A Summer To Remember

We Do

Just like she said, she was waiting outside when school was over. People stared a lot and it was so uncomfortable. It was embarrassing having Jacob write everything down for me, especially when we had worksheets to do in Algebra 2. But I made it through the day and I knew it would have to get better.

My schedule had to be changed due to the fact that I couldn't participate in weight lifting or training. During football season, I usually worked out with my teammates, trying to bulk up and stay fit. That was a waste of time now.

Jade was standing outside when we went out. I wasnt sure why I thought she might have bailed. She had a black jacket over her white shirt and sure enough, she was wearing a plaid skirt and stockings. I couldn't help but stare.

And neither could some other guys walking through the parking lot.

One guy whistled at her and she rolled her eyes. "Really? That's the best you can do?"

I smiled. "Don't listen to them."

"They're idiots. Jocks." Jacob said, hanging my backpack on the back of my chair.

"Not all jocks are idiots." I said, rolling my eyes.

Jade laughed. "Yeah, they are."

"Whatever."

She held out her hand to Jacob. "You must be his brother. I'm Jade."

"It's obvious, huh? I thought I'd finally get out of his shadow." He nudged me with his elbow and I rolled my eyes.

She grinned and tossed something small at me. It was a piece of gum. Where she got it from, I didn't have a clue.

"I've heard a lot about you. I figured you were the only person who'd want to hang out with him all day."

"Not my choice."

"Are you going to leave or just keep picking on me?" I asked.

He pulled his keys from his pocket. "I'm heading home. Got some homework to work on."

I hated making him put his life on hold just for me. It wasn't fair to him. But was losing three extremities really fair to me?

Jade took his place behind me and started pushing me. She laughed. "What do you weigh, like a thousand pounds?"

"Must be all the hot air in my head."

A full out laugh escaped her lips and I pictured her throwing her head back. "That was a good one. Really good."

"Yeah? You like that?"

"Not bad. For an idiot."

I rolled my eyes.

"So what'd you do before the accident? Were you some crazy scientist or a math nerd?"

"Neither. I played sports. I was a stupid jock."

"That would explain why you're not very flabby."

"Flabby? You really think I'm flabby?"

"I said 'not very.' You're very toned for someone with only one good arm."

"I could say the same for you." I wanted to facepalm. Was I that stupid? Did I really just say that to the girl I liked?

"Must be the plaid skirt and that fantasy of yours." She responded, not at all caught off guard by my comment.

I felt relaxed with her. I wasn't worried about people judging me or staring. They were going to regardless but not Jade. She was different. She was like me.

"How do we get to your house from here?" She asked, leaning around the side of the chair to see my face. Her hair hung down the sides of her face, brushing against my cheek. Shivers ran up my spine but I tried to act normal.

"Um... take the left up here at the intersection and keep going a ways. We're almost there."

"You're terrible with directions, you know that?"

I laughed. "I never said I wasn't."

---

"Do you mind helping me with some homework?" I asked as Jade sat down on the bed beside me. She wasn't awkward about being in my house or my room. She didn't stand in the doorway and wait to be invited in. She kicked off her shoes almost immediately and sat down on the bed like it was her own.

I really liked that.

She laid back on her back and grinned. "You really asked me over to help you with homework? In my 'school girl' outfit?"

She was really teasing. I had to keep telling myself that I couldn't just leave the room with some lame excuse. She would know and it would be the most embarrassing thing to ever happen to me.

And that was saying a lot.

"I haven't learned to write with my left hand yet." I said pathetically.

She laughed and pulled her jacket sleeve off. Then she held her arm out in my direction. "Can you pull?"

Awkwardly, I pulled her sleeve off, struggling to make the move smooth. It was very obvious I wasn't left-handed.

She tossed her jacket onto the seat of my chair and grabbed the backpack. She almost dropped it as she lifted it to the bed. "What the hell do you have in here? Bricks?"

"Two weeks of work."

Her eyes nearly bulged from her head. "Are you trying to kill me?"

"Just trying to keep you here longer, I guess."

"Well don't pull an Annie Wilkes on me and try to kill me."

I grinned. "I promise I won't."

She pulled out my biology binder and spread it out in front of her. She laid down on her stomach and, with her teeth, pulled off the cap of a pen I had lying in my backpack.

I laid down beside her and rested my head on my arm. "How was school for you today?"

"Well I didn't get caned so I'd say it was alright."

"Unless you're into that sort of thing?"

She looked at me with raised eyebrows and I was afraid I'd overstepped and made things uncomfortable. "Are you trying to say that I'm gay? Because I know guys fantasize over that, too."

I smiled and pulled the book in front of me. "We do."

She wrote my name on the top of the paper. "Shall we start?"