“No use hiding,” Alex says over his shoulder. “Everyone already knows we have a new girl in school, and Seb is not subtle.”
I look up and see that most of the guys are at one end of a long table, with a bank of windows behind them. There are a bunch of concrete tables outside where a few groups of kids are eating.
“Sunshine, I missed you. Come sit with me. How was the seminar? Did you meet Martha? Where’s your lunch? Can I get you anything?”
I chuckle at him. “Good. Yes. Need to buy one. No thanks.” I sit between him and E, where he indicated.
“I like how you handle the Hurricane, Summer,” Bay tells me, smiling.
I shrug. “It’s the most efficient way to answer him. I’m going to go buy some lunch.” I drop my backpack on the seat beside E and head back towards the front of the cafeteria as Seb follows me. “Do you need to buy lunch, too? Alex said you guys bring your lunch most days.”
“Nope, just keeping you company, Sunshine, and possibly saving your life,” he jokes. “Don’t buy anything but the fries or the packaged snacks. The rest isn’t very good.”
“Okay, Hurry.” I grab a tray and get in line as Seb stands behind me. I pick up fries and a bag of Doritos before paying. Seb follows me back to their table. Nick is there now, along with a pretty girl who’s sitting beside Alex. This must be the complicated girlfriend Seb mentioned. E moves my backpack to the floor so I can sit down between him and Seb.
“Summer,” Alex says. “I’d like to introduce Reesa. Reesa, this is Summer.”
I wave and say hello. Reesa smiles and nods, then goes back to her lunch.
During our meal, a few individuals approach E and Seb to chat about the upcoming basketball playoffs, and Seb kindly puts an arm behind me so no one bumps into me. I lean over and whisper my thanks to him. He smiles and goes back to talking. When they leave, Seb asks Alex and Bay about diving practice this afternoon.
“Mondays and Wednesdays after school are when most of our practices are, Sunshine. Track should be too.”
“That makes things easy,” I nod. Focusing on my classes and people, I nearly forgot about running track today.
A girl comes up to Nick and leans over to whisper something to him. She’s simply hot. There is no other way to describe her. Tight jeans, heels, and a low-cut shirt show off an hourglass figure. She has a full face of makeup and straight, long black hair. Nick shakes his head at her and waves her away. She doesn’t seem happy about his response, but leaves.
Pushing the rest of my soggy fries away, I open the bag of Doritos when I hear a few screeches behind me. Glancing around, I see the kids from outside running into the cafeteria, trying to get out of the rain. Most of the guys chuckle at them. “One of these days, they will check the forecast before eating outside.” Alex shakes his head at them.
“We like to eat outside if the weather is clear. Check the weather app before lunch. We’ll be outside if you don’t notice us at this table,” E tells me.
I nod in acknowledgment, smiling at E.
Gabby comes by with her friends as I finish my chips. “Hi Summer,” she waves, stopping at the end of the table.
“Hi Gabby,” I say. I’m getting bully vibes from the other two girls, who are glaring at me. Suddenly they’re glares turn to big smiles as Seb greets them. Cara comes over to our side of the table and puts her hand on Seb’s shoulder. “Can’t wait to cheer you on this weekend, Seb,” she says, batting her eyelashes.
“Thanks Cara. I’m excited about the tournament,” he tells her. She looks me up and down pointedly and returns to her friends. Gabby waves goodbye as the warning bell rings.
Shaking my head at them, I grab my backpack and tray and walk towards the racks to drop it off. As I’m setting the tray down, I get shoved from behind, hard, by two hands. I flinch as sounds dissolve around me, creating a bubble around my body. Booming beats echo in my ears. I realize the sound is my heart,like drumbeats against my ribs.It’s okay, Summer,I tell myself.Just breathe.I begin to hear muffled voices around me, but I’m stunned still, an enormous block of ice, frozen in place. Trying to force air into my lungs through the panic, someone pulls the racks beside me away from the wall, and Seb appears in my line of vision.
His eyes are full of worry, and his lips are moving, but I can’t make out what he’s saying. He slowly reaches out and takes my hand, placing it on his chest. It takes a minute, then I register his exaggerated breathing. I follow along until the ringing in my ears stops.
“You with me, Sunshine?” Seb’s brows are furrowed, and his mouth is pulled down in a frown. I don’t like that. It doesn’t fit his jovial personality.
I nod my head, finally unsticking my stiff body, and push away from the racks. “I’m hugging you,” Seb tells me as he gently pulls me into him. “What do you need right now? Are you hurt? Tell me what to do, Sunshine, please.”
“Need a minute. Not much. Just stay here,” I respond. I take a few deep breaths of citrus as Seb holds me. “You smell good,” I mumble.
I haven’t flinched that hard in a while. I wasn’t expecting the hit, which is my fault for letting my guard down, but it’s really nice having backup again. Once I’ve gathered myself, I pull away from Seb and gaze up at him, feeling extremely self-conscious. “How many people saw that?” I ask in a quiet voice that only he should hear.
“Hardly anyone, Sunshine. Turn around.” Seb gives me a small smile and a gentle nudge.
I turn to realize all the guys have formed a semicircle around us. My eyes grow damp at the thoughtful gesture. It’s been so long since I’ve had any protection at school.
“Oh no, what’s wrong now, Sunshine? Please, please don’t cry,” Seb begs. “I don’t do well when the ladies cry. Ask anyone. I can’t handle it!”
Blowing out a lungful of air, I rapidly blink the tears back inside me. “I won’t cry, Hurry,” I say to him before shifting my attention to the rest of the guys. “Thank you, everyone. I’m okay now.”
