Of the Trees(20)

There was no point in talking to Laney when she got like this, though Cassie couldn’t understand what had gotten her so worked up in the first place.

It all came back to those creepy freaks at the carnival. Cassie didn’t forget the eyes that seemed to follow her throughout the night. Just this morning, she had woken up in a cold sweat from a nightmare. The only thing she could remember were blue eyes, ice blue. It was a cold stare, one that could freeze you on the spot. One that followed you through the night and into the shadows. She awoke with a sense of being watched, taunted by creatures that she couldn’t make out, seeing only the eyes in the dark.

Cassie shivered now just thinking about it and how unsettled she had felt. It was his stare, the man from the carnival. The one that cornered her in the parking lot and laughed when that ride broke.

She had read somewhere that the strangers you see in your dreams are people you’ve run into in your real life, maybe just passed on the street or bumped into at the grocery store. But why this man needed to feature in her nightmares, she had no idea. She felt chilled now, just thinking about him.

What was freaking Cassie out seemed to have an opposite effect on Laney. Laney was fascinated. She wanted more and was disappointed that she was pulled away. She may even still be mad at Cassie for cutting the night short. It was insane, but that was Laney. Part of Cassie wasn’t even surprised her friend was so pissy about it. She usually was when she didn’t get her way.

Ryan caught up to Cassie in the hallway after the last bell rang Friday afternoon. He walked her to her locker, waiting while she dumped half of her books inside and picked out the few she needed for home. The halls were full; the fall jocks running past, hoisting their bags higher, trying not to be late for their practices. Jon would be one of them. Soccer dominated the beginning of every school year for him. The freshman and sophomore halls were always in panic mode when classes ended, half trying to get to tryouts and half trying not to miss their buses home.

“You have anywhere you need to be tonight?” Ryan asked, holding the door for Cassie as they left the building. She caught the eye of Rebecca Murphy, standing next to Jessica, at the edge of the parking lot. Rebecca’s eyebrows shot up in question, her gaze darting between Cassie and Ryan. Cassie shook her head casually, grinning slightly.

“Nope, I’m all free,” she replied to Ryan, waving at the small knot of her softball teammates. They tried to wave her over, but again she shook her head, keeping pace with Ryan.

“You sure?” he asked, looking over his shoulder, most likely feeling the holes burned into his neck from the teasing stares of Rebecca and Jessica. “Nothing softball related?”

“Them?” she asked, laughing. “We have a solid five months before I have to start worrying about that.”

“That’s kind of a flippant attitude for this year’s captain, isn’t it?” he asked, teasing. She laughed.

“Nothing’s been decided,” she said. “It’s anybody’s game.”

They got to his car, and he opened the door for her. Rebecca and Jessica were busy making obscene gestures at her, involving a lot of tongue rolling and what could have been interpreted as very rude dance moves. She rolled her eyes at them and deliberately turned toward the driver’s side, effectively cutting them off. When Ryan opened his door, she could hear them laughing, and it left her feeling exposed and giddy.

Ryan didn’t notice; he smiled at her, which did not help the giddiness factor, and started up his car, queuing up in the long line of vehicles trying to get out of the parking lot.

“Why did you ask, anyway?” Cassie said, jerking into the dashboard when Billy Folman pulled out in front of them, causing Ryan to slam on his brakes.

“Ask what?”

“If I had plans,” she answered, adjusting her seatbelt. He shrugged, but his attempt at nonchalance wasn’t convincing.

“I don’t know,” he answered, avoiding her questioning gaze. “Jon has practice and I thought maybe we could go for a hike? Or a movie?”

“Hike sounds good,” Cassie answered, smiling. She didn’t know how long she could last in a movie theater. She felt restless, almost to the point of agitation. It wasn’t just her fight with Laney, though she was still annoyed about that. She had been feeling this way all day, even yesterday. She wanted to move. Part of her envied Jon, being yelled at as he mindlessly ran around a soccer field sounded better than sitting at home, thinking and overthinking.

“Run by my house though first?” Cassie asked after a moment. “I want to get my stuff.”

“It won’t be a long hike,” he said, “I’ve got my pack, and we don’t need yours.”

“I do so need it,” Cassie argued, smiling.

“Afraid you might run out of lip gloss?” Ryan teased.

“Ha, ha!” she said, shooting him a mock annoyed glance. He smirked over at her. This summer, they had driven as far as three hours from their homes to try and hit every piece of the Appalachian Trail that was within driving range. Ryan was preparing for a long trek, wanting to complete the entire trail in one thru-hike. “Even if I could do without my lip gloss, I’d need to change my shoes.”

Ryan nodded, stealing a glance over at her feet. It may have been her imagination, but it seemed as though his gaze lingered longer than was necessary as it traveled back up her legs.