by Tia Siren
“Money isn’t why I’d be doing it.”
He smiled at her. “Well, I think it’s a great profession. I hope you end up right where you want to be.”
“Thanks, Darryl. I hope you do, too.”
He shook his head. “I won’t if I don’t do something about my grades.”
“Having trouble?”
He frowned. “I hate to admit it but, yeah. My English class is killing me. I mean, it’s not Mr. Francis that’s causing the problem, you know? I just…” He shook his head. “Reading and writing just isn’t my thing. I don’t know what I’m gonna do.”
“I could help you, you know. I am a tutor for that class.”
He raised his eyebrows. “You’d do that for me?”
“Well, I usually charge.” She said. “But we could make another arrangement.”
He laughed. “That sounds suspicious and not like something you’d say. What did you have in mind?”
She grinned at him.
Chapter Three
Stacy threw open the door as Faith was walking down the hallway to their room. She came out and gestured wildly at her friend. “Faith! That’s the longest fifteen minutes I’ve ever experienced in my life! I thought your sub was gonna get moldy! Where have you been?”
Faith narrowed her eyes, stepping into the cool room and immediately getting chills all over her wet body. “You know full well you were watching me on the deck. I could see you!”
Stacy laughed. “Darn those glass buildings. Good for the spier unless the person you’re watching can see you back! What were you and Darryl talking about? Looked intense.”
“I’m gonna help him with his English studies. He’s struggling, and I said I would help him, so he doesn’t lose his football scholarship.”
“If he gets one.”
“He’ll get one.” Faith said, confidently. “He’s good at it. He’ll get it.”
“So you made friends with Darryl, huh? What about Ethan? Thought you had your eyes on him.”
Faith nodded. “I made a deal with Darryl. He’s gonna talk to Ethan about me. See what he thinks about me. He’s gonna tell Ethan I’m tutoring him. I’m hoping Ethan might be just a bit jealous.”
Stacy scrunched her face up. “How’s that gonna make him jealous? He doesn’t even know you very well. Y'all aren’t going out and haven’t in the past. I don’t know why he’d get jealous.”
Faith shrugged. “I don’t know. But it’s worth a try.”
Stacy shook her head. “I don’t think trying to make someone jealous is the way to a guy’s heart, girl. But you do what you want. In the meantime, eat that sub before I eat it myself.”
Faith unwrapped the parchment paper that surrounded her sandwich. The bottom was slightly soggy because it had sat for so long but she felt like it was worth it. “I see you ate my pickle slice.”
Stacy shrugged, throwing herself on the bed and grabbing the remote for the TV. “You shouldn’t have taken so long. It was screaming out for me. I had to eat it.”
Faith chuckled. “Okay, okay. There something worth watching on TV this evening?”
“Oh we aren’t staying in here, are you serious? We have a party in one of the rooms to go to in two hours.”
Faith shook her head. “You know I don’t do parties, Stace. My parents would kill me if they knew I…”
“One, your parents aren’t here, thank God. And two, just because other people are doin’ stuff doesn’t mean you have to. You know what the old folks always say, just because so and so jumps off a bridge, does that mean you have to too, right?”
“I guess.” Faith was apprehensive. She’d seen the coolers. She knew it wasn’t Coke and Pepsi in them. “I don’t want to get in any trouble. Not with the guys and not with my parents.”
“I’ll watch out for you. Latch on to Darryl. I bet he’d keep you safe.”
Faith raised her eyebrows. “What are you talking about? He wants to get through school and get his grades up and play football. Nothing more than that.”
Stacy shook her head. “Sometimes I think girls can be as clueless as guys are about when somebody is attracted to them.”
“I don’t think Darryl is attracted to me.”
“Oh yeah, he is. I tried to flirt with him like five times all day, and he kept looking in your direction. And when we were all playing chicken? Good Lord, how can you not notice?”
Faith shook her head. “I don’t think you’re right. But I’ll go tonight. And I’m gonna hang around you like glue.”
“That’s not the phra-a-ase.” Stacy sing-songed as she scooted off the bed and skipped into the bathroom to take a shower.
“No, but it did kind of rhyme!” Faith called out and was pleased when she heard her friend’s responding laughter.
The party was being held in a room that was four doors down from Faith and Stacy’s. They could hear loud thumping music as they got closer and the door suddenly came open. Three students from their school spilled out into the hallway, shushing each other while laughing.
The girls grinned at them and moved around into the room. It was packed with people. Faith immediately felt uncomfortable and gave Stacy a look. Stacy leaned over and yelled in her ear, “Look! Out there on the balcony! There’s your chance! Go find out if he’s interested!”
Faith squinted and moved her head around to see who was on the balcony. Both Darryl and Ethan were out there, along with three girls. She nodded at Stacy and began to push her way through the crowd.
When she stepped out on the balcony, the group turned to look at her. Two of the girls and Darryl smiled. Ethan and the other girl just lifted their heads in acknowledgment. When Darryl broke from them and approached her, she suspected Stacy had been right.
She didn’t know what to think about that. How could she tutor a football player who had a crush on her? Especially when she had a crush on a different football player?
She gave Ethan a long gaze before moving her eyes to Darryl, who held out his hand to one of the cushioned chairs next to the glass balcony doors. “Sit with me?”
She grinned. “Sure.” She was anxious to hear if he had already talked to Ethan about her. Ethan had given no indication that he thought any more about her than he had before. But she still wanted to know.
He leaned in close to her and she noticed for the first time that he was very good-looking. She wondered if Stacy had gotten into her brain a bit. “I’m kind of surprised to see you here.”
“Oh? Why?”
He shrugged. “To tell you the truth, I was kind of surprised a girl like you would even come on a trip like this. Was it just because of ol’ Ethan over there, really?”
She rolled her eyes and leaned in to him. “Shh. What’s wrong with you? I don’t want him hearing!”
“Well, you’ll never get him like that, will you?” He laughed loudly. “You gotta let him know eventually.”
“Well, did you say anything to him? Did you tell him I’m going to be helping you with your school work?”
He nodded. “Yeah but he didn’t have much of a reaction, sorry.” Darryl didn’t want to tell her that he’d had to remind Ethan, who she was. There were a lot of girls on this trip, and most of them were interested in Ethan. That’s the way it had always been, and Darryl had come to accept it long ago. He wasn’t sure why girls always wanted to go out with Ethan. He was his friend, but he wasn’t the best of characters. He’d had four girlfriends so far this school year and although each one was a beauty, he’d broken their hearts and moved on without hesitation.
Darryl really didn’t want to see that happen to Faith. She was a nice girl, pretty and smart. He thought she should be with someone more worthy of her.
“That’s kind of what I expected.” Faith said to his relief. “I was talking to Stacy about him. She didn’t have much good to say either.”
“Oh, I’m not trying to say anything bad, I just…”
They were interrupted when Ethan came over with one of the girls and plopp
ed down on a nearby chair. “What you guys over here whispering about?” He asked loudly. The girl dropped herself onto his lap, and he wrapped one arm around her small waist. She giggled and gave him an adoring look. It made Faith feel sick to her stomach, and she quickly realized she saw a small piece of fabric on the cushioned chair that needed to be inspected immediately. Darryl saw her reaction and struggled not to laugh. He fist-bumped Ethan, and they wiggled their fingers in the air to simulate the explosion.
“Religion and stuff,” Darryl said, laughing.
“What?? No way.”
“Nah, just kiddin’. We’re discussing the relevance of thermo-nuclear reaction on the current status of the ecosystem.”
Faith looked up at Darryl and then at Ethan and the girl. Darryl winked at her and lifted his cup to his lips, grinning widely. He moved his eyes quickly in the direction of the two on the other chair, and Faith understood. He was trying not to laugh at the confused look on the girl’s face. Faith lowered her head again and giggled her face flushing.
Ethan shook his head. He pushed the girl off his lap and slapped her rear as he got up. “Let’s leave these two eggheads to their conversation, Carly. I need a new drink!”
Faith watched as they went into the room and then turned her eyes to Darryl. “What was that all about?” she asked with a smile.
He shrugged. “Just trying to prove a point, girl. You can’t make someone jealous if they didn’t want you to begin with. No offense.”
Faith felt her heart sink a little bit. She knew he was right. But she’d had her sights on Ethan for months now, and it seemed like such a long time to be pining after someone who had no interest in her. She’d changed the way she looked and contemplated getting contacts just to attract him. She’d also thought about dying her hair because she heard he liked brunettes. Her mother had threatened to cut off her allowance if she dyed it, so she hadn’t followed through. But she’d thought about it.
“Normally I’m pretty smart.” She said in a sorrowful voice. “I feel pretty stupid right now.”
Darryl gave her a sympathetic look. “I wasn’t trying to make you feel bad, Faith. You shouldn’t feel bad at a party on spring break. He’s not the only fish in the sea, you know. And there’s some guys that are way better than him.”
“Like you?”
He grinned. “I’m not gonna say no to that. But you know, I’m not egotistical, either. I just know that Ethan is a player. And I think you deserve better than that.”
She smiled at him. “Thanks for being so blunt with me, Darryl.”
He sighed. “Trying to be honest without being rude.”
“I don’t think you’re being rude.”
“I’m glad to hear that. I don’t want to hurt your feelings.”
“You’re pretty wise for a teenager.”
Darryl laughed. “I’ve been told I’m 17 going on 35. Not sure if that’s really a compliment, though.”
“Well, you’ve made me feel better even though you’ve been pretty blunt with me.”
“I’m glad you feel better, Faith. You wanna dance?”
She shook her head. “I don’t dance.”
“Well, I’ll be glad to sit out here with you and look at the stars then.”
“That sounds great.”
She smiled at him.
Chapter Four
Faith stayed busy for the next two days, hanging out with Stacy and Darryl and some of the other kids from their group. She didn’t want to watch Ethan getting drunk and acting like an idiot. She had a hard time believing he was really like that.
Darryl seemed to enjoy spending his time with two of them instead of Ethan and he introduced Stacy to another player on the team, Andrew, who took an immediate shine to Stacy. Both were very outgoing in the same way and discussed where they had been hiking and camping more than anyone Faith had ever heard before. How many times could you discuss the same trail and what the best equipment was for each occasion?
Darryl proved to be the opposite of what Ethan seemed to be, and she wondered how they could be such good friends. She found herself drawn to Darryl. He was outspoken in a way that she hadn’t noticed before. In fact, she didn’t know anyone like him. He was unafraid to speak his feelings, never bowed to what someone else’s opinion might be and always seemed to have reasons for everything he believed. He could back up his thoughts with at least three or four other thoughts and back them up, too. He also sang great karaoke and would sometimes clap loudly for no reason, which turned out to be a lot less annoying to Faith than it was the first time he’d done it. He followed it up with a “yeehaw!”
It broke any tension there might have been in the room without a doubt. She loved his sense of humor and the fact that he could make her laugh with only a look.
Saturday night was the last night they would be at the beach. Stacy and Andrew decided they wanted to try the best chicken wings place on the coast, Foster’s Grill.
“You really can’t beat wings and a large Coke,” Stacy said, sipping from her straw with a big grin on her face.
“These wings are incredibly hot.” Faith said, foregoing her straw and drinking from the cup itself, filling her mouth up to cool it down.
“You got the wrong ones then,” Darryl said. He scooted his plate toward her. “I got mild. You wanna try one?”
She looked at him. “You’re a man, and you’re eating mild wings?”
He lifted his eyebrows. “Well, excuse me. I guess I’ll take the offer back then.” He hooked his finger on the plate and attempted to pull it back toward himself, but she slapped his fingers lightly.
“No, no, I was only teasing. Yeah, I wanna try your wings.”
He laughed, shaking his head. “I got a sensitive stomach when it comes to hot stuff.” He admitted. “You won’t see me eating any curry or getting into one of those ‘see if you can eat the hottest wings on the planet’ contests. No thanks.” He folded his arms in front of him on the table and leaned forward with a smile.
“Me neither.” Faith shook her head. “And yeah, I guess I got the wrong wings.”
“It’s all you can eat night,” Stacy said. “You can get a different kind for the next round.”
“How many are you going to eat?” Faith asked incredulously. “You’ve already had, like, twenty of them.”
Stacy shrugged. “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe a dozen more?”
“You can have these. I can’t eat them.” Faith pushed her plate toward Stacy, who opened her eyes wide and stared at the plate as though she hadn’t already had almost two dozen of them.
“Oh yum! Thank you, girlfriend.”
Faith laughed and nodded. She looked over at Darryl, who was staring across the room, a watchful look on his face. She turned so she could see what he was looking at. Ethan was across the room with two girls, one arm around each of their shoulders. He was talking loudly, but they couldn’t hear what he was saying.
“What do you think he’s doing over there?” Faith asked, looking back to Darryl. He ran his tongue over his lips and shook his head, drawing in a deep breath.
“No idea. Why? You want me to go fetch him for you?”
She was surprised and looked at him, tilting her head. “No.” She laughed. “Why would you even ask that?”
He shrugged. “I thought you liked him.”
She was surprised again and looked closely at him. It looked as though something was bothering him. “Are you all right?”
“Sure.”
“I’m gonna go over there for a minute.” Stacy grabbed a chicken wing off Faith’s plate and scooted out of the booth, not indicating where she meant by “there.” She looked at Andrew. “Come with me, Andrew.”
“But I’m ea…”
“Grab a wing and come with me, Andrew!” Stacy demanded, lightheartedly, moving her eyes in Faith and Darryl’s direction for a moment. Andrew looked at the two and then back at Stacy.
“Oh! Oh, all right, yeah, let’s go over there.” He scooted over t
he bench toward Stacy, who had stood up.
Stacy grinned at Faith. “Clueless!” She said softly before grabbing Andrew’s hand and tugging on him, moving through the crowd.
Faith watched them leave. “What was that all about?” She turned back to Darryl. He still looked somewhat sullen, and she didn’t understand why. “What is going on with you, Darryl? What are you thinking about?”
“Well, I was just wondering,” Darryl said. “Do you still want to tutor me in English? I mean, I think it’s pretty obvious that Ethan doesn’t want to go out with you.”
Faith lifted her eyebrows in surprise. “Well! Where did that come from?”
“I think it’s the truth. Don’t you?”
“Well…” she turned her eyes and looked at Ethan again. He wasn’t paying her any attention. He hadn’t for most of the weekend. She’d enjoyed spending her time with Stacy and Darryl. She hadn’t really thought that much about Ethan or the “deal” she’d made with Darryl to tutor him in exchange for his help in getting a chance to date Ethan. “I kind of thought that since you were friends with him, you could help me out with that, bring me to his attention.”
Darryl huffed and shook his head, his face turning a bit dark.
She put one hand on his folded arm.
“But, Darryl, I see now that he…well, he isn’t really my type.”
He looked at her, and she felt her heart jump. His eyes were very revealing. He was a blunt kind of guy anyway. But even if he hadn’t been, she would have been able to see what he was thinking in his eyes.
“I can see that he isn’t interested.” She conceded.
“So where does that leave me? I have to worry about my future, you know. I have to think about my classes and football and all that. I don’t have time to be messing around. He can spend his time getting drunk and doing stupid things.”
“Or girls.”
Darryl couldn’t resist smiling. “Yeah. That, too. I have my future to think about.”
“I know. I do, too.”
“You know what you’re going to do in your future. You don’t have to worry about it.”