Chapter 44 Tabitha
Coach Oliver blows her whistle once the school bell rings on Monday. “Okay, girls. That’s it for today. Charlene and Renee, help me get all the balls back into the storage room. The rest of you, hit the locker room.”
I successfully avoided Camila and Yvette for the entire phys-ed class. Coach Oliver had us wait in lines to run drills, and I had hung back, letting other girls create distance between us.
Being at the back of the line, I hurry my pace to make it to the locker room first. Jamie isn’t far behind me, having the same thought.
“Hi,” I whisper to her.
She looks at me with disinterest. “Hi.”
I can’t let this frosty awkwardness hang over us. For goodness’ sake, I’ll be back at her café this afternoon for that freaking society meeting. Things have to go better than they did yesterday at breakfast. I can’t blow it again.
“How’d things go when Coach Anders came in to check on your extra credit assignment?”
She grimaces. “Fine.”
My stomach flips. She’s remembering what I said about her mom. I’m so stupid.
“Hey, so that society meeting will be at your café this afternoon,” I say, less than tactfully. “Are you excited about the idea of them hiring you guys as caters?”
“Not really,” she mutters. “My aunt is the one who wants this, but she buzzed off to Hawaii and left me stuck with hosting these vipers.”
Oh boy. Not a good start.
“Well, they mostly like hearing the sounds of their own voices, if that helps settle your nerves.”
“Doesn’t take away the fact I need to speak in front of them all.”
Jamie and I part ways in the locker room.
As I change, I take the time to regroup.
Heck, if she doesn’t realize I’m part of the planning committee, I should inform her.
I don’t want her scowling at me the entire time.
I can just imagine my mother reading into that and asking why I’ve become so bratty again.
Jamie leaves the locker room when I’m putting on my shoes. When I move past the other girls to leave, Camila throws out an elbow and knocks me to the ground.
“Whoa! What was that for?”
She scowls at me. “Watch where you’re going, Tabitha.”
“I was.” I pull myself up. “I watched you run into me.”
Camila’s eyes roll. “Get over yourself.”
I step to her. “No.”
She laughs in my face. “No?”
I stomp my foot. “That’s right. No.”
Her eyes run the length of me. “And since when did you get a backbone?”
“Since I stopped caring about what you think.”
“Well, good for you. It’s just in time.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
She pushes me away from her. “Someone bought our house.”
I stumble to correct my balance. “Someone, what?”
“You heard me,” she taunts. “You saw the For Sale sign the realtor put in the front yard. It was legit.”
“Okay, so you’re moving house,” I respond warily. “No big deal.”
“No, I guess not,” she says stiffly. “It’s only the fact my mom and I are moving to a new town.”
“Wait, what? You’re leaving town?”
“Cammy?” Yvie pipes up, reaching for Camila’s shoulder. “No, that can’t be true. You can’t move.”
Camila bumps her shoulder. “It can, and it is. I’m sick of you two puppies following me around.” The watering of her eyes betrays her, and she sniffs hard. “I’m leaving you in my dust, and there’s not a thing you can do about it.”
Yvie does a mixture of comforting her and brown-nosing her.
Camila’s doing to us what her mother plans to do to her father.
The ultimate guilt trip.
I back away, leaving Yvette to play the game. Even if Camila officially moves away, I’m still done with Yvette.
I’m done with both of them.
When I leave the locker room and join the bustling hallway, I spy Jamie ahead of me, and call out, “Hey, wait up!”
She turns around, and her eyes are like saucers as she witnesses me catching up to her. No doubt she thinks she made a getaway during my scuffle with Camila.
I pant after the short run, catching my breath and making myself laugh. Maybe I should indulge Kai in the running buddies thing again. As long as we’re on a flat surface this time.
“I’ll walk with you,” I say.
Jamie recoils. “Excuse me?”
I gesture ahead of us. “To our lunch table. You are going to the cafeteria, aren’t you?”
“Which table are you calling ours?”
Why is she making this so difficult? “With Kai and the guys.”
“Our lunch table? Our?“ Jamie scoffs, backing off with a wide berth of distance from me. “No, I’m not going to the cafeteria. You’ll have the boys all to yourself.”
Whoa, she’s so freaked out. I reach for her. “Can’t we talk? I know you and I haven’t started out on the best foot, but I’ve really been trying with you.”
Jamie paces down the hall, leaving me without a response.
Seriously?
Okay, she could’ve been avoiding the cafeteria, anyway. Like, an extra study session in the library before a dreaded pop quiz. But…
Ugh. I doubt it.
I feel it under my skin.
She’s avoiding her friends because of me.
As I walk into the cafeteria, I spy Parker and Lewis waiting in line for food. As I reach the boys’ regular lunch table, Kai and Tyler are taking their seats.
I hurry to the seat next to Kai and throw my arms around his neck.
“Hey, babe.” Kai runs a hand along my back. “Everything okay?”
My curls cascade around my face as I nuzzle into the nape of his neck. “I’m just glad to see you again.”
His arms hug around me. “Me too. It’s only a period since we had chemistry, and I was missing you already.”
I pull back, revealing my face. “Oh my gosh, my mom is gonna freak out when I tell her how much Mrs. Field praised our work today.”
Kai wiggles his eyebrows. “Only gives me more brownie-points with your parents.”
I peck his cheek. “You’re already doing great, babe.”
His arms unravel from me. “So, you kind of flew in here. But you said everything was okay?”
“Umm,” I begin. “Something weird happened.”
Kai watches me with concern. “What?”
“Camila said she’s leaving town.”
Euphoria crosses Kai’s face. “That’s incredible.”
“Don’t get your hopes up too fast,” I warn. “It could be a bluff to get me back in line.”
“You’re not falling for it, are you?”
“No way. I walked out on her.”
Kai grins with satisfaction.
“I mean, what did she expect?” I continue. “She told me after she knocked me on my butt. She’s such a cow.”
“That’s a compliment, compared to what she deserves to be called.”
“I don’t even care anymore.” I rest my elbow on the table and slide my cheek onto my palm. “I’m just in bliss that I get to spend everyday around you.”
Tyler groans. “You two need to get your own lunch table. Some people are trying to eat.”
Kai chucks a fry at him. “Shut up.”
Tyler chucks it back at him, making me squeak and flinch. “Maybe I forgave you for your poor form yesterday,” Tyler says to Kai. “I get that you’re head over heels for this girl, but I don’t need the full display.”
“Then you’d better look away,” Kai says, and then he kisses me much more deeply than a peck. He brushes the hair off the side of my face and whispers, “You’ve got me, Tabby. You and me, nothing’s pulling us apart.”
Kai pulls me into another hug, and I dig my chin into his shoulder.
I’m so glad he can’t see my face, because I’m sure my expression will give me away.
I check the entrance of the cafeteria, because maybe Jamie will change her mind and show up.
As the other boys join our table, it’s so obvious she’s ditched everyone.
I want to believe Kai when he says nothing will pull us apart. We’ve already been through so many obstacles, and gained the approval from so many people who matter.
But this is undeniable. There’s still one person who can pull us apart.
I tried not letting Jamie ruin the rest of my day, but it’s difficult during the last class. It’s English lit, and I can’t help looking over my shoulder and watching Jamie sitting next to my boyfriend. Geez, she looks so sour when she catches me staring.
She’s almost as gloomy as the slate grey clouds outside the classroom windows. Angry rumblings echo around the building, and then a flash of lightning cracks amongst the mountains. And, as if God turned on the faucet, rain pelts heavily from the sky.
The only sunshine left in the afternoon is Kai. Unable to stand me staring, Jamie nudges him, and he lights up at the sight of me. Oh, that boy’s smile is so gosh-darn adorable.
At the end of class, Ms. Jenkins calls me over to discuss our latest reading assignment. Apparently, whatever I wrote about Cordelia in that scene was off base. I thought this class was supposed to be subjective?
I leave the classroom in time to overhear Jamie’s whining. “The thought of being around all these snooty women is already freaking me out. I can’t worry about talking to Tabitha.”
“But she knows all these women,” Kai defends. “Wouldn’t it be good to have someone in your corner?”
Jamie huffs. “I guess.”
“Relax, James,” Kai says. “Just think about it like a regular workday.”
Milo steps into the hall ahead of me, asking Jamie if she’s ready to go. He’s planning on hanging out at the café until the meeting is over, and then he and Jamie will have another tutoring session.
“It’s raining buckets out there,” Kai says. “I’ll drive us all over there.”
Kai beckons me closer, looping me under his arm.
As if I’ve got an airborne disease, Jamie and Milo hang back and follow behind us.
As soon as we pass through the school foyer, the pair are out of my mind.
The battering of the rain brings me back into my body, as it chills the air and is icy to the touch.
Kai squeezes my hand. “I got you. Let’s make a run for it.”
I nod and squeal as we race toward the student parking lot. Guess that running buddies thing came sooner than I expected. Ugh, and we’re stuck in the rain again. But just like last time Kai got me to safety, I whole-heartedly trust him.
When we get to Kai’s car, I’m soaked. Sitting on the front passenger seat, I rip off my blazer and ring out my curls.
Kai reaches into the backseat and pulls out his Ashworth Academy Hawks hoodie. “Here, wear this.”
My heart melts. “Really?”
He lets out a nervous laugh. “Yeah, baby. Take it.”
With pleasure, I pull on the hoodie. As soon as it’s over my head, Kai pulls me into a kiss. His tongue brushes against my bottom lip, and in a moment of bravery, I open my mouth, letting his tongue slip inside.
Tingles dance along my spine, and butterflies disperse inside me. His powerful arms pull us closer, and I’m sure he can feel the rhythmic beating of my heart.
Wow.
Just how did I get so incredibly lucky?
The back passenger door flies open, and Jamie blurts, “Get a room, not a car.”
Kai and I break apart, and the back of his hand wipes against his mouth. “Sorry,” he says with a sarcastic undertone. “I forgot we were leaving with two wet blankets.”
Feeling flushed, I turn behind us as Jamie and Milo buckle into the backseat. “Sorry, guys. Didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”
Jamie flashes a big, fake smile. “No big deal.”
It’s hard to think of even small talk on the quick trip to Morton’s Café. Kai’s car stereo is blasting a metal song. He’s being a typical guy, too embarrassed to be found kissing, so he found an excuse not to talk about it.
When he parks close to the cafe, Jamie unbuckles in a hurry, saying she needs to set up a video link with her aunt for this meeting.
Another server watches us arrive, and her eyes go to the downpour of rain outside the windows. “Wow, it’s really coming down out there.”
Jamie makes her way behind the counter, chatting with the other server, and then leaves for the back office to change into her work uniform. Kai takes me by the hand, leading me to a booth. Reluctantly, Milo sits opposite us.
“Are you really going to sit through the whole meeting?” I ask him. “It’s a long time to wait to tutor someone.”
Milo shrugs. “I can get a burger while I wait.”
Kai purrs in agreement. “I am so getting a burger.”
Soon, Jamie is in her all-black uniform with her half apron, setting up a laptop at the front counter. She grunts and whacks the keyboard, things obviously not going her way.
As if on cue, thunder claps outside.
“Wow, we’re just in time,” a voice says, entering the cafe.
I look over my shoulder, and it’s Christie Klein and her mother.
Christie waves at Jamie, moving further into the cafe. “Hi, Jamie. Isn’t this rain a total bummer? This is my mom, by the way; Mary Klein.”
“Nice to meet you, Mrs. Klein,” Jamie replies.
“You too, dear. Honestly, I think you’ve already booked this job, based on word of mouth. Christie has raved non-stop about your milkshakes.”
I don’t overhear the rest of the conversation because more women from the planning committee file into the cafe. There’s a buzz of chatter, and then Mrs. Fisher enters. She’s head of the committee and heads straight for Jamie.
Mrs. Klein makes introductions, and then they all file around the laptop, presumably chatting with Jamie’s aunt.
I exhale a shallow breath, watching the interactions.
Kai, noticing my tension, rubs a circle on my back. “You good?”
I bite into my bottom lip and nod. “Yeah. I just got hit with some nervousness, thinking about talking to Christie Klein.”
“Well, she is dating a billionaire,” Kai kids. “She’s kinda a big deal.”
I swallow hard and whisper under my breath, “But Jamie can talk to her.”
Before Kai goes into a pep talk, Mrs. Fisher announces the beginning of the meeting, and I watch the other ladies making their way to our table.
Kai wishes me luck in not getting bored, and I leave the booth.