When the Sun Goes Down

Heather rolled onto her side, left arm flailing wildly as she attempted to quiet the sound of her blaring alarm clock. Early morning sunlight flooded in through the thin white curtains, and she pulled the covers over her head with a groan.

“You’re going to be late!” she heard her brother Connor call as he bounded past her room’s open door and pounded down the stairs. Heather felt a sudden surge of energy and leapt up from her bed, stumbling over to the window as she heard the front door open and close with a bang. She yanked open the curtains and swore under her breath as a red pickup pulled away from the curb.

“Just missed him,” she mumbled, straining to make out the face she knew so well in the driver’s seat as the truck sputtered down the street and then out of sight. She sighed, but a smile spread across her face a moment later when a familiar convertible pulled into the newly vacant spot in front of her house.

Heather jerked open the pane and leaned her head outside, calling, “I’ll be down in a sec!” She then hurried across her room, maneuvering around a precariously high stack of novels of varying size as she made her way into the bathroom. Heather quickly brushed her teeth as she simultaneously sifted through heaps of unfolded clean clothes for her uniform. Pulling on the blue and grey plaid skirt over her pajama shorts, she slipped on a pair of grey knee socks and shoved her small feet into her worn saddle oxfords.

She yanked a brush once through her light brown curls, haphazardly buttoned her white uniform shirt, stuffed the tail down her skirt, and then hefted her backpack over her shoulder. Heather glanced around her room quickly, hoping she wasn’t forgetting anything. The honk of the car horn assured her that if she was, she would just have to do without it.

“Bye mom!” she called, not even sure if her parents were still home, and hurried out the front door.

“Finally decided to join us, then, Sleeping Beauty?” Jade called from the passenger seat as Heather tossed her backpack into the trunk and then climbed into the backseat. Heather didn’t bother to answer, and ignored the giggle that came from her left as Yasmin caught onto the joke a few seconds late. As she glanced over at Yasmin, Heather’s gaze momentarily lingered on the vacant space between her and the petite brunette. Her eyes began to water without warning, and she forced herself to push away any and all thoughts of the girl who used to sit close beside her, the three of them squished together in a backseat meant for two.

“She was probably trying to find her uniform in that mess she calls a room,” Sasha joked from the driver’s seat as she pulled her car away from the curb, winking at Heather in the rearview mirror.
“No surprise there,” Jade snorted, propping her legs up on the dashboard as she flipped through the latest Surf Central catalog.

“You really should clean your room more often,” Yasmin advised, wrinkling her nose in distaste. “I could even help you if you’d like,” she added a moment later, the flecks of gold in her eyes twinkling with cheerfulness.

“I think we all know the real reason she’s been taking so long lately,” Jade said suggestively, causing Heather’s freckled cheeks to burn with embarrassment. Her friends had known about her infatuation with her older brother’s closest friend almost the moment it began. Brandon had lived right down the street from her since she was five, and until recently Heather had thought of him as another member of the family.

However, her feelings for him had changed from brotherly to romantic a few weeks earlier when he’d accompanied her family on their annual end of summer sailing trip. She’d hoped that her friends hadn’t caught onto the way she rushed to catch even the faintest glimpse of Brandon’s face when he came to pick up Connor every morning. Apparently the three girls were a bit more observant than she’d given them credit for.

Jade removed her legs from the dashboard and twisted around in her seat, the humid wind whipping her jet black hair wildly around her face as she gave Heather a wicked grin.

“She was so busy making kissy faces at her neighbor, she forgot all about how some of us would actually prefer to get to school before the tardy bell.” Heather felt her face flush bright red.

“It’s not my fault you flooded the girl’s bathroom on purpose and can’t afford another infraction,” Heather huffed quietly, and Jade’s turquoise eyes sparkled; Heather assumed she was fondly remembering the—thankfully clean—water that had rushed through the halls of the second floor last week.

“And got caught this time,” Yasmin added brightly. Jade shrugged, her sun-kissed cheeks and tanned skin standing out in stark contrast against the white cotton of her collared shirt. Last Friday’s incident hadn’t been the first time Jade had sabotaged Chamberlin Academy’s pipe system, claiming that the school was unknowingly dumping its waste into a nearby marsh and endangering the local wildlife.

“Maybe it isn’t your fault…” she told the two girls. “… but I’m still blaming you.” “Relax,” Sasha told Jade with a wave of her ebony-skinned hand, not even hesitating before running three consecutive red lights. “I’ll get us there on time—we might even be early. If you’re late and actually get your first detention, it won’t be our fault.”

“Maybe it won’t be your fault…” Jade mumbled as she settled back into her seat, turning her attention to her catalog one again. “…but I’m still blaming you.”
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“Morning, Sunshine,” Connor said with a grin as he tossed his backpack into the backseat of Brandon’s pickup. He felt an odd shiver crawl up his spine, and paused for a moment to glance over his shoulder and scan the front yard. Connor frowned, sure he’d noticed someone watching him, but then gave a little shrug as the chill he’d felt faded. Connor climbed into the truck anyway, hoping he’d soon forget about the odd sensation.

“You are genuinely the strangest person I know,” Brandon told him, watching him with a shake of his head as he started the ignition.

“That’s why you keep me around. I’m so unpredictably entertaining that you wouldn’t last a day without me,” Connor quipped as he settled into the passenger seat.

“Yeah, that’s definitely it,” Brandon replied distractedly, glancing up out of his window at the front of Connor’s house.

“She’s not up yet,” Connor said helpfully, watching his best friend with an amused smile.

“Sorry, what?” Brandon asked, realizing a few seconds too late that Connor had caught him staring.
“You heard me,” Connor said, freckled cheeks spreading into a grin and green eyes twinkling.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Brandon said dismissively, pulling away from the curb.

“Of course you don’t.” Connor agreed. “That’s why you most definitely don’t try to catch a glimpse of my sister every morning when you come to pick me up.” Connor smiled as Brandon clearly struggled to reduce the redness in his cheeks.

“Exactly. Glad we understand each other,” Brandon said with a curt nod, staring straight ahead.

Connor rolled his eyes as they came to a stoplight, then quickly glanced out of his window. The man to his right was enthusiastically singing along to whatever pop song blared from his radio, and the stranger didn’t seem to be aware of the world around him at all. Connor looked around in frustration, unable to shake the feeling that someone was watching him or figure out who the culprit could possibly be.

“What on earth is wrong with you?” Brandon asked, staring incredulously at the fidgeting red-head beside him. “Wait, never mind, forget I asked,” Brandon said when Connor only responded with a shrug. “That question would take an eternity for you to answer; too many possible answers to choose from,” he continued, and they both grinned.

“So, party tonight,” Connor said a few minutes later once the strange feeling had faded, and Brandon grunted with a frown, his nose scrunched in distaste.

“With a face like that, there’s no point in you going anyway—there’s no way any girl would come within fifty feet of you.” Brandon smiled, but didn’t look any more relaxed.

“Don’s a prat,” Brandon huffed in a manor Connor could only describe as childish.

“We’re still going to his party through,” Connor told him, and Brandon let out an exaggerated sigh.

“Oh, come on, it’ll be fun!” Connor paused meaningfully before adding, “You should ask Heather. To, you know, go with you. To Don’s party.” Brandon simply looked at him, clearly working hard to keep his face impassive.

“Sorry, what did you say? All I heard was ‘stupid, stupid, I’m really stupid’.”

Connor couldn’t help but smile, but made sure his words contained at least a bit of a serious tone as he continued, “I’d rather have my sister dating you than any of those other dirt bags running after her. I can’t threaten to throttle her admirers if they don’t back off forever. ”

Brandon blinked, then focused his full attention on driving once more without a word. They sat in silence for a few minutes before Connor couldn’t take it any longer and changed the subject to the safest topic he knew: baseball.