One Night

Chapter 2

I kept my head down for the rest of the day, embarrassed about my encounter with Holt. Why did my body act like it had been touched by Mr. Freeze every time he was around?

I made it to lunch without anyone else talking to me which I considered a defeat in itself.

"So how'd things go with Holt?" was the first thing out of Nalia's mouth when she sat down at our normal table. She smugly chomped on a handful of French fries as if she had been planning that all week. Which, when I thought about it, she might had.

"Terrible. Not that anything happened. I just froze like I normally do around him and bolted inside the room. Nothing new," I sighed as I poked at the mysterious meat on my tray.

"All the more reason to do the Sevenger! Maybe it will help you gain more confidence in talking to him."

"Slim chance of that," I snorted.

I pushed my lunch tray away from me, deciding there was no way I was eating whatever it was my school called food, and instead settled on a Gatorade for lunch.

"Mac, I know you're not into social things like parties and dances and things, but this is your night. The Sevenger is for us!" Nalia leaned across the table and grabbed my hands. "Pleaseeeeeee Mac!"

I sat there for a moment, taking in her pleading eyes and Jay's expectant face.

Sighing, I reluctantly said, "If you can convince my mom to let me go, I'll go."

Nalia squealed and Jay high-fived her while shooting me a huge smile.

Even though Nalia was celebrating at the table, I knew there was no way she was going to convince my mom to let me go.

****

I couldn't believe it. Nalia and Jay had sweet talked my mom into letting me go to a "school activity" for most of the night. They must have known what I had planned because they came and talked to her before I got home from my Student Council meeting.

"But Mom it's like an activity that involves being out in the city and unsupervised," I desperately stated, trying anything to get her to change her mind.

"Oh MacKenzie. You know you need to do all the extra credit offered so that way you can get into Brown." She continued sweeping the kitchen floor, even though she had already done so twice that week.

"Extra credit?" I asked.

"Honestly MacKenzie, I thought we were on the same page with these things. Jay and Nalia explained that this school activity would be for extra credit and you and I both agreed that you would take every chance at extra points offered," my mom stopped for one second to raise an eyebrow at me, as if waiting for my rebuttal.

I was so thrown off by Nalia and Jay's lie that all I could do was repeat, "Extra credit. Huh."

My mom shook her head and keeping sweeping. "If that's all, why don't you head upstairs and work on your homework. Brown won't accept a slacker."

"Yup. Thanks Mom," I mumbled as I turned and walked up the stairs.

No sooner had I plopped on my bed and unzipped my backpack did my phone beep.

Nalia: So...Are you in?

Me: When does it start?

****

I felt sick.

I literally thought I was going to vomit if I heard someone say the word 'Sevenger' one more time. My nerves were on their last lives and my finger nails were down to nearly the nubs. I couldn't stop shaking my leg and I beginning to feel paranoid that someone might call me out for participating in this scavenger hunt.

This wasn't my thing. I didn't do things like this yet somehow I had let the pressure of it all talk me into it.

The bell rang indicating the end of class and I bolted from my seat. I could fake period cramps and the nurse would let me go home. This I knew from experience. Plus there was only one class left. I wouldn't feel too guilty for only skipping one class.

As luck would have it however, as I rounded the corner for the nurses office, I ran smack dab into a classroom door.

I stumbled back from the impact, trying to grab onto the nearest object to keep me from falling which happened to be Nellie Jones' shoulder. She gasped in surprise, but helped me to gain my footing all the same.

"Shoot. Why do I keep doing this? Are you okay? Ah. Stupid question."

I realized my hold on Nellie's shoulder and gingerly felt my forehead. It was definitely a bit sore, but nothing that I couldn't deal with.

"I'm fine," I sighed, looking for the culprit.

He had the same guilty look on his face that was there the other day. And I had the same tongue-twisted disease that seemed to plague me when he was around.

"Here. Let me walk you to the nurse's office. Make sure you don't have a concussion or something," he quickly said.

As if it was the most normal thing in the world, he picked up the bag I had dropped upon impact with the devil door and swung it over his shoulder. Then he slowly walked beside me as I awkwardly stumbled further down the hallway to the nurse's office.

"I'm not sure why I keep hitting you with things. I'm normally a pretty smooth guy."

When I didn't answer, he said, "That was a joke, by the way. I'm clearly not very smooth. I get nervous around...Never mind."

I didn't know what to say. This was the moment I had been waiting for, for my entire high school career (minus the possible concussion part). I opened my mouth and...

"I think you're smooth."

Cringe. Was that really the best line I could come up with?

He chuckled, stuffing his hands in his pant pockets.

"I think I double owe you now. First I run into you, then I hit you with a door. I would say I hope there's not a third, but I kinda like getting to see you this much."

As if emphasizing the point that his comment surprised me, I stumbled in my walk, causing him to quickly reach out to catch me.

"Woah there. We don't want you hitting your head again now do we?" He chuckled, resting his hands on my forearms.

I chanced a glance at his face only to be met with his dazzling brown and tinged red cheeks. Surely embarrassment wasn't an emotion someone like Holt could feel?

"Oooh. That sounds like a story I want to hear!"

Nurse Flora's voice rang out from behind me, causing me to hastily spin around and Holt's hands to bolt down to his side.

"Hi Nurse Flora. I accidentally hit Mac in the head with a door so I brought her down here to get checked out," Holt quickly replied.

"Well, I can certainly take a look at that. Mac if you'll take a seat over here on my chair and we will release Mr. Holt to head back to last period," Nurse Flora smiled, heading to one of her drawers and pulling out a flashlight.

"Right," Holt hesitantly replied. He stood still for a second, as if trying to decide what to do, then walked over to me.

For a second, I thought he was going to hug me and I immediately tensed up, causing my head to start throbbing. But then, my pink bag slipped off his shoulder and plopped down next to my feet.

"I'll uh, see you later Mac," he smiled, hesitating only momentarily at the door until I shot him a shaky smile and a half-hearted wave. Then he was gone.

Nurse Flora began talking to me, something to do with my head, but my mind couldn't be farther away. Holt had a way of distracting me from the realities of life and making me believe in things that could never be. Like him and I. Impossible.