Underneath (Sarah Jamila Stevenson) by Sarah Jamila Stevenson

Author:Sarah Jamila Stevenson
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: teen fiction, young adult fiction, ya, paranormal, Fiction, young adult, telepathy, Junior Library Guild
Publisher: Llewellyn Worldwide, LTD.
Published: 2013-04-09T21:00:00+00:00

thirteen

“Sunny?” Rennie asks, leaning in closely, her green eyes boring into mine. “Will you be favoring us with a demonstration of your … ability?”

I stand up. My head spins, and my throat is dry and scratchy. I swallow uncomfortably.

I look around the circle, my eyes falling on face after eager face, all looking at me expectantly, almost hungrily. There’s a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach.

Somebody told them about my underhearing.

And Mikaela is the only one who knows.

I look at her, but she doesn’t meet my eyes. She just looks miserably at the floor. I look at Cody. He smiles at me almost earnestly. Suddenly, everything becomes crystal clear, and then I really start to feel like the walls are closing in. I don’t want to be around any of these people any more, these strangers who know my secret.

“I have to go,” I manage to whisper, and I run out of the room. Rushing through the store, I hear Antonia say something questioningly, but I don’t stop, I just push out the front door and keep going until I’m almost at the other end of the strip mall. I stand hidden in the shadow of a dark storefront, gulping in breaths of cold night air. A chilly breeze blows my neatly brushed hair into whorls and tangles, but I don’t care.

I bend forward, my hands on my knees, until the cold air starts to clear my head. And I realize this:

One—these so-called Wiccans know about my underhearing and want me to be some kind of freak show for their personal amusement. Two—the only person I told about my underhearing was Mikaela. Three—Mikaela has never hung out with the Wiccan group before. She couldn’t have told them. But Cody could have.

Since I doubt Cody has mind-reading powers of his own, that means Mikaela told him.

I squeeze my eyes shut, turn toward the wall, and press my forehead against the rough stucco. This explains a lot of the strange things he’s said over the past week, like him having a “feeling” I’d really be interested in the solstice party.

I can’t believe her. She had no right to say anything to anyone, not even Cody. I might have told him myself, eventually. But it’s my secret to keep or give out. And I don’t want to be put on display for a roomful of random strangers.

Then I realize another thing.

There’s only one reason I can see for Mikaela breaking my trust. One reason why she’d tell Cody, even when I told her not to say anything to anyone.

Mikaela wants Cody. So badly she’ll tell him anything to keep his attention.

I feel sick, and stupid. It seems so obvious to me now. All the little looks, the teasing, the play-fighting. She’s completely hopeless when it comes to Cody.

And, says a tiny, mean voice inside me, she was there first.

When the door of the bookstore opens and Cody comes out alone, I can’t even look at him. My jaw tightens. I try to stay still, hidden in the shadows.

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