Our Little Love Story *NOW PUBLISHED ON AMAZON KINDLE!!*

chapter nineteen

“Ready?” Jared asked, giving my hand a small squeeze as he reached for the metal door handle. I took a deep breath, and nodded. My nerves were on high alert, and my stomach felt like it had relocated itself to my throat. 

We walked inside, and the faint smell of bleach and Pine-Sol wafted up my nose. 

“This will be the only day this year that this place smells this clean,” Jared remarked, glancing down at my face and my slightly wrinkled up nose. I just looked back up at him, releasing his hands so I could wipe my own on my jeans. “Your locker should be right down here. Just a little ways down from mine,” Jared said nodding with his head at the row of lockers lining the right hand side of the hallway. I still couldn’t find my voice, and was scared that if I did try to speak, that everyone roaming the hallway would witness what I had eaten for breakfast, which hadn’t been a whole lot.

We walked several feet down the hallway, and stopped in front of what Jared said was my locker for the year. “Here you go. Four twenty-one,” he said, tapping his knuckles under the number plate. 

“Thanks,” I managed to choke out in a whisper. I lifted the metal lever and slowly pulled open the locker door, and peered inside for a second before hoisting my backpack from my shoulder. Unzipping it, I retrieved a fresh notebook and pen from inside. Zipping it closed, I hung it on a hook inside the locker, and quietly shut the door.

“Well, let’s head down to mine. Mike should be near by. You remember him?” 

I nodded my head, and gave Jared a small smile. I did remember Mike, from the party. We continued down the hallway, and I walked with my head bent down a little, too nervous to make much eye contact with anyone. We went through a pair of double doors, and stopped at what I presumed was Jared’s locker. 

“Hey, J! How’s it going, man?” came a loud voice from behind us. Jared threw his backpack inside his locker. Slamming the door shut, he turned around to the sound of the voice.

“Hey, Mike! Not much. Just here for the first day of a year-long sentence. I’m surprised you didn’t ditch today.” I turned around with Jared, watching Mike approach us from his locker across the hall. 

“Yeah, well, you know. I have to see everyone since summer is over. Maybe I’ll ditch tomorrow. Go fishing or something. You wanna go?” Mike asked, punching Jared lightly on his shoulder. 

Jared laughed and said, “No. I plan on going to graduation on time. You might want to look into it.” 

Mike just rolled his eyes theatrically, and then turned his attention to me. “So, I see you’re still hanging around this joker. You should lose the zero, and get with a hero,” Mike proclaimed, wrapping his arm around my shoulder. I involuntarily cringed slightly away from Mike, but didn’t say anything in return. I wasn’t even sure what I would say to him.

“Oh, leave her alone, Mike. Like she’d want to be with a loud-mouth like you, anyways. It’s her first day, you know. She doesn’t know anyone. Take it easy on her, man,” Jared said. 

“Well, she might know someone if you would have brought her to some of my parties instead of keeping her tucked away under your so-called ‘wing,’” Mike replied, smiling.