The In Between

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

 

Tara

 

“Can we please go?” Gabby asks, sighing as she flips through the pages of her Us Weekly. “We’re going to be as orange as Snooki if we stay out here too long.”

I don’t think over-tanning should be at the top of Gabby’s list of worries right now. She’s wearing board shorts and an oversized t-shirt, giant sunglasses and a floppy sun hat. The only thing she’s actually in danger of is looking like a mummy.

“Just a few more minutes?” I ask, trying not to be too obvious as I glance over at the Awesome-Nots. I’m looking, of course, for Justin Westcroft.

“The Awesome-Nots” is Gabby’s name for the most popular kids in school—because they think they’re awesome, but they’re not. They’re sitting about thirty feet away from us, taking up two blankets and two umbrellas in the middle of the beach. And while Justin Westcroft may hang out with the Awesome-Nots and sit under their umbrella on the beach, he’s not one of them, not exactly. Justin Westcroft is just Awesome. Full-stop.

He’s not with them, though. I mean, I knew that. Of course I knew that. I always keep an eye on the dreamy Justin Westcroft. I know he dove into the water just a few minutes ago for a race across the lake with Luke Kendricks. But he should have come back by now. When I look out at the lake to scan the horizon for him, I only see one break in the water instead of two.

“Something’s wrong,” I mutter to Gabby.

“I know, the best boy-candy is in the water and out of view,” she says without looking up.

Gabby’s talking about Luke. The thing about Luke is that he looks like an actual Ken Doll. But while Luke may be technically prettier than Justin, with tanned bronze skin, eyes so blue they look like someone colored them in with magic markers, and abs that you practically need a calculator to count, none of that stuff holds a candle to Justin’s smile.

“Gabs?” I murmur. Luke’s head is bobbing above the water every few seconds, but Justin’s still nowhere to be seen. “I think something’s wrong.”

She doesn’t even bother to look up. “Yeah, I know what’s wrong. Your case of Justinitis is flaring up again.”

She’s right. I’ve been kind of obsessing over Justin Westcroft since I moved back to Heron. But my feelings for Justin go back way further then that. Our mothers were in the same Mommy and Me class when we were babies. I chewed on his toys, he drooled on me, and from then on we were best friends. Well, at least until we were seven, and my dad left and my mom took my sister Meg and me to live with our grandma in Tampa. We moved back almost exactly two years ago, the summer before my freshman year, because Mom says it’s a better school district.

While I was gone, Justin grew up to be one of the hottest guys in school, and I grew up to be—something else. Not the hottest girl in the school. Not the ugliest girl, either. Not the anything-est, really.

“They drink Starbucks while wearing 10,000 dollar handbags. Just like us.” Gabby is saying, reading from her US Magazine with gleeful sarcasm as she absently pulls on her t-shirt for the 100th time, covering the extra ten pounds that she thinks is thirty. "If I had a spare ten grand, I would not…”

She trails off, and when I look up, she’s staring out at the water with her mouth open, her lips forming a pink, glossy “O.”

The beach has gone silent. They’ve all noticed it together: on the shore, Luke is pulling Justin from the water.