A Match Made for Eden
Jennifer Zwaniga
Copyright © 2011 by Jennifer Zwaniga
Smashwords Edition
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
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Table of Contents
Plunking her knapsack down at her feet, Eden Turner joined her friends, Rebecca and Mark, in the Mount Royal High school courtyard. She leaned her back against a large maple tree and breathed in the crisp, fresh spring air. Noisy chatter filled the schoolyard as they waited for the first bell to ring.
As was her annoying habit, Rebecca nudged Eden, and asked, “What do you think of those guys over there?”
Eden didn’t bother to look. She didn’t have to. “I don’t think anything about them. You know how I feel about the whole guy thing. They’re all dogs and can’t be trusted.” Turning to Mark, she added, “No offence. You know you’re the exception to the rule.”
Even though she’d only known Mark and Rebecca for less than a year, she knew Mark wasn’t like other guys. She trusted him.
Mark grinned.
“That’s so dumb,” Rebecca scoffed. “You can’t judge all guys by your low-life father. I know it sucks that he ran off and everything, but that doesn’t mean that all guys are scum.”
In spite of Rebecca’s argument Eden stood firm to her belief that the best way to keep from being hurt by a guy was avoid any involvement with them.
“Hey,” Rebecca whispered, poking her on the arm again. “Check out that guy over there.” She ducked back behind the tree to remain unobserved.
Eden felt sorry for her friend. She was so desperate for a boyfriend. Without interest, but to appease Rebecca, Eden turned to see Josh Lovett, one of the most popular boys in the school. He was also the boyfriend of super popular Victoria Blake, who just happened to hate Eden and her friends.
As Josh leaned against a tall, newly-budding elm tree, his dark blond hair blew gently in the cool May breeze. In her mind, Eden envisioned his broad shoulders and the firm, athletic body she was sure lay hidden beneath the red and white school jacket. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach. She couldn’t take her eyes off him. Okay, she wasn’t immune—that didn’t mean she was interested.
She was so caught up in the moment that it startled her to realize he was looking right at her. Eden snapped her head around, but not before he had a chance to grin at her—the most amazing smile she had ever seen.
God, she was such a fool. He probably thought she was the biggest dork on the planet and would tell Victoria she had been drooling over him—like she didn’t have enough problems with Victoria already. How could she have been so stupid? And, even more importantly, what the heck had just happened?
To her dismay, Josh wasn’t the only one who had caught her looking. Rebecca beamed.
“What was that I just saw? Did you see something you liked?” Rebecca winked.
“No.” Eden rolled her eyes.
“I don’t believe you.”
“He has a girlfriend,” Mark said.
Eden cringed at the harshness of his tone.
“So what? We were just looking,” said Rebecca. “No harm in looking.” She smiled and nudged Eden. “Right?”
“Whatever.” Eden hated when Rebecca acted like this. Why was it so important to Bec if she liked a guy or not? What would she want with Victoria’s boyfriend anyway? No doubt he was as big a snob as snooty Victoria. She just thought he was kind of cute. Okay, maybe more than kind of cute, but that didn’t mean she wanted to date the guy. She had her priorities, and a boyfriend didn’t fit into them.
“Look,” Mark said, sounding quite put out by the conversation. “I’m going to get going and leave you to your girl talk.” He threw his backpack over his shoulder and slunk away.
“Wonder what’s wrong with him?” Rebecca said.
Eden shrugged. “Who knows? Guys are so hard to figure out—which is why I have no interest in getting to know any of them.”
Unable to help herself, she glanced back over at the boy who had stirred up her hidden feelings. She wanted to see if her reaction to him had been a fluke. A strange thrill pulsed through her chest as she watched him laughing with his friend. What was going on with her?
“Josh!” Eden heard an excited voice call out. Looking over, she watched Victoria approach Josh with a smile stretched across her face. Eden found herself thinking—not for the first time—how unfair it was for someone as nasty as Victoria Blake to be blessed with such beauty.
“Come on.” Eden grabbed her bag and motioned for Rebecca to follow. “Let’s go.” The sight of Victoria had ruined her mood.
***
Victoria’s green eyes sparkled with excitement as Josh watched her approach through the damp grass. “Hi,” she said, slipping between Josh and his friend, Chris Miller. Stretching up on tiptoe, she kissed him. “I’ve got great news. We finally came up with a fundraising idea that’s going to blow away any other fundraiser this school has ever seen. We’re going to have a dinner and dance where people are matched up with their date for the evening. They’ll fill out a questionnaire and a computer program will hook them up with a compatible date.”
“Hey,” Chris said. “That is pretty cool. But,” he added, after further consideration, “what if you and Josh aren’t matched up together?” A sly grin spread across his face.
Victoria huffed in annoyance. “Don’t be an idiot, Chris. We won’t be doing it. We’ll go as a couple, just as we’ve done for everything else in the past three years.”
“But, I thought …”
“Who cares what you thought,” she scoffed, and then turned back to Josh. “Well, what do you think?”
Deep in thought, Josh failed to respond immediately.
“Well?” Victoria repeated.
“I think people will like it.” He hesitated before continuing. “But maybe Chris has a point about us participating.”
Victoria glared at Chris and then at Josh. “What exactly does that mean?” Her cheeks glowed crimson.
“Nothing,” Josh muttered, trying to cover up the comment. “I was only kidding.”
“I certainly hope so.” She forced a smile at Josh and then sneered at Chris, her lip curling. “Why are you always such a jackass?”
Chris smirked.
Victoria turned back to Josh. “Well, I should get going. I have a lot of details to sort out with Heather and Lydia. See ya at lunch?”
Josh nodded.
Once Josh was sure Victoria was out of earshot, he turned to Chris, and said, “Vicky’s kind of been getting on my nerves lately. I think maybe we need to take a break.”
Chris raised an inquisitive eyebrow. “Is there someone else?”
Josh shook his head. “No. I’m just not sure about things anymore.”
“Whew.” Chris whistled. “I can’t believe I’m hearing this. I figured you guys would be together forever. I mean, your parents damn near have the wedding planned. Not to mention what a hottie she is.”
“I’m not denying Vicky is hot—and we are still together. I’m only saying that maybe we need to cool things off a bit. We don’t like the same things anymore. She doesn’t understand that school is important, and life is more than a big social event. All she wants to do is party and have fun all the time, and she doesn’t take anything seriously. I guess she figures that Daddy will always be there to take care of her.”
“Well, of course she thinks that. Mr. Blake is mega rich. Vicky will always have him to take care of her. And, so will you if you don’t screw things up. If your career is so important, you might want to re-think things. You’ll have it made at Blake Enterprises.”
“True,” Josh admitted. “But what if she’s not—you know—the one? I don’t want to be miserable for the rest of my life. Maybe if I did this dating dinner thing and spent some time with someone else it might help me figure out how I feel about things.”
Chris gave Josh a friendly punch in the arm. “Sucks to be you.”
“So do you think Josh is cute or what?” Rebecca asked Eden.
“What if I do? It doesn’t mean anything.”
“It means there might be hope for you yet.” Rebecca laughed as she shut and locked her brown locker. “Come on, or we’ll be late for class.”
The boisterous activity in the crowded corridor made it difficult to hear. Rebecca raised her voice. “Personally,” she said, “I think he’s gorgeous. Too bad he’s already going out with that little snot. I can’t imagine what he sees in her.”
“You mean besides the fact that she’s pretty, and popular, and rich, and …”
“Yeah, but she’s a witch. A guy like Josh should be able to get a better girlfriend than that.”
“What makes you think he wants a better girlfriend? Good looking or not, he is a guy after all. Do you think her personality really matters to him when she looks the way she does and has money? Guys are only interested in one thing and it’s not intelligent conversation or nice manners.
Gossip of the spring fundraising event buzzed throughout the schoolyard, corridors, and classrooms. All week it seemed to be the only thing anyone was talking about. Why couldn’t the fundraiser have been something else, anything else, Eden mused? She could only imagine the hassle this would cause her.
She didn’t have to imagine it for long.
When they met up in the school cafeteria, spirited excitement beamed from Rebecca’s face like a neon light. “Oh my God!” she screeched. “This fundraiser is going to be so great! I can’t wait to see who I get matched with.”
“You’re not really going to do it, are you?”
“Well, of course I am. Aren’t you?”
Eden chuckled and shook her head. “Come on. You know me better than that.” She pulled a tray off the pile and slid it along the cafeteria counter deciding on what she wanted for lunch.
“Yeah, but what about last week?”
“Last week?”
“You know,” Rebecca whispered, “that thing with Josh.”
At the mention of Josh, Eden glanced around to see if Victoria was anywhere within earshot. She would hate to imagine her reaction if she knew they were talking about Josh like this. She relaxed when she didn’t spot her. “Will you not bring that up, please? I already told you; just because I think a guy is cute doesn’t mean I’m ready to start dating. I’m afraid you’re on your own this time.” She placed a ham and cheese sandwich onto her tray and continued down the line.
Rebecca frowned. “It could be for fun, ya know.”
Eden shook her head. “Not interested.”
“But you’re my best friend. You have to do this with me. I can’t go alone.”
“What about Mark? He’s your best friend too. Maybe he’ll go with you.”
“It’s not the same. Mark’s great, but he’s not my best girlfriend. There are some things you just need a girlfriend for. Think about it, okay? For me?”
Eden handed over a ten-dollar bill, received her change, which she shoved into the pocket of her baggy sweat pants, and stepped aside while Rebecca finished her purchase. Why did Rebecca have to do this to her? Couldn’t she accept that she’d have to do this on her own if it was so important? She couldn’t always be there holding Becca’s hand in everything she ever did. If she wanted to go so bad, then fine, but why did that have to mean Eden had to go too?
They spotted Mark at a nearby table and joined him. Eden set her tray down and sat across from him. Rebecca sat next to her.
“I’m starved,” Eden said. She unwrapped the sandwich, and took a zealous bite.
As she chewed, she noticed Mark glancing back and forth between the two of them.
“Is something wrong? You look really upset, Bec,” Mark said.
She sighed. “It’s nothing.”
“Cudda fooled me.”
Eden swallowed. “She’s upset about the fundraiser.”
Mark cast a doubtful look at Rebecca. “I would have thought you’d be all for a fundraiser like this, given how you’re always checking out all the guys. Maybe this would be a good chance for you to meet someone.”
“Duh. Of course I’m excited about it—or at least I was.” She stopped and pouted.
Mark looked to Eden for answers.
“She’s mad at me because I don’t want to go with her. Even if I did, that’s not the way I’d want to meet someone. Who knows what kind of psycho I could end up matched with? It’s better to let things happen naturally.”
“Well, in case you haven’t noticed,” Rebecca said, “nothing’s happening naturally for me. I really want to do this. It’s a great chance for me meet someone who might actually like me. If he gets matched with me in the first place, then we must have something in common. Right?”
Mark tapped his chin, thinking. “They said you could go to the dinner with your own date if you didn’t want to do the matching thing. That way people who already are couples could still participate.”
“And your point would be?” asked Rebecca impatiently.
“Maybe Eden and I could go to the dinner together. That way you could still do your computer date thing, and we could go with you.”
Her eyes lit up. “That’s a great idea. Then Eden wouldn’t have to break her dumb no-dating rule, and we could still go.”
There’s nothing dumb about not dating. “I don’t know. It doesn’t seem fair for Mark to have to take me as a date.”
Mark’s stringy, brown hair hung slightly past his shoulders and was in need of a cut and style. He was tall and gangly, and shy around girls, but he was a great guy. This could be a good opportunity for him to meet someone, too.
“I wouldn’t mind at all,” Mark insisted.
“No. I think you guys should go without me. You deserve to meet someone who’ll see you for the awesome person you are. I don’t want to get in the way.”
“Maybe I’ve already met someone,” he mumbled, “but she doesn’t share my feelings.” Mark’s eyes dulled as a look of defeat spread across his face. “I’ve got to get going,” he said. Picking up his lunch garbage, he got up and left the table without another word.
“Wow,” Rebecca said. “Mark is totally love-sick. I wonder who she could be. We should try to find out and see if we can do anything to help.”
“I think we should mind our own business. If Mark wants our help, he’ll ask for it.”
It seemed there would be no relief from the pressures of the fundraiser. Eden had no sooner parted from Rebecca’s continual begging about going when she entered her house and found her sister and mom arguing about it too.
“It’s not fair,” Delaney said. “I’m fourteen years old. That’s old enough.”
Eden placed her knapsack down in the corner of the kitchen next to the fridge.
Her mother, Susan, dropped the potato she’d been peeling and stood motionless.
Looking back and forth between her mom and sister, Eden could see they were both upset. “What’s going on?” She wasn’t sure she really wanted to know.
“Mom says I can’t go to the fundraiser, cuz I’m not old enough. That’s bull.” She crossed her arms across her chest.
Usually, she and her sister teamed up on issues with their mom, but Eden had to admit this time she thought her mom might be right.
“Tell her. Tell her it’s not a big deal for me to go,” Delaney pleaded.
Eden hesitated. Delaney was going to hate her for this. “I don’t know, Laney. Mom might have a point.”
Delaney’s jaw dropped, shocked at Eden’s betrayal. “I should have known you’d do this to me—you and that stupid boy stuff. All my friends are allowed to go. It’s going to be so much fun. You’re not being fair.”
“I don’t know,” Susan said. “It just doesn’t seem like a good idea to me. You only turned fourteen a few months ago. Maybe you can go next year.”
“But, it’s this year’s fundraiser. There might not be one next year. This could be my only chance.”
“Maybe if Eden were to go with you …”
“Oh, yeah. Like that’s ever going to happen! There’s a better chance of hell freezing over. Anyway, Eden is only a year older than me. Why can she go, and I can’t?”
“Eden is almost sixteen. There is a big difference between fourteen and sixteen.”
Geez, would this crap never end, Eden wondered? “It’s only for a couple of hours, Mom. Why don’t you just let her go?”
Delaney nodded. “It’s going to be supervised.”
Susan pulled a new potato out of the bag and began swiftly peeling. “I don’t know right now. Let me think about it some more, okay?”
“Until when?” Delaney asked.
A heavy sigh escaped Susan’s throat. “Until I decide.”
“But when will that be? Today? Tomorrow?”
From the look on their mother’s face, Eden read loud and clear that the conversation was over. Delaney, having gotten the same message said, “Fine. I’m going to my room.”
“Why can’t she go?” Eden asked her mom, once Delaney was gone.
“I think she’s too young.”
“You were young when you met Dad.”
“Exactly. Delaney doesn’t understand the trouble you can get into with boys. I don’t think she’s ready. She’s the type of girl that could end up being hurt and taken advantage of. It scares me.”
“It’s just a school dance.”
“I don’t like it. She doesn’t have the same sensible head on her shoulders that you have. She reminds me too much of myself at her age, and look where it got me—pregnant and married at eighteen. I would feel so much better knowing you were there to keep an eye on things.”
“Don’t even go there, Mom. I’m not going, and it’s not fair to drag me into this.”
“I don’t expect you to understand. Maybe someday when you’re a mother yourself you’ll be able to appreciate what I’m saying. If you won’t go, then I think your sister is just going to have to wait and hope they have another one again next year.”
Why did mothers always have to throw that when you’re a mom stuff at you? Without another word, Eden snatched up her bag and marched out of the room. Mom should have just told Laney “no” if she didn’t want her to go. Now her sister was going to blame her.
Josh found it difficult to pay attention to Victoria as she rambled on about the details of the fundraising dinner. His mind wandered as she droned on about posters and questionnaires and seating arrangements. He felt bad, but he simply didn’t share in her enthusiasm.
It was Saturday night and Vicky had showed up without warning at his house—not that she needed to warn him, he reminded himself. She always showed up whenever she felt like it. His mom was out for the night and the two of them were alone, sitting in the living room. Well, he was sitting; Victoria couldn’t remain still. She paced the floors, hands gesturing all over the place, as her excited voice became louder with each new idea she presented.
“So, we’ve got those geeks from the computer club writing the program for us. They said they’d have it ready by the end of the week. We still have to make more posters, and I have to meet with the cafeteria manager about the menu and stuff.”
Josh watched Vicky as she talked, but didn’t hear most of it. Her curly blond hair bounced up and down as she flittered around the carpeted living room, sidestepping every now and then to avoid crashing into one of the room’s many glass tables. Her milky complexion was flawless, as was the makeup carefully applied to it. Short hip-hugger jeans and a pink t-shirt left her recently pierced bellybutton revealed. She looked as sexy as ever. In spite of all this, Josh felt little attraction. He searched deep inside for some indication that he still had feelings for her, but came up short. He still cared for her but something was missing.
“Did you hear me?” Victoria asked.
Josh snapped out of his thoughts and refocused his attention on Victoria. “Sorry. I didn’t catch that.”
“What’s up with you tonight? You’re not paying any attention to me.” The excitement was gone from her voice. “Aren’t you psyched about this? It’s going to be a blast.”
Josh’s mind raced. He knew he had to do it, had to tell her. But how? She’d never understand.
“Josh!” With her hands planted on her hips, she marched over and stood in front of him. He could almost feel the daggers shooting from her eyes as she waited for his response. If he was going to do it, it may as well be now. There would never be a better or easier time for it.
“Vicky,” he said, in his best soothing voice. “I know you’re excited about spending the night together at the dinner, but I think it might be a good idea for us to participate in the fundraiser. You know, to show our support.” Holding his breath, he waited for the outburst he suspected was coming.
Silence followed. He could feel her eyes burning into him. Why didn’t she say something? “I mean—the whole fundraising computer match dinner was your idea. I just think it would be good for everyone to see that you support it, too.”
Finally, the reaction he was dreading came. “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard! Everybody knows we’re a couple and no one would expect us not to come together. What’s really going on? You’ve been acting weird lately.”
“Nothing’s going on,” Josh lied. “I just thought it would be interesting to see who we’d be matched up with. It doesn’t mean anything. It’s only for fun. Right?”
“I think it sucks. I don’t want to go to the dinner with anyone else.”
Josh’s voice escalated, and he threw up his hands in frustration. “It’s a school fundraiser. It’s only for fun—for one night. It doesn’t mean anything. Why are you making such a big deal about it?”
They were both standing now, each trying to outstare the other, neither wanting to be the first to break eye contact.
“You’re the one making a big deal about it.” She sniffed.
Josh felt bad. He had expected her to be angry, but he hadn’t wanted to hurt her. “Well, just think about it then. Okay?”
Spinning around, she grabbed her purse off the leather recliner. “You do whatever you think you need to do. But you’ll regret it. Don’t forget who’s in charge of this fundraiser.” She dashed out the door slamming it behind her.
Well that didn’t go so well, Josh admitted, slumping back down into the couch. And what was that threat about? Oh well, he’d try to reason with her after she’d had a chance to cool off. Maybe he could still convince her it would be fun to do the computer matching. It was just for one night, after all.
He walked to the kitchen, grabbed a can of 7-Up from the fridge and cracked it open. Pulling out one of the kitchen island’s two padded stools, he plopped down and dreamed about the kind of person he’d like to be matched with. Looks were important, but not the most important thing. She’d have to be smart and goal-oriented, trustworthy and considerate of others. She’d be easy to talk to and wouldn’t laugh at his dreams—someone very different from Vicky.
He gulped back the remainder of his soda and tossed the can in the recycle bin. On the other hand, maybe he should forget the whole thing. Perhaps he was destined to be with Vicky.
Their fathers had been best friends since meeting in university, and later Josh’s dad had gone to work for Blake Enterprises. When Josh’s dad died seven years ago, Steven Blake had sort of adopted him and been like a surrogate father, taking him under his wing and preparing him for the fast-paced business world. Josh loved it. He had a great summer job lined up at Blake Enterprises. Maybe it was time to accept that this was how his life was meant to be.
Eden’s homeroom was filled with the noisy chatter of students as they awaited the delivery of their personalized computer-date results. She tried to deny the feeling of loneliness she felt at the stir of excitement surrounding her. Although Eden was convinced she had made the right choice, the anticipation was contagious, and she couldn’t help but feel isolated from the spirit of things.
Once again, she was the loner, the different one, and the one who couldn’t share in the fun. She could almost feel the pitying eyes on her, wondering if she was joining in. Who would be the unlucky person to get stuck with her? Well nobody was the unlucky one, because she had the good sense not to get involved.
Mrs. Hillier, her homeroom teacher, stood at the front of the class, gripping the personalized envelopes. Her tightly pursed mouth made a near-invisible line of her lips. Her squinty gray eyes darted around from student to student. She sighed in what Eden expected was her growing frustration at her inability to gain control of the class.
With long, deliberate strides, Mrs. Hillier walked to Julia Moore’s desk and placed an envelope into her hands. A broad smile stretched across Julia’s pimpled face as she ripped it open to reveal her date’s name. Continuing down the line of desks, the teacher delivered envelopes to all the participating students. There didn’t seem to be many without one of the prized packages.