“That was a hefty tip you left her,” I tell him.
“She was funny. I liked her.”
He pops open the trunk of his mom’s car and pulls out a blanket.
“Come on.” He grasps my cold hand and leads me to the backside of the lodge.
“Wow,” is all I can say when we turn the corner. There are a few candles placed along the path leading up to an old wooden swing. As we get closer, I notice the candles are actually LED lights which makes sense considering we’re in a forest and who wants to start a fire. “This is beautiful.”
“I’m glad you like it.” He holds my hand for support as I take a seat on the swing. It glides back as I sit down, but Alex holds it still until I’m safely on the thing. And then he joins me, placing the blanket over our laps. “You warm enough?”
He puts an arm behind me, holding me closer to his warmth. “Now, I am.”
We swing back and forth, staring up at the dark sky, watching the twinkle of the stars. There are millions visible from up in the mountains. Makes me wish I could have this view every night.
“Thank you, Alex. I love it.” I turn my face to the side and look up into his gorgeous green eyes, getting lost in them as he lowers his head to kiss me. The warmth of his lips on mine melts my body from the tiptop of my head to the soles of my feet. I can taste that last cup of cocoa on his mouth and I want to lick the sweetness from him. My head tilts to the side, allowing him to deepen the kiss. His tongue slides into my mouth, teasing mine with every pass. Our kisses continue until we’re breathless. He places two more soft pecks on my mouth before gazing into my eyes again.
“You’re welcome, baby. I’m glad you love it.”
“I love you too,” I tell him, lightly brushing his lips with my own.
He nips at my bottom lip, then sucks it gently into his mouth. “I love you more.” He kisses my top lip this time. “In fact, I think we should get married right here and come back every year for our anniversary, just like the lady said.”
My eyes just about pop out of my head.
“Not right now, silly.”
“Someday, then?”
“Yeah, why don’t we tack on one more thing to our list of somedays.”
“What else is on there?” I raise my brow.
“Let’s start with the most important one, for now.”
“What’s that?”
He softly presses his mouth to mine. “Well, someday you’re gonna be my girlfriend again. Officially.”
“Someday.” I repeat our phrase.
“Someday real soon.”
“Sounds good to me,” I tell him, and then I feast on his lips again.
“How was school?” Ben asks, as I slide into the passenger seat of his car.
“Just peachy,” I tell him. “Sorry if I stink. You said you wanted to pick me up after practice. You shoulda let me go home and shower first.”
“Meggie, I’ve lived with smellier for the last three months. You smell like roses compared to what I had to deal with.”
Even so, I don’t hesitate to lower the window and let myself air out. “So, where to?”
“I thought we could pick up a Slurpee and head to the park.”
Just like old times. There have been many occasions in the last few years when we’ve ended up at the park talking out the problems in our lives. Mostly my problems, my life. But the guy is a good listener, and I always feel like he’s looking out for me.
After stopping for a giant Coke-flavored Slurpee, we drive a few blocks to the park, and plant our behinds on top of a picnic table.
“Maybe we should’ve stayed in the car. Are you cold?”
“Not at all. It’ll take me a good two hours to cool down from all the running we did. The breeze is perfect.” I take a sip from my drink, enjoying the chill trailing down my throat to my belly.
“So how’s it going without Alex?” he asks.
It sucks, I want to tell him. But I don’t. I know he wants me to be independent, and I am, but I still can’t help thinking about his friend … every waking moment of my life. “It’s going. Spending the week with him was great. But I also got used to him being around. It’s gonna take a bit to get used to him being gone again.” I pause. “Like you. I’m gonna have to get used to you being gone all over again. Are you ready to go back?”
“In some ways, yes. In others, no.”
I pop the lid off my drink, and start scooping it with the itty bitty spoon on one end of the straw. “What do you mean?”
“Well, I’ve had a good time being home. Spending time with my parents. With you guys. So I’d like more time to just chill and enjoy it. But then, I also miss the go, go, go of the Marines. Being there finally gave me some purpose. I felt like I was doing something good. I guess I’m ready to feel that again when I go back for more training.”
“So what’s next?” I take a sip of my drink. “When you get back?”
“More training.”
Okay. Kind of vague. “For what exactly?”
“Well, first I go back to San Diego for my School of Infantry training. And then I’m off to Virginia for a while.”
I feel like a little kid asking, why? Why? Why? But, I do anyway. “Why Virginia?”
He shakes his head. “Just full of questions, aren’t you, Little One?”
“Hey, inquiring minds want to know.”
“I got selected for Presidential Service.” I begin to open my mouth, but he holds a hand up. “I’ll basically be working with other Marines and the Secret Service to provide security for the President and other dignitaries where ever the President goes.”
My eyes just about pop out of my head. “By President, you mean the President of The United States of America?”
“No, Meggie. The PTA. Yes, the United States President.”
“Holy shit!”
“Yeah, that’s what I thought the first time I realized what I’m going to be doing. It’s a real honor just to be considered. It’ll be awhile before I’m actually doing my job, but I imagine it’ll be worth the wait.”
“How long could you be doing this job? What if a President with a hot daughter gets elected? You could be like the guys in those movies, falling in love with the First Daughter. Remember the one with Mandy Moore. I loved that movie.”
“You’re crazy, Meg.” He plops his hand on my head and ruffles my hair.
“Crazy because I missed you.”
“I missed you too. But I’m here now, so don’t ruin it.”
“I know,” I groan. “Just let me get a good look at your face so I can commit it to memory for the next four years till your back home for good.”
“Four years? I could always re-enlist.”
“Don’t make me run you over,” I tell him, the idea of a broken leg keeping him home still fresh in my head.
“Run me over? Why?” he asks, completely confused.
“Never mind.” Although, taking my mom up on her constant offers to use the car sounds pretty tempting right about now.
“Hey, what’s your problem?” Mom calls out to me. “Wanna go back outside and try coming in again.”
“No thanks. I’m not in third grade anymore, Mom.” Although, I’m fairly certain I just acted like it by throwing my bag down and slamming the door.
“Get over here, Meg.” Oh, crap. She sounds a little pissed. Must not be a good day for either of us.
I take my time kicking off my shoes and tossing them into my bag in our entryway before I head to the family room where my mom is watching TV.
She turns down the volume of some Hollywood celebrity gossip show. “Now, you wanna tell me what’s going on?”
I fall back into the sofa and plop my feet on the ottoman in front of me. “I just played the worst game of my life.”
“What? You guys had been doing so well when I left. What happened?” She left early to come home and record football for my dad who had to work late. Thankfully, she missed the shitty second half.
“Oh.
Everyone played well throughout the entire game. I just sucked. I let two balls get by me for goals. We lost and it was my fault.”
“This isn’t the first time someone has gotten past you and it’s not the first time you’ve lost. So what’s the real problem?”
Great. Now she sounds like Keesh and Andi. I was in a foul mood after the game and they tried calling me on my shit, saying it wasn’t the game. They insinuated I was in a bad mood because Alex and Ben were both gone again. As if. I’m so used to being left behind.
“Does this have something to do with two boys who just left town?” she asks, moving to sit next to me.
I cover my face with both my hands. “I don’t know,” I mumble. “Maybe. You’d think I’d be used to this by now.”
“I think there is something else bothering you too.”
My hands drop and I glance over at her. “What?”
“Applications?” She gives me the look. Oh. So that’s what she’s pissed about.
I groan.
“Why haven’t you submitted them? The deadline is tomorrow and all you have to do is click send.” She gives me a push on my thigh. “What gives?”
“What if I don’t apply to the right ones? After our trip, I cut half my choices. What if I don’t get in to the few I plan on applying to?”
My mom’s face softens and she smiles at me. “You’ll never know if you don’t try. You’ll get in somewhere. You have near perfect grades …”
I cut her off, “But terrible SAT scores.”
“Yeah, but that’s not the end all. If that was the case, your dad and I would’ve been doomed.” She laughs, seemingly recalling their past.
“I just feel like there’s so much pressure. I have to apply, maintain my grades, which is becoming a pain in my butt with calculus, and I have soccer to keep up with. I’m tired and I’m going a little batty.”
“A little?” she jokes. Now, it’s my turn to give her the look. “Hey. It’s just one year. Get through this year without having a nervous breakdown and everything will fall into place, academically and socially.”
“What are you doing tonight?” I ask her.
“Nothing. Just gonna read a book or watch a movie, or both at the same time.”
“You’re the only person I know who can read and watch TV at the same time, and pay attention to both.”
“The key is to watch a movie you’ve seen before. That way you can tune in and out when you want. Or watch something with commercials and read through them.”
“Who watches anything with commercials nowadays?”
“Good point.” She pauses. “Me. So I can read.”
“Well, if you can multitask another thing, would you mind going over my choices with me again, so I can click the bleeping send button?”
“I’d love to.”
Later in the evening, my mom and I are in our jammies huddled over my laptop. Dad is watching the game, but ear hustling our conversation.
“Why don’t you just apply to Cal Poly as a backup? You’re sure to get in and it’s just right here. It’s a great school so not a bad last resort at all. For many, it’s a first choice,” he says during a time-out.
“That’s a solid plan, Meg. And it’s not like you have to fill out an entirely new application. You just have to click on one more school for the state app.”
Staring at the screen on my laptop doesn’t make my decision come any faster. I decide to rely on my parent’s experience and go for it.
“All right, I’m ready.”
My mom enters her financial information and it’s done. Two Cal States. Applications submitted.
“Next,” my mom says.
I switch seats with her and flip the web-browser tab over to the UCs. I click on the three I want to apply to and she sits down again. More money spent, and the apps are flying through the internet to be viewed by who knows who. A computer probably filters the apps first and then sends them off to real people once they’ve weeded out the losers. I’m hoping I’m not weeded out on the first round.
“All done! My applications are in,” I say with a long audible sigh. “This is it. Hope all my hard work has paid off.”
Dad looks over his shoulder at us. “Don’t worry, honey. You got it, you’ll see. You’re gonna get accepted to all of them and that’s when the hard decision comes.”
“Thanks for the pep talk, Dad. I feel so much better now.”
And here comes another sigh. This time from my mom. “Good luck, honey.” She smiles at me. “Let the waiting begin.”
Chapter 19
Time is flying by too fast for me to keep up. If it wasn’t for the extra credit in calculus, I think I’d be failing. As long as you attempt to do all the homework, my teacher gives extra points on the tests each week. Thankfully, the homework answers don’t have to be correct. Amen to that. Or else, as my dad would say, I’d be up a shit creek without a paddle.
I can’t wait until I get to college. I’m majoring in something non-scientific, for sure. Taking even one more year of calculus is not an option for me. I’d give up Slurpees and KitKats for the rest of my life if I never had to solve another integral ever again.
“You can’t get by on extra credit for the final exam, Meggie.” Brody shakes his head at me while he goes over my calc study guide. He caught me zoning out again. “You need to learn this stuff before the test. I heard it’s over a hundred questions. So five extra points isn’t gonna save your ass this time.”
He’s making my head hurt. “I’ve tried. It’s like Chinese to me. They’re like five million symbols and I don’t get it.”
“Here.” He passes me a paper. “I’ve created a study guide for each chapter. There are sample problems along with a step-by-step guide to completing each problem. I also included the vocab for each type of problem. You really need to study that. If you don’t know what a derivative is, how can compute one?”
Amy sets her backpack on our table. “What are these?” She picks up Brody’s study sheets, her eyes scanning the pages. “These are amazing. Can I get copies? I’ll pay you for them.”
Brody’s eyes narrow at her, and then he looks to me. “Are we talking to her now?” He says her like she has horns growing from her head and it makes me laugh inside.
“Yeah, Brod. She’s good.” I look up at Amy. “Sit. He’s trying to get me ready for the calc final on Friday.” Amy sits next to me. “This is Brody.”
She mumbles a hello and he sticks out his hand to her. She gives him a weird look and puts her hand in his anyway. Brody has that effect on people. Especially when he’s in his element, which he is now. It doesn’t help that he’s wearing a Come to the Dork Side, We have π tee.
“You don’t have to pay me. If you’re cool with the Megster and not acting like a beeyotch anymore, I’d be happy to share.”
This time I laugh aloud. “Brody, stop. We’re good. I promise.”
He raises a brow at both of us. “Are you any good at this or are you hopeless like Meg?”
“I have an A, so I’m all right. A little extra studying won’t hurt though.”
“Good, you can study with us and help Meg too.”
Amy studies Brody for a minute, not knowing what to make of him. I remember looking at him the same. But he definitely grows on you, as seen by the number of girls he’s hooked up with in the last year.
“What happened to practice?” she asks.
“We had our last game before break yesterday. I told my coach I had to miss practice for the rest of the week to study or else I’m not gonna have grades to play when we get back.”
“Good point. Where are the girls?” She keeps eyeballing the door, probably nervous they could show up at any minute. Just because we’re okay doesn’t mean they are.
“Steph is probably with Dominic. Keesh is at practice. She’s a whiz at this stuff and doesn’t need the extra tutoring.”
“Why doesn’t she help you?”
“She knows I’m in good hands with Brody.�
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She seems to think this over for a bit. “Okay, let’s get to work. Let’s start with limits.”
By the time they’re through with me, two hours later, I think I’ve got the first two chapters. Four more to go. And only two more days to study. I hope this shit sticks. College acceptances are contingent on passing grades your senior year. It would really suck if I get denied because I can’t figure out how to solve a differentiation problem, even though I’ll never have to do again for the rest of my life.
It’s almost ten before I’m relaxed at home and ready to talk to Alex. We haven’t connected much in the last week, only through a few texts back and forth. But we’ve played phone tag for the past few days.
“Hey, can you talk?” I ask, relieved to hear his voice through my cell.
“Yeah, I have my computer in my lap. I wanna see you.”
“Awesome. I’m sending a request through now.”
His face shows up on my laptop and I end the call on my cell.
“Hey, beautiful. It’s been too long.”
His eyes are tired. Even through the grainy video on my screen I can see the dark circles under his lashes. “Yeah, it has. How are you? You look pretty beat up.”
“Well, nice to see you too.” He combs his fingers though his hair. “You don’t miss anything, do you?”
“Not when it comes to you. Are finals kicking your butt too?”
“Definitely. The internship too. When I’m not there, I’m at the library studying and writing papers. There aren’t enough hours in the day. This year is turning out to be the most difficult by far.”
“I’m sorry.” The worry in his eyes makes my heart break.
“No need to apologize. It’s the hardest, but definitely the most fun. Now that all the bullshit lower division classes are out of the way, I finally get to learn all the stuff I’m interested in.”
“You creating any award winning buildings yet?” I ask, teasing him.
“Not yet, baby. Soon though.” He winks. “I’m just sorry we haven’t been on the same page for a while. I miss you.”
Double Threats Forever (Double Threat Series) Page 14