Chapter 7 New Friend

Elona's POV

I was tossing and turning the entire evening because of the essay that Mr. Crane wrote. Was he admitting his feelings for me? I tapped my pen on my creative writing book. I rewrote the essay in my own handwriting last night and I handed it in this morning. The students were chatting softly amongst themselves in class as Miss Johnson was going through papers as she sat behind her desk.

"I heard that our dad's are going to the bar tonight," Crislynn said softly. I looked over at her. She had a smirk on her face. "Do you want to sleep over tonight at my place?" she asked.

"I don't know if I should, I mean...I don't know if your dad would be okay with that," I replied.

She scoffed, "My dad won't mind. You have slept over by me since we were little. What has changed now?" she smiled as if I was crazy.

I shrugged. "We are older now, perhaps he wants you both to have your space."

"Elona, you are sleeping over and I'm not taking no for an answer," she demanded.

There was no way that I was getting out of this one, and butterflies fluttered in my stomach at the thought of being in the same house as Mr. Crane for an entire evening. "I have sent in the essays for the competition." Miss Johnson said, the class was quiet as she stood in front of the classroom. "However, those who handed in the essays late, your essays couldn't be submitted as yesterday was the cut off date." my heart sank. "But you will still get a good grade for it because the essays are brilliant and you all make me proud." she smiled.

"I hope that I win because then my hard work pays off for my journalism," Crislynn said softly as the classroom door opened. There, in the doorway, stood a figure that seemed like it had been plucked straight from the pages of a gothic novel.

Miss Johnson looked towards him. "Oh Eric, come on in," she said to him.

Eric was a tall and enigmatic figure. His jet-black hair cascaded in unruly waves over his forehead, partially obscuring his sharp, piercing blue eyes that seemed to hold a hint of mystery. His pale complexion contrasted starkly with the sea of ordinary faces in the classroom. Dressed in a dark, fitted jacket and pants, he appeared to be more suited for a midnight stroll in a cemetery than a high school classroom.

As Eric walked in, his every step seemed to carry an air of intrigue and fascination. He moved with a certain confidence that suggested he was accustomed to standing out, even in a room full of curious gazes. His presence felt like a shadowy enigma amidst the fluorescent lights and mundane surroundings.

I exchanged a quick glance with Crislynn, and we both couldn't help but be captivated by this new addition to our class. What had brought this mysterious figure to our final year of high school? What stories and secrets lay hidden behind those deep, contemplative eyes? Eric's arrival had injected an unexpected dose of excitement and curiosity into our classroom, and I couldn't help but wonder how this enigmatic presence would influence the rest of our school year.

"I saw that he moved down the street from us," Crislynn said softly.

"Really?" I asked.

"Yes, I was curious when I saw him, but now I'm even more curious," she responded as she looked at where he took a seat next to the window. The class was whispering amongst themselves, still intrigued by Eric.

"The winner was chosen for the essay," Miss Johnson had continued. Now all of our attention was on her. "Crislynn Crane, you are the winner. It was such a beautiful and heart-touching essay," Miss Johnson smiled at her as the classroom cheered Crislynn on. I looked over at my best friend. She covered her mouth as she couldn't believe it. I smiled in return. She deserves that because that will go towards her journalism career once she is done with high school. As I think about it, I need to take photoshoots in order to create a modeling portfolio of myself.

****

Crislynn and I walked home after school, but we saw Eric in front of us...alone. "Let's make friends," Crislynn said as she walked away from me.

"Hey," I stopped her by holding onto her arm. We both stopped as she turned to look at me. "Maybe he wants to be alone."

"Chillax, I will only speak to him," she said, and I let her do what she wanted. She walked over to him and they walked in step on the sidewalk. I was trailing behind them. "This is Elona," she said, and Eric turned around to look at me.

"Hi," I smiled. He gave me a faint smile. I walk beside them now.

"Elona lives down the street too, so if you want to hang out with us, don't hesitate," Crislynn told him.

"Thank you. You can call me Spooky. That is my nickname though," he said.

"That is such a cool nickname, I like it," Crislynn said.

As we got closer to Crislynn's house, Mr. Crane pulled up in the driveway. We came to a stop across the street. My heart was beating at a rapid pace because of Mr. Crane. "This is where I live, see you later, Elona," she smiled at me and then she crossed the street as Mr. Crane got out of his car. "See you around, Spooky!" she called out over her shoulder.

"Is she always like that? Outgoing?" Spooky asked. My eyes landed on Mr. Crane, his black suit hugged his lean muscles and he looked over at Spooky and I, his brows furrowed. I smiled at him but he looked between the two of us. He didn't even return my smile as he followed after Crislynn down the driveway towards their front door.

My heart sank. "Yeah, but she is a nice person. She makes me smile in tough times too. She lost her mother three years ago, so it is kind of difficult for her," I replied as we began to walk in step again.

"Thank you for the heads up," he said.

"Well, you can hangout with us even at school. We like to make friends and if there is anything that you need, you can just ask."

"I think I will be fine," he smiled.

We stopped in front of my house, "I will see you around," I said. He looked at me with his piercing blue eyes.

"Thank you, Elona," and then he left. I glanced one more time down the street towards Crislynn's house. It was empty.

When I got into my house, my dad was in the lounge, sipping coffee and scrolling through his phone. "Hi, dad."

"How was school today?" he asked as I walked further into the lounge.

"It was okay, Cris and I met a new friend and he lives down the street from us. He moved in recently and he is in our class," I plopped down on the sofa.

"It is great to meet new friends... Speaking of friends, Tristan and I are going out to a bar tonight. We both need it," he looked at me as he sipped his coffee.

"Yeah you do. I will be sleeping over at Cris tonight," I replied.

"I'm glad to hear that. You haven't slept over by her in a while. I'm glad you are getting out of the house more often," he smiled at me.

"Yeah," I returned his smile.

"Have you asked Tristan about the agencies for your modeling? Just as you do know your options if you haven't yet."

"No, dad. I prefer that he stays out of my business with all due respect. I want to do this on my own," he smiled.

"You are more like your mother. She always wanted to do things for herself with no one else's help and I'm proud of you," he continued to smile.

"Thanks, dad. I better pack a little bag for my sleepover tonight," I said, and I got up from the sofa and went upstairs to my bedroom.

Part of me was excited to be spending the evening in Mr. Crane's house and part of me was nervous. At least, I would see him. But there was something that had shifted inside of him when he came over to tutor me. My crush on him was wrong and what he has told me via text and in person was wrong too and I know that it was the problem for him to change.