Small Town Sweethearts

STS - Chapter 10: Night Train

Chapter 10

Lacey’s POV

              I was being a baby – a huge baby. Since when did I get so upset over stupid boys? And Kai, for the love of God, is not the type of boy I should care about so much.  He was mean, rude, and a man whore! I was the exact opposite of him - a goody-two-shoes with actual morals. No matter what Amelia said, he didn’t like me. He just liked the thought of getting into my pants. Good thing I don’t put out.

              That was what I was telling myself to stay sane, at least.

              Walking out of my house the next Friday, I clutched my North Face around my body tighter. It was early December, and way too cold to not even be winter yet. Most of the leaves had stopped falling, the result being that the trees were skeletal looking, and I longed for spring already.

              I made it to the car and cranked up the heat. Amelia was waiting for me in the school parking lot, holding twin steaming to-go coffee cups I hadn’t realized I’d been craving. Brayden leaned on the car beside her, a lazy arm slung over her shoulder. She had filled me all in about their midnight date and becoming official. I was happy for her, so I pushed my own failed love life away and got over my trickle of jealousy.

              “I think I love you,” I say, sipping the drink and grinning as the warmth run through my chilled body.

              Amelia scoffs in annoyance. “Please, you’d love me anyway.”

              We walk into school in a happy silence. I honestly don’t understand how Brayden could be so quiet, but he never says a word. He’s good for her, I think. He masks her crazy.

              I make it through class, until PE, that is. Coach Tucker arms me with a red field hockey stick and unleashed me on my poor, unsuspecting classmates. He should really know by now that I didn’t do sports, especially ones where I was required to run and hit things with a stick. Amelia had the same feelings as me, because she immediately threatened poor Heather, who had called being goalie.

              We took our positions. Amelia, Jake, and Heather, along with others, were on the yellow team, facing Kat, Kai, myself, and a few sophomores I hadn’t bothered to learn the names of. The game begins, and I try to hang around the outskirts, not trusting myself to actually try. But then the unthinkable happens. The black dodge ball improvising as our ball comes rolling toward me. I try to get away from it, but I’m blocked on all sides by other people.

              Jake swoops in for it, and I take a step forward to knock it away from him. I’m clumsy with my stick, and miss. We fumble for a few moments, and I mistakenly aim too high – hitting Jake in his talked about man parts.

              “Yeah!” I hear Amelia scream from her goalie position on the other side of the gym. Her face is alight with the promise of revenge on Jake for his text messages a few days earlier. “Go for the dirty shots!”

              That makes me laugh so hard I collapse on the floor beside a moaning Jake. The glare he sends me makes the phrase “if looks could kill” come to mind. That just makes me laugh harder. The game is pronounced over and Jake hobbles away. Amelia joins me on the floor, still laughing. “I love you. I am forever in your debt.”

              “But I didn’t mean to!” I protest.

              “I don’t care – I’d give anything to have it on video.”