Night Prowler Part One Read online

  And you’re really hot. That helps,” I said, trying to inflate his ego a little bit. And hey, everything I said was true. We texted for two hours, and then he just stopped replying. After half an hour with no response, I sent him one last text that said “Goodnight then

  .”

  It’s 9:43 a.m. now, and I’m guessing he fell asleep and is still snoozing. I am about to go to lunch with my mom and aunt, who hasn’t heard about any of this yet. My mom has a thing for letting everyone know what’s going on in my romantic life. At least I have one now.

  Well, I think I do. Does it count as a love life if I’m not even certain he likes me? Does it make a difference that he ignores me a lot? I don’t know. But so far, Zac seems like a good guy. Maybe he’ll at least give me the confidence to grow up.

  30

  Samantha Steele

  Jacob Fastner

  I can’t believe it.

  I just can’t believe it.

  I can’t believe that Cami Hooper just asked me to the Sadie Hawkins Dance. I thought those kinds of things only happened in dreams.

  Cami has really short brown hair that she likes to put up in a Mohawk. She listens to heavy metal music and her best friend is this really ugly bitch named Sam. I don’t know what Cami sees in her.

  I am in love with Cami Hooper.

  I told her once. I ran up to her and told her best friend to scram. Then I said, “Cami, I love you,” and ran away. I received a somewhat negative reaction, but that didn’t dampen my spirits at all. I just told her I was testing her to see if she liked me. It seemed to work well.

  But that obnoxious, ugly friend of hers is keeping her from me. She’s always whispering to Cami. I know she’s saying bad things about me. I hate her. She likes this stupid junior that she never shuts up about. GOD is she annoying.

  And she argues a lot. She always picks fights with me. I like to argue with women. They’re always wrong.

  Cami is sort of a bitch, too, but I like it. She knows how to take charge. I like that in a woman. Dominance equals sex appeal. And oh hot damn does Cami have sex appeal.

  She’s really short with really big tits, but I don’t care about that. Her annoying friends always tell her that as long as she doesn’t get any taller in the next couple of years, she can be considered a midget and get the handicap sticker. Then they could all get the good parking spaces.

  What bitches. I really hate her friends, you know.

  God, Cami is beautiful. I love her.

  31

  Teenagers

  “You look beautiful,” I said.

  “Yeah yeah yeah.” Cami hates compliments. “This is Sam’s slut dress,” she says with a laugh. God do I love her laugh.

  I boiled with anger. I hate that stupid, ugly, fat, disgusting, friend of hers. Why did she have to ruin this dance for me? Why couldn’t that be Cami’s dress? Why did it have to be Sam’s?

  “Where is she? I thought she asked out that junior guy…

  what’s his name? Zac?”

  “He said he had to work. I think she’s really upset.”

  Good. She deserves some pain. Now she knows how I feel when she drones on and on and on about his “gorgeous blue eyes” and “luxurious blonde hair” and “sexy, skinny little body.” I laughed.

  “Don’t be mean,” Cami scolded me. “She really likes him.”

  “Well he obviously doesn’t like her.”

  “Don’t be an asshole!” Cami said, hitting me in the arm.

  “Was that supposed to hurt? I think a fly landed on me,” I said, making fun of her on purpose. She glared at me sinisterly.

  “Would you like to dance?” I asked. She rolled her eyes.

  “Oh well.” She took my arm and we danced stiffly for a few minutes. Cami was silent.

  She was wearing a normally strapless black dress that zipped up the front, only she’d tacked on straps to make it legal under the school’s dress code. On her, it came halfway down her thigh. On her slutty, ugly friend, it probably just barely covered her butt. There were holes in the side that showed a little bit of skin, but just enough to drive me nuts.

  It was nice to see Cami wearing a dress, even if she wore her worn out Converse hi-tops with it. It really complimented her perfect figure.

  We hung out a little, but Cami didn’t really say much. I kissed her, but she seemed pretty unenthusiastic about it. I bought her a drink, but she didn’t seem to like it. I did all I could do to try and make her happy, but nothing really seemed to work. My

  32

  Samantha Steele

  efforts seemed pointless, so I stopped trying. I could tell she was very uncomfortable with the whole dance situation. Cami doesn’t like public displays of affection.

  She gets mad when I touch her if people are around.

  What I don’t understand is that with her last boyfriend, Kris, she kissed him and held him in the hallway all the time. I know we’re not dating yet, but she won’t even accept compliments from me.

  Sam liked Kris. Maybe that’s why Cami was nicer to him. Her stupid friends approved.

  They don’t approve of me, and personally, I don’t want them to.

  When I got home, I bounced back and forth between being on top of the world happy, and being down in the dumps because she seemed to not really have enjoyed the night. It’s all Sam’s fault. If she hadn’t been such a downer… She shouldn’t have gotten her hopes up about that guy. Who would date her anyway? She’s fat with braces and a really pointy nose. And she’s a flaming bitch. She argued with me once over whether Fight Club was a book or a movie first. I was certain it was a movie first. I knew it was. She said it wasn’t. I never brought it up again, but I went home that night and figured out I was wrong. I will NEVER admit that.

  She’s the one that made Cami not like me. If she wasn’t around, Cami would love me just like I love her. Everything would be perfect if that bitch just didn’t exist.

  I’ve got to do something. I can’t just let Cami go.

  Sam has to leave.

  Sam has to go.

  She’s messing with my plans.

  I have to get rid of her.

  33

  Teenagers

  Samantha Steele

  It’s been three days since Zac from computers class asked for my number. I was so excited when he did; so thrilled and full of joy. I’m still happy, but now I’m afraid and I feel a little stupid.

  I’m used to liking guys that I just know. I can predict their reactions if I really think about what I’m saying. I know what they like and what kinds of people they hang with. I grew up with their kind.

  But Zachary… he’s different. I feel like a Pilgrim in a new country. I can’t predict him. I can’t decipher him. He doesn’t skateboard, he likes cats, he didn’t like Silence of the Lambs, and he’s definitely not a nerd. This whole thing is fresh and new and actually quite scary. I like it; but I’m lost in it.

  Today was Monday, our first day back since the weekend. Last night I texted Zac at 8:00 p.m. to remind him to go to sleep. He thanked me for the reminder, and I told him it would be sad if he fell asleep on his way to school tomorrow. He said he didn’t want to go, and I told him to go to sleep.

  We had a power outage this morning, half the town, so I sent him a wake up text in case in his alarm didn’t go off. After that I decided I was getting too “girlfriend-y”, and quit sending him messages.

  When he walked in at the beginning of third period, we locked eyes.

  “You’re such a narcoleptic,” I teased.

  “Yeah I’m always falling asleep,” Zac laughed. He sat down and said hello to his friends. I was glad he came to school today. “Do you know a freshman named Sunshyne?” he asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “Is she weird?”

  “Yeah, kind of,” I said.

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  Samantha Steele

  “Oh. She was at my house yesterday.”

  “Fun,” I said, sort of confused. Was he trying to
make me jealous or something?

  “Her mom was, too. She’s a lesbian.”

  “Okay..?” I said, now very confused.

  “Yeah, it’s weird.” From here his voice got quieter and I had to strain to hear it. He sort of stopped talking to me and was talking more to Mitchell and Skipper. “’Cause one of them’s the guy…”

  “Ew!” Plaid laughed.

  “Yeah, it’s weird,” Zac repeated. Not really caring for the conversation, I stopped listening.

  After a few minutes, I noticed Zac staring at me, a blank, expressionless look on his face.

  “What?” I laughed, glancing around.

  “Nothing,” he said with a shrug. Zac looked away and didn’t look back, as far as I saw, all period.

  We didn’t speak, either. I remembered him telling me not to be shy around him, so I tried to act like I was really busy with other things. I didn’t want to act like I was too interested in him, and possibly scare him away.

  After class, I met up with Cami in the hall. As we were walking back to H hall, where her locker is, we passed Zac, who smiled and raised his eyebrows in greeting at me. I smiled back.

  Cami giggled with excitement and tickled my ribs.

  “Aw he likes you!” she squealed.

  “I hope so! He did that cute eyebrow raise thing,” I said.

  Towards the end of the day, I ended up hanging out with my old friend Taylor and her best friend Amy. They both told me that I didn’t miss much at the dance; according to them it really sucked. Amy did say, however, that two people were caught having sex behind the curtain.

  Really wanting to talk to Zac after school, I told him the gossip. Now, if I had told any of my guy friends, they probably would have thought it was really funny and said something like,

  “Too bad we didn’t get to see them get caught.”

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  Teenagers

  Zac however, like I said previously, is unlike any other boy I know. He just said, “Gross.”

  It’s 7:10 p.m. now, and I have not texted him since. I’ve decided that I will wait for this godlike beauty to come to me. If Blue Eyes wants a piece of Hazel Eyes over here, he better come and get it.

  36

  Samantha Steele

  Samantha Steele

  Today is Sunday. I have not spoken to Zac since last Thursday. Since it is Spring Break, we had Friday off.

  Zac did not come to class on Thursday, so I was okay with leaving early for my orthodontist appointment. I wasn’t aware at the time, but that appointment would set the tone for my entire Spring Break.

  I was supposed to get my braces off in May, after two years of having gold wires binding my teeth together. Yes, you read that correctly, my braces are made of 14-karat gold.

  But at that horrid appointment, I was sentenced to another year, at the very minimum, of aching gums and rubber bands that seal my jaw shut at night. I was so sour with my whole life at that very moment (I realized that prom with braces was evident) that I skipped my geometry and biology tests and did not return to school.

  To make matters worse, Zac only texted me twice, and he was only answering questions I asked him about his break. He was working all week.

  By Friday morning, I wasn’t too upset. I was a little anxious to speak with Zac, but I always felt that way. I spent most of the day playing the Sims 2 and reading The Wind in the Willows. I played with my dogs a little, but they were my only social contact until my parents came home late that night.

  On Saturday, I texted my best friend Sarah and asked when we could get together to celebrate her birthday, which was the following day. I had immediate feelings of rejection and loneliness when she told me that today she was hanging out with Linden, tomorrow she was making plans with her divorced parents, and Monday she was spending time with Nick.

  37

  Teenagers

  I really didn’t like Nick and Linden. Sarah and I have been friends since kindergarten, but we had a monstrous fight a few months ago and haven’t been the same since.

  It all started with my new friend, Ali. At homecoming, Sarah met Ali for the first time and told me she hated her. I didn’t really mind; I only hung out with Ali during gym, and once we’d gone to a movie, but that was really it.

  But then Sarah found out that Ali had horses, and, within a week, the two were best friends and Sarah spent more time with Ali than she did with me. Normally I wouldn’t have cared that much, but I knew deep down that Sarah was just using Ali to feed her horse addiction. Sarah used to have horses, but she had had to sell them when they became too expensive to take care of.

  Then Sarah started to become a real obnoxious wench.

  Her date to homecoming, Nick, ended up liking me instead of her.

  I sort of liked him, too, until I realized his true nature (he was just a big jerk). We both started keeping secrets from each other, and our meetings became these acidic conversations of agony. After a few weeks, I simply stopped talking to her.

  Sarah of course played the “I don’t know what’s going on” card, but I knew that she knew what was happening between us. We both had gone about things the wrong way and shared equal fault. I had stepped over a line with Nick, even though we never actually did anything (we were just flirting, I never even touched him, but it was still wrong), and Sarah had misused Ali and made me lose trust in her words.

  But Annika, our other best friend, was the mediator between us. Annika brought us back together, even though the relationship was still rigid and low on trust. I still feel like I can’t trust Sarah’s opinion. I’m not sure I ever should have.

  But while I was in Hawaii for five weeks for Christmas break, Sarah became exceedingly good friends with Linden and Nick. When I came home, I was very excited to hang out with her and Cami and Annika. But every time I tried to make plans, Sarah was already at the mall with Linden, or snowboarding at Hilltop Ski Area with Nick.

  38

  Samantha Steele

  Trying to get in with her was like trying to get in with the President.

  Actually, I think it may have been harder.

  Even today, March 7th, I still am yet to hang out with Sarah outside of school. I’m fairly certain she doesn’t even like me anymore, and that hurts. I love her like a sister.

  And you want to know what else hurts? Zac hasn’t made contact with me since Thursday. Everyone is telling me to give up. I know I should, but it’s hard. I want to cry, but I’m not that attached, which is good. Now all I can think about is getting a rebound. I’d settle for almost anyone right now.

  I just need this beautiful, perfect, Zachary-shaped figure to leave my head.

  39

  Teenagers

  Samantha Steele

  I had another fight with Sarah last night. I asked her why we never hang out anymore; she said it was awkward because we went different ways. I replied with, “Well fine. I guess since we’re different we can’t be friends anymore. Thanks for clearing that shit up.”

  She never texted me back. I felt bad about it this morning. I don’t want to lose her as a friend, and I still have to give her the presents I bought for her birthday; the Betsy Johnson earrings and the little sign I found her that says, “No Parking.

  Restricted Area. Members of the Sarah Fan Club only.”

  Clever, hmm?

  I sent her a message this morning apologizing. I have received no reply.

  After that, I stretched out and started a new book; Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk. Great movie. So far, book is good, too.

  Lately my life feels like it’s spiraling downward at an accelerated rate. What’s at the bottom?

  I don’t know.

  Maybe there’s a cushiony mattress, flowers, and people who love me. Or maybe it’s like Dante’s Divine Comedy; you have to pass through hell and purgatory to reach Heaven.

  I won’t lie and act all “emo”; there have been some fantastic parts of this hellacious journey. For instance, I got to go to Hawaii for five weeks, and
still had five A’s and one B even without taking any of my finals.

  I think that’s pretty impressive.

  But now my grades are clinging to high C’s and B’s. I have never gotten a C on my report card, and one sure as hell ain’t going on my transcripts! But I’m not worried. I’ll bring them up. Some classes haven’t even reached 100 total points yet. I’ll fix it. No problem.

  40

  Samantha Steele

  What IS a problem, however, is my social life. I could be the smartest, most successful, richest, most beautiful person in the world and still not be happy because I only have about three friends who talk to me on a daily basis. Taylor, Annika, and Cami. This is probably because they don’t know me completely.

  They’ve never seen me cry. Never seen me get angry. To them, I’m just smart, funny, pretty Spam. Oh yes, Taylor calls me Spam. But it’s not meant in a mean way.

  I talk to a few other people, like Mandy and Caten and Sydney, but I’m not friends with them outside of class. Mandy and I used to be pretty good friends, but we’ve never hung out outside of school.

  I miss Kristina. Kristina was my best friend two years ago. I had only known her for two years when she moved, but we were really close. We both knew each other’s bad and annoying sides, and were okay with them. I hardly talk to her anymore.

  That makes me feel really bad. How could I just leave a friendship like that?

  But I’ve still got Annika. She is certainly the best friend anyone could ask for. She’s always truthful, even when the truth is that your new shoes are absolutely the single ugliest thing she’s ever seen.

  And that’s what I love about her. She isn’t girly at all.

  She hates dresses (well, she SAYS she hates them) but if you beg and beg and beg, you can get her to wear one as long as she gets to wear her hi-tops with it. She’s my honest, outspoken friend who is always willing to hang out as long as she isn’t grounded.

  And I had Kristina, too, who felt the same way, but she was really girly. I used to have this perfectly rounded group of friends; even Sarah liked me back then.

  And then high school came.

  Kristina moved.

  Nick came into the picture and tore Sarah and me apart.

  Then I went to Hawaii.

  I came home and the only people who actually wanted to talk to me were Annika, Cami, Taylor, and Caten.