The Pumpkin Patch Of Love

15.

Julie
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Dani was hiding something and I was going to get to the bottom of it. With her out on a coffee date with Brixton now is the perfect time to snoop around.

And it's also strange that she freezes up every time I mention Love Chaser. Unless... Dani could be love chaser? It makes since, bless her heart. I don't blame her if she's actually Love Chaser.

She's never been good at hiding things so I start with her computer. Caleb's been getting emails so I go straight to Dani's.

As I scroll through them my excitement simmers down.

Darn, nothing here. She's better at hiding things than I thought.

Her last email was to a teacher about a paper that was due last week. Boring!

"C'mon... there's got to be something here. Give me a hint at least." I mumble to myself as I begin looking through her closet.

Does this make me a bad friend? Not necessarily. If I was hiding something—which I'm not—Dani would do the same thing.

"Ugh, where would I hide something if I was Love Chaser." I get out of her closet and go over to her desk, opening up one of the drawers.

"What do you think you're doing?" Crap. I'm caught.

It never feels good to get caught while snooping, it feels even worse when you're caught by the suspects dad.

"Oh, hey Mr. Wilson." I shut the drawer to her desk and get off my knees.

"Were you snooping again?" I turn around to see him motioning for me to get out of Dani's room.

"Maybe..." I mumble as I trudged out behind him.

"I don't think she would appreciate that." He makes sure I go down the stairs first so I wouldn't sneak back into her room.

"It's important." I hop from the second to last step down onto the main floor.

"You know what's important?" He turns around with the biggest smile on his face.

"I really don't want to know." My shoulders slump.

"Raking leaves!" He opens up the front door and I see a rake leaning against the porch railing.

I groan and shake my head frustratedly. "But it's Saturday!"

"I'll pay you. How's a fresh ten dollar bill sound?" He grabs his wallet off the coffee table.

"Twenty. You give me that much and I'll rake the sides of the yard." I cross my arms over my chest. Not many people would hire fourteen year olds around here and I needed all the help I could get. Dog sitting doesn't pay that much and with the way I like to spend money I need a twenty.

"You have yourself a deal." We shake on it and I start getting to work.

I had no clue and still have no clue that Dani wrote her Love Chaser email password down and that the piece of paper was resting in her desk drawer. The drawer that I was getting ready to go through when Mr. Wilson caught me.

I guess some things are meant to stay a secret for a while.

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Caleb
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"You wanna tell me why you're singing and walking through the house like you're floating on a cloud?" My mom asks as I sit down at the kitchen table.

"There's a girl," I smile as I look over at her. "Actually there's two girls."

"I know one is Claire, but who's the other one?" She comes over to the table and pulls out a chair across from me.

"The other one is a mystery to me. I don't even know her name, just that she goes to our school." I pick up my phone and head over to my email.

"So it's not Dani?" She asks as she sits down.

"Why would you think it's Dani? Dani is..." I trail off, unsure of what to say.

"Dani is Dani. She's beautiful, unique in her own way, compassionate, loyal-" I have to stop her before she says too much.

"So back to the mystery girl." I pull out my emails from Love Chaser before handing my phone over to her.

"What am I looking at here?" She squints and holds the phone away from her face a little.

"I've been chatting with this mystery girl by email, she contacted me first. She goes by Love Chaser but she hasn't given me any hints on who she really is." I fold my arms on top of the table.

"I've told you before that you shouldn't be talking to strangers." She sighs and hands the phone back to me.

"She's not a stranger, she goes to my school." I say defensively.

"So she says." She takes a sip of her coffee and opens up her laptop.

"You watch too many crime shows." I huff and get up to grab a granola bar.

"I'm a cop who sees gruesome things on a daily basis. Remember Bailey Summers? She started talking to a 'teenager' online who claimed he knew her brother." She puts her coffee down. "I just want you to be safe."

"I am safe and I also think I'm in love." I tear off the top of the wrapper before taking an angry bite out of the granola bar.

"Here we go again." She turns her attention back to her computer screen.

"I'm serious!" I slam my hand down onto the counter. Ouch. I shake my hand a little so the sting will go away.

"Go make your bed." She says on the verge of laughter. "That would make mama happy."

"Of course it would." I mumble as I trudge back up to my room, phone and granola bar in hand.