Read Online Bluehour (A Watermagic Novel) by Brighton Hill - Free Book Online Page B

his hand over his gelled blonde
hair and looked at me uncomfortably. “Truthfully, I don’t think
they’ll tell me. They’re very private.”
    “Oh, no, no, no…” I said as I leaned in
closer to him. He smelled a little like hamburgers. “I don’t want
you to ask them. I want you to try to get his address from your
dad.”
    “My dad?” His eyes widened and he looked
confused.
    “Yes, he works at the post office,
right?”
    “Yeah, so?”
    “Doesn’t he have access to everyone’s
addresses?”
    He chuckled under his breath. “I guess he
does, but I don’t think that’s legal.”
    “Okay,” I said in disappointment. “It’s just
kind of important and it’s all harmless—right?” I shifted my weight
to try to seem like I was losing interest in the conversation. I
hoped the threat of my leaving would draw him in.
    “I just can’t do that, Grace.”
    “No problem—Laurent’s loss.” I laughed
nonchalantly.
    “What do you have to give to Laurent?”
    “He mistakenly dropped something of his by me
when we were paired up for swim team and before I could give it to
him, he rushed off. And now he hasn’t been at school since.”
    Danny smiled now and then nodded. “I could
give it to his friends and they could give it to him.”
    “I wish it was that easy, but I’m sure he
would be embarrassed for them to see it.”
    “Oh.” He paused in contemplation. “If it’s
something embarrassing, wouldn’t he be even more uncomfortable if
you gave it to him—I mean considering that he barely knows
you?”
    “Yes, of course. That’s why I want his
address. Then I can mail it to him anonymously. That way he won’t
feel humiliated.”
    Danny laughed out loud. “That’s so funny. I
sure wish I knew what it is.” He kept chortling.
    I laughed too.
    “I’ll see what I can do. I’ll talk to my
father. He might be okay with that.” He was shaking his head and
smiling. I could tell he was trying to figure out what Laurent
could possibly have dropped that was so embarrassing.
    In truth, I didn’t have anything of
Laurent’s, but I wanted to see where he lived. I thought maybe I
could get some answers if I did a little harmless detective work. I
hoped Danny would help me.
    For the rest of the week Laurent still wasn’t
in school. But his friends surely were. Their presence was
prominent. I felt I couldn’t avoid them. They invaded my space, my
thoughts, and my sanity.
    When I was walking down the hall one day,
Brigitte bumped into me hard. I slammed against the lockers.
    “ Excusez-moi ,” she said carelessly.
Her body language seemed to convey that she hardly noticed what she
had done. But, it wasn’t clear. I got the feeling she may have
bumped into me on purpose.
    And the next day I tripped over Marine’s foot
as I walked into the cafeteria. She turned away like she didn’t
notice that I stumbled before her. Her intensions also were
ambiguous like Brigitte’s.
    And once I walked passed their lunch table
and thought I heard Pascal say to his friends in a quiet voice,
“Grace will surely die.”
    I must not have heard him right. Lately, my
mind was running wild. My imagination must have been unleashed.
But, after he said that, Marine saw me and her face seemed to go
pale.
    The school week passed and Danny never came
through with Laurent’s address. He told me he spoke to his father
and he said he wasn’t allowed to give out unlisted information. I
told Danny to keep at it and eventually his dad would give in.
    Danny just laughed and shrugged his
shoulders. “You’re funny, Grace.” That’s all he said. But, then, he
saw the disappointed expression on my face and he agreed to keep
trying. He told me that he’d make another attempt on a day when his
dad was in a more agreeable mood.
    In cooking class, I started a minor grease
fire when I was frying the corn tortillas in oil for the tacos we
were making. Agatha was annoyed with me for not listening to the
explicit instructions she gave