Chapter 3 I guess I live...here

she still sitting in the U-Haul? I realize I've been staring at her for several minutes when someone in a Jeep pulls up and parks next to her. "Please, it can't be a man," I whisper aloud to myself, hoping it's not a boyfriend. Or worse, a husband. And why would I care, huh? The last thing I need right now is a distraction. Especially from someone who lives across the street. I breathe a sigh of relief when I see that the person getting out of the Jeep isn't a man. It's an older woman, maybe her mother. The woman closes the door and walks over to the landlord, who's standing in the doorway, to say hello. Before I can talk myself out of doing something, I walk toward the house. Suddenly, I have the urge to help the neighbors move. I cross the street, unable to take my eyes off the girl in the U-Haul. She's watching Caulder and the other boy play, and she hasn't once glanced my way. I don't know what it is about her that's drawing me closer. That look on her face... it looks sad. And for some reason, I don't like it. I'm standing in the passenger side of the U-Haul, staring at her through the window, practically in a trance. I'm not staring at her because she's attractive, because she is. It's because of the way she looks. The depth of it. I want to know what she's thinking. No, I need to know what she's thinking. The girl looks out the driver's side window, says something to the boys, and opens the door. Suddenly, I realize I'm about to make a fool of myself, because I'm standing in the driveway, doing nothing but staring at her. I glance back at my house and wonder how I can get back without being seen. Before I can move, Caulder and the other little boy come running around the moving truck and bump into me, laughing. "She's a zombie!" Caulder yells after I grab them by their shirts. The girl walks around the U-Haul, and I can't help but laugh. Her head is tilted to the side, walking behind him with her legs stretched out. "Get them!" I yell at her. They try to struggle away from me, so I tighten my grip on them. I look up and our eyes meet. Wow. Those eyes. They're the most incredible shade of green I've ever seen. I try to match the color to something, but I can't think of anything. It's such a unique color, like her eyes invented their own shade. As I study her features, I realize that she can't be the boy's mother. She looks about my age. She's probably 19 or 20 at most. I need to find out her name. That way I can look her up on Facebook and at least find out if she's single. Wow. That's the last thing I need right now. To have a crush on someone. I feel like she knows what I'm thinking, so I force myself to look away. The boy notices my moment of distraction and takes advantage of it. He lets go and stabs me with an imaginary sword, and I look at the girl and mouth "help." She screams "brains" again and lunges forward, pretending to bite the top of Caulder's head. She tickles them until they both melt into the concrete floor of the driveway, then she stands up and laughs. Her cheeks flush as her eyes meet mine again, and her mouth twists in embarrassment, as if she's suddenly embarrassed. The embarrassment disappears as quickly as it came, replaced by a smile that makes me want to learn every single detail about her. "Hey, my name's Will," I say, holding out my hand to her. "We live across the street." She squeezes my hand. Hers is soft and cool, and the moment my fingers encircle it, the physical contact sends a jolt through me. I can't remember the last time a girl had such an immediate effect on me. It must be because I didn't get much sleep last night. "My name's Layken," she says, smiling again at the awkwardness. "I guess I live...here." She looks at the house behind her, then back at me. She doesn't look too happy about living "here." The same expression she had when she was sitting in the truck crosses her face, and suddenly her eyes are sad. Why does that look affect me so much? "Well, welcome to Ypsilanti," I say, desperately wanting the expression to go away. She looks down, and I realize with embarrassment that I'm still shaking her hand. So I quickly pull mine away and shove it in my coat pockets. "Where did you guys live?" "Texas?" she says. Why did she answer like it was a question? Did I ask a stupid question? Yes, I did. I'm making small talk, how stupid. "Texas, huh?" I say again. She shakes her head, but doesn't answer. Suddenly, I start to feel like a nosy neighbor. I don't know what to say without making the conversation even more awkward, so I figure the best thing to do is leave. I lean over, grab Caulder's feet, throw them over my shoulder, and tell her I need to drive him to school. "There's a cold front coming in tonight. You'd better get as much of it out as you can today. It should last a few days, so if you need help this afternoon, let me know. We'll be home around four." She shrugs. "Sure, thanks." The words have a slight southern drawl. I didn't realize how much I liked southern accents until now. I continue across the street and help Caulder into the car. As he settles in, I glance back across the street. The little boy is stabbing his sister in the back, who lets out a fake scream and falls to her knees. Their playful interaction is just one more thing that intrigues me. After he jumps on her back, she looks up and realizes I'm staring at her. I close Caulder's door and walk to the driver's side. Before I get in, I smile and wave, then sit in the car with the biggest urge to punch myself. As soon as the bell rings for third period, I unscrew the lid on my coffee and add two more packets of sugar. I'm going to need it. There's something about some third period students that bothers me. Especially Javier. That kid is a total jerk. "Good morning, Mr. Cooper," Eddie says as he sits down. She looks happy. But then again, I've never seen Eddie in a bad mood. I need to figure out what the secret is, because it's obvious that I'm not getting enough coffee today. "Good morning, Eddie." She turns, gives Gavin a kiss on the cheek, and settles in. They started dating right after I graduated. They're probably the only people in this class who don't annoy the hell out of me. Well, the two of them and maybe Nick. Nick seems nice. Once everyone is seated, I ask them to get their books. As I lecture on the elements of poetry, my mind keeps wandering to the new neighbor. Layken. I like that name. After six hours of thinking about the new neighbor only a few dozen times, Caulder and I finally get home. I close the car door and open the back to get a box of papers. When I turn around, I notice that Layken's little brother has appeared out of nowhere and is standing in front of me, staring at me silently. He seems to be waiting for us to introduce ourselves. Several seconds pass without him blinking or moving a muscle. Are we at an impasse