I accidently pressed publish but here's the rest of it.
---------
After a few minutes, boys start making an appearance on the basketball court for a little pregame, while girls sit up on the bleachers looking on.
A couple of minutes later, Ben finally arrives.
As usual, he looks amazing. Dressed in layers of charcoal and black, his dark brown hair is rumpled to perfection, and his smile nearly steals my breath.
"Hey," he says, "what are you doing here? Aren't you suppose to be in class?"
"The nurse's office, actually," I say, flashing him my pass.
"Is everything okay?"
I nod, wondering if I'm overreacting. There's obviously nothing going on between Adam and me. But that why do I feel so guilty?
"Well, it's good to see you," he says. "But you know Muse won't let you stay."
"I know." Mr. Muse makes it his life's mission to suck the fun out of every sport imaginable, including those of the romantic nature. "So maybe I could just get a squeeze good-bye?"
"You bet," he says, coming closer. He smells like watermelon candy and the fumes from his bike. It's a scent I want to bottle up. And pour right over me.
Ben holds me close. His hands graze my lower back, igniting every inch of me. "Are you sure everything's all right?"
"I'm fine," I whisper, hating myself for lying to him.
"Because, you know you can tell me anything, right?"
"I know," I say, feeling worse by the moment.
Ben runs his fingers through the ends of my hair and breathes into the crooks of my neck.
"I just wanted to see you," I whisper.
He takes a step back and looks into my face. "How come I feel like you're not telling me everything?"
My pulse races, and my mouth goes dry. Meanwhile, the basketball makes a continuous slapping sound on the court behind us. I look over Ben's shoulder. All the boys are on the court playing basketballnow. John Kenneally and Davis Miller, both notorious for giving Ben a hard time because of his history with Julie, pass the ball back and fourth.
I do my best to ignore them, to ignore the echo of their shouting voices and the smack of the ball as it hits the backboard. But then Ben grips my hand tightly---until I almost have to pull away.
Only, before I can, he does. He takes a couple more steps back, letting go of my hand.
"Is something wrong?" I ask.
"Why don't you tell me?" He backs away even farther as if he can't even stand being next to me now.
"Nothing's wrong," I blurt. "Everything's fine." I take a deep breath, my mind reeling. I struggle to think of something to say, just as a cluster of boys, en route to scoring a basket, plows right to Ben.
He falls hard, landing on his back with a grunt that makes me wince.
"Ben!" I hurry to his side, just as Mr. Muse finally shows up, ordering everyone out of the way.
Still, I stay with him. I try to take his hand again, but he pulls it away.
Meanwhile a smattering of snickers erupt behind me--from the pack of boys who collided with him.
"Just go," Ben says, avoinding my gaze.
"I'm not going anywhere. Not until I know that everything's okay."
"Go." He insists.
Mr. Muse demands that I leave, threatening my with a trip to Principal Snell's office. "where are you supposed to be now, anyway?" he asks me. He helps Ben up and into a chair.
Meanwhile, I reluctantly head to the nurse--for real this time--because I truly feel like I'm going to be sick.
YOU ARE READING
Deadly Little Games (Book 3)
Mystery / ThrillerThe Touch Series (Book originally by Laurie Faria Stolarz) I close my eyes again. The image of Adam's mouth is still alive in my mind. I try to imagine what he would say if he knew what I was doing. Would he suspect that I was interested in him? Wo...
