Chapter 7
CHAPTER SEVEN
At Saga I shovel chicken and rice into my mouth like I’m competing for prize money. Ethan begged for calc help as I was on my way out this morning. At least he gave me a granola bar, but it didn’t do the trick.
Across the gleaming wood table—Saga’s a cafeteria with country-club delusions—Kit leans toward Levi. “Who’s playing goalie for Flooders?” She sounds all girlfriend-y asking about his floor stuff, but she’s always been like that. She’s good to him.
“No one volunteered, and that was our weakness last year.” Levi looks across the table. “Ideas, Haymitch?”
Out of nowhere, rain pounds the roof like someone dumped a bucket.
Kit freezes. Levi catches her eyes and reassures her silently.
I won’t forget her reaction on that drive last fall, when I saw a PTSD flashback tear her apart.
It’s a testament to Levi’s commitment to Jesus that he’s kept from finding—and destroying—the guy who messed her up like that.
Haymitch collects his napkins and water cup onto the Saga tray as he ponders.
“I’ll play goalie if y’all need me to,” I say between bites. Goalie sounds awful—no scoring, stuck at the goal the whole game. But I can take one for the team.
Levi sends a silent no, confident as a senator. “You’re too good of a runner to waste you at goalie.”
“He’s right,” Haymitch says in his Alabama drawl. “Let’s think on it. And we need a couple guys to help ref the girls’ football season.” He flicks a finger at me. “Not you, Samwise. You don’t have the time.”
I close my open mouth around the fork. He knows me well. I might do it anyway—I don’t want them left hanging. Although, I’m coaching the G1 team this year. Might be a conflict of interest to ref the others.
His chair scuffs back on the carpet as he stands. “Got some senior design stuff I gotta do. See y’all tomorrow.”
“Bye, Haymitch!” Kit chimes.
His senior project is complex and terrifying.
I’ve got a bad feeling he’ll be pulling a disappearing act this last semester we have him.
The engineering program here is no joke.
Haymitch is mechanical and I’m electrical, but watching him has been a good indicator of what’s coming.
I’ve never been the smartest guy in the room like Levi here, but I work hard enough to make up for it.
Just gotta survive three semesters and then I’ll have a job that pays all the bills.
And feeds the kids I wanna have someday.
Finally, I swallow my last bite and draw in a huge breath. Just a few minutes and I’ll feel better. I down my cup of water.
“So how’s my favorite freshman liking Linear Algebra and Discrete Math?” Levi asks Kit.
“Ooh, Discrete was so fun today. We made truth tables to determine logical equivalence and …”
My eyes—and all mental capacity—are drawn to the double doors.
I had the luck to sit on the side of our table that faces the entrance to Saga, and guess who’s here for dinner?
Sophie and Mia drip all over the tile and curl over laughing.
I follow Sophie’s path as she shakes off like a puppy, picks up a tray, chooses her food—
I bounce my gaze away when she’s about to walk this direction. And pretend not to notice Levi’s shaking head.
“Hey, Soph.” I feign surprise. “Ever heard of an umbrella?”
“Never. Want to mansplain it to me?”
I chuckle.
“Sophs! Mamma Mia!” Kit says. “We need a rain-scene movie. Tomorrow after lunch?”
“I’m down. We could do Sweet Home Alabama again,” Mia says. “Speaking of, I saw Haymitch left already?”
“Senior design strikes again,” Levi says.
Sophie sits next to me and scooches in her chair. Static skitters under my skin at her proximity. The table lights up in her glow.
“Not sure if I’ll be there for the movie,” she says. “I’m going on a G3 field trip tomorrow. You guys can join if you want.”
I don’t get why she spreads herself thin with random people when her real friends care about her so much. At least she’s never done that with me.
Her thick blond hair drips down her back onto her soaked sweatshirt. Impulsively, I grab it all into a handful, fingers grazing her neck, and squeeze it into my empty cup. It works. She bursts out laughing, covering her full mouth with her hand.
“Like in Princess Diaries!” Kit says.
“Rain scene!” All three of them shout.
I’ve seen that one, but I don’t remember a rain scene. My sister makes me watch all her chick flicks with her when I’m home, but it comes in handy because sometimes I have a partial clue what these girls are talking about.
Sophie’s face softens as a question fills her eyes.
Oh. I’m still holding her hair. I drop it and play it off.
“I’m gonna look like a wet dog,” she says.
I frown. Her self-deprecating jokes are never funny.
Kit turns to Mia. “You and Haymitch have poker tonight, right?”
“Yeah, girl. High stakes tonight. Rules are we can bring cookies of any kind as our chips.”
She’s a killer poker player. Only a fool would bet against her.
“What’s your cookie of choice?” I ask Mia.
She shoots me a look when I drape my arm on the back of Sophie’s chair. It’s not the first time. I heard on the floor this morning that Sophie finally dumped Leo, but I drop my arm anyway.
Still waiting down here. Please, can I tell her?
“Abuela’s butter cookies.” Mia tips her head back. “Ahh, so good. But it’s Famous Amos tonight.”
“See if you can finagle another care package,” I say. “Just have her send it to me and I’ll make sure it gets to you.”
She waggles a finger at me as she swallows. “Like you need to steal my care packages. You can go home and have fresh-baked goods any time you want.”
False. I learned freshman year that going home means being trapped there until my next class.
I’ve had to bring friends along who will convince them I have to get back.
Last year I brought the guys along several times on Sunday nights (“Sorry, class in the morning!”), but I couldn’t manage it last fall with all the football games.
But I talk to my parents and sister every week. They’re good. I’d drop everything if I heard otherwise.
“Sophs?” Kit asks. “Favorite cookie?”
Her eyes dart from table to table like it’s an important question. “Mmm. Cookie cake. With tons of icing. You have to be strategic about which piece you take, you know?”
I wanna bolt out of here right now and buy her a whole cookie cake.
Levi and Kit melt into matching smiles.
“Should I ask?” I raise an eyebrow.
“Macarons,” Kit says, fixed on Levi.
“Agreed,” Levi murmurs.
“Uh-huh …” Those two. I tell you what.
Pretty sure there’s a Mrs. Fields at the mall here in Pinecrest. If Mia and Haymitch are playing poker, Levi and Kit’ll pair off, and I’ll have Sophie to myself. Might oughta cook up a reason to go shopping. Surprise her.
Oof. Sophie elbows me in the ribs. “What?”
“Favorite cookie! You’re in la-la land. What are you thinking about?”
“Ahh … what we’re doin’ tonight.”
She perks up. “Have an idea?”
“Yeah.”
“What? What?”
“It’s a surprise.”
She claps.
Another spark at that freckled smile.
Maybe I can whisk her off. You know, as a friend. Wait. I don’t have anything, do I? I check my phone calendar. Nope, all good. I’d feel bad if I had to cancel on a girl, but I’d do it.
I turn to Levi. “Doing your own thing?”
He confirms with a dopey grin. I whack him. He whacks me back.
“But, Austin.”
“Yeah, Soph?”
“What’s your favorite cookie?”
Sweet of her to keep asking. Oh, her fork is down.
“Mama’s snickerdoodles. Ready to get out of here?”
She nods eagerly.
I just have to get her in the Jeep before the G3-ers beat me to it.