[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.She didn’t say anything, so maybe it went unnoticed.We were quiet for a while as I drove and the silence wasn’t at all uncomfortable.I knew this girl inside and out and she knew me, too.She just didn’t remember it.Minor detail.But I sensed that she was comfortable with me, too.She hadn’t been lying.She only lived ten minutes away in a quiet little neighborhood to the south of me.I turned into the driveway of a cozy little cottage with blue shutters.It was a tiny little house, but the yard was immaculate and full of blooming colorful flowers.An elderly woman knelt in a flowerbed, crouching over a bed of pink tulips- my favorite.As I got out of the car, I called, "Your tulips are beautiful!"She turned and offered me a crinkly grin."Thank you, dear.They are an enjoyment to me." She glanced at Jade."Hi, sweetheart.I didn’t know we were having company.Or I would have cleaned up." She sounded just the slightest bit disapproving and I wondered at it.But then she smiled again, so I dismissed my thought.I must have been mistaken."Grandma, this is Macy Lockhart.She volunteered to drop me off so that I didn’t have to bother you with it."I paused at her lie, but decided it wasn’t a big deal.A giant Buick was parked in the driveway.She probably just hadn’t wanted to ride around in a grandma car.I couldn’t blame her."Well, I’m glad to you meet you, Macy," she smiled."I’m Gladys, Jade’s grandmother.I’m happy that she’s met a new friend.California is a big place." She turned to Jade."Jade, take this poor girl in.She shouldn’t be standing around after her troubles yesterday.Are you feeling better?" she peered at me."I feel much better, Gladys.Thank you for asking.They think it was just a bad case of indigestion."She peered at me again."No doubt from all the junk you teenagers eat.You really should eat more fruit.It’s good for you."Jade scowled good-naturedly at her grandma."Gran, you don’t even know how she eats.Maybe she’s a health nut.You don’t know.""Well, take her inside anyway.And get her some lemonade.It’s fresh-squeezed," Gladys added.Jade led me inside the tiny house and the inside was just as neat at the exterior.Crocheted doilies, flowered wallpaper, yellowed still-lifes on the walls.All of the quaint things you would expect from a grandmother’s house.My grandparents had all died before I was born, so I didn’t have any real experience with them.Jade poured me a glass of lemonade and led the way to her room.I trailed behind her, taking everything in.There were pictures of her grandpa on the wall, but there was no sign of him at all in the house.He must have already passed away.It was just Jade and her grandma in this house.She pushed open the door to her room and I gasped."Holy crap! It’s like a whole other world in here!"The entire room was full of state of the art technology.a huge flat screen was mounted on the wall, surround sound speakers were hanging from the corners, a brand new laptop adorned a sleek mahogany desk.Her furnishings were modern and plush and starkly out of context in the quaint little house.I turned to her in amazement.She shrugged her shoulders."My parents live in Switzerland and they want to be able to chat with me every night via webcam.""Um, my crappy old laptop has a webcam.This is.this is." I gestured toward everything in her room.There were no words."Yeah, I know," she muttered and she actually blushed."It’s serious overkill.But my dad is a scientist and he likes gadgets.""Why do you live here, if your parents live in Switzerland?" I asked curiously."Am I being too nosy?"She smiled."No, of course not.It’s a valid question.My dad works for a biological engineering company and their corporate office is secluded in the mountains.My parents didn’t want me isolated up there so they left me here to go to a normal, American school.""Just now? When did they leave?""Oh, no.They’ve lived there for years.I was going to a private school, but my grandma just decided that a public school would be good for me.And so here I am.a brand-new student in my senior year at San Marino.""Don’t worry," I murmured comfortingly."You’ll be fine.You know me now.and Jenn, Jess and Gavin.And tomorrow you’ll known Noah.Don’t blame me though when he bores you to tears."She grinned."I think somehow I’ll manage.You know, what with being blinded by that smile and all.""He is pretty," I agreed."I’ll definitely give him that.""So you’ll call me about tomorrow?" Jade asked hopefully, as she showed me to the front door."Yep.I’ll talk to you tomorrow." I walked toward my car."Thank you for the lemonade,"I called to Gladys."It was delicious.""You’re welcome, dear.It was very nice to meet you.I’m glad my Jade has a new friend."She waved and went back to weeding her flower bed.I turned up the volume on my stereo as I backed out of the driveway.As music dulled my senses, I thought about what I had just seen.It was very, very curious [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]