Forbidden Fruit Read Online Free

well he was still staring at me, practically boring a hole through my skull. It was alarming. I found myself shifting in place, trying to find a comfortable stance in an awkward situation. I shifted my hair to hide my face, then turned around and pretended to be looking for someone in the parking lot, desperately wanting to retreat.
    “ So Jason, what’s it like in juvi?” An enthusiastic Bailey asked. She was wide-eyed, hanging on his every word.
    I never heard his story. I was so completely aware of the predatory gaze from the other twin, who I later learned was Derrick. I willed myself to focus on Jason, and found myself smiling and laughing when others did, though I had no idea what was funny. Don’t look at him, don’t look at him , I coached myself.
    Damn it! I looked. What did I expect? That repeated chant never worked. His stare was unchanged, just as creepy and unnerving as it was before. Why was he watching me? And why so intense? I didn’t recognize him, so he couldn’t know me. He wasn’t checking me out either. His eyes held an odd, completely detached expression, like a scientist observing the behavior of a rat. He was completely unconcerned with whether or not the rat died of the experimental injection, was just objectively curious of the outcome. He apparently had no concept of manners. My mother would roll over in her grave.
    The bell rang. Thank God . I turned toward my first building without looking back, though I could still feel the disturbing presence of eyes on the back of my head.
     
    Lunch couldn’t come fast enough, I was my usual starving self as I ordered a sweet tea and sat with Bailey in the senior section of the cafeteria, or as the wealthy call it, the ‘dining hall.’ There were no long cafeteria-style tables with squeaky peg seats like my last school had (and most schools in America), instead we had posh leather booths with conversational style seating arrangements, fit to groom the rich youth for a lifetime of dinner parties and banquets. The only thing that resembled a cafeteria was the food line, but I suppose there is no other way to serve food than have servers and that would be downright ludicrous.
    I opened my lunch box to find my favorite meal, a good old-fashioned sandwich. Nothing fancy, just turkey, cheese and mayonnaise. Sometimes I get the feeling Ginger knows me better than I give her credit for. She makes food that reminds me of home. I made a mental note to thank her for that.
    I was smiling at my sandwich with a warm fuzzy feeling when someone slid onto the bench beside me. “Are you going to admire it or eat it?” a cocky voice laughed in my ear. I immediately recognized it as Jason’s, the new kid.
    I became embarrassed the minute I registered what I must have looked like, smiling at a turkey sandwich. With flushed cheeks, I turned to him and said the first thing that came to mind, “I haven’t decided.”
    He smiled. “Lily is it?”
    I grinned an affirmative.
    “ What a beautiful name for such a beautiful face.” His gaze passed over me with an admiring appreciation. My stomach executed a summersault, and my face heated.
    I know what people think when they look at me. They see a pretty face, with long blonde hair and blue eyes. I look like the generic Barbie prototype, ‘it girl,’ which was a stark contrast to what I felt like inside. Jason was just another guy who would likely never get more than skin deep. Part of me liked the idea. There was comfort in knowing that I wouldn’t have to reveal my true self to anyone, then I would never have my heart broken. It would be like me laying in the middle of the road, letting the vultures tear me to pieces. I had already lost so much in my short life. I wanted to hang onto myself for as long as possible. So, I just gave Jason another smile.
    He stared at me with an ever-increasing grin spreading across his face. I had trouble looking away. His eyes took in every inch of my features, until finally returning