Page 17 of Silent Desires

“Maybe he didn’t want to be at home anymore. Maybe he needed the distraction?”

“Yeah, I’m sure it’s hard to get the image of your sister’s raped and murdered body out of your head.”

What the hell?Raped and murdered?

“Do you think it’s related to the girl that was found in the woods a few months ago?”

“The cops on the news said they weren’t related, but what are the chances? There’s never been any murders here, and now we have two in the same year.” Great. Now I have something else to worry about.

Their conversation shifts to Friday’s party as they leave the bathroom.

As I finish up, washing my hands, I wonder if I really want to escape my house, being stuck in the basement all the time. At least I knew what to expect there. This world feels like it’s spiraling into chaos, and I haven’t even finished my first week.

It took me three days, but I finally make it to my art class. It’s a big room, more like an actual art studio, with easels arranged haphazardly all over the place. The twins introduce me to the teacher, Mr. Dalton, who sets me up at an easel in the corner with my back to the wall. I appreciate that. He’s a large man—not tall, but with a large belly. He seems friendly enough, and I don’t get any weird vibes from him. He explains that students are working on their individual projects and hands me a book on painting techniques to practice.

The class starts to fill, and I notice the blue-haired girl from the hallway the other day. When she sees me, she smiles and comes over. “Hey, you’re in this class! Why haven’t I seen you here yet?” I just shrug and look at my blank canvas, avoiding eye contact.

“I’m Alex, we met the other day.” I give her a little smile and nod to show I remember.

“So you really don’t talk?” she asks in a whisper. I shake my head and play with the paintbrushes at my side.

“That’s so cool. Everyone tells me I talk too much anyway. You’ve got that cool mysterious vibe going on, you know?” She nods as if agreeing with herself, and I relax a little. She seems like she’s genuinely trying to be nice, with no hidden meaning behind her words.

“I have to talk a lot. I have four sisters, so if you don’t make yourself known, you get lost in the crowd, you know?” I nod like I understand, though I don’t.

“Okay, so now we’re friends, you have to tell me—which of the twins are you dating?”

I stare at her in shock. Which one am Idating?

“It’s Jasper, isn’t it? He seems so protective of you,” she presses, and I just stare at her, unable to answer. Why would she think I’m dating them? I barely know them.

“Oh my God, it’s Max! Ah, he’s so sweet, you two make a great couple!”

I look at her like she’s crazy, but my heart starts beating rapidly at the thought of dating one of them. But quickly, I realize I couldn’t pick one over the other. They’re both so kind and… hot. I’m just lucky to be friends with them.

“Oh my God, girl, are you dating both of them?!” she whisper-shrieks at me.

I look at her with wide eyes and put my finger over my lips in a “shh,” motion, but she takes it the wrong way. “Holy shit, girl, that’s so fucking hot! Every girl at this school is going to be so jealous whenthey hear!”

I shake my head rapidly, afraid she’ll start spreading that rumor.

She laughs at my reaction. “Don’t worry, secret’s safe with me! But I think people will catch on quickly. Right now, half of them think you’re the twins’ sister, and the other half are trying to figure out which one you’re dating.” I’m not sure why they would care either way.

Mr. Dalton asks the class to get started on their projects, so Alex says bye and goes to her own easel. As class goes on, I read some techniques and try them out on the canvas—not really painting anything yet, just practicing what’s in the book.

Soon enough, the class ends, and I see Max entering before I can even get my bag on my shoulder.

“Hey, Sweetheart, you have a good class?” he asks.

I give him a smile and a nod and he grabs my hand and leads me toward the gym. “You’re going to need to get a gym uniform from Tucker first, so I’ll take you to his office by the gym.”

As we enter his office, Tucker gives me a huge smile. “Good afternoon, Sugar. Glad to see you made it. Thanks, Max, you better get to class. You can meet her right here afterwards.”

I want to object to that. This is the last period of the day, and I won’t be waiting around—I have to get home quickly. Max says his goodbyes, and I’m left with my gym teacher, Tucker Stone, staring at me with his hands in his pockets and a giant smile on his face. He looks at me like he knows a secret and isn’t going to tell me what it is. I can’t stop myself from getting a good look at him. He’s wearing black track pants with a tight fitted dark green t-shirt and an unbuttoned green and black flannel shirt overtop. The colors match my kilt making me think it must be the school’s gym uniform, although I doubt a flannel shirt was part of it.

“Have you ever done yoga before, Mina?” he asks as he opens a cupboard and pulls out some clothing. I shake my head.

“I thought it would be a good activity for you to start with, as it’s gentle movements to help stretch your body. I have a t-shirt, shorts, sweatshirt, and sweatpants for you. You can wear whichever you prefer. Normally, you would go to the girls’ locker room to change…” he trails off as my body stiffens.

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