Chapter 26
Seb and E are waiting at my locker when I get to school on Tuesday morning. “Sunshine! I missed you. You look like you’re walking okay today. Did the arnica help?”
“It’s helping Seb. I saw you yesterday and texted you last night. It hasn’t been that long,” I say, shaking my head with a smile.
“But it seems like forever! I was so distraught, E had to hold me all night.” Seb wraps an arm around E’s waist, wiggling his eyebrows at me.
“I might change your nickname to Drama instead of Hurry.” I roll my eyes at him.
That gets a chuckle out of E. “Nope, veto Sunshine. You can’t call me Drama. Now, what are we doing after school today?” Seb says, looking between us.
“Seb, it’s Tuesday. I have to call Jake after school,” I quietly remind him.
“Who’s Jake?” I turn around to see Alex and Bay approaching.
Seb cringes, mouthing sorry to me. Oh boy.
Closing my eyes, I lean my head back and suck in a large lungful of oxygen.
I wasn’t expecting to have this conversation this morning, and definitely not at school. How much detail do I tell them?
“Jake is her best friend from Virginia, you nosey bastards,” Seb says to the group, covering for me.
“Did you call someone else nosy?” E says, putting his arm around Seb’s shoulder, pulling him closer.
“Yup, you guys can be nosy too, ya know. It’s not just me. Now, who’s bought their tickets for the tournament this weekend?”
I glance around at the guys. Alex is watching me, but the others are talking about basketball. He’s too observant, that one. “I purchased you a ticket this morning, Summer,” he says, holding out a printed slip for me.
“You didn’t need to do that, Alex, but thank you. I’m paying you back this time.” I give him my best stern face.
“Good luck with that, Sunshine,” Seb interrupts. “He won’t take your money, or ours. We’ve tried plenty of times.”
I look back over at Alex. “I’ll figure something out,” I smile at him.
Alex smiles back as we disperse, heading to morning classes. AP Biology is a two hour lecture today. I sit beside Bay in AP English, but we don’t really have time to talk. In the library during AP Seminar, I take out my laptop and start taking notes while reading the history text.
Alex and I head to lunch together and find the guys sitting outside today. Gabby comes over to me before we get to the table, asking to talk, so I wave Alex on. “Hey Gabby, what’s up?”
“I wanted to apologize for Cara yesterday,” she says. “She can be a bitch sometimes, but I’ve never seen her act that way before.”
“I take it she’s the one who pushed me yesterday?”
Gabby nods. “I dragged her out of the cafeteria and told her we weren’t friends anymore. No one should treat people that way, especially not towards my other friend. I’m so sorry.”
“You don’t need to apologize, Gabby. You aren’t responsible for others’ behavior.”
“So we’re okay?” She asks nervously. Gabby seems genuinely upset about her friend’s behavior.
I reassure her we are fine. “Good,” she replies with a sense of relief on her face. “I’ll let you go eat your lunch now. Bye.”
I say goodbye and walk over to sit with the guys. Seb has a spot open between him and E again. I take a seat and grab my lunch from my backpack. “Everything good with Gabs?” Seb asks, leaning over.
“Yeah, all good,” I smile. I make a point of saying hello to Reesa sitting beside Alex again, and I get a smile in return.
“So what’s everyone doing after school?” Seb asks, gobbling down a sandwich with big bites.
“Reesa and I are attending a fundraiser with her parents tonight,” Alex informs us.
“I’ll be at the garage,” Bay adds.
“Are you gonna be busy all week, man?” Seb asks Bay.
“Probably. I’m trying to get ahead so I can watch all your games this weekend.” Bay seems to work a lot of hours with his dad. He’s a wonderful son to help so much.
Seb nods and looks at E. “No plans but homework,” E shrugs.
“Nick?” Seb calls.
“Busy,” he grunts back.
The guys all direct their attention to me. “Oh, I’m busy for an hour right after school.”
“How about E and I come over after dinner and help you with AP English?” Seb offers.
That’s actually a sound idea. “Sure, okay,” I nod. I message Zander that they want to come over after dinner, and he’s okay with it.
AP Chemistry is also a full lecture today, so I just take notes. I meet Nick outside the gym again, and we walk towards the court. “Do you work out every day for gym?” I ask and get a no in reply.
“If you keep giving me one-word answers, I’m going to have to come up with something creative to crack your hard shell,” I say.
Nick looks at me and veers off towards the boys’ locker room.
I’m still not sure if he just doesn’t enjoy talking, or if it’s me, but I’ll get him talking at some point, I think.
There are a few bodies inside the girls’ locker room, but I ignore them to go to the far row.
I quickly change into my running clothes, apply some arnica cream, and then walk out to the track.
Nodding at the coach, I start my stretches.
I’m able to run for the entire period again with stretching halfway through.
I’m certainly not fast, but that will come with time.
After class, I spot Cara and the two other girls from Gabby’s group leaving the gym.
They must be juniors too. They don’t notice me as they walk into the locker room, so I decide to keep stretching until they exit.
Fortunately, it’s only a few minutes before they leave the locker room and head out the side door of the gym.
I quickly change, grab my gear, and leave.
“Hey new girl,” a guy waves as he walks my way.
“Hi,” I respond and keep walking, but he catches up to me easily and steps in front of me, so I quickly stop.
“I’m Ben. You’re Summer, right?” He smiles.
“Yeah, that’s me,” I nod, looking up at the guy. He’s tall, with dark brown hair and eyes. He’s attractive, but I’m picking up a distinct vibe from him that differs from my friends.
“Are you a runner? I saw you today on the track. I play shortstop on the baseball team.” He seems very proud of his position. Good for him.
“Yeah, I run,” I reply. He’s still smiling, but his eyes are off. They’re blank, not matching the friendly aura he’s trying to portray. That’s kind of freaky. “My friend is waiting for me, so I’d better go,” I tell him as I sidestep.
“Okay, see you around, Summer,” he waves and jogs off.
Stepping outdoors, I notice E is waiting for me today. “Hey Summer, ready to head home?”
“You can drop me off at the office if you want, E.” I’m feeling drained today, but muster a smile for him.
“Don’t you need to soak in the tub again today?”
“Yes, but it’s farther for you to drive if you take me home. I can wait.” I don’t want to inconvenience my new friends, who are all happy to escort me around after school.
“I’m driving you home, Summer. No need to wait,” he says.
Nodding, I text Zander I’m going straight home today as we walk to the parking lot. E drives a new, lifted white truck. “Nice truck,” I say.
E smiles, “thanks. Got it for my 16th birthday. Bay helped me install the lift kit.” E opens the passenger door for me as he talks. I attempt to lift my leg up to the rail, and E chuckles. “Can I help you up?”
“You’re going to need to,” I reply. Darn tall people.
“Alright, I’m going to put my hands on your waist,” he says. I brace for the tension, but he doesn’t trigger me either. I don’t know what it is about these guys, but I’m grateful. E lifts me up like I weigh nothing.
I get into my seat and drop my bags on the floor as E comes around and hops into the driver’s seat. “I’m assuming Bay owns the Honda?” I ask.
“Yeah, he does. It’s a bitch for me to get into.”
“I never thought of that.”
“We’ll you’re not exactly tall, Summer,” he laughs.
“Hey, I’m perfectly average height, thank you very much. You and Nick are giants.”
E smiles. “So, how are you doing with the move and school and everything?”
“Okay actually. You guys have been a huge reason for that.” I smile.
“We’re glad you found us. You fit right in, Summer.”
Warmth spreads through me at that comment. “So tell me something about yourself, E.”
“Okay, Summer, I’ll share three things, and you can share three things about yourself. Pick anything you want. Sound good?”
That’s a reasonable request from E. “Okay.”
“My parents don’t want me to be a chef. They think it’s beneath our family.”
“Wow, E, that’s deeper than I was expecting. You just shot that right at the bullseye. I hope you follow your heart despite what they want.”
“Thanks. I’m trying to. Now tell me something about you.” He gives me a quick smile, focusing back on the road.
“Has Seb mentioned anything to you?”
“No, he’d never. He may be mouthy, but he’d never tell us something private and personal. Even me,” he promises.
I nod. “Jake, the guy Seb mentioned this morning? He’s my best friend and boyfriend, and he’s in a coma. He was in the accident with me, and I visit him twice a week. By video call now that I’m living here.”
“You must really care for him, Summer. Sorry doesn’t mean much, but I am sorry you lost your family,” he says, giving my hand a squeeze.
“I’m bisexual and demisexual, which I’m sure Seb told you, or you figured out.
I’ve never been with a girl, though. I’ve kissed a few girls, but it hasn’t gone farther than that because I need a connection with someone to feel attraction and be intimate with them. Seb was my first and only.”
Geez, we’re really sticking with the heavy facts. Guess I can do that too. “I’m a virgin,” I blurt out, cheeks reddening. I can’t believe I just said that.