The two broke out into cackles, debating who would look better in pink hair as they made their way up the path toward their school.
It may have just been the side effect of a Monday, but every class was extra boring that day. Gemma’s notes had started to contain more doodles than information by the time the bell rang for their last period.
Gemma perked up as she walked into the Spanish classroom, excited to see Caitlin. Her smile faltered as she watched Troy lean across the aisle to kiss Caitlin. Feeling unexpectedly embarrassed, Gemma averted her eyes and took the scenic route toward her own desk.
During the teacher’s lesson on nouns—or was it verbs? Gemma looked up from her phone, which she had been hiding under the wooden surface, scrolling through Instagram. Caitlin was turned around in her seat, staring back at her. This time, unlike the others when Gemma had locked eyes, Caitlin didn’t jerk her attention back toward the teacher like she had been caught doing something wrong. Unable to look away, they held each other’s gaze for what felt like the rest of the period.
When thefinal bell rang, signaling the end of the school day, Gemma shoved her notebook into her backpack on thefloor. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a folded piece of paper land upon her desk. By the time she looked up to see who the culprit was, the long auburn hair was already flowing out the door.
Curious, Gemma peeked at the note.
Text me sometime, mi portera :)
555-467-1414
Gemma beamed like a kid entering the largest toy store in the world with unlimited cash. She’d have to look up the translation for that Spanish word later, but for now, she folded the white lined paper and carefully tucked it into her bag. Darbie would be waiting for her outside, and she would have to hurry to get to soccer practice, so she decided that she’d text Caitlin later.
“Ugh, I’m so glad this day is over.” Darbie groaned, falling into step with Gemma once she hit the hallway. It had become an unspoken ritual for Gemma and Darbie to walk together any chance they could, using the time to gossip about whatever high school drama Darbie had updates on.
“What happened?” Gemma eyed her curiously. She had just seen Darbie two periods ago, and she had been in her usual high spirits.
“Nothing. I just hate school. My classes suck this year.” She hesitated, before finishing the next thought. “Although… I did talk to this boy, Jake, in History today. We got paired up to do a project, and he’s kind of cute.”
Gemma asked to be filled in on all the details regarding this new crush before they ultimately had to part ways, arriving at the school gym.
“To be continued on tomorrow’s podcast episode of ‘What will happen between Darbie and Jake?’” Gemma mimicked apodcast host but ended up sounding more like a Monster Jam announcer, and the girls broke into laughter.
They hugged each other goodbye for the day, and Gemma headed into the girls’ locker room. The air was filled with the smell of sweat and sweet floral perfumes, the hum of the girls’ soccer team mingling with the chatter of the cheerleading squad, simultaneously getting ready for practice.
Standing in front of her locker, she spun the black dial to the left, then the right, and back to the left again, overhearing a sound more beautiful than birdsong. Gemma peeked around the row of dark gray lockers to find Caitlin in the next aisle, laughing brightly at something her friend had said.
Distracted, Gemma passed the last number of her lock combination and had to start over again. Successful this time, Gemma pulled her black Nike duffle bag out of her gym locker and sat on the wooden bench that took up the center of the aisle. Attempting to sneak one more glance at Caitlin, Gemma leaned back casually as she pulled on a sock over her shin guard, only to find the blue eyes already on her. She sat up straight, embarrassed that Caitlin had caught her. Well, technically, they had both gotten caught by the other.
Trying to play it cool, Gemma adjusted her lightweight navy polyester shorts and started to pull on her shirt over her sports bra.
“Nice outfit.”
Gemma would know that voice anywhere.
Scrambling to find the opening for her head in her bright orange goalie jersey, Gemma found herself stuck inside the long sleeve of the T-shirt like it was the first time she had ever dressed herself.
“Need some help?”
You’ve got to be kidding me.
Finally, Gemma found the correct opening for her head andemerged to find Caitlin giggling, leaning up against the locker next to hers.
“Hey,” Gemma said, lightly grazing her palm over her hair, hoping the shirt hadn’t ruined her slicked-back ponytail.
“You know, you’re a better goalie than her.”
Gemma quirked her eyebrows in surprise. “Have you been watching me?”
A shy smirk spread across Caitlin’s face. “Maybe.”
Before Gemma could respond, Caitlin pushed herself off the locker and spun around, running to catch up with her squad as they left the locker room.
What was that all about?
