Through the Break in Her Hair

Chapter 4

"Uh..." I gaped up at her. "Sure, yeah." What was I supposed to say, no?! I wasn't a douche! Well, not always.

Her smile touched the rims of her black, slim-lined glasses. "Thanks."

She sat in the wiry chair right next to me, giving a little shiver when the coolness of metal sunk through her clothes. Poor thing. She was so small, I was surprised she even dared to come out on a night like tonight, when the forecast said that we were in danger of the temps dropping below forty. How did her body sustain itself when even the elements fought against her?

"Lindsey?! Hot chocolate's up!" the concession girl called.

Ah, that's how, I nodded.

Lindsey's mouth formed a tiny, little, "O" and she hopped up, running to grab her hot cocoa before it cooled. "This is my second one already," she said over her shoulder.

It took her less than thirty seconds, not that I was counting, before she was easing back into her seat. She moved so slow, slower than sap, trying not to spill her drink. Those white-washed jeans would not be grateful if she shared.

"Trying to keep warm?" I asked dumbly. Of course she was trying to stay warm, what the frick else was she trying to do? Drown herself in frothy, artificial chocolate. Incidentally, that might not be a bad way to go.

"Mmh hm," she gurgled into the creamy top layer of her drink. "It makes me feel like I have a heater inside. Plus, now I can do this," she blew a gust of hot air from her mouth and the steam formed a baby cloud, concealing her face. The cloud lingered for a few seconds, then started to evaporate.

The wind picked up and blew the remaining puffs of steam away from Lindsey's face, rouging her cheeks and pulling a few strands of hair over her eyes. She giggled, tucking the blonde wisps behind her baby ears. "I call it Dragon's Breath," she smiled warmly at me.

Oh God, my gut clenched inside me and I had to hold back a groan. She was irresistibly adorable. Like candy that's so sweet it hurt your teeth to eat but you eat it anyway because you just can't stop yourself. Why did she have to be so....ugh! I didn't even know. "Cute," I spit out, mirroring my thoughts and her comment at the same time.

She blushed, her eyes ducking behind her glasses. How did people stand to be around her? How could they just pass her by without gravitating in her direction? I swear, I could feel the earth pulling me towards her as if she were the sun. Maybe she was the sun...

Nah, the sun was too bold, too flighty—here one second, gone the next. She was more like a star, quietly sparkling in the sky as the world passed by below. Stop John! Stop thinking like that, you're going to freak her out! You're freaking me out! Inner John was right, I needed to get a grip!

I shifted my body in my seat, angling myself more towards the game than towards Lindsey, and set my eyes on the scoreboard. The Titans were beating the Eagles, two touchdowns to three. At least that meant everyone would have their eyeballs glued to the field instead of on me. As long as they kept the score close, I was guaranteed clearance. No one would so much as glance in this direction if it meant missing a winning play.

"You play?" she asked, noticing the dip in our conversation.

"Nah," I didn't dare look back at her or else I would be lost for good in those green eyes. "I prefer the Mathletes."

"I can see that about you," she said, as more of an afterthought.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I turned on her. I couldn't help it, I had to know what exactly she saw about me.

My voice must have come off a little harsh, or loud, because Lindsey immediately shot back in her seat, as if I had lunged at her. Hot chocolate dribbled over the side of the foam cup, dripping onto her jeans. Big, brown blotches bloomed on the white fabric, instantly making her a target for ridicule. Amanda Cushner, and gang, were always on the lookout for potential prey, even if they were on cheer duty. They could spy a flaw in someone's wardrobe a whole football field away.