Inversion Read online

  “Don’t forget that my door is always open.”

  Carson flashed him a half hearted smile. Mr. Mars smiled back. He looked like a shark, nothing but teeth.

  “Oh, one more thing.”

  Carson froze halfway out of the room.

  “No one is ever truly gone, Carson,” Mr. Mars said softly. “A part of them always stays with us.”

  CHAPTER FIVE

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  CARSON ARRIVED AT JACOB’S house right at six-thirty. Streaks of orange and purple colored the evening sky. Jacob’s house was easy to find, not only because Carson had been there hundreds, if not thousands of times before, but because it was easily the biggest one in town. His family, the Huangs, were very wealthy and they weren’t above showing it off.

  Jacob’s grandparents had immigrated from China when Bishop Bay was just a small collection of farmers. The majority of the land was still untouched and unexplored. However, once his grandparents arrived in America they immediately opened up a fishing company. They worked nonstop over the next several years to get the business going, and once they did the money never stopped coming in.

  Carson jumped off his bike and rolled it alongside him up the stone driveway. The enormous stone house towered above him. Its elongated shadow blocked out what remained of the sun. He couldn’t even see the entire house from where he was standing. Jacob’s flashy purple sports car sat alone in front of the garage. Carson envied it. Jacob had received it as an early graduation present not even a week prior. His mother was probably withholding his gift until he made a decision she liked.

  Carson had to ring the doorbell three times before the door finally opened.

  Jacob looked him over. “You’re not serious are you?”

  Carson looked down at the same hoodie and pants that he had been wearing since that morning.

  “What's wrong with this?”

  Jacob grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him into the house. “There’s no way I’m letting you go dressed like that. I’ll die from secondhand embarrassment.”

  Carson clicked his tongue. “Stop being so dramatic.”

  “Let’s go to my room,” Jacob laughed. “I’ll pick something out. Something less. . .you.”

  After spending a good amount of time traversing the mansion, Carson found himself standing in the middle of Jacob’s bathroom pulling on the clothes that Jacob had deemed appropriate for the party.

  “Hey Jacob,” Carson called out. He shoved his arm into the tight fitting sleeve of a silky blue shirt. “Remember that time we invited like half the class to play hide-and-seek here?”

  “My parents got so mad,'' he answered on the other side of the door. “How long ago was that?”

  “A long time ago. Fifth grade I think?”

  “Wow,” Jacob said. “Time really flies doesn’t it? Life used to be so simple.”

  “Tell me about it.”

  Carson stepped back into the room. He showed himself off, stretching out his arms. The sleeves of the dress shirt hung well past his wrists.

  Jacob inspected him carefully. “I told you blue would look good on you. It goes well with your black hair and makes your eyes pop since they are the same color. Plus it makes the bags under your eyes less noticeable.”

  Carson punched his arm. He rolled up the sleeves past his elbows. “I don’t see why you’re dragging me to this party.”

  Jacob moved over to the large mirror that sat in the corner of his room to mess with his hair.

  “Because it’s my job as your best friend to make sure you don't spend your entire high school career locked in your room watching anime.”

  “That's you,” Carson said matter of factly.

  “You’re right. But still. You can’t just live in your life hiding away. You have to get out and experience things.”

  Carson ignored him, fastening the last few buttons on the shirt with trembling fingers.

  Jacob watched him from the mirror. “Calm down, man. Why are you even freaking out?”

  Before Carson could answer the door to the room opened. A short chinese woman stood in the doorway. Her long silky black hair was tied tightly in a bun. She wore a long red dress that trailed on the floor behind her.

  “Hello Carson,'' she said with a thick accent.

  “Hi Mom,” he said in return.

  She gave him a warm smile before turning to Jacob, the smile leaving her face somewhere in between.

  They started to argue with each other in Chinese. Carson was able to understand only some of what they were saying, having learned a few words through all the time he had spent there.

  Carson awkwardly folded the rejected shirts that were piled on the bed.

  “Nice to see you, Carson,” Mrs. Huang said in english as she left. Jacob followed closely behind her and slammed the door closed. He fell onto his bed, rubbing his eyes aggressively.

  “What was that about,” Carson asked.

  “She’s mad that I’m not going to dinner with them. It’s my brother’s birthday and of course they are having some big party for him.”

  Carson perked up at the chance of not having to go to the party. “Why don’t you?”

  “Because I don’t need to hear about how amazing Ling is, you know? It’s not like my parents ever take me to do things for my birthday.”

  “What about those amazing presents,” Carson argued.

  “It’s not the same. Besides, we have a party to go to.”

  Jacob’s sports car was faster than Carson thought it would be. Warm spring air rushed in through the open windows. He loved the feeling of the wind blowing through his hair. He didn’t care that it was messing up the style that Jacob had carefully crafted with his overpriced hair gel.

  “Ouch,” Carson yelled over the wind.

  “What,” Jacob asked.

  “Gas prices. It’s gone up like fifty cents since this morning.”

  Jacob glanced at the sign as they passed by the town’s only gas station.

  “Things must be getting really bad,'' Carson said. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen it past five dollars before.”

  Jacob chuckled. “Have you seen how expensive it is in the bigger cities? I heard it’s almost ten dollars a gallon out in L.A.”

  “Good thing you’re loaded.”

  “I don’t know, man. I probably won’t be with the way things are going. Maybe we should start walking like everyone else.”

  Jacob brought his car to a stop at the edge of a long gravel driveway. They had nearly missed it completely, the large house well-hidden within a sea of trees. Bright white lights filtered through the leaves of the trees. Carson stepped out into the night. Heat from the settling car warmed his skin. The engine popped as it started to cool.

  “She has a nice house,'' Carson noted.

  “I’ve seen better,” Jacob replied.

  Carson rolled his eyes. “Can’t you go five minutes without having to one-up someone.”

  Jacob tugged on the ends of his jacket. “What can I say? I live to impress.”

  They laughed and made their way up the long and winding driveway. Carson grew more nervous with every step. The echo of the booming bass filled the air. Panic overtook him, the pit of his stomach growing. His palms grew sweaty. The wind was cold against them.

  “You alright back there,” Jacob asked.

  Carson hadn’t noticed that he had fallen behind.

  “Yeah,” he said, swallowing hard. “Just delaying the inevitable.”

  Jacob ran behind him and pushed him forward. Carson dug his heels into the gravel in protest.

  “I have been trying to get you to come to a party with me since freshman year. You’re not flaking now.”

  “I’m not,” Carson said. “I’m just nervous I guess.”

  “It’ll be fine,” Jacob promised him.

  There were a lot more people than Carson had thought there would be. He and Jacob carefully made their way aroun
d the small groups of people that were scattered in front of the house. He tried to listen in on the conversations as he passed by but was only able to make out a few words. Inside the house the old brick walls no longer muffled the sound. It didn’t take long for his senses to become overloaded. His skin started to itch, a headache formed at the front of his skull. He kept his head down, closely following Jacob through a pair of wooden doors and into the kitchen.

  “Oh,'' Carson said, finding Abigail and Stacey leaning against the counter. Abigail looked even more amazing than she had at school. She had changed into a bright yellow dress that hung just below her knees. Her hair fell past her shoulders. Carson stared at her, speechless.

  “Hey,” Jacob said nonchalantly.

  “Hi,” Stacey said, popping a chip into her mouth. “How are you guys liking the party?”

  “We just got here,'' Jacob answered. The kitchen was a complete disaster. It’s beautiful granite countertops were littered with empty bottles and cups. Food wrappers lay discarded around their feet. The only sound came from the bumping of the large speakers that they had passed in the living room.

  “Let’s go check it out,” Stacey said to Abigail.

  “I’m still hungry. You go on and I’ll catch up with you in a bit,” she said.

  Stacey’s eyes moved from Abigail to Jacob and then to Carson. “Ok then. Just don’t take too long.”

  Jacob reached into the ice chest that sat in front of the fridge and pulled out a wet can of soda.

  “Well I guess I’ll let you guys do your thing,” Jacob said, leaving Carson and Abigail alone.

  It felt like the temperature in the room had doubled. Carson started to sweat through his shirt.

  “I never thought she’d leave,” Abigail said as she dug through her purse.

  “Who? Stacey? I thought you two were friends.”

  “We are,” she said. “Well we are only because my parents force me to be her friend. She goes to the same church as us and my parents think that she’s a good influence on me. They are practically using her to spy on me.”

  “Oh.”

  Abigail pulled a small silver flask out of her purse.

  “Why don’t we make this party a little more fun,” she said with a devilish grin.

  “You look nice tonight,” Abigail said as she poured herself a cup of juice. She tipped the flask over her plastic cup.

  “T-thanks,” Carson stammered.

  Abigail noticed the redness in his face. “Everything ok?”

  “Yeah, it’s fine.” He fumbled around the counter looking for something to soothe the sudden dryness in his throat.

  “Here.” Abigail handed him a soda from the same cooler that Jacob had taken his from. Carson grabbed one and downed half of it in one gulp.

  It did little to relieve him.

  “So. . .” Abigail searched her mind for a question to ask him. “Excited for graduation?”

  She clicked her tongue, disappointed that she couldn’t come up with something better.

  “Yeah, I guess.”

  “Any plans for after?”

  “Sort of,” he said.

  Carson finished the rest of his drink and crushed the can in his hand. His stomach gurgled from the sudden rush of carbonation.

  “Hey, don’t be so nervous,'' Abigail said sweetly. She reached out and brushed her fingers across his arm.

  Carson recoiled. “I’m sorry.”

  Without another word he threw the can down and ran out of the kitchen.

  The living room seemed a lot bigger without Jacob by his side. Carson scanned the room trying to find him. When he couldn’t find him Carson then shifted his search to any of his other friends. He just needed to be with someone who wasn’t Abigail.

  It’s pointless, Carson thought. No one from his clique would ever be here. They weren’t the kind of people to be invited to parties like this. Carson wondered if he even would have been invited if he weren’t with Jacob when Stacey approached them.

  Carson walked around the room, unable to stop moving. He had all the social interaction that he wanted for one night. As he walked along the outer edge of the room his ears picked up on something strange. Buried under the screams of some rappers he didn’t care about Carson could hear a different type of music. He listened carefully, following the hidden music, trying to find where it was coming from. Carson continued through to the back of the house. The groups got smaller and smaller as he went until there was no one but him and the sound of a piano playing on the other side of a large door. Carson entered the room. The wood groaned in protest but the playing didn’t stop. The room was huge and empty, save for a pure white piano set in the very center. Bright lights shone down from the high vaulted ceiling. A large window sat at the opposite end of the room, the glass spanning from the floor to the ceiling. Carson could tell who was playing without even having to look. The boy's curly brown hair bobbed as his fingers danced across the black and white keys.

  Nick. It had been so long since Carson had even thought about him.

  Carson stayed near the door, watching Nick play. The song was different from the one he had been playing at the graduation practice but that didn’t mean it was any less amazing. The melody was soothing to Carson’s ears.

  Nick’s fingers slowed as the song came to an end. He held onto the last note, the sound filling the room.

  Nick’s head snapped up, suddenly aware that someone was watching him.

  “Oh,'' he said, “It’s just you.”

  “Hey,” Carson said. He took a few steps further into the room. “I didn’t know you were invited.”

  “I wasn’t,” Nick admitted. He rubbed the smooth wood of the piano.

  “So how have you been,” Carson asked.

  “Good I guess.” A short answer. They were always short when it came to Nick.

  “Can I sit?”

  Nick slid across the bench. Carson sat down next to him and pressed one of the keys.

  Carson felt the tension in the air. It made him feel awkward. They hadn’t ended things on a good note.

  “So nothing new going on?”

  “Not really,” Nick said. “Just waiting to graduate so I can get out of here.”

  Carson was genuinely surprised. “You’re leaving?”

  “Yeah. I move into my dorm in July.”

  “College? I thought you couldn’t afford that.”

  Nick glared at him but didn’t say anything. “I got a scholarship.”

  “For what?” Carson looked up at him with his bright blue eyes. Nick’s heart stuttered.

  “For, um, for my playing. My piano playing.”

  Damn it, Nick thought. Three years and he still got nervous around him. He thought that the feelings would long have died away by now.

  “That’s really cool,'' Carson said.

  A smile pulled at the sides of Nick’s mouth. “You really think so?”

  “Of course. I wish I knew how to play as well as you do.”

  “Thanks.” It was all Nick could say without stuttering like an idiot.

  They sat in silence until Carson’s phone rang. The sudden beeping made Nick jump.

  “It’s Jacob,'' Carson said, standing up. “I have to go find him but it was nice seeing you again. Maybe we can hang out sometime.”

  “Sure,” Nick said. He loved the idea.

  Carson got up to leave but stopped, turning around to look at him. Nick’s eyes met his. Time seemed to stop, that single moment stretched over a lifetime. Nick wished that it would never end. Carson only felt regret.

  “Are you going tomorrow,” Carson asked.

  “Where?” Hope flooded through him. Was Carson about to invite him somewhere?

  “The museum.”

  The hope vanished. “Oh,'' Nick said. “Yeah I’m going.”

  “I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

  Once Carson was finally gone Nick let out a sigh and rested his head
against the cool wood of the piano.

  With his right hand he clutched his chest where his heart was. He could feel the rapid beating underneath his shirt. With a deep breath he lifted himself up and began playing again, smiling as he did so. The song was a happy one, more upbeat than the one he had just been playing.

  Maybe, he thought. Just maybe.

  Carson wandered back into the main part of the house. The party had really started to thin out, the music now playing soft, slow songs. He eventually found Abigail and Jacob sitting together on the stars.

  “Hey,” he said, climbing up to where they were. He sat down on the soft carpet and leaned his head against the wall. Abigail shifted her body so that she couldn’t see him.

  “There you are,'' Jacob said.

  Carson’s eyes felt heavy. Sleepiness filled his head.

  “Abigail, I’m sor-.”

  She got up and left.

  “She’s still mad?”

  “She’s just embarrassed.”

  “She told you?''

  “Yeah but don’t worry about it,”

  Jacob said. “Where’d you even go?”

  “Nowhere really. I Just walked around the house for a little bit.”

  “Did you find anything interesting?” His voice raised slightly at the end of the question.

  “Not really, no.”

  Jacob stood up and stretched. “I gotta take a leak and then we can go.”

  “Just hurry please.” Carson moved his legs so that Jacob could run up the stairs.

  Downstairs the front door opened, a blast of warm air rushing into the room.

  “I told you we were going to be late,'' someone said annoyed. Carson didn’t recognize the voice.

  “So what? There's nothing else to do tonight.” That voice he did know. He knew it all too well. A tidal wave of terror washed over him. He jumped to his feet and bolted up the stairs.

  Carson pounded his fist on the bathroom door as hard as he could.

  “Just a sec,” Jacob called out. Carson slammed his fist against the wood again.

  “I said give me a second,'' Jacob said, annoyed. He ripped the door open to find Carson standing there, breathing heavily.