Page 11 of Anywhere

Riegan snatched my arm. “Mari, dinnie go. I’m sorry. Ya know I like takin da mick out of da situation, but I dinnie mean ta hurt ya.”

“You have no idea how hard it is to be born without a tattoo or red hair, Riegan. You tease, and it cuts like a knife. You have a tattoo. You’ll find your match,” I said.

“Yer right, I keep forgettin’.”

I looked my sorta friend’s face over and sat back down. “I’m not going to be good company tonight,” I said.

“Aye, I know.” Riegan wasn’t a very warm person, but the fact that she reached out and patted my arm made me feel a little less alone.

I’d tried to move away and thought I was starting to put Rhys and what we wanted behind me. Then Ma got sick and passed to the spirit world, and Pa hadn’t been himself. I moved home to be closer to him and realized I’d only been fooling myself. The distance hadn’t made the feelings disappear. They simmered under the surface, waiting for the opportunity to break free. As if no time had passed, we once more became inseparable.

I jumped as Rhys’s arm brushed mine, and he softly snickered. Smiling, I glanced over from the book I was supposed to be studying, then looked around the room for the teacher, Mrs. Murray. Pa had hired her to homeschool us.

Rhys hid his hand but held out a small piece of paper to me, and I quickly took the offering. I loved it when he was like this. It was rare to see him not serious about learning, training, or whatever else they did to groom the guys to take over the Faction.

Mrs. Murray was in the far corner of the large library, staring up at the books. Hiding the paper under the table, I quietly unfolded and read the note. As soon as I saw the words, my mouth fell open.

“Sneak out?” I whispered, and he nodded before pointing to the door.

The large glass doors were left open to let the warm summer breeze inside. Though the curtains were drawn back, the wind still made them flutter. I looked at Mrs. Murray, who was still occupied by the books.

“I dinnie know….” I bit my lip.

Rhys held out his hand. I knew Pa would be angry, but I wanted to spend some time outside before the weather turned cold again. Smiling, I placed my hand in his, and we slowly got to our feet. We made our escape one soft step at a time but only got about halfway when Mrs. Murray spotted us.

“Where do ya tink ya be goin’?” she said.

I was going to turn around and apologize, but instead, a small scream left my mouth as Rhys began to run, pulling me along with him for a second before my feet caught on to the sudden shift in pace.

“Hey, git back ‘ere!”

Laughing, we darted out the door running along the back lawn and down toward the beach. We didn’t stop until we knew we were well-hidden and far enough that Mrs. Murray wouldn’t be bothered coming to find us. Flopping on the grassy rise, we laughed hard until I was gasping for breath.

“We’re gonna be in big trouble,” I said.

“Aye, but it’s worth it. Look at da clouds. They be makin’ lots of shapes today.” Rhys pointed to the mass of rolling white. “It be a rabbit,”

“Naw, dinnie be daft. Da is clearly a bird,” I argued.

A tiny bit of sadness crept into my chest, and my smile fell. I’d had a crush on my best friend for a couple of years. Now at thirteen, I knew that the dreams of us getting matched were just that, dreams. Standing, I walked to the edge of the water and picked up a handful of stones to skip along the top.

“They no work when there be waves,” Rhys said as I threw the first stone. He was right, of course, but I kept at it. Rhys stepped up beside me. “Is somethin’ wrong, Mari?”

I couldn’t bring myself to tell him what was making me sad. He was my only friend since my sister and I didn’t get along. She was like oil and I the water. Gripping the stones in my hand, I stared down at my reflection in the water. “I wish I had hair like me sister. I hate me raven hair,” I said, bitter, as I stared at the black colour.

“Why? It be beautiful.”

Stupid tears pricked my eyes with the compliment, and I looked away from Rhys and crossed my arms. “Naw, it be a curse.”

“Aye, maybe it is, but it doesn’t make it or you any less beautiful.”

I turned my head to look at Rhys, and his face seemed just as sad. Could it be? Could he feel the same way?

“I know we are never gonna be paired, but I wish it was you,” he said.

I searched his face, and a tear trickled down my cheek. “Me too.”

Rhys