“I’ll be at the garage,” Bay adds.
“Are you gonna be busy all week, man?” Seb asks Bay.
“Probably. I’m trying to get ahead so I can watch all your games this weekend.” Bay seems to work a lot of hours with his dad. He’s a wonderful son to help so much.
Seb nods and looks at E. “No plans but homework,” E shrugs.
“Nick?” Seb calls.
“Busy,” he grunts back.
The guys all direct their attention to me. “Oh, I’m busy for an hour right after school.”
“How about E and I come over after dinner and help you with AP English?” Seb offers.
That’s actually a sound idea. “Sure, okay,” I nod. I message Zander that they want to come over after dinner, and he’s okay with it.
AP Chemistry is also a full lecture today, so I just take notes. I meet Nick outside the gym again, and we walk towards the court. “Do you work out every day for gym?” I ask and get a no in reply.
“If you keep giving me one-word answers, I’m going to have to come up with something creative to crack your hard shell,” I say. Nick looks at me and veers off towards the boys’ locker room. I’m still not sure if he just doesn’t enjoy talking, or if it’s me, but I’ll get him talking at some point, I think.
There are a few bodies inside the girls’ locker room, but I ignore them to go to the far row. I quickly change into my running clothes,apply some arnica cream, and then walk out to the track. Nodding at the coach, I start my stretches. I’m able to run for the entire period again with stretching halfway through. I’m certainly not fast, but that will come with time.
After class, I spot Cara and the two other girls from Gabby’s group leaving the gym. They must be juniors too. They don’t notice me as they walk into the locker room, so I decide to keep stretching until they exit. Fortunately, it’s only a few minutes before they leave the locker room and head out the side door of the gym. I quickly change, grab my gear, and leave.
“Hey new girl,” a guy waves as he walks my way.
“Hi,” I respond and keep walking, but he catches up to me easily and steps in front of me, so I quickly stop.
“I’m Ben. You’re Summer, right?” He smiles.
“Yeah, that’s me,” I nod, looking up at the guy. He’s tall, with dark brown hair and eyes. He’s attractive, but I’m picking up a distinct vibe from him that differs from my friends.
“Are you a runner? I saw you today on the track. I play shortstop on the baseball team.” He seems very proud of his position. Good for him.
“Yeah, I run,” I reply. He’s still smiling, but his eyes are off. They’re blank, not matching the friendly aura he’s trying to portray. That’s kind of freaky. “My friend is waiting for me, so I’d better go,” I tell him as I sidestep.
“Okay, see you around, Summer,” he waves and jogs off.
Stepping outdoors, I notice E is waiting for me today. “Hey Summer, ready to head home?”
“You can drop me off at the office if you want, E.” I’m feeling drained today, but muster a smile for him.
“Don’t you need to soak in the tub again today?”
“Yes, but it’s farther for you to drive if you take me home. I can wait.” I don’t want to inconvenience my new friends, who are all happy to escort me around after school.
“I’m driving you home, Summer. No need to wait,” he says.
Nodding, I text Zander I’m going straight home today as we walk to the parking lot. E drives a new, lifted white truck. “Nice truck,” I say.
E smiles, “thanks. Got it for my 16th birthday. Bay helped me install the lift kit.” E opens the passenger door for me as he talks. I attempt to lift my leg up to the rail, and E chuckles. “Can I help you up?”
“You’re going to need to,” I reply. Darn tall people.
“Alright, I’m going to put my hands on your waist,” he says. I brace for the tension, but he doesn’t trigger me either. I don’t know what it is about these guys, but I’m grateful. E lifts me up like I weigh nothing.
I get into my seat and drop my bags on the floor as E comes around and hops into the driver’s seat. “I’m assuming Bay owns the Honda?” I ask.
