The Watchers by Lynnie Purcell

were bound together by what we had divulged. I had
learned something I hadn’t expected about him, but my curiosity
still wasn’t sated. There was so much more I wanted to know.
    “What are you really doing here if you aren’t
stalking me?” A thought occurred. “Wait…I thought you were out of
town?”
    “Now I know you were checking up on me.”
    I made a face and he laughed, filling the
deserted back streets with sound.
    “Which question would you prefer me to
answer? The woods one, the stalking one, or the out of town
one?”
    “Can’t you answer all of them?”
    “Nope.”
    I contemplated my question of choice. “The
woods one.”
    He stopped walking and crossed his arms
again. His foot made a staccato beat on the concrete.
    “There’s been an animal out in the woods
recently. It killed a couple of bears. A Forest Ranger friend told
me.”
    “There’s something out there capable of
killing bears?”
    “Yes. So, imagine how you would fare if you
went wandering around.”
    “Point taken.”
    “Where are we going by the way?” he asked. He
started to walk again, very obviously changing the subject.
    “I need to give your jacket back to you. I
had it at school on Tuesday, but you didn’t show up.” I waited
expectantly.
    He laughed. “Nope. Sorry. You’re not getting
anything else.”
    “That’s not very fair.”
    “Life’s not fair.”
    I agreed with him but didn’t let it show.
“Fine. Then you’re not getting anything else from me either.”
    “Fine.”
    I clamped my lips together resolutely at his
words. There was no way I would speak first. I would win this
little contest of wills. Just like our tennis game, I was
determined to show him I could do it better. It was silly, but
irrevocably my personality.
    In absolute silence, we crossed over to Main
Street, avoiding the Friday traffic, and the kids cruising around
in their cars. The thoughts I should have been hearing were quiet
as we walked, mimicking our last walk together. There was just a
warm wall of dark of silence. I had missed that silence.
    When we got to the first small road leading
towards my house Daniel caved in. I saw him glance at me, his
amused smile transforming into a question. “Clare, remember when I
said that you’re not getting anything else from me?” he asked
seriously.
    “Of course, I remember. That was like two
seconds ago.”
    “Well, I take it back.”
    “You just figured out I could be silent
longer than you,” I said.
    “Maybe. Or, maybe I figure the only way I can
ask you questions is if I let you ask me some in return.”
    “Well, I do have a question,” I said.
    “Just one?”
    “No... Are you lonely?” I asked before I
thought about it.
    He stopped midstride, as abruptly as a person
walking into a wall. From the expression on his face, I knew I had
said something wrong. He didn’t give me the chance to speak.
    “You’re wondering why I want to be around you
when I have a bunch of people at school I can hang out with. You
think I have to be lonely to want to talk to you outside of school.
You don’t have enough confidence in yourself to see that maybe you
would be an interesting friend to have, and that maybe I’m not
interested in hanging out with people so generic they make me
ill.”
    I crossed my arms defensively. I hadn’t asked
for the reasons he had given, but now that he had brought it
up…
    “I have plenty of confidence in myself. I
just don’t feel that same level of confidence in others. I’ve seen
how judgmental people can be, I’ve seen how they view me, I’ve seen
the kind of hidden agendas they carry around with them, and that
makes it hard for me to think that, after meeting me twice, you
would want to be my friend without wanting something from me.”
    “What about Alex?” he demanded, taking a step
closer to me.
    “What about her?”
    “You’ve obviously taken to her as a friend,
why should I be any different?”
    I thrust my jaw out pugnaciously, knowing