I'm Pretty Sure You're Gonna Miss Me Ronin McKinsey

by M. J. Padgett

  “Sitting at the stoner table, why?” Daniel slid into a chair, but there was nowhere for me to sit. The table was full, so I stood there like an idiot. Not that they noticed since they were all too high to even see straight. They were all perfectly nice people, but I just wasn’t into... whatever they regularly did.

  I bent over and whispered in Daniel’s ear, “But... you’re not a... you don’t do stuff, right?”

  “No. Why does it matter?” he asked, gazing at me expectantly.

  “But—”

  “Peaches, Peaches, Peaches... That’s what I keep trying to tell you. If you don’t categorize yourself, then you get to do whatever you want. I’m in a quiet mood, so I sit with the quiet people who don’t judge me. Now, sit and enjoy your lunch in silence.” He scooted over in his seat and pulled me down beside him, then handed me half a sandwich.

  The gasp in the cafeteria forced a blush on my cheeks. I looked up to see half the room still staring at us—including Ronin. He was baffled, but his confusion quickly morphed into something else. His eyes narrowed, lips pursed until they were nearly white, fists clenched at his sides.

  “Don’t look now, Peaches, but I’d say someone is good and jealous,” Daniel said, inspecting my lunch bag for anything good.

  “How do you seem to know exactly when he’s watching, and exactly what to do to tick him off?” I asked.

  “I’m observant, and he’s always watching you. I don’t get it, really. Why’d he break-up with you in the first place?” Daniel asked, arching his eyebrows as he held my apple. I waved him off, not hungry enough to fight for the apple. He bit into it and wrapped his arm tightly around my waist. It should have been uncomfortable since I barely knew him, but it was kind of cozy.

  “Aren’t you that girl that filled the gym with balloons?” A boy I didn’t know stared at me with a cheesy smile.

  “Jeff, you’re high as crap. How are you functioning right now?” Daniel asked. Jeff started laughing so hard he fell off his chair. I giggled, which got the rest of the table laughing.

  “And this, folks, is why we don’t do drugs,” Daniel said, rolling his eyes.

  Once I stopped giggling long enough to speak, I answered Daniel’s question. “It was that actually, the balloon thing followed by the accidental singing telegram and cake delivery.”

  Daniel blinked at me, staring into my eyes for an inordinate amount of time before responding. “And?”

  “And that’s it. Ronin says I’m too over-the-top for him. I guess I embarrass him or something.” I knew I embarrassed him. I just never knew how much until he was screaming at me in the hallway after the cake debacle.

  “And?” Daniel asked.

  “And? I told you, I embarrass him with the things I do. The balloons, the cake, that time I sent him a dozen roses on Valentine’s day, the huge posters on game day, the—”

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa. You’re saying he dumped you because you do nice things for him?” Daniel and half of the table waited for my answer.

  “Well, I meant for them to be nice, but—”

  “What?” Jeff asked, barely hanging onto his seat. “I wouldn’t dump a girl for being nice.” He smiled. A sweet smile, but his eyes were bloodshot and wandered all over my body.

  “Thank you for your assessment, Jeff. Now, if you’d kindly butt out of my conversation with Peaches, I’d appreciate it,” Daniel said, standing with me.

  “He’s just trying to be nice, Daniel.”

  “He’s hitting on you, Peaches.” Daniel led me out of the cafeteria and into the courtyard where we could talk alone. “Don’t date stoners, Peaches. They’re worse than Ronin.”

  “I had no plans to date him. I’m trying to get Ronin back, remember?” I said, sitting on one of the benches that had been purchased by money raised in a cheer fundraiser I single-handedly put together. I wanted to go back inside and strangle Sara, but something told me Daniel wouldn’t allow it.

  “Right, that. Well, what do you hope to accomplish with this plan, Peaches? Keep making him mad until he caves and takes you back, or something else?”

  “I need to find a way to make him so jealous he can’t stand it, then he’ll remember what it was like without me. And, maybe pull back a little after we get back together,” I said.

  “Pull back? Pull back what?” he asked, sitting on the ground in front of me.

  “Pull back. You know, be a little less pushy and overbearing, less over-the-top. A little less me, and a little more like the kind of girlfriend he’s looking for,” I said.

  “So, you want to change yourself for him?” He slid closer and turned around, leaning his back against my legs. People were watching, and I assumed that was the effect he was going for. If we were the talk of the school, it would surely tick Ronin off.

  “Precisely. Just a few adjustments, that’s all.”

  “Why would you do that?” he asked, fiddling with my shoelaces.

  “Because I love him, and sometimes you make adjustments for the people you love.”

  “I think your logic is flawed, Peaches,” he said, tilting his head back to look me in the face.

  “How so?”

  He lowered his head and mumbled, “Shouldn’t he love you the way you are?”

  His question caught me off-guard, and it hit a place inside of me that made me realize he might be right, but Ronin was worth it. Ronin McKinsey was undoubtedly worth changing for. “Sure, but... but, just... Are you gonna help me or not?”

  He shrugged, still playing with my shoelaces and staring at the ground. “Sure, whatever you want, Peaches, as long as I get a date to prom.”

  That name again, for the thousandth time. “Why do you call me Peaches?”

  “You don’t like it? I could call you Petunia, or Short Stack, or Half-pint, or Chicken Wing...” he rattled on.

  “Why would you call me Chicken Wing?” I asked, regretting the question the moment it passed my lips.

  “Dunno, maybe you like it better than Peaches?” He tilted his head back again to gauge my reaction, his hazel eyes a more golden-brown than green thanks to his shirt. Funny, how the eyes shifted color from golden to green. If only I, Hazel Simmons, could change as easily as hazel eyes.

  “Why don’t you call me Hazel?” I asked.

  “Why would I?”

  “Because it’s my name, and that’s what everyone calls me.”

  “I’m not everyone, Chicken Wing.” His head in my lap was distracting. I almost forgot we were supposed to be plotting and scheming like devious little cheerleaders, a comment I wholeheartedly agreed with after the lunch incident.

  “You’re not everyone? Who are you then?” I asked.

  “I’m Daniel. I thought we established that on day one.” How he managed to keep a straight face when he said stupid stuff was beyond me.

  “You’re infuriating, did you know that?”

  “I’m inwhatiating?”

  “Infuriating. Maddening. Impossibly annoying. Don’t you pay attention in English class either?” I asked.

  “No, not really. I grew up speaking English, so I figure I’m good.” I resisted the urge to brush the hair away from his forehead, the locks that kept falling from the part he combed.

  “What do you pay attention to, Daniel?”

  He lifted his head, checking his wrist for an imaginary watch. “Hmmm... Hey, look at the time. Better get to class before the late bell, Chicken Wing.” He leaped up, gathered his things, and started to walk away, something he always seemed to do—walk away when the moment was all wrong for walking away. I suppose it was something I’d just have to get used to.

  “Daniel?” I called after him.

  “Hmm?” he hummed, stopping a few feet away.

  “Call me Peaches.”

  He smiled his crooked smile and waved, then disappeared into the crowd of students heading toward fifth period. All the while, Hazel Simmons melted into a puddle of goo thanks to a pair of hazel eyes and a crooked smile. What is happening to me?
r />   It took all of fifth and half of sixth period for me to think of something besides Daniel, namely my plan to get Ronin back. If I could just sit him down and explain, he’d know the cake thing was an accident, and it was meant to be private. Of course, that wouldn’t change the dozens of other things I’d done that were too much for him. What I couldn’t understand was, what had changed? Ronin and I had been friends for three years before we started dating. He knew me. He knew what I was about and the way I showed people I loved them. What did he expect would happen once we started dating?

  I felt a tap on my shoulder, distracting me from useless thoughts. I looked over my shoulder, and Brian Vargas shoved a note in my face. I took it, wondering what he had to say to me.

  Rose is upset. She’s worried about you.

  I glanced back over my shoulder to find Dizzy staring at me from her seat in the corner. I had no desire to pen an explanation that would be passed through half a dozen hands before reaching her, so I nodded, hoping she got the clue.

  She didn’t. Brian tapped my shoulder again and passed me another note.

  Crotch-rocket boy has been pacing in the hall for ten minutes.

  I looked up to find Daniel peering into the classroom. When he caught my attention, he motioned for me to come out. I didn’t know what he expected me to do. It’s not like I could just get up and walk out of class. Brian tapped my shoulder again, then offered a frown and a sigh.

  “Sorry,” I whispered as I took the note.

  Get a hall pass, doofus.

  My hand shot up before I could stop it. “Yes, Miss Simmons?” Mr. Adams asked.

  “May I have a hall pass, please?”

  “For?”

  “Uh... um...” Daniel danced around outside, clutching his stomach. “Oh, my stomach. I feel sick.”

  “Of course. Take a homework sheet on your way out, please.”

  I gathered my stuff, swiped a sheet from the top of the stack, and met Daniel in the hall.

  “What is your problem?” I whispered, dragging him out of the teacher’s line-of-sight.

  “I got bored,” Daniel said. “Let’s skip seventh and go to the bookstore.”

  “You... Are you... You...” I was simmering, ready to blow up at the irresponsible boy. “Calculus is my worst class, numbskull! I need to pay attention in that class, but instead, I’m standing out here looking at a... a...”

  “Numbskull? So, the bookstore then?” he asked.

  “No! I’m going back to class where you should also go, Daniel. I’ll meet you there after school.” I started to walk away, but he grabbed my wrist and spun me around to face him.

  “Skip this one class with me, and I’ll tutor you in calculus. Easiest A of your life, Peaches.”

  “Right, and pigs fly over the ocean.” I scoffed.

  “Your loss, but you should know...” he started but didn’t finish. His gaze trailed on something behind me. When I started to turn around, he stopped me. I wiggled free from his grip. “Hazel—”

  “What is it? What’s your problem?”

  “I’m... I’m sorry,” he said, then let me turn around.

  There, down the hall, was Ronin McKinsey kissing someone that was not me. It also wasn’t Sara. I couldn’t see who she was, but it made my heart drop all the same. My heart was in grave danger of falling to pieces, and it demanded immediate attention. Well, if Ronin could suck someone’s tonsils out in the hall, so could I!

  I grasped Daniel’s shirt collar and pulled the colossal boy down to my height before kissing him. I made a big deal out of accidentally kicking the lockers to ensure Ronin noticed. He did, but it didn’t have the effect I was looking for. When I released Daniel, I saw Ronin shake his head, then grasp the girl’s hand before he turned the corner. My heart dropped.

  “Let’s get out of here,” Daniel said. He took my hand and led me out the double doors toward the parking lot. “Are you okay?” he asked.

  “No. I’m not. That was too convenient like he planned it just to hurt me.” I didn’t want to cry in front of Daniel but cry I did.

  “How is that possible, Peaches? He couldn’t have known you’d come out of the classroom. It was a freaky coincidence, that’s all. Don’t cry over this.” Daniel pulled me into a hug, one that I got lost in. I hadn’t paid much attention to it before the hallway kiss, but he towered over me. I felt smaller than ever, a short little basketcase who was using someone to make her ex jealous.

  “I’m sorry, Daniel. I keep using you to get back at him. It’s not fair.” I shoved my face into the crook of his shoulder, which was better than letting anyone else see me cry.

  “Hey, I’m holding you to the prom date thing, don’t worry. Besides, it’s not like kissing you is total torture or anything,” he said.

  “No?” I asked, suddenly feeling much better. How’d he do that?

  “Nah, it’s only partial torture.” I shoved him, and he stumbled a few feet before laughing and coming back to me. “Come on, let’s get some coffee and bother that sleeping old man at the bookstore.”

  “I told you, it’s a giant teddy bear.”

  “So, you said, but we never did go inspect it to be sure. He could still be there, Peaches, just waiting for someone to wake him up and send him on his way. Wouldn’t you feel awful knowing you were that person, and you didn’t do your civic duty?”

  I laughed again, feeling so much better. “Daniel?”

  “Yep?”

  “Thanks.”

  “Anytime, Peaches. Anytime.”

  I adjusted my bag with a new determination. I’d find Daniel the best prom date imaginable, and I’d make Ronin squirm as much as possible while I worked my plan. Besides, there was some satisfaction in knowing Sara didn’t win.

  “What about Gina Brooks?” I asked.

  “What about her?” Daniel asked. I noticed we were holding hands as we walked through the parking lot, but it was okay. I didn’t mind it.

  “As a prom date?”

  He stopped short, nearly jerking my arm from its socket. “Are you serious?”

  “Yeah, why not? She’s pretty and funny, and a free spirit, just like you. I think you’d really like her,” I said, trying to convince him to give her a chance.

  “You’re right. I do really like Gina. She’s great, but I have this thing,” he said, a smirk on his lips.

  “A thing? What, you don’t like redheads?” I asked. “Cuz it’s a bit hypocritical of you.”

  “I like them just fine, but I do have a serious aversion to taking my own cousin to prom, Peaches.” He chuckled and shook his head. “You really don’t know anything about me, do you?”

  I didn’t, and as I stood there watching him smile back at me, I realized I wanted to. How strange. There was this boy who I didn’t even know existed, and, for whatever reason, he was in the right place at the right time. And now, I almost couldn’t imagine what life would be like without Daniel and his crazy ways.

  Chapter Six

  AFTER CONVINCING DANIEL to walk instead of daring his deathtrap of a bike, he rambled on about anything and everything that popped into his mind, including the fact that we never did check to make sure the stuffed bear was not a sleeping old man. The moment we arrived at the bookstore, I made a beeline toward the children’s reading corner.

  “See, I told you. It’s an abnormally large teddy bear, Daniel,” I said, handing him the bear that was almost as tall as me.

  “You can’t be sure, Peaches.” He took the bear and studied it, then turned it to face me, clutching it to his chest. “There could be a tiny old man in there just begging to be rescued from the monotony of listening to Curious George every day of his life.”

  “You’re an odd duck, Daniel. A very odd duck.”

  “So, you mentioned both yesterday and again today. What’s your deal with ducks? Did ducks scare you to death in a former life?” He dropped the bear back onto the tiny chair it called home, its button eyes looking up at me. I shivered, thinking of a little man stuck
inside of it.

  “It’s a saying, Daniel. It’s just something people say when they meet someone unusual. No, I did not die at the hands of fiendish feathery fowl in a former life. Your brain is just... You’re just crazy.” We walked toward the tiny café to study and plot. I needed coffee if I was to be alert enough to understand anything Daniel was trying to say.

  “A fiendish... what?” He shook his head, confused.

  “A fiendish feathery fowl in a former life. Say that five times fast,” I teased.

  “I can’t even say it once at a normal pace, Peaches. So, is this our thing? Is this the thing we do now?”

  “We’ve been friends for all of two days. How can we possibly have a thing?” I asked.

  “You can have a thing in two days. You can have a thing in two minutes. A thing is a thing, and if a thing is working, then you don’t question it. You accept it. This is our thing.” He pulled out a chair for me, then dropped his backpack into the seat beside me.

  “What exactly is our thing, then? Being devious?”

  He rolled his eyes. “No, Peaches. Banter. Banter is our thing. And this teeny tiny little bookstore with an old man stuck in a bear is our place.” The bear, again with the bear.

  “Banter in a bookstore with bears?”

  “What’s your deal with tongue twisters and ducks? Ducks and tongue twisters, is that some crazy thing you do all the time? It’s totally cool if it is, I just need to know so I can make some adjustments,” he said.

  “Adjustments for what? Why would you need to make adjustments?”

  “Because you’re my friend, Peaches. And we adjust for the people we care about,” he said as he settled across from me and leaned close.

  “I don’t get it.”

  “I think I need to adjust, change a bit. I’m not good at tongue twisters, and I kind of hate ducks. That’s two things that I obviously need to change about myself if we are ever going to be great friends. I don’t really want to change, but I will if I have to.”

  “Why would you change anything about yourself just to be my friend? That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard anyone say,” I replied, wondering why he was so dramatic over ducks and tongue twisters.