Naomi Grim by Tiffany Nicole Smith Page B

basketball players like to relieve stress after a
big game. You might hit a homerun tonight."
    Roxy shoved her playfully
and they pulled off.
    The parking lot was almost
empty when Hunter finally came out. "Sorry I took so long. Coach wanted to
talk to us and he wouldn't shut up."
    "It's okay," I
said as he opened the door for me to climb inside.
    He started the ignition.
"Hungry?"
    "I could eat."
    We rode quietly for a
minute. I enjoyed the smell of his coconut car freshener. Hunter pulled into a
drive-thru and we both ordered fries and vanilla shakes. He drove us to a park
and we stopped and ate.
    The soft rock song we had
been listening to changed to something else. It was a song by Lil' somebody
that I didn't understand. All I knew was that they called women terrible names
accompanied by "shake that" and "suck this". I turned it
off. "How about we just talk?"
    "Okay," Hunter
answered. "Why are you so weird?"
    "What?"
    "You're weird,
Snowflake. There's something about you that I can't put my finger on."
    I shrugged. "I don't
know what you mean." I didn't want to lie to him, but I couldn’t very well
tell him that I wasn't human and I had come to collect the lives of his
schoolmates.
    "It’s not a bad thing
necessarily. Weird can be good in your case."
    I took a sip of my milkshake
and placed it back in the cup holder. "Why do you like me, Hunter?"
It was an honest question. Hunter was gorgeous and popular. Much like Bram, he
could have anyone he wanted.
    "Why wouldn't I like
you?"
    "I don't know. I'm this
strange new girl. I'm not like you or the other kids. I'm just . . . I don't
know."
    Hunter touched my chin
gently and turned my face toward him. "You're not just anything.
You're special. I don't know how to explain it. I like your swag. You're
different and I like that. And it doesn't hurt that you're easy on the
eyes."
    My cheeks felt warm and I
wanted to look away from Hunter, but I didn't. I liked his smell. Even after a
basketball game, he smelled good. I wanted to lean closer to him, but I didn't.
Hunter moved his face toward mine, but I pulled away. I didn't want to, but I
had to. I didn't want to know what would happen as far as this assignment was
concerned if I broke the rules. I couldn't risk having any more years deducted
from my life.
    "Hunter, I'm sorry. I
can't."
    Hunter pulled away. He
looked disappointed, but only for a moment. "Okay. It's okay."
    I sat back against the seat,
taking deep breaths. Bram was right. I needed to keep my head in the game. I
needed to be thinking about all the Fated I'd seen that night, not making out
with a cute boy. I should have gone home with the others. "It's kind of
late. I have to get home."
    Hunter gave me a tight
smile. "Sure."
    I wanted to tell him that it
wasn't him. He wasn't the reason I had to hold back; it was me. We rode the
rest of the way in silence. No music, no talking—nothing.
    We pulled into the driveway.
"I'll walk you to the door," Hunter offered.
    "No!" I hadn't
meant to shout. "I mean, that's okay."
    "Why are you so jumpy?
Snowflake, whatever it is, you can tell me."
    No, I couldn't. "Good
night, Hunter."
    "Good night."
    I walked toward the dark
house. No lights were on, so I assumed everyone had gone to sleep. By the time
I'd made it to the door, Hunter was still parked in the driveway. I put my keys
in the lock and then I finally heard him backing out. Before closing the door,
I turned around for one last look. It felt like my heart had stopped
temporarily. I froze in the doorway, as Hunter pulled out of our driveway.
    He was glowing.
    * *
*
    "So, I think we all saw
a good amount of the Fated last night," Bram commented the next morning at
breakfast. We all sat around the dining room table munching on cereal. I hadn't
slept at all thinking about all the kids I'd seen glowing—Hunter and Roxy in
particular. "That pretty boy of yours, he's one of them."
    "How do you know?"
I demanded. Hunter hadn't begun to glow until after he pulled out of