Trent and Chip both wrestled in the winter. Trent was junior varsity, but Chip had managed a spot on the varsity roster, the only sophomore to do so.
Chip had on his team sweatshirt too, but he wore it with his usual black joggers, the kind with stripes down the sides that taper around the ankles. I never saw Chip in swishy shorts outside of gym class, which I assumed was for the same reason I avoided them.
It was the only thing we had in common.
Trent Bolger stood in front of me, grinning. He knew I couldn’t escape him at work.
“Welcome to Tea Haven,” I said, which was the Corporate Mandated Greeting. “Would you like to sample one of our fine teas today?”
Technically, I was also supposed to produce a Corporate Mandated Smile, but I was not a miracle worker.
“Do you guys sell tea bags?”
Across the store, Chip smirked and shook his head.
“Uh.”
I knew what Trent was trying to do. This was not Chapel Hill High School, and the Tea Haven at the Shoppes at Fairview Court did not have a Zero Tolerance Policy toward bullying.
“No. We only sell mesh strainers and biodegradable sachets.”
“That’s a shame. I bet you really like tea bags.” Trent’s grin crept up one side of his face. He only ever smiled with half his mouth. “You just seem like the type of guy who would really enjoy them.”
“Um.”
“You must get tea-bagged a lot, right?”
“I’m trying to work, Trent,” I said. Then, because I had the tingly feeling that Mr. Apatan was somewhere close by, carefully watching and critiquing my customer service, I cleared my throat and asked, “Would you like to try our Orange Blossom Awesome Herbal Tisane?”
I refused to call it tea when it did not contain any actual tea leaves.
“What’s it taste like?”
I pulled a sample cup out of the stack, filled it with a pump of Orange Blossom Awesome, and offered it to Trent, using my flat palm as a sort of saucer.
He downed it in one swallow. “Ugh. This tastes like orange juice and balls.”
Chip Cusumano laughed into the empty tea tin he wasexamining. It was one of our new spring-patterned ones, with cherry blossoms on it.
“Did you brew it right, Darius?” Mr. Apatan asked behind me.
Mr. Apatan was even shorter than Fatty Bolger, but somehow he managed to take up more space as he stepped between us to fill a sample cup of his own.
Fatty winked at me. “Catch you later. D-Bag.”
D-Bag.
My newest suggestive nickname.
It was only a matter of time.
Trent nodded at Chip, who grinned and waved innocently at me, as if he hadn’t just played accomplice to my humiliation. They jostled each other out the door, laughing.
“Thank you for visiting Tea Haven,” I said. “Come again soon.”
The Corporate Mandated Farewell.
“Did he just call youtea bag?” Mr. Apatan asked.
