* * *
At lunch we didn’t have time to talk, just the two of us. The crew was there and between wanting to know what happened between first and second period with Nikki and the concert tonight, lunch flew by fast.
“Okay, heavy-weight. Did you decide where you want to go for dinner?” Bobby teased.
“It’s up to you guys. Doesn’t matter to me.” I pushed him into Tony.
“What was that for?” Bobby asked innocently. Like he didn’t know.
“Heavy-weight?!” I appreciated the joke, but I’m not heavy!
“Watch out or you’re next.” Tony laughed.
“Sorry. Sorry.” Bobby was suddenly repentant. “I didn’t mean… I just meant…”
Patrick laughed, “It’s cool. I think the problem is…she’d rather be called feather-weight.” He looked at me, waiting for me to say something.
“Well…yeah!” He did know me well.
Kraig pushed Bobby, “Man, what’s wrong with you? Don’t ever call a girl heavy anything!”
Everyone was laughing and having a great time. It felt good. It felt really good to be a part of it all. We finally decided on pizza for dinner before the concert. I already decided that I wouldn’t have pizza, but something lighter. The bell rang marking the end of lunch and we scattered to our respective classrooms. Patrick and I walked to math together, but didn’t get much of a chance to talk.
“Do you have rehearsal today?” He casually asked, but it seemed that there was something else behind his question.
“No. Mrs. Marshall wanted us to save our voices for this evening.” I was thankful for it. When I sang, I always went all out. I wouldn’t be able to pull back during a rehearsal before a concert. My voice would likely crack if I had to have rehearsal today.
“That’s good.” He nodded. “I have a short practice. Want to hang out afterwards before dinner?” He locked onto my eyes.
“Sure.” I knew what he meant by that. He didn’t have to say where we were going to hang out. I knew by how he looked at me that he was talking about Moonlight Bluffs. He had that intense, uneasy feel about him, like he did whenever he needed to go to the Bluffs to think. I was glad that he wanted me to go with him. At least it wasn’t me that was upsetting him.
Falling (Bits and Pieces, Book 1) Page 74