How to Date Alexis Brighten

“Out late again?” my mother asked me the second I walked through the door.

“It’s not that late,” I replied as I dropped my bag on the floor.

“You could have called,” she said, glancing over at me from her place at the kitchen bench.

“Sorry,” I said with a shrug. “I guess I just got caught up.”

“Where were you?” She asked, this time more insistent. I wondered why my mother had suddenly become so interested in my life. She’d shown little regard for me before.

“I was just out with a friend,” I replied, sitting down on the couch.

“Lacey?”

“No. How’s Isaac?” I asked, changing the subject.

“He’s fine, although he hasn’t spoken to me directly like he does with you,” she said with a sigh. “It troubles me sometimes, Alexis.”

“You shouldn’t worry. I’m sure he’ll come around,” I assured her, not believing a word of what I was saying.

“But he asks after you,” my mother continued. “When you’re not here, he seems so distracted, even more than usual.”

“He does? That’s strange,” I commented, switching on the television. I had no desire to discuss the behaviour of my little brother with her. That’s all she ever wanted to talk about. I supposed it was my fault, for bringing it up in the first place, but it was like Isaac was always the only thing on her mind.

I hadn’t told my mother that I’d almost drowned and almost been kidnapped. Mostly because I thought that she just wouldn’t care. Sure, she’d act like she did for a moment or two, before something about Isaac popped up. She’d probably tell me that it wasn’t that bad, that I’d been completely exaggerating, that I could be such a drama queen sometimes.

I sighed and settled into the couch, just as Isaac came running into the room. He jumped onto the couch to sit next to me, staring up at my face with a look of wonder in his hazel eyes.

“Hi, Isaac,” I said, patting him on the head. He continued to stare at me, before shifting his attention to my hair. He tugged at a strand of it, staring as he twisted and turned it in his fingers.

“Allie is pretty,” he said with a small smile. I laughed and brought him into my lap, hugging his small body to my chest. He buried his face into my shoulder and entangled his fingers in my hair.

“You’re sweet, Isaac. One day a girl will fall in love with you,” I said, holding him at arm’s length and poking him lightly on the nose. He laughed and scrunched up his face.

“Girls have germs!” He squealed.

“What about me, then?” I asked him.

“Allie doesn’t have germs. Allie is special,” Isaac said, poking me on the nose, just as I had done to him.

“So are you, Isaac,” I said with a laugh, setting him down on the ground.

“Dinner’s almost ready,” my mother interrupted, a hint of annoyance in her voice. “Alexis, please go and tell your father.”

I left my place on the couch and ventured into the office in search of my father. Sure enough, he was hunched over his laptop at his desk, typing at a rapid pace.

“What are you working on?” I asked him, breaking the intense silence in the office. His eyes snapped up from the computer screen and landed on me, his face softening immediately.

“Next week’s lecture,” he said, closing the laptop. “Is dinner on the table already?”

“Not yet,” I told him. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure,” he replied. “What’s on your mind?”

What’s on your mind?

I didn’t know quite where to begin.

“I guess I need some advice,” I said cautiously, playing with the hem of my shirt. “It’s just that, I’ve always handled everything on my own, but this...I just don’t know what to do.”

“What is it, Alexis? What’s wrong?” my father asked me, worry crossing his features. I sighed and sat down in the chair in front of his desk. I folded my hands in my lap before forcing myself to meet his gaze.

“What would you do if you knew that pursuing something would get you into trouble, but it was the only way to get an answer?” I tried to word my question carefully, so as not to raise alarm. I stared at my father as I tried to read his face for his reaction. He considered my question for a moment, before leaning forward on his desk a little, towards me.

“Sometimes, we have to break the rules to do what’s right,” he said, his eyes soft. “I don’t know what exactly is going on with you, but I’m sure you’re smart enough to take care of yourself. And if you keep searching, I’m sure you’ll find the answer you’re looking for. As for getting into trouble, my phone is always turned on, and you should add me to your speed-dial.”

“Thanks, Dad,” I said with a smile. “Really.”

“No problem, kiddo,” he said, a smile spreading across his face. “Now are you going to tell me what’s going on?”

“When I figure it out for myself,” I replied.

“Do that,” he said, standing up and leading the way out of the room. I followed behind him as we made our way into the dining room where my mother was setting the plates on the table. Isaac was already seated, and my father and I took our places, as my mother took hers.

For the first time in a while, I felt like maybe things could turn around. Maybe there was an answer to everything and I just wasn’t looking hard enough. And maybe, just maybe, Fletcher wasn’t as bad as everybody said he was.

______

That Saturday night, my father decided that we needed a night out. My mother had been reluctant, of course, and said that she had so much work to catch up on for next week. My father had told her that it was the weekend, and to take some time off, and after much convincing, he’d managed to talk her into coming to the bowling alley in town with us.

When we got there, Isaac had run in first, my mother after him, as I hung back with my Dad. We walked in together and paid before collecting the bowling shoes required. My mother was handling Isaac, so I made my way over to the stacks of brightly coloured bowling balls to select the appropriate one.

“The pink one,” my father pointed out, gesturing to a pink bowling ball at the end of the line. I picked it up and weighed it in my hands, before placing it back down.

“Too heavy,” I told him, picking up a smaller, green one. “This one’s right.”

“That’s practically cheating, you know.” I glanced up to see Daniel, in a red and yellow shirt with the bowling alleys name and logo printed on the right hand side.

“That’s what I was about to say,” my father said with a laugh. I looked awkwardly between the two of them, wondering how and if I should introduce Daniel. While I was mulling this over in my mind, Daniel was way ahead of me, as usual.

“I’m Daniel,” he said, extending his hand towards my father. “I’m in a few classes with your daughter.”

“I’m Michael, nice to meet you,” my father said warmly, shaking Daniel’s hand briefly.

“I’d suggest this one,” Daniel said, picking up a larger orange ball “for Alexis.”

“Is that so?” My father said, taking the ball from him.

“Yes, sir,” he said with a curt nod. My father smiled and took the ball from him, heading back over to where my mother and Isaac were waiting for us.

“I’ll leave you two to talk,” he said. “Meet you back over there, Alexis.” He looked my way with a knowing smile and I looked down at my feet, heat rushing to my cheeks.

“Embarrassed?” Daniel asked. I looked up to see that his trademark smirk was playing on his features. I rolled my eyes and placed my hand on my hip, looking up at him.

“No, of course not,” I said.

“Sure you aren’t,” Daniel said sarcastically, his smirk stretching into a smile.

“Since when do you work here?” I asked him, changing the subject.

“Since always,” he replied. “And you’re distracting me, so I better get back to it.” He ruffled my hair before leaving, and my hands immediately flew to my head to fix it. Daniel always had a way of getting under my skin, and I loathed him for it.

I turned to go back to my family, when a group of boys walking through the double doors to the bowling alley made my stomach turn nervously. Fletcher was laughing as he walked through the doors, his arm slung over Ace’s shoulders. Denny, the lead singer of Static Exchange, brought up the rear, along with the drummer whose name I didn’t know.

Of all the people, in all the bowling alleys, why did Fletcher have to turn up here?

I wouldn’t run away. I was there first, after all. I stood my ground, and when Fletcher’s eyes locked with mine, he was the first to look away. I hoped that he felt sorry about what he’d said to me, although I doubted it, and if he ever did offer up an apology, I would be sure to decline it.

I made my way back to my family and we played a few games. During the entire time we were there, I couldn’t stop glancing sideways at the boys from Static Exchange, examining Fletcher, trying to catch him out when and if he looked at me. I had no such luck, and when it was time to leave, and the boys still remained, I told my family that I’d find my own way home, that I had someone I needed to talk to.

My mother had been reluctant, but my Dad had told her it was alright with him, and, looking over at Daniel behind the desk with a knowing smile, he disappeared out the doors with my mother and Isaac.

Fletcher had seen me leave with my family, I was sure, but he hadn’t seen me slip back in. It was the perfect chance for some detective work of my own, and even though I felt like a complete stalker, I knew that I had to get some answers, and fast, before I went crazy. I was almost certain that Fletcher had written the list, and I’d do just about anything to prove it. Even if that meant spying on him and his friends in a bowling alley, of all places.

I hung around for a while, watching the boys play, when Daniel finished his shift. He pulled a black, leather jacket on over his work shirt and headed towards the doors, thankfully not spotting me sitting on one of the lounges. The boys from Static Exchange left only moments later, and I held a magazine in front of my face, in an attempt to hide from Fletcher. He walked past with his friends laughing, not noticing me at all.

I followed them out the doors silently, and that’s when it happened. Ace, Denny, and the drummer all left together, and Fletcher walked towards his motorcycle. He and Daniel were the only two in the parking lot, besides me, but I’d retreated in the shadows in a small alley beside the building, where the dumpsters were located.

Daniel looked up and noticed Fletcher standing there. He stepped back from his car and made his way over to the blonde boy, who lifted his head when he heard Daniel’s heavy footsteps approaching.

“Hey,” Daniel said, his voice echoing across the lot, strong and confident.

“Hey,” Fletcher replied casually, jingling his keys in his hands. “What’s up?”

“I think you know,” Daniel said, lowering his voice.

“Don’t bring this up again,” Fletcher said with a sigh.

“I thought I told you to stay away from her,” Daniel warned, squaring his shoulders.

“I have, for the last week. But that doesn’t mean she’s been staying away from me.”

“What the hell?” Daniel retorted angrily.

“I’ve seen her follow me after school. She’s obviously got a thing for me,” Fletcher said, waggling his eyebrows suggestively. My stomach churned in response and I felt like I was going to vomit.

“Just leave her alone!” Daniel exclaimed, pushing Fletcher’s shoulders, sending him reeling back a few steps.

“Hey, easy there, psycho!” Fletcher retorted, swinging his fist at Daniel’s face. I gasped as it connected with his jaw and sent a cracking sound throughout the lot. I moved further into the alley and held my hands to my mouth to keep myself from screaming.

“You think you’re better than me, Daniel? Well, you’re not! I wouldn’t hurt her, but I can’t make you any such promises,” Fletcher said, his voice low and haunting. He got onto his motorcycle and sped out of the lot, leaving Daniel on the ground, holding his face in his hands.

I wanted to go to him, but I’d give away my position. He’d know that I’d seen and heard everything. Daniel, it seemed, didn’t need any help. He got up slowly, shaking his head and rubbing his jaw. Fletcher’s punch had caused his nose to bleed, and he wiped away the blood roughly with the back of his sleeve.

Daniel walked back over to his car and got inside, starting up the engine and driving off in the opposite direction that Fletcher had. I stepped out from the alley once he had left and called for a cab on my phone, heading back around to the front of the building.

How was Daniel, of all people, somehow associated with Fletcher? I knew that finding out more would most likely get me into trouble.

But that hadn’t stopped me before.