I quickly wrote her one. If she was worried, she could always text me.

Since I was pla

Farouk picked me up at six, and I was surprised to see that he’d dressed up too. It made him look a lot more grown-up than usual. I also liked how at ease he was. All the weirdness from earlier was gone. We were just friends, hanging out.

The movie theater was noisy and dimly lit, with bright flashing lights around the concession stand. The line-up wasn’t long, but the short, freckled girl working there had trouble with our three separate orders. She jumbled them up and got flustered. As the line grew quickly behind us, she got even more nervous.

While Farouk helped her figure out the change, Michael walked into the theater. At first I was so captivated by him that I didn't notice he was with someone: a tall, gorgeous girl with honey-colored hair. She seemed strangely familiar. A sharp pain seized my chest. This had to be Michael’s girlfriend.

“Mia?” Farouk asked.

Realizing I’d been staring, I spun back to face him.

I’m pretty sure my emotions were clearly visible on my face, because he stiffened and muttered something in Farsi under his breath; I don’t think it was complimentary. “We should go find Heather,” he suggested.

I nodded and was about to leave, but it was too late.

“Mia,” Michael said, approaching us. When he smiled at me, his entire face lit up. You’d never know we’d had an almost argument earlier that morning, or that I’d disappointed him by not breaking off my date with Damiel.

“You know Farouk,” I said, afraid my sadness over his being there with his girlfriend might show.

Michael gave him a nod. “I do. Hi.”

Farouk held up the bags of popcorn he was carrying and said flatly, “I’d shake your hand, but…”

“Quite a lot of popcorn,” he said. If he noticed Farouk’s snub, he was ignoring it.

“We’re here with the rest of the gang,” I said, raising my drinks awkwardly.

The girl Michael was with gave me a beautiful, warm smile, and I realized where I’d seen her before. She was the girl I’d talked to at the café that day I’d gone there with Bill.

“That’s a pretty necklace,” she said.

“Thanks.” I touched it self-consciously, not wanting her calling too much attention to it. The fact it probably came from Damiel would only cause another argument between Michael and me.

“Yeah.” Michael leaned in to take a closer look. “It looks Turkish.”

“It’s Persian,” Farouk said, edging closer, until he practically stood between us. “My sister Fatima gave it to her.”

“Fatima?” I asked. When he nodded, I tried to hide my sudden relief.

“Well, it’s very nice,” the girl said, then turned to Michael. “Aren’t you going to introduce us?”

I wasn’t sure if I should say anything about how we’d sort of met before when she spoke to me in the café. Obviously she didn’t recognize me. Why should she? She was the one who looked like a Victoria’s Secret model. People probably noticed her all the time.

“Of course,” Michael said. A flattering shade of pink touched his cheeks as he turned to me. “Mia, this is Arielle, and Arielle, this is Mia and Farouk.”

We exchanged polite hellos. Then Arielle said to me, “Michael’s told me about you.”

I instantly tensed, almost spilling the drinks I was carrying. Surely he hadn’t told her about the ridiculous crush I had on him, or that I was going on a date with his arch-enemy. Michael kept his relaxed smile, his face unreadable.

“Oh,” I said.

“Yeah, he mentioned you’d had a nasty fall in the woods, I guess it was a few weeks ago now,” she said. “How are you healing up?”