Read Online Immortal Light: Wide Awake by John D. Sperry - Free Book Online Page A

Just as she
was about to turn around and lob the paper at Benjamin, the bell
rang and the class of the living dead jumped to its collective feet
and headed for the door like cattle from the pen. Having avoided
the rush, Lucy turned to see Benjamin being hauled away like a
bewildered child out the door. Samantha was certainly eager to show
him around.
    Outside in the hallway, Lucy could almost feel
the cacophonous vibrations caused by Samantha’s voice.
    “ This is Liv and Sydney and
Megan,” she started out.
    The introduction of the entourage
was underway. Lucy visualized the faces of the who’s who of
Marshfield High School.
    “… and this is
Maddi and Devin, and over here is … ”
    Lucy shut it all out as best she could. She
had started gathering her things when she heard a familiar voice
from the doorway.
    “ Hey, Lucy.”
    It was Mark. She nearly dropped her backpack
when she looked up and he was leaning inside the doorway looking
directly at her.
    “ Oh, hey, Mark,” she said
ambivalently. “What’re you doing here?”
    What the hell kind of
question is that? she immediately thought
to herself.
    “ I go to school here,” he
responded with a toothy smile.
    Lucy laughed nervously. “No,
yeah, right. I meant what are you doing … in here right now? Do you
have Mrs. Roth next period? ”
    “ No, I was
just— ”
    “ C’mon, man; let’s go.” He was
interrupted by Seth, one of the many boys Lucy and Kat had grown up
with.
    “ Hey, I’ll see you around,” Mark
said to Lucy with a wave, as he was all but pulled out of the
doorway.
    “ Oh my gosh,” Lucy said under her
breath. She immediately whipped out her phone.
     
    Lucy : mark JUST said hi to
me .
     
    The response was almost instant.
     
    Kat : SEE!!!! i told u he liked
u
     
    Lucy smiled to herself, closed her eyes, and
took a deep breath of what felt like a new year.
    “ Ms. Higgins, you know the rules.
Not in my classroom,” Mrs. Roth’s firm voice boomed across the
room.
    Lucy shuddered in surprise and slapped her
phone shut. “Oh, sorry, Mrs. Roth. I’ll put it away.”
    She stowed the phone in her pocket and headed
outside. Despite the elation she felt at Mark’s salutation, she
couldn’t help thinking about Benjamin as she walked through the
door. She wanted him to be there, but she didn’t want what was
attached to him to be there.
     
    ***
     
    “ Can you believe how ripped Dave
got over the summer?” It was only lunch time and Kat had already
made a full assessment of all the boys in the school.
    “ I guess football is good for
something,” Lucy replied flatly as she scanned the large
cafeteria.
    “ Hey, I’m a fan of anything that
produces bigger muscles,” Kat replied.
    As they walked to get in line at the pizza
bar, Lucy craned her neck to see over the tops of the teaming
crowds, looking left and right.
    “ What are you looking for?” Kat
asked as she handed Lucy a tray. “Or should I say whom are you
looking for?”
    Lucy looked at Kat like a kid with her hand in
the cookie jar. “What do you mean?”
    “ He’s right over there,
Luce.”
    Kat pointed an elegant finger
straight across the cafeteria, and immediately Lucy saw Mark
staring in her direction. Her heart both flipped and sank
simultaneously. She was elated to see Mark, and even more so when
he waved his hand at her, but he wasn’t necessarily her target.
Lucy waved back with a half-hearted smile and a sense of social
terror.
    “ Why is he waving at me in here?”
she said, turning to hide her face by choosing a slice of pizza
from the bar.
    “ Because
he likes you,
Lucy. What is the matter with you? Go over there.” Kat sounded
frustrated.
    “ What? No, I
can’t. He’s with all the guys and … ”
    “ Oh shut up, we’re going. Put this
down.” Kat grabbed Lucy’s tray and set it on top of the bar. She
grabbed Lucy by the wrist and started to drag her away, but Lucy
resisted.
    “ No, I’m not going over
there.”
    “ Why not?” Kat was