The MirrorMasters

Chapter 8

My cell phone rang on the way home. Tired and clumsy, I dug the phone out of my pink and green striped beach bag, but narrowly missed dropping both as the phone almost slipped through my fingers. "Hello?"

"Hey, Leah. It's Celia. Can you come over for a bit? Tomorrow is shaping up to be a super busy day. I'd love to get you up to speed and have you meet the kids today so you'll be ready to jump right in."

Blast! I had wanted nothing more than to go home and rest, but the unexpected invitation sent adrenaline coursing through my body. Now I was awake. "Sure thing. I'll stop by in a few."

"Perfect."

When I hung up with Celia, I groaned and glanced at my watch, then down at my tank top, jean shorts, and flip flops. I'd need to change — and fast — before going in. Great. Just great. If Dad found out, he'd yell at me for being unprepared, for going to the beach and to Kara's the day before work. He'd say I should have expected this to come up.

As if I didn't already have butterflies of nervousness and excitement flitting around in my stomach. Now I had to face my first job in a matter of minutes, not the hours I'd thought I had. Maybe it was silly to worry about a babysitting job when I had the fate of another world in my hands, but I couldn't help this tendency to sweat the small stuff. I took off at a sprint for home.

****

By the time I'd met with Celia and her prankster daughters, the crowds had thinned, leaving the beach practically empty. I took one last glance toward the ocean, listening to the soothing sounds of the waves against the shore, and spotted Brian sitting alone in a secluded spot on the dunes. Something about the way he sat, shoulders slumped and his head in his hands, called to me. He seemed so lonely. Gripping the railings to keep myself from going over to him, I fought to turn around and walk home. A trail of gold glitter glue stuck to the wood beneath my fingers, courtesy of those little imps who must have dumped half the bottle of the stuff all over their hands — on purpose — to make sure it got all over me, too.

No, I can't help Brian. I have to stay away.

Who was I kidding? I couldn't leave him like that. I'd feel awful about myself if I did. Maybe Kara was right, that I had a chance to change things for the better this time. Instinct overrode self-preservation, and I descended the steps to the beach, toward Brian and whatever future my decision held.

"Hey," I said when I reached him. He turned to me, anger and pain in his eyes. The sheer intensity of it took my breath away, leaving me with an almost physical need to console him.

"Hey," he replied. At the sight of me, glitter-spattered hands, hair, shirt and all, his expression softened. The tension in his shoulders and back relaxed slightly. "Hmm. You kind of sparkle."

My lips twitched upward. "A little gift from the girls I'm going to be babysitting. Could you use some company?" I asked tentatively, reaching up to tuck my hair behind my ears.

"Yeah."

"David didn't do anything, did he?" I sat down beside him, cross-legged on the fine, sugar-white sand. A gentle breeze caressed my skin, and the fading sunlight drew my gaze out to the aqua waters. The fierce daytime waves had calmed into an ocean of smooth, rippling glass.

"What? No, it's...my dad. I don't want to get into what happened." Brian stayed quiet for a while, and I shared in the silence until he could no longer hold in what was bothering him. "He kept so much from me, Leah! You'd never believe how much he's kept from me my entire life!"

"Woah." I knew exactly what he was going through, even without the specifics. How did people we were supposed to be able to trust do this? "That's a huge betrayal."