Wishing: Chapter Eight

Clang.

I glanced up at the sound, slightly startled. Gordon sat across from me at the table (meaning he was only a little more than a foot away from me, these tables were so small). I glanced at the coffee cup he had sat down on the metal table, making the clang sound.

Ignoring him, I took another sip out of my tall iced coffee. We sat in the tiny Starbucks located near the gate that we were directed to, awaiting our plane.

"We should be boarding in about fifteen minutes," Gordon said eventually. Attempting to fill the awkward silence, I presumed. He stretched his arms, yawning.

I took another sip of my coffee, finally turning my eyes to him. "Is that so? Well, I guess we should get back to Megan, then."

He stared at me for a long time before laughing.

I glared. "What?"

"You act so cute, so innocent. Like just now, how you stared at me with those big blue eyes. But I know you're not like that. You're feisty." He grinned.

I hit my head against the table.

He laughed again. "Hey, lighten up."

I just glared.

Gordon shrugged. "You know, maybe you really are just some innocent twelve year old girl. Maybe this 'tough' thing is just an act." Upon saying this, he winked.

I sat in stunned silence for a minute, considering what he had just said. "Can we please change the subject?"

"Sure." He still had that amused smile on his face.

I rolled my eyes. "Where's Megan at?"

"She's over there with our bags," he said, gesturing over his shoulder.

I looked to where he had pointed, seeing the back of the brunette's head. Even from here, I could tell she was listening to music. Oh great, I thought. She took my iPod.

"Hey, Storm?" I looked up to meet Gordon's eyes. "Can I ask you something?"

"You just did," I smiled. "But, go ahead."

"What are you always thinking about? I mean, not always, but... you get this far away look in your eyes, like you're thinking really hard about something."

I bit my lip, my gaze returning to the cold metal table. "Mostly I think about... my dad. And... why I got into this whole mess."

"Why did you?"

"I just want to prove what's right." Even though that didn't make much sense, those were the only words I could muster up that even began to describe why.

“Elaborate, please?”

“Well… Okay, I guess I worded that wrong. I want to find out the truth. Up until a few days ago, I thought that my father was an environmentalist. And well, that’s obviously not true.” I laughed bitterly.

“I get that you want to know the truth, but… I don’t see why you would go to all this trouble just to find out.”

I didn’t respond.

“What’s your real motive?”

“I want to… find my father’s killer. Track him down. Make sure he gets the punishment he deserves.”

“You do realize how dangerous that is, right?”

I eyed him mischievously. “I do. And that’s precisely why I didn’t tell Megan what I’m really hoping to accomplish.”

Gordon laughed.

Why am I so open around him? I asked myself. Even from day one, I trusted him automatically.

“Hey, Gordon,” I said softly. “Why-“

I was interrupted by the sound of a cell phone ringing. My hand flew to my pocket before I remembered my phone was in my bag, with Megan. I glanced over towards Gordon, who pulled his phone out of his pocket, eyed the caller ID number, and then flipped it open.

“Hey Mom!” he said cheerily. “Oh, I’m great. Yeah, just got up, not too long ago. …Kaitlyn? Uh, not sure. She’s probably still asleep, and you know what she’s like when you wake her up. Not opening that door again. You should just call her in about an hour or so. How’s Venice?” Suddenly he laughed. “Seriously? That’s awesome! Oh look, Tyler’s here. I gotta go. Yeah, love you too. Bye!”

I stared blankly at Gordon until he noticed me, laughing at my expression.

“My parents are vacationing in Venice right now,” he explained.

“Who’s Kaitlyn?”

“She’s my older sister. My parents travel a lot, so I just stay home with her. It’s a great thing she can keep a secret, or else I dunno how I’d be here right now. But it’s easy to answer my parent’s phone calls and pretend like I’m at home.”

I was shocked at the brilliance of Gordon’s plan. His parents had no idea that he wasn’t safe at home, back in Sylvania.

“So, your parents travel a lot?”

Suddenly the light in his eyes dimmed down. He stared at his untouched coffee. “Yeah… Most of the time, it’s just Kaitlyn and me. I know it’s hard to understand, because most kids would love to have the house just to themselves, but it gets kind of lonely-“

“I actually understand completely,” I interrupted. “Ever since I was five, I haven’t had anybody except for my dad. And even he was almost never home, because of his job. I had to stay with my uncle. We have no other family in the area.”

“That’s gotta suck. I mean, at least I have my sister. It must be terrible being an only child for you, then.”

“I’m not an only child!” I blurted out, and then covered my mouth. Okay, I had never told anyone that. Not even Michaela. Once again, I found myself telling Gordon everything. What was it about this guy that led me to be completely open?

“Huh?” Gordon looked confused.

“I have… a twin. A brother, named Dillon. But when I was five, he disappeared along with my mom. I haven’t seen them since. I have no idea where either of them are.”

“How do you know they’re still alive?”

I just shrugged. No way was I going to get emotional about this topic. Not anymore, anyway. “I don’t know anything for sure. But sometimes, you just have to go with your instinct.”

Gordon’s smile returned. “You know, you are not an ordinary girl, Storm.” He chuckled and shook his head.

I offered a playful smile. “Are you just now realizing that?”

He laughed. “Of course not. But… this whole conversation, you’ve kept a straight face. Your mother and brother are missing and your father was murdered, and yet you can set off on a journey, and even talk about all of these painful memories and not seem the slightest bit upset. I gotta admit, I sort of envy you.”

“Alright, want to know what I’ve learned? The ability to remain perfectly calm after a shock is a valuable skill in the game of life.”

Gordon grinned. “Guess I’m losing.”

I snapped my fingers in his face. “Hey, what’s with that attitude? You have to remain optimistic! I let you join Megan and I on this quest. You have to remain calm and mature no matter what challenges we face. Understand?”

“Got it!”

“Otherwise you’ll be endangering our whole team, and we wouldn’t want that, now would we?” The words were serious, but for once I had a playful smile on my face.

“You lovebirds better not be having a fun conversation without me!”

I looked up in annoyance at Megan who was standing next to our table grinning, bouncing up and down on her heels. “It was fun until you got here.”

Megan feigned offense. “That’s coooooold, Storm.” Then, as the smile returned to her face, she leaned in towards Gordon. “You know, bro, you’re the only one I’ve seen that can make Storm smile like that!”

Did she think she was being quiet? I could hear every word!

Clenching my fists, I stood up. “Hey-“

Gordon stepped in front of me, grabbing my wrist and chuckling. “Come on, girls, don’t start a fight.” He winked at me. “Remain calm at all times, right?”

I pulled away, walking past my traveling companions back to our bags. “Not fair…” I muttered.