The Marine I Know

Chapter 3

"Ok class, today is volleyball basics. How many of you have ever played volleyball?" I raise my hand but look around, and Brittney is glaring at me. Well too bad, I love volleyball, and no one is going to take that away from me. We separate into two teams, and thankfully, I'm not on Brittney's team.

"Ok class, each of you has at least one volleyball player on your team. Players run through drills and other things with each other." We nod our heads and start practicing. Brittney keeps sending me looks that I shake off. We get enough done to start a game. The first six on each side go onto the court, one happens to be Brittney. I begin my serve, and the ball hits the net.

"Is that all you have Belle?" Brittney mocks me.

"In your dream Brittney," I smirk, and I hit the ball as hard as I can, watching it sail over the net. Brittney suddenly has a giant shock on her face as the ball hits her in the face. It suddenly goes all quiet with everyone looking at me.

"What?" I look around.

"You just knocked out the volleyball queen," Annabelle, a girl in my class, says shyly.

"She's in the same grade as me. How would..." I suddenly understand what she means. Oh crap.

"Enough class. Go get changed." I walk out with the class when I get pulled back to the ground.

"Belle, you had the guts to knock me out," Brittney says. I look up at her face to see a giant red mark from the ball, and I try to keep myself from laughing, but it's too hard.

"What's so funny, dork?" She returns, and I automatically turn myself around to knock her legs out from under her. She falls to the ground.

"Don't ever call me a dork again; you got that?" I walk out to the locker room to change, and I put my tags back on before walking to the cafeteria.

"Hey Belle, wait up!" Parker comes running up to me, and I stop. Truthfully, I am not in the mood to talk but ill listen.

"What do you want?" It came a little harsher than I expected.

"Hey, what happened?" He looks at me, trying to get me to talk.

"Let's go get some lunch, sit down, and I will tell you." We walk together into the cafeteria, and it goes quiet with everyone looking at us. I start to back out when Parker puts his hand on my elbow and walks. I get my lunch, he gets his, and we decide to sit outside. I rub my necklace out of nervousness. "P.E was last period, and it was volleyball, which is my favorite sport, apparently also Brittney's. So we're split into two groups and did the drill. Well, I served and hit the net, and she's like 'Oh is that the best you got,' so I smirk and serve it accidentally right into her face. Then she proceeded to call me a dork when I was on my back, and I turned so I can knock her off balance after she called me a dork. She's the volleyball queen." I finish with almost tears in my eyes and rubbing my necklace; I didn't realize that Parker had hold of my hand.

"Everything is gonna be ok. I won't let anything happen." He looks at me. "What's your necklace look like."

"It's something that you are probably gonna think is stupid," I say before eating my lunch.

"Trust me; I don't find very many things stupid." He says, rubbing his thumb over my hand. I pull them out from my shirt.

"These are my dad's." He moves around to my side of the table to see them.

"These are dog tags..." It dawns on him. I can see the gears turning in his head. I finish my lunch and get up to get my things for class.

'I'm scared to let him in. He might run away like I have the plague. Will he laugh? Will he think that I'm also a dork?'

I sit in the back row of my last class of the day, and lunch today keeps running through my head. Parker walks in and towards me. I ignore him when he slips a paper onto my desk. I look down, and it's his number.

Call me if you need anything. I'm here.

I fold it up and put it in my pocket, and the bell rings. I pack up my stuff after grabbing my homework and walk out to meet Lilly. I see her walking toward me.

"Hey, girl." She says.

"Hey," I reply, and we start walking. Lilly tells me all about her day, and after I tell her mine. We reach the corner, and we go our separate ways after she hugs me.

"Don't push Parker away. I have a feeling he might be the best thing to happen to you." She says and starts walking home. I stand for a bit before I begin my walk home.

"Hey mom, I'm home," I say as I put my stuff down by the door and head into the kitchen where mom is making something. Her hair is in a ponytail and has flour all over her, including her hair. I hop onto the barstool and watch her.

"Hey Belle" She wipes her hands on her apron and laughs. "Sorry, I should clean up."

"Mom don't. You're fine." I laugh and round the island to hug her. I didn't care that I got flour on me. Mom has not baked anything since dad died. I was happy she was baking again, she's good at it.

"Can we go see dad?" I ask, and she nods.

"Sure, let me finish this. Why don't you go do homework, and once I'm done, we can go." I grab my bag and head to my room to start my homework.

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After five minutes, I'm tempted to throw the math textbook out the window. I remember the paper in my pocket and pull it out, looking at it. I remember what Lilly told me. Maybe I should slowly let him in. I grab my phone and text his number.

Me: Hey, Parker, it's Belle. Are you good at Geometry?

I put my phone down and pull out another subject to work on when my phone lights up.

Parker: Yeah, I am. However, you have to tell me what happened at lunch today and I'll help you.

That little bastard, bribing me to tell him what happened at lunch today for him to help me with math. I think of something.

"Belle, are you ready?" I grab my blanket, phone, and head to meet mom out in the car.