“Last chance to change your mind about the job, Summer. It starts tomorrow,” Zander tells me as we drive to school in the morning.
“I’m not changing my mind. Go do the job. The guys and Troy have me. There will be no parties, and I won’t go anywhere alone.”
He sighs, rubbing his face. “Ok. Have a good day at school.”
Seb and E give me a hug as I meet them at the entrance. “Did Sue get home okay, Sunshine? Is Z taking the job? Am I staying overnight tomorrow?”
“Yes, yes and no,” I smile at Seb. I greet the guys at my locker, then follow Alex to class. “Did you have a nice Easter yesterday?” I ask Alex as we walk.
“It was fine. I had more fun on Saturday,” he replies.
“Saturday was amazing! How did the photos turn out?”
“Very well. I sent them to be printed last night, so Mona should have them in a few days.”
“Good. I hope the kids like them,” I say as we enter the classroom.
The day passes quickly, and I’m soon on my way to the gym with Nick. We part ways at the locker room as usual.
When I enter, I see Cara and Ana getting changed, so I quickly head to my row to do the same. As I’m rounding the corner of my row after applying my cream, I trip and fall forward, but I catchmyself on my hands before face planting. Looking behind me, I follow the sneaker that tripped me upwards to a smirking Ana. “Really? Are you five years old?” I ask getting up, keeping her and Cara within view.
“You have no idea who you’ve messed with, slut. You think you can turn Seb against me without consequences? I warned you to stay away from him, but you didn’t listen. You will pay for that,” Cara says, laser beams of hate emanating from her eyes.
“You turned Seb against you all by yourself, Cara. I didn’t have to do anything. Have you really forgotten the party already?” I shake my head at her. The girl is delusional.
There’s a banging on the locker room door. “Shortie,” I hear Nick yell. I move around the girls and walk sideways to the door so I can keep them in sight.
Opening the door, I find an agitated Nick. “Hey.” He looks behind me towards Ana and Cara before raising a brow at me. “Just Cara and Ana threats.”
“About what?” He growls.
“The usual. Seb hating her is my fault, and I’m gonna pay.” I brush my hands on my shorts and move past him.
“Fucking hell,” he mutters.
“Let’s go, people,” the coach hollers from the court. I head over to stretch and join Jaxon on the track.
“What was that about?” Jaxon asks as we begin a jog around the track.
“Cara and Ana blaming me for their poor life choices.”
“You need to catch a break, girl,” he replies. Isn’t that the truth. “I can ask one of the other girls to wait in the locker room with you?” He offers.
“Thanks, but I’m okay for now,” I tell him.
“Alright. How was your Easter?” I tell him about Sue and what we did on Saturday while we run. Jaxon tells me about his family's Easter as well, then he picks up the pace, and I continue to jog along the track.
Nick walks with Jaxon and me outside after class to the stands. “Training tomorrow, Shortie,” Nick announces.
“Okay, Grumpy,” I smile at him. With an eye roll, he leaves for martial arts.
I sprint the whole practice with the girls, although I’m by far the slowest. We head back inside to grab our things, then Holly and Jaxon walk me over to the pool. I wave to Bay and Alex and take a seat on the bench. When their practice is over, Bay drives me home today. “Is your house back to normal today after the long weekend, Bay?”
“Yeah, it should be. The last of them were leaving this morning. It was fun, though.”
“So, Nick is starting my training tomorrow. What should I expect?” I ask him.
“He’s actually a great instructor. He even added to the training program Z and Troy developed. You’re in expert hands. Speaking of, is your hand healed?”
