clear of him. Funny thing though, he always seemed to be “popping up”.
Especially here lately , I pondered.
It didn’t take any time at all to breeze through town. Why should it? There were only two traffic lights and one of them just blinked. The sun was starting to peek through the clouds, shining brightly down on Welch High School, home of the Golden Knights. Our school sat majestically on the side of a mountain, proudly overlooking the entire town. Its bold, streamlined Art Deco design made it a symbolic addition to Welch’s rich history.
I turned up the winding road that led to the school’s upper parking lot. An early arrival guaranteed you a prime spot on top. Since Chloe was n otorious for making me late, I usually had to park in the lower student lot, located at the bottom of the hill. Trekking up that thing on a cold day was a bitch — snow made it extremely hazardous. I’d busted my butt plenty of times going up and down those steps in the winter. Ouch!
I’d just pulled into a space next to the Math and Sciences building when a series of beeps coming from my cell sent my hand digging down into my purse. Once located, pulled it out and read my latest text. I was only partially happy that Charlie had honored my request.
Saturday is yours, honey
Naomi will cover your shift.
Have fun at the dance!
What made his scripted reply even worse was that I hadn’t given him a specific reason “why” I needed off from work. Crap! Paranoia is cruel bitch — especially in a small-town like Welch. He couldn’t possibly know that I’m going to the dance or “who” I’m going with…Could he? I let out a grunt, grabbed my stuff, slammed the door of my Charger, and headed straight for my homeroom.
I’ll do quick review for my Geology test. I’ve got plenty of time . It couldn’t hurt, and I desperately needed something to distract me from thinking about Mike and the dance or even the fateful meeting at 3 o’clock — pretty much anything and everything that was looming over my head like a dreary dark cloud.
There was my best friend, Katie Stowell, already sitting at her desk when I entered the classroom. She was flipping through a fashion magazine while she twisted the dainty diamond pendant on the end of her necklace.
Kati e glanced up and threw me a sly grin, one that wasn’t sitting too well with my gut. Oh yeah , I thought as I edged closer. “Smug” would have been tolerable, but unfortunately it screamed what I affectionately called, “ shit- taé” .
Not good .
“ Well, lookie there …If it isn’t the future Mrs. Riverside,” Katie pronounced with the straightest of faces. She almost looked disappointed that she didn’t have a trumpet to sound.
“How in the heck do you know about THAT? ” I demanded, too flustered to be one-hundred percent discreet.
Katie shrugged her shoulders. “I heard some of the cheerleaders talking about it in the hall,” my BFF replied, trying to pretend she wasn’t hurt that the proverbial “horse” didn’t “whinny” out the news to her first. I mean seriously, we’ve been “best friends” since kindergarten.
“ Holy Hell ,” I groaned. “The whole school will know by the end of the day.”
“If not by lunch ,” Katie smirked. “I just can’t believe you’re actually doing it. You HATE Mike Riverside.”
“What can I say…They guilted me into it,” I shamefully proclaimed and proceeded to divulge a rendition of the terrible-twosome’s melodrama from last night to a T. “Trust me,” I concluded. “It’ll only be for a couple of hours. I’m already planning a reason for Mike to suddenly have to take me home.”
“What did Mike say? ” Katie probed.
“I have no idea… and I couldn’t care less,” I answered as flung backpack under my desk.
“You should care,” Katie insisted. “I don’t trust that sneaky bastard. What if he tries…
Especially here lately , I pondered.
It didn’t take any time at all to breeze through town. Why should it? There were only two traffic lights and one of them just blinked. The sun was starting to peek through the clouds, shining brightly down on Welch High School, home of the Golden Knights. Our school sat majestically on the side of a mountain, proudly overlooking the entire town. Its bold, streamlined Art Deco design made it a symbolic addition to Welch’s rich history.
I turned up the winding road that led to the school’s upper parking lot. An early arrival guaranteed you a prime spot on top. Since Chloe was n otorious for making me late, I usually had to park in the lower student lot, located at the bottom of the hill. Trekking up that thing on a cold day was a bitch — snow made it extremely hazardous. I’d busted my butt plenty of times going up and down those steps in the winter. Ouch!
I’d just pulled into a space next to the Math and Sciences building when a series of beeps coming from my cell sent my hand digging down into my purse. Once located, pulled it out and read my latest text. I was only partially happy that Charlie had honored my request.
Saturday is yours, honey
Naomi will cover your shift.
Have fun at the dance!
What made his scripted reply even worse was that I hadn’t given him a specific reason “why” I needed off from work. Crap! Paranoia is cruel bitch — especially in a small-town like Welch. He couldn’t possibly know that I’m going to the dance or “who” I’m going with…Could he? I let out a grunt, grabbed my stuff, slammed the door of my Charger, and headed straight for my homeroom.
I’ll do quick review for my Geology test. I’ve got plenty of time . It couldn’t hurt, and I desperately needed something to distract me from thinking about Mike and the dance or even the fateful meeting at 3 o’clock — pretty much anything and everything that was looming over my head like a dreary dark cloud.
There was my best friend, Katie Stowell, already sitting at her desk when I entered the classroom. She was flipping through a fashion magazine while she twisted the dainty diamond pendant on the end of her necklace.
Kati e glanced up and threw me a sly grin, one that wasn’t sitting too well with my gut. Oh yeah , I thought as I edged closer. “Smug” would have been tolerable, but unfortunately it screamed what I affectionately called, “ shit- taé” .
Not good .
“ Well, lookie there …If it isn’t the future Mrs. Riverside,” Katie pronounced with the straightest of faces. She almost looked disappointed that she didn’t have a trumpet to sound.
“How in the heck do you know about THAT? ” I demanded, too flustered to be one-hundred percent discreet.
Katie shrugged her shoulders. “I heard some of the cheerleaders talking about it in the hall,” my BFF replied, trying to pretend she wasn’t hurt that the proverbial “horse” didn’t “whinny” out the news to her first. I mean seriously, we’ve been “best friends” since kindergarten.
“ Holy Hell ,” I groaned. “The whole school will know by the end of the day.”
“If not by lunch ,” Katie smirked. “I just can’t believe you’re actually doing it. You HATE Mike Riverside.”
“What can I say…They guilted me into it,” I shamefully proclaimed and proceeded to divulge a rendition of the terrible-twosome’s melodrama from last night to a T. “Trust me,” I concluded. “It’ll only be for a couple of hours. I’m already planning a reason for Mike to suddenly have to take me home.”
“What did Mike say? ” Katie probed.
“I have no idea… and I couldn’t care less,” I answered as flung backpack under my desk.
“You should care,” Katie insisted. “I don’t trust that sneaky bastard. What if he tries…
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