Page 22 of Don’t Be A Stranger

“We should fix that then.” River smiles, lifting a weight off my shoulders.

“Yeah.” I nod my head. The excitement on my face is probably the reason River is smiling at me the way he is. “We definitely should.”

If we’re both here in Ellingbrook for the summer, then we might as well spend whatever free time we have right now with each other.

I finally step aside to let River open the passenger door.

“I guess you’re not getting rid of me so easily,” River says.

I don’t know where he got the idea that I’d even want to, when the truth is I wouldn’t dream of it.

Seven

River

I was always a smaller kid growing up. Summer and Lily were taller than me until I had a growth spurt in eighth grade—thankfully just in time for my freshman year of high school.

Now Summer and I both stand at five-foot-nine and Lily is the shortest of the bunch.

I can’t lie and say that it doesn’t make me feel less than. Or self-conscious. Not Summer and I being the same height per se, but the fact that I’m usually one of the smallest guys around.

It doesn’t help that my metabolism seems to move at the speed of light. In the past, I’ve attempted to lift weights and shove protein down my mouth, but now? I’m lucky enough if I remember to eat something other than whatever I can throw in the microwave or order through the drive-thru.

It could be worse, I guess. I could still be smoking pot every single day but since Nicholas—one of Summer’s dads—was diagnosed with lung cancer, I took it upon myself to quit.

And now that I’m thinking about it, smoking all through my teenage years is probably why I’m wheezing after running for a solid forty-five seconds.

Summer runs ahead of me, her earbuds in, ponytail tied up, and wearing running shorts that don’t leave much to my imagination. Maybe the tightness in my jeans is another reason I’m finding this whole running thing that much harder.

I mean seriously, Summer. Who on earth runs for fun?

The weird cushion under my feet from the mondotrack catches me off guard, causing me to almost trip over my own feet. But with determination to catch up to Summer—who is completely oblivious to my struggles—I keep going.

My original plan was just to wait on the side of the field, but Summer was in her zone and didn’t even notice I was standing nearby. So now I’m chasing after her, looking like I’m a kidnapper and she’s my next victim.

I guess, technically I do want to kidnap her, but not to sell her organs on the black market, instead to go out and have dinner.

As friends, I remind myself.

Friends go to dinner. In fact, it’s something Summer and I often did before our kiss. This time will be no different.

Summer starts to slow down but it’s still a light jog that I embarrassingly can’t keep up with. I stop running completely and take a big deep breath before I scream her name as loud as I can while gasping for air.

Summer thankfully stops, whipping her entire body around and pulling out her earbuds. She’s alarmed for all of three seconds before squinting and realizing it’s me.

“What are you doing?” she calls out.

Thank god she decides to meet me halfway because I think I might be dying right now. I don’t care if that sounds dramatic. My lungs are on fire.

“You know—” I struggle to get my words out. “You were so in your own world, I could’ve murdered you if I wanted.”

She snorts. “You couldn’t even catch up to me.”

Okay…ouch. That hurt.

I mean, clearly she’s right but still.

“What are you even doing here?” Summer walks alongside me because why would this girl ever be able to stop moving for a second. I follow regardless.