Chapter 25
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
sierra
SUMMER BEFORE JUNIOR YEAR
Chiming bells greeted us as we stepped inside Ranger’s Grill.
“Take a seat wherever you’d like, kids!” Susannah, the owner of Ranger’s, called to us as she passed by with a tray of food for a group sitting in one of the booths.
“Thanks, Susannah, good to see you!” Hayden replied as we headed toward one of the corner booths in the back. Keenan was going to meet us, but he usually ran late, so we beat him by a long shot.
I slid into the inside part of the booth facing the door, and Hayden slid in next to me. It was stupid, because we were friends, but butterflies took flight in my stomach anyway because this was the type of thing couples did. Or at least they did in the movies.
Shortly after we sat down, Susannah came to take our orders. “Afternoon, kids. What are we drinking today?”
“Can I get a cherry Coke?” I asked, adding at the last minute, “And a water.”
She nodded, jotting it down on her notepad. “And for you, darling?”
“I’ll do a regular Coke and a water, too, please.”
“Got it. I’ll be right back with those.” She flitted around the corner, leaving us alone.
Coming to Ranger’s Grill had become a sort of tradition between the three of us.
Every Friday after school, we’d come here, and in the summer we were here even more frequently.
Ranger’s had the best burgers and fries, though, so who could blame us?
It could get expensive, but with all the rodeo money I was making, it was worth it.
The clunk of boots against the tile floor announced his arrival before Keenan’s voice called out, “Wassup!” He high fived a few of the people sitting at the tables near the front of the restaurant before sliding into our booth.
I had to laugh at his dramatic entrance. “Hey, Kee.”
“Sues just took our drink orders, so figure out what you want to eat fast,” Hayden teased.
Normally it took three to five business days for Keenan to make up his mind, even though he always landed on the same thing every time. But he’d get upset with us if we ordered for him, even though I was pretty sure we knew him better than he knew himself.
“Hold your horses, Hazey.” Keenan held up a hand as he picked up his menu, perusing the options.
“You kids know what you’re eating today?” Like clockwork, Susannah emerged with our drinks. She’d even put a maraschino cherry in mine, exactly how I liked it.
“He’s going to need a minute.” Hayden gestured to Keenan. “But we’re ready, right, Sierra?”
I nodded, and Susannah focused her attention on me first.
I didn’t even need to open my menu. “I’ll do the aloha burger without tomato or onion.”
The aloha was a quarter-pound beef patty with lettuce, Swiss cheese, pickles, pineapple, and sweet chili sauce.
“What do you want for your side, darling?”
“Regular fries, please.”
“You got it. And for you?” Susannah asked Hayden after writing down my order.
“Let’s do the mushroom Swiss burger today. With everything on it, and french fries on the side, please.”
Keenan was still scouring his menu when Susannah looked at him.
“You ready, Keenan? Or do you need a little more time?”
“He probably needs more time,” I teased, sticking out my tongue. “Or, you know, Sues, you can just put him down for chicken strips like normal.”
Keenan rolled his eyes. “Ah, shut it, Skippy. I’ll do a Mountain Dew and a bacon cheeseburger today, Sues, please. Tater tots for the side.”
Both mine and Hayden’s eyes widened with surprise. Even Susannah seemed to be taken off guard. Normally, Keenan ordered the chicken strips basket with french fries. Religiously, in fact. He hardly ever strayed away from what he liked.
“Switching it up today, Keenan, I see.” Hayden pursed his lips while nodding. “Respect.”
Keenan stretched out his arms behind his head. “Aw yeah, never let ’em know your next move, am I right?” He winked at me, and I fought the urge to gag and roll my eyes.
“You only did that because we were giving you shit. Are you sure you don’t want to put in the chicken strips? I can flag Susannah over right now. I’m sure she’ll come back, and Shane won’t harass you too much about it.”
“I’m fine. I’m a big boy.”
Hayden and I exchanged an amused glance. He mouthed, Bet he won’t eat it, and I had to hold back a giggle.
“How’s the little filly?” Keenan didn’t seem to notice our exchange as he leaned back in his side of the booth, stretching his arms behind his head. “What’s her name again?”
“Peanut Butter,” Hayden and I both said in unison.
“She’s really good,” Hayden added. “She’s getting so big.
Dad said it’ll only be another year or so before we start training her to have a rider.
She won’t be in the arena for a while and still has a ways to go before then, but I have a good feeling about her.
As much as I hate to say it, Bullseye is getting older.
I’ll most likely be able to ride him throughout college, but he’ll be closer to retirement age once I finish school. ”
Keenan hummed in acknowledgment. “Can you imagine the rodeo announcer calling out, ‘Hayden Watkins and Peanut Butter!’” He giggled. “Guess it’s a good thing you’re not a barrel racer, and they don’t call out horse names for team roping.”
“I like her name,” Hayden replied defensively. “It fits her, and it’s special.” His eyes flicked to mine at the last part.
Keenan snorted, shaking his head. “If you say so, dude.”
Susannah came back with Keenan’s drink, and our food came out shortly after, so we didn’t get too much conversation in between sipping on soda and munching on our burgers.
“Let’s go to the gas station after this,” Keenan mumbled, his words jumbled with the burger in his mouth.
“What was that? I couldn’t hear you over all the food in your mouth,” Hayden chided in a joking manner.
Keenan made a show of swallowing his bite and then overenunciated his speech. “Let’s. Go. To. The. Gas. Station. After. This.”
“What do you need at the gas station?” I asked.
He shrugged. “Dunno. Whatever I find.”
“Do you even eat the snacks you buy from the gas station, or do you just hoard them like a squirrel before hibernation?” I teased, making a face.
“I eat them,” he protested, but then he added, “just not always right away. I have to be in the mood.”
“If you have to be in the mood, then why don’t you just wait and buy the snacks you want later?”
He tapped his finger against his lips. “I like to stock up.”
“But then you get sick of them and have like thirty of the same snack that you’ll never eat,” Hayden pointed out.
Keenan threw his hands in the air. “Let me live, okay!”
We all burst into laughter, clutching our stomachs and leaning on each other for support.
“You kids finished here?” Susannah chuckled as she approached the table.
“Yes, ma’am. Thank you. Tell Shane we said hello,” Hayden said as we all threw bills on the table to pay for the meal.
“Will do. Come again soon.” She gathered all the money, and we reassured her that we’d be back as we made for the door.
“To the gas station!” Keenan stretched out his arm like he was a voyager.
As we walked down the streets, fooling around like teenagers did, the familiar, rusted-out truck parked at the gas station caught my eye.
Shit, shit, shit.
If my dad saw me with Keenan and Hayden, there’d be hell to pay later.
“Hey, guys, I think I forgot something back at the restaurant,” I mumbled, fumbling through my pockets to make the lie more believable. “I’m gonna go back.”
“Ah, I really wanted a candy bar,” Keenan protested, gazing longingly at the gas station.
“Go ahead, I’ll catch up with you guys.” I waved him off. I just needed to get away before my dad came out, most likely with beer and a pack of cigarettes.
Keenan wasted no time to run across the street to the gas station, not even bothering to look both ways. Hayden didn’t move, though.
“You sure? I can go with you?” His gaze bounced back and forth between me and Keenan.
“Yeah, I’m sure.” I had already started walking backward, away from him. “Make sure Keenan doesn’t blow all his money on stupid shit. I’ll be right back.”
“Okay…”
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed the gas station door opening, a tall figure stepping out. Not thinking twice, I took off in a sprint without looking back to see if he’d noticed me.
Instead of running all the way back to Ranger’s, I skirted around the corner into an alleyway. My chest heaved from exertion, and I leaned against the brick wall of the building next to me, hands on my knees and head down.
That was way too close. I didn’t think my dad saw me and Hayden, but I’d find out later when I got home.
The silly thing was that I didn’t even run away for my sake.
I wouldn’t have cared if he saw me if I were alone.
It was the fact that Keenan and Hayden were with me.
Spencer Bayley wouldn’t have taken kindly to the idea of me hanging around two boys, even if we were all just friends.
His favorite thing to do was isolate me and Mom. If we didn’t have friends or anyone to help us out, we’d have to depend on him, even when he wasn’t treating us properly.
The whole notion of it made me angry, and my hands balled into fists. One day I’d be free of all this. There’d be no one to control my life except for me.
I stood in the shadows of the alley for a few more minutes until I was sure the truck would be gone, and then I pushed myself off the wall and headed back in the direction of the gas station to meet up with Hayden and Keenan.
I didn’t see them outside, so I looked both ways before crossing the street to go inside. The truck was nowhere in sight. My dad either went home or to a casino to blow whatever cash he had.
I heard the boys before I saw them and headed toward the sound of their voices.
“Dude, hurry up already. I want to make sure Sierra’s okay!” Hayden whined as candy wrappers crinkled in the next aisle over.
“Don’t rush perfection, Hazey!” Keenan retorted.
I was sure Hayden was rolling his eyes as he grumbled, “You already have like eight things. Who are you trying to feed? An army?”
“Yes, an army of one. Me.”
I turned the corner, stepping into the candy aisle, and sure enough, Keenan had his arms full of gas station snacks. Pringles and Red Bulls, and bags of sour candy. He appeared to be deciding between Reese’s peanut butter cups and KitKats.
“Reese’s are superior,” I announced, and they both jumped as they turned toward me.
“God, Skip, you scared me! I almost dropped my drinks!” Keenan clutched his goodies even closer to his chest.
“I’m just saying, if you loved me, you’d get the peanut butter cups and share them with me.” I flashed them a grin, taking some of the drinks out of Keenan’s arms. The last thing I wanted was for him to drop everything and make a mess.
“There, she made the decision easy for you. Come on, let’s go.” Hayden grabbed the bag of peanut butter cups with one hand and Keenan’s arm with the other, leading him toward the cashier.