I shake my head and start sprinting away from him.
As soon as I reach the indoor track I swipe my eyes for any tears then clear my mind. I should stretch like some of the girls on my team are doing. I don’t. Running is the only thing I want to do. I start my warm-up laps.
“Are we no longer a part of a team, Valentine?” Coach Harper asks.
I slow my pace and easy my way to where the rest of my teammates are huddled in a corner. Coach Harper looks down at me and says, “We win as a team, lose as a team, and work as a team.”
There is no sufficient response to that, so I simply keep my mouth shut and nod. He seems to like this reaction. “All right then let’s warm up. I want eight laps around the track.”
Kimber the girl who currently has Jared’s full attention of late groans at Coach Harper. She’s not going to make the varsity team this year. Not with that attitude. Soccer is basically all running. If she’s complaining now about some silly eight laps how is she going to manage an entire game? Ooops that’s right she doesn’t. Kimber complains all the time.
Last year she broke a nail during a practice game. Not so bad as if the thing hit cuticle and was bleeding mind you. A measly little chip to her perfect manicure and she cried as if she was dying. Maybe I’m weird because I think worrying about having a perfect manicure over playing a game that’s tied up is preposterous. Suck it up. They grow back. One might be a little shorter than the rest, it’s not the end of the world. File the rest of them down so they all match and move on.
I can’t believe he’s into someone like her. I thought for sure he would want someone with a little more substance. What could she possibly talk to him about anyway?
I lap her and most of my teammates for a second time. Kimber pants, “It’s not a race, Valentine. Stop showing off.”
Am I really showing off? I’m merely jogging and she’s panting as if she’s about to pass out. I can’t help it I actually trained in the offseason while she was probably at every party known to mankind. I roll my eyes at her comment and keep pushing on.
Lacy Meyers a senior catches up to me and matches my pace. “Nice work, Valentine. Love the hustle.”
I give her a slight nod. “Thanks.”
“Keep it up.”
Then we continue around the track until we complete the eight laps. As I’m taking a drink of water my shoulder gets bumped. My hand jerks causing my bottle to slip from my lip. Water drips from my chin and squirts the front of my already sweaty shirt. The indoor track is above the basketball court, the heat is on, and it’s blazing in here.
I glare at the person who brushes past me. Sadie Beckett. I took her starting spot Freshman year and she hasn’t gotten over it. Seriously she acted like our coach was blind to her waving to a group of boys during a game. He saw that crap and shut it down. I ended up starting the rest of the season while she flirted with her fanbase. I didn’t think she cared. She certainly didn’t act like it. Until about our fifth game of the season she tripped me during warm-ups and said, “That’s for taking my spot, loser!”
Ever since then she’s been giving me crap. Thank goodness, she’s a senior now and this is the last year I’ll have to put up with her BS.
“Better watch your back, Juliet.”
I sigh. Her threats don’t really bother me. I mean, sure she put some green dye in my conditioner bottle and my hair was a faded green for about a week until I could strip it all out. She cut holes in my socks, so my feet blistered up around my ankles and toes. She might have thrown my shirt into the toilets, but I didn’t let that bother me either. I mean if she got ahold of it before our game I might have been a little upset smelling like possible toilet water. But it was after while I was in the shower. My shirt was drenched, and I just took it home and washed it. Two times just to be sure.
Again, her antics don’t bother me. I have thicker skin than most. I think that’s what makes her so mad. She can intimidate mostly everyone but me.
“All right, ladies. Bring it in,” Coach Harper yells.
We all circle around him. I stand beside Lacy. Coach Harper’s attention darts from each member trying out for the team. “Those laps were weak for the most part. Valentine and Meyers, I’m excluding you two.”
Lacy nudges me. I smile over at her but notice most of the others scowling or giving us the death glare.
“We’re going down to the old gym and we’re going work on drills,” he says to us.
I love drills. It’s my ultimate favorite thing to do. A lot of my teammates though are not as enthusiastic about drills. Kimber looks like she’d rather die than do any kind of drills. It’s probably because her ball control is iffy.
This sounds selfish, but I hope she messes up so bad she’ll be cut. I kind of hope Sadie is cut too but she’s good if she would keep her mind on the game. Not on the stands like it usually is.
“We’re going to partner up. Kimber, you and Juliet are going against each other. Lacy, you and Sadie will be defending against one another.” He continues to pair up the girls until everyone has a person they’re supposed to defend, block, or steal from.
I grab my bag and water bottle then head down to the old Gym. I’m sweating. I’m gross. It’s not pretty. The last person I want to see is a hot boy. Kimber plows into my side and almost knocks me down as she charges toward Jared.
He smiles at her and then looks over at me. I should want to flip him off or smack his face. But I’m gapping at his lips. Why do I want to kiss him?
Kimber giggles and swats his arm playfully. That’s it. She’s going down.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Jared
Juliet comes out of the indoor track entrance looking hotter than ever. Her cheeks are flushed. There is a glistening tint in her mossy green eyes. I don’t understand what happened but an urge to beat someone for causing her to possibly sprout tears is coursing through me.
It kills me when she plows past me, leaving me with Kimber. Don’t get me wrong, Kimber is cool, and I should want to be around her. But I want Juliet. I’m a total asshole. I want to hold Juliet and tell her I’ll do everything I can to fix whatever is making her sad.
Being stuck in this situation really sucks. She put me in this position though. She’s obviously still in love with Mark. No matter what anyone tells me. Juliet’s reactions proved that she’s not over him or his betrayal.
A man can only put his heart out there on the line so many times before the rejections become too much. But I ache to see her this way.
“Jared, did you wanna see me run drills?” Kimber says in a hopeful voice.
Do I want to see Kimber running drills? Most likely not because it will only remind me of the crap I will have to do very soon with my dad. In fact, I should probably head out of here in order to get that done. But her face looks like she’ll feel heartbroken if I don’t agree.
“I’ll stay for a little bit,” I say.
She squeals which is kind of annoying it’s most likely because I’m not used to it. But its screechy and it hits a nerve in my eardrum. I cringe a smile and follow her bouncy self, up the stairs to the old gym.
“You won’t be able to come in, but you can wait outside the door and watch,” she says then she pecks me on the cheek and skips into the gym.
As she’s getting further into the gym and other girls enter I scan the room. My sights land on Juliet stretching out her long and very sexy toned legs. That girl has no idea how much I adore long legs, and hers have had my attention since grade school.
Kimber doesn’t have long legs, they’re average. It’s fine, I guess I can get used to it. I just need to try and stop comparing Kimber to the one person I really want. Especially since that person doesn’t want me at all.
Juliet stands as Kimber walks over to her. I also notice both girls look very intense right now. Juliet’s back seems to have stiffened. Kimber’s whole bubbly demeanor seems to have diminished. She narrows her eyes and Juliet’s hands ball up.
Coach Harper blows a whistle
. “Juliet. Kimber. You’re up first. Opposite ends. Weave the ball between the cones. The first girl to tip over a cone, or loses control of the ball is out. When you’re about to pass each other, pass your ball to the other person and keep going through the cones until you reach the end. Then I want you to return and do the same passing drill.”
Juliet marches down to the end where I’m at. Someone passes her a ball then passes one down to Kimber who’s set up at the opposite end. The whistle blows again, and they take off. Juliet is quicker, agiler, and seems to concentrate ahead. Whereas Kimber I notice is slower and stares down at the ball and cones.
Juliet reaches Kimber and starts to pass her ball to her, but I don’t think Kimber is paying attention. The coach yells but Juliet sweeps in and steals Kimber’s ball away from her without missing a beat. Kimber fumbles a bit and knocks over two cones.
Coach Harper looks about as mad as my dad when I or someone on my team botches something up. “Kimber! Stop. You’re out. Sadie, take her place. Juliet, you keep working through the line.”
Juliet doesn’t even resemble someone that is tired. Kimber, on the other hand, is a different story. Maybe they did a lot of laps around the indoor track.
Kimber’s eyes are watery and suddenly she glances over at the doorway where I’m standing. I smile at her, but she flushes.
Coach Harper marches over to her and starts whispering something to her. This only makes her sob and release more tears. I avert my attention from her and down to Juliet. The senior Sadie Beckett jabs an elbow toward Juliet’s ribs before passing the ball, no doubt to help trip her up or something. Juliet slaps it away and successfully switches balls without losing a step. As Sadie’s making her way down to my end I notice her nostrils flare.
Juliet reaches her end, shifts her ball around then continues to weave her ball in and out of the cones. Again, she’s still not looking at the ball or the cones. It almost seems like her focus is toward the doors.
I’ve caught a few of Juliet’s games, and her concentration throughout is astounding. It’s almost as if no one exists just her, and the ball.
I wish I could play like that. Be so focused all I see are the plays on the football field. My players running their routes. No screaming fans. No players trying to tackle me or block my passes. To be completely oblivious to everything around me would be great. Especially if I could somehow block my dad from screaming at me from the sidelines or into my headset. That would be phenomenal. Maybe I’d enjoy football again.
A whistle blows, breaking my contact from Juliet and back to Kimber who is now pushing through the doors sobbing hard. “Are you okay?” I ask.
“No. Thanks to Juliet I just lost my spot to play Varsity.”
“I’m sure she didn’t mean to.”
Kimber seems to sober up from that comment and snaps, “The hell she didn’t. She stole that ball from me on purpose. She made a terrible pass and it messed me all up. Now, I have to change all my bios on everything now because I won’t be playing Varsity. I hope someone breaks her stupid nose!”
I wince. “Chill. She’s still your teammate.”
Kimber shakes her head. “Not after today. I just got put on reserves. Coach is mad at my poor performance. I can’t help it some of us have no life and probably practice all the stupid time. I have a life beyond soccer.”
I nod. I honestly don’t know what to say to this girl. She’s flinging her arms in the air, stomping her feet. I do not have experience in temper tantrums. So, I stand there. “I’m disgusting. I’ll see you tomorrow. Sorry, you wasted your time,” Kimber says.
“Okay. I’ll see you tomorrow.” I don’t want to apologize because I’m sure she’ll just go on another rant. I know this makes me sound like a total asshole, but I really don’t know what else I could say to her.
Kimber nods and leaves me in the hall. The doors to the gym open and a sweaty but very sexy looking Juliet enters and stalls as soon as she spots me. “Is your girlfriend okay?” she pants.
“She’s …” I almost say not my girlfriend instead I finish off with, “a little upset. You apparently did a shady thing in there.”
“Shady? Stealing a ball is shady now?” Juliet glares at me. “It’s a part of the game. We’re supposed to complete the drills as if it’s a game situation. Did my shady move make her break one of her precious nails or something?”
“No, you got her demoted to reserves.”
Juliet shakes her head. “Is that what she told you? Wow. The hate just keeps on coming my way. She was told to go home today and come back when her head was out of the clouds. But that’s cool I can take the heat for her too. Whatever.”
Juliet starts to walk off and I follow her. “Hey, hold up. Why do you think hate is coming your way?”
“Are you joking right now?” She narrows her mossy eyes at me. “You’re unbelievable, Black!”
She storms off leaving me feeling stupid, confused but mostly stupid.
Laying on my bed, I flip through the yearbook and I keep landing on pictures of Juliet. There are a few of her with her soccer team. Her with her sister. Then there are pictures of her with her friends. Sometimes she’s smiling. Sometimes she’s laughing. My favorite though is the one with her and her twin making silly faces at each other.
I love this one the most because I can see that adorable heart-shaped birthmark Juliet has. This will sound ridiculous, but I want to kiss every inch of that birthmark located under her ear.
Why am I looking at her? I am supposed to be forgetting about Juliet. Not drooling over pictures of her and thinking about kissing parts of her neck, cheeks, and lips.
I flip another page and there is Kimber. She’s smiling, maybe a little too big. But she’s still pretty.
My door pops open. Justin walks into my room. I roll my eyes. “What do you want?”
“Hey, Mom wanted me to let you know your truck is ready to be picked up. Guess you can do it tomorrow.”
“Fine,” I say.
He still stands there. “Anything else you want?”
Justin moves his foot along the carpet. “Can you take me to the mall after you pick up your truck?”
“Why?”
He shrugs. “I need to go.”
“Let’s try this again, for what?”
Justin glares. “Well, Dad, I need to get some stuff.”
“Fine whatever.”
He comes over to my bed then sits at the end. “What’s got you all grumpy?”
I lift my head and stare at my brother. “What are you talking about? I’m not grumpy.”
“It’s got to do with Juliet, doesn’t it? Why don’t you ask her out already?”
“She doesn’t like me.”
He shakes his head. “Yeah, she does. She wouldn’t have bothered waiting for you to come to the food court. She would have left.”
I shrug. “Maybe she likes you.”
“No. She looked hurt when you turned into a freaking jerk toward her.”
So, it wasn’t me that noticed it? She kept pushing me away though. She kept telling me to tell Mark to stop sending those damn love-grams and it wasn’t funny. I know I didn’t sign them with my freaking name but now it has me wondering what would happen if I did?
I lay back against my pillows and sigh. “Finally seeing what an idiot you are,” Justin says.
“Yes.”
“I like her, Jare. She’s nice and seems like the kind of person who could make you fun again.”
“I’m fun!”
Justin shakes his head. “Dude, no you aren’t. When is the last time you’ve gone out? I’m not talking about Mom’s grocery runs either.”
“Whatever,” I mumble.
“Exactly.”
I shoot my brother a glare.
“You’re a boring copy of douchy Dad. Calling out the facts. You keep doing all that shit he asks. You never break out and be your own person. You will biologically turn into a douchy form of Dad,” he says
“Shut up. I will ne
ver be like him. I won’t wake up every day and scream how everyone must love football or else. I certainly won’t tell my future children it is the only game they will ever play.”
Justin smirks. “Or buy them football shaped cereal because you are what you eat?”
Okay a few years ago before the Superbowl there was football shaped cereal with marshmallows in them. Our dad won’t let us eat anything unhealthy. Justin, however, twisted Dad’s famous phrase and said, “But they’re football shaped. We’re football players. We are what we eat. We’d be eating the same thing we are. Wouldn’t that be a good thing?” Our Dad was officially stumped. He seriously couldn’t argue against Justin’s logic, so he gave in. I might not like football very much, but I loved that marshmallow cereal.
“That cereal was awesome,” I say.
“I know it was.” He gets off the bed and starts toward the door. “Jare, you need to start finding your happiness. Otherwise, you’re going to be one of those cranky uncles my kids will never visit in the future.”
I laugh. “Don’t make me an uncle until I’m older. Seriously Mom and Dad will murder me if you come home with an oops baby before you graduate.”
He rolls his eyes. “That won’t be happening.” He walks out of my room and I sigh. I look down at Kimber’s picture and my heart does nothing. My stomach doesn’t knot. And I certainly am not in any way uncomfortable in my shorts. Not that these should be indications of if I should continue giving someone a chance or not. I just don’t feel shit.
When I peer over at Juliet it’s a whole different ballgame. I feel so many things all at once most of them scare the absolute shit out of me. My palms sweat. Why the hell are my palms sweating? That’s downright weird. My heart hammers in my chest. I think about things too like how her hair smells, and how glossy her lips are. I slam the book close.
I know where my happiness is, the problem now, how do I get that person on board?
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Juliet
Right Kiss Wrong Guy Page 13