The Bond

A party?

Liam's elbow bumped into mine as he explained something dramatically to one of his football friends who was sitting beside him at our table.  They both tipped their heads back in laughter and I could feel the whole lunch table quake.  Usually Liam sat like a sardine at his table across the room with the rest of his teammates, but on occasion he did deign to sit with me and my friends when he felt like it.  I just wish that day hadn't been today, while our kisses were so fresh on my mind.  I could almost still feel them.  It left a strange tension in me that I wasn't entirely sure I liked.  The table shook again as Liam's friend pounded the blue top in hysterics over their conversation.   

Emmie rolled her catlined eyes at me.  I ignored the boys and tried to approach the depressing school salad in front of me.  The little bits of chopped ham in it were a sad excuse for meat.  Liam was acting normal like he'd promised, but I couldn't help but be hyper aware of everything he did.  Dakota, sitting on my other side, also acted as if everything was the same while she ignored her food and signed to Emmie and me something about her science paper.  I wasn't really paying attention.

Instead I couldn't help but wonder how many of us at the table lead secret lives.  Out of the five of us clustered together in the lunchroom more than half of us weren't being honest.  Again Liam's elbow brushed mine and I resisted the urge to turn and look at him.  It felt like he was doing it on purpose, but I couldn't afford to raise suspicions.  Dakota was already watching me like a hawk even as she tried to be surreptitious about it. 

The last thing I needed was the astute Dakota to catch on to the weird energy that seemed to simmer between Liam and me since our "talk."  Emmie wasn't a slouch either.  She wasn't as clincially observant as Dakota, but she was very attuned to people's emotions.  I wanted to be careful around the both of them.  Once again Liam was the only confidant I had who knew everything, but this time he was just as tangled up in it as I was. 

A large hand flashed into my bowl and plucked out a piece of ham.  I glared at Liam when he popped the piece into his mouth and smirked at me.  He seemed intent on getting my attention.  My eyes dropped down to a smear of salad dressing on his lip and I felt something in me flush red hot.  I couldn't really tell if it was embarrassment or something else.  I just knew now my stomach was completely knotted. 

Liam licked the dressing from his lip, his smile gone.  I became intensely interested in my salad all of a sudden and took a big bite to distract myself.  I regretted it as soon as I did it though, it was a seriously lackluster salad and my stomach was in no mood for the tangy flavored veggies.  I swallowed it thickly and grabbed my bottled water to wash away the taste.  Dakota had opted for the alarmly spongy chicken nuggets and Emmie had smartly chosen to abstain.  The two football boys had all but licked their trays clean, too hungry for food to care about things like taste and quality. 
 
Feeling done with my picked at lettuce, I  got up unannounced and went to dump my food in the garbage can.  The school cafeteria was peppered with round, blue tables bursting with students taking advantage of the short respite between classes.  I wasn't friendly with too many people so I passed through the lunchroom much like a ghost.  It didn't bother me.  I had a hard time trusting people, so it was easier to keep the majority of my schoolmates at a distance. 

At the trashcan I scraped my spurned food into the pungent container and thought about my new quandary.  Putting the tray on top of the pile, I lightly rested my hand to my chest.  Ever since Liam and I first kissed, I hadn't felt any tugs or strain on my bond.  Part of me wished for it all to finally be over, but somehow I knew that wasn't the case.  It was hard to form it into a coherent thought, but I could simply tell that the bond still existed between us.  I could somehow sense the barest hint of his nebulous presence. 

A hand landed heavily on my shoulder and I jumped in surprise.  Dakota stood beside me with her plastic blue tray clutched in one hand and the other sitting on my shoulder.  I wondered if I could have been able to hear as she could, would I have known she had been following behind me?  She looked self-assured like always and although she wasn't a beauty by normal standards, she had a sort of strong attractiveness to her.  She was thin and athletic, with medium long blond hair that she often wore loose.  Today she wore a button up white blouse that was just the right mix of femine and masculine with a pair of tight faded blue jeans.

"You okay?  You've been out of it today."  There was concern on her face as Dakota checked in with me.  My heart softened at the sight of it.  Dakota's mother was exacting on her daughter.  She treated Dakota coldly and had high standards.  If Dakota performed well enough in school and manged herself, her mother typically left her alone.  Too alone in my opinion.  It had left Dakota a little hard.  So in moments like this when her warm side peeped through, it showed me just how much Dakora truly did care. 

That didn't mean I was willing to open up and tell Dakota what was really bothering me.  Somehow as long as we had been friends we didn't have the kind of friendship where we talked out our problems to each other.  We had been friends since the end of elementary school.  We just seemed to mutually not be bothered by each other's company and it had somehow grown into a lasting friendship.  Dakota watched me with her evaluating eyes and I knew I had to give her something or else she might start to dig. 

"I got invited to a party."  I blurted inaudibly without a real plan in mind.  Dakota's eyes widened as I continued.  "I'm not going to go.  I just thought it was weird so I was thinking about it."

"A party?"  Dakota parroted back to me and I nodded in confirmation, mildly pleased I had thrown her off my scent.

"We're going."  Dakota signed decisively.  I stared at her taken aback and slowly shook my head.

"You don't even know who asked me or what kind of party it is."  I reasoned.

"Don't care." Dakota shrugged indifferently, swinging her blond hair over her broad shoulder.  She tossed her food away and stacked the tray on top of mine before turning to face me again.

"I don't want to go."  I challenged, hating when this part of Dakota reared its head.  She had a very totalitarian side to her.

"Don't care."  Dakota raised her eyebrows at me and stared me down dispassionately.  "A party will be fun for us."

"A party?!"  Emmie jumped enthusiastically beside us, having taken us both by surprise.  Her hands flew apart after making the words so she could embrace me in a smothering hug.  I knew she was saying something to Dakota but she had me bent down awkwardly to adjust to her height and I couldn't see her mouth.  When I straightened up out of her clutches, mildly miffed at being forcefully bent in two, Dakota wore a smug grin.  Emmie bounced effervescently on her feet in glee and I let out a long suffering sigh.

Emmie had her hair braided into long extended braids with little gold beads woven into them.  Her hair danced as she quivered with excitement and competed with the heavily patterned, bright paisley dress she had on.  She stood before me like a boho goddess, complete with gold eyeshadow.  It was almost comical how different Dakota and Emmie were, but they both made it work.  I simply grabbed fashionably wrinkled shirts from the pile of clothes I never seemed to put away and paired them with jeans or shorts.  I didn't care.

Dakota I didn't mind challenging so much even if she was obstinate when she made up her mind, but Emmie was a more difficult case.  Denying an excited Emmie just went against the balance of nature.  She was a total cinnamon roll and I just didn't have the heart.  Emmie's teeth came in full view as she saw the weary acceptance on my face.  She danced while signing the word for party, a blissful grin on her face.

Just then a shadow moved over the light above me.  I glanced up instinctively to see Liam with his dark eyebrow quirked high.

"A party?"  He mouthed and my eyes could have just about rolled into my head in exasperation.