Caught in the Crosshairs

Chapter 6- Mr. Perfect

Beep! Beep! Beep! My alarm clock yelled at me as I was snoring under my blankets. I woke up, turned off my alarm and I slithered out of bed. It was a warm, bright Sunday morning, the air was clear and inviting. I went to my closet and tried to decided what I should wear to church this morning.
Well maybe I should go casual again, that makes it easy.... I thought. I wonder if Drew will be there today.... No, I want to look nice today I decided, and I reached for my short yellow dress and a jean jacket. Perfect! I hopped to my bed and set down the outfit. I smiled as I pulled my jacket on and adjusted my collar. I put on some light makeup and curled my hair. Grinning at my appearance, I grabbed my crutches and made my way down the stairs to the kitchen. As I turned a corner, I nearly ran into my big brother, Kyle. "Hey, watch where you-" he stopped and smirked. "Well look at you! C'mon, Sam, who is it?"
"What?" I scoffed.
"You know quite well." he winked.
I rolled my eyes as I grabbed a bowl from the cupboard. "Like anyone would be interested in a clutz like me."
"Of course they would!" Kyle encouraged. "I know I have a beautiful sister and I keep my surveillance system on 24/7," he chuckled while tapping his ears. "Trust me, little sis, guys around here notice you."
I wonder what that's supposed to mean.
I shrugged, straightened myself back on my crutches and made my way to the kitchen.
"So what if they do," I muttered as I poured a bowl of my favorite cereal, "I just moved thousands of miles to a new house and a new school, I'm not settled in nearly enough to even consider a relationship."
"What was that?" Kyle inquired.
"Nothing," I chuckled as I pulled out a barstool at our kitchen island.
A few minutes later I heard my mom yelling upstairs.
"Oh no, oh no oh no!!!!!! Kyle! Sam! We overslept!!! Hurry up hurry up!!!!" She practically leapt down the stairs as she continued to shout our names, but slowed to a stop when she saw Kyle and me laughing at her.
"Alright, you two, keep your snickering to yourselves." She tried acting serious but soon busted into laughter along with us. Her hair was an absolute mess (it looked a lot like a lion's mane) and she had one small path of drool dribbling down her chin. What a sight, I chuckled softly.
"Hey mom," Kyle chimed, "you've got a little something right-"
"Okay okay, I know. I'll get ready as soon as I can." She offered. "But make me something to eat while I'm doing so, would you?"
Kyle and I nodded and began fixing her an omelette. Ten minutes later she descended the stairs in a much more dignified manner, looking just as pretty as she always did. After she finished eating, we got in the car and sped away to Hope Church.
______________________________
"Good morning everyone!" Pastor Eric exclaimed cheerfully. "May God's peace be with you all this beautiful August day. Today we have a special treat for everyone, it's that time of he month again where our incredibly talented youth will be leading us in worship!"
I grinned at Kyle, excited that the youth were given this awesome opportunity each month! Maybe I'll have to practice up on that flute after all......
"Hey everybody!" I was pulled from my thoughts when I looked up to see Drew on stage, guitar in hand.
"Most of you know I'm Drew Johnson. On the bass is my buddy, Bryce. On violin is my twin sister, Angelica."
At the mention of her name I noticed Kyle straighten up in his chair, and a warm smile spread across his face. I raised an eyebrow in his direction and caught his attention successfully. He pretended to be confused, but I could tell he knew what I meant.
"And on the piano today is Allison Haiger. Now, let's stand up and greet each other this morning and prepare our hearts to praise the Lord!"
The whole time Drew was leading worship, I couldn't help thinking of how much he resembled my dad. The way he played, the style of voice-but the most striking resemblance was his passion in his music. I'd never seen anyone whose music was as convicting as my father's. It was a breath of fresh air, to say the least.
_______________________
At the end of the service, Kyle and I made our way to the coffee bar. Mom stayed in he auditorium to talk to another family she was suddenly friends with. It always amazes me how that woman can make a bestie in less than ten minutes.
When we finally made it through the crowds, I spotted the worship team standing by the coffee bar.
"Hey Kyle, let's go say hi before we get coffee!" I suggested."
"Yeah yeah, ok...." he seemed distracted, almost like he was looking for someone.
"Earth to Kyle? Hello?" I paused. "Ugh, whatever," I resigned as I clunked over to the group of teens.
"Hey! You guys sounded amazing up there!" I congratulated.
"Thanks Samantha!" Bryce replied. "Will you and your brother be joining us on stage sometime soon?" He inquired.
"Hey, speaking of your brother..." Drew chuckled and pointed. Kyle was talking to Angelica in the coffee line, and when they reached the register he payed for her drink.
"Smooth move, Casanova." Bryce laughed.
That's Kyle for you, I thought. He knows what he wants and he gets it.
Ugh, my brother likes the one friend I've made??? I suspected it earlier, and I was right.
"Hey, Samantha?" Drew's voice snapped me from my daze.
"Yes?"
"Are you and Kyle planning on coming to youth group tonight?" He asked, his eyes portraying a pleading look.
"I'm actually not sure, we hadn't talked about it yet." I replied honestly, but hoping that Kyle would agree to drive me.
"Well, we hope you can make it!" Drew smiled cheerfully. "Pastor Eric would really like to get to know the both of you better!"
"Yeah, I heard him say that, too." Bryce agreed. "You guys should come, you're both fun to be around." He smiled pleasantly.
"Well, I guess we'll have to see then." I grinned, hoping that Kyle would agree.
Looking over my shoulder, I wondered, How come my brother can always be so happy? He has everything going for him: great personality, good looks, an athletic body, lots of talents.... even if he wasn't happy he had the resources to bring happiness to himself. It would be a long time before I would reach his standard of living, I thought as I saw him steal a sip from Angelica's drink. She laughed and hit his hand playfully, snatching her drink back and taking a sip of his. Feigning surprise and disappointment, he put a pout face on and folded his arms.
Before I threw up from the cutesy romance, I turned back around to face my friends and asked Drew, "Will Angelica be at youth group tonight?"
"Yeah! We never miss it." Drew said.
"Somehow, I have a feeling that we won't either from now on."

Hope you guys are liking the story so far! If you have any thoughts about who is the criminal be sure to comment or message me! I'd love to hear your ideas
-SJ