Mina twirled the knob on her locker so fast she was sure it wasn’t going to open, but it did. Go, go, go, with a new sense of urgency, hearing a laugh she’d already come to recognize as belonging to Tom Evans. She grabbed her backpack, slammed the door, and turned to bolt for the bus, running smack into Sam. She bounced back, lost her balance and landed against the lockers, the noise bringing heads around. Sam caught her before she hit the floor, pulling her up against him. Aware of the stares, Mina struggled to get free. “Let go of me,” she hissed in a low voice. “Everyone is looking at us.”
“Do you think I care? I need to talk to you, so please don’t leave.”
Feeling his hands drop away, she went to cut around him, but stopped when he spoke.
“I said please.”
She turned to face him again. “Fine. But not here. Outside.” Without waiting, Mina turned on her heel and walked away, trying to ignore the snickers.
Tom Evans stepped in front of her. “Look, Mina, I’m sorry. I was just fooling around.”
Mina put her hand up, palm outward. “Stop.” She skirted him and pounded down the stairs, weaving around kids working their way up. Once through the open double doors, she wasn’t sure which way to turn. Students milled around everywhere, waiting for the final bell to ring; then, and only then, would the bus drivers swing open their doors. Before Mina could decide where to go, the bell rang, and the bus doors opened with a clunk, as if by magic. She had no choice. If she didn’t get on now, she might miss the bus or worse yet, have to ask someone to make room for her in a seat. She climbed on board and dropped into the third seat from the front, her eyes trained on the backpack in her lap. Mina didn’t want to see Sam’s face when he came out and realized she was gone.
“Move over.”
Mina looked up, so shocked she didn’t move.
“Mina. Move over.”
Sliding closer to the window, she found her voice at the same time. “What’re you doing? This isn’t your bus.” She glanced at the bus driver, who watched them in the elongated rear view mirror mounted on the visor.
“I know this isn’t my bus. I told you I wanted to talk to you, and you’ve been avoiding me all day.” Sam sat down next to her.
Mina went into panic mode. “You can’t come to my house. I’m sorry, but you can’t. My family isn’t like yours,” she blurted out, talking fast, feeling slightly hysterical. “You don’t understand my mother or the way she is. She’ll be—”
“Mina, stop,” Sam interrupted her. “It’s okay. I’ve known you for a while and have never even stepped on your front porch. I kinda figured things might not be so great at your house right now. Nona said you say your house is messy, but everybody’s house gets messy. Look at ours.”
Mina shook her head. “Ours is worse.”
“It can’t be that bad. You should see some of the houses on the rez; they’re wrecks.”
“Trust me, it’s worse. I’m sorry, but you can’t come to my house,” she said in a low voice, fiddling with one of the zipper pulls on her backpack to avoid looking at him.
“I told you; it’s okay.”
The door slammed shut, and the vehicle lurched into motion. Neither of them said anything. Rumbling through the covered bridge, the bus lumbered up the hill and pulled into the mouth of the dirt road near Mina’s house. They both stood. “Meet me down by the bridge,” Sam said in a hushed voice, stepping into the aisle to hold up traffic until she had exited in front of him.
I should just get this over with. Not wanting to take the chance Ma might be in the front yard, she walked to her house, only glancing toward the bus stop as she cut across the front lawn. Sam must have waited there for a couple of minutes, because he was just now starting down the road, his backpack slung over one shoulder.
The house was empty. Dropping her backpack on the bed, Mina changed into her bathing suit. She pulled on shorts and an oversized t-shirt before heading out the back door. Her mother bent over from the waist, weeding the garden in an old house dress. Mina was glad Ma was in the backyard as a breeze came up and lifted her mother’s dress well past her prominent backside. Mina flushed at the sight of the dingy, stretched out, nylon underwear, and what they revealed. Thank goodness she’s not in the flower gardens out front.
She headed toward the other side of the yard where Emma was on her knees in front of a rusty old metal lawn chair. As Mina moved closer, she could see her sister playing with her homemade paper dolls. She’d cut the figures out of a Sears catalog someone had tossed into the recycling bin at the post office. The post office hooked to the little general store where Mina bought Emma chocolate milk for the walk home after church. Upon spying it, Emma insisted she had to have it. Mina shook her head no, wondering if Emma had picked up some of their mother’s tendencies for having to have stuff, but gave in when Emma pleaded. She’d even lugged the book home after it got too heavy for Emma. At Mina’s request, Winona picked up some poster board and a couple of glue sticks at the dollar store. Together, Mina and Emma had glued the catalog figures onto the board and cut around them. Emma played with them constantly, even putting them under her pillow at night.
“Hey, kiddo.”
Emma looked up at her approach, her thin face split by a large grin. “You wanna play?”
“No. How about we go swimming instead?”
Emma wrinkled her nose. “Naw.”
“Come on, it’s really hot out.”
“Not here in the shade. I’ll let you be the pretty girl in the bathing suit.” Emma waved the piece of paper around as an enticement. “Okay?”
Mina shook her head. “Not today.” What was she going to do? She always took Emma swimming with her. Of all the times for Em to decide she doesn’t want to go. “Are you sure you don’t want to go for a swim?”
Emma shook her head. Maybe it was better if Em wasn’t there to see this. Why? Are you going to do something stupid like cry? Mina wasn’t sure; it already hurt on the inside just thinking about it. “Okay.”
Turning back toward her mother, Mina averted her eyes again. “Ma, I’m going down to the bridge for a swim to cool off. I’ll be back in a little while.” She didn’t expect her mother to answer, but knew she heard.
“Mina? I’ll go, if you really want me to.”
Bending down, Mina gave Emma a squeeze and a peck on her temple. It felt awkward, but she was determined Emma wasn’t going to miss out entirely on affection. “That’s okay, kiddo. You stay and play with your dolls, and I’ll be back before you know it.”
Mina crossed the lawn again and paused on the flat rock step in the middle of the ramshackle stone wall edging their driveway. Should I go, or just forget it? Glancing down, she noticed the freshly turned dirt and lack of weeds in the small bed of perennials facing the road. Oh no, she was out here. Mina couldn’t imagine what people must have thought when they drove by. I hope none of the kids from school saw Ma. She didn’t want to even think about that possibility.
Sam dove off the cement retaining wall that stretched halfway across the river. The motion propelled him forward as he glided close to the river bed. He surfaced and decided to dive for rocks, but it was no fun alone. He lay on his back, floating as he studied the white fluff of clouds against the blue sky, but found no unusual shapes and gave up after a few minutes. Where is she?
Sam couldn’t quite believe his eyes when he’d walked into homeroom today. He hadn’t seen her most of the summer, but Mina was definitely not chubby anymore. He’d watched her from the other side of the room; he couldn’t help it. And when the teacher called her up to the front, Sam’s jaw dropped. She’d gone from being plump to all curves, nicely arranged on that compact frame…and braiding her hair? It was soft and smelled so good…his body had tuned right in and he had to turn away before Mina noticed. Damn. Again? All I did was think about her hair and—what the hell is wrong with me? I know what being a horny dog can lead to—and that’s not going to happen again. The last thing I need to do is knock up a girl
—and this isn’t some girl, it’s Mina. Get it out of your head.
Sam rolled over in the water and swam fast laps, first against the current and then with it, again and again, until the muscles in his arms burned with the exertion. Breathing heavy, he swam back to the wall and pulled himself up on the edge to rest a moment, stretching his arms up behind his head to relax shoulder muscles tense from the prolonged exercise. He walked to the picnic table where he’d left his backpack, put his sneakers on and pulled his t-shirt over his head. Where is she? Sam took the set of steps leading up to the road two at a time and stood looking up the hill, hoping to catch sight of her. Nope. He turned back and went to sit on the picnic table.
What’s up with you, Miller? That was a good question. He’d been on his way into the gym this afternoon, saw Blair and Naomi sitting on the bottom bleacher and veered across the room toward his brothers. Then out of the corner of his eye, he’d caught sight of Winona, Mina, and Tom Evans. He hadn’t liked it, not one bit. Cramming himself in between Winona and Mina when Evans didn’t move, Sam had tried to ignore Joe across the way, grinning like an idiot. Joe must have said something to Ori, because Ori had looked over at him and wagged his head. I’ll hear about that later.
What are you doing here? Do you like her? Sam liked a whole bunch of things about her. Mina was smart, but never flaunted it. She didn’t constantly talk about nothing like other girls. She always watched out for her younger sister and his younger sisters too. The list went on, but there was one thing that made the top, hands down. Mina had taken the time to help him learn to read, no easy task, and never told a soul. And though she never brought it up, Sam knew she picked her own classes with him in mind.
Mina said she didn’t want a boyfriend, and Sam believed her. She never drew attention to herself; if anything, she was the opposite. But she’d come back to school looking like every guy’s dream…or mine at least. His body clued him in to that fact. Now what? Would one of these guys loitering around change her mind? Not if I can help it. The thought just popped into his head. Okay, so you do like her. The question is, what are you going to do about it?
Despite taking her time, Mina was at the covered bridge in just a few minutes. She walked down the wooden steps to the area by the falls. Sam sat on top of the picnic table in a pair of blue gym shorts and a t-shirt, facing the river, his back to her. His hair was still in a braid, but the wet spot spreading across the back of his shirt let her know he’d been swimming.
He twisted around and looked relieved to see Mina.
“Hi.” He smiled at her. “I wasn’t sure you were going to show up.”
Mina stopped at his greeting.
“Do you want to swim?” When she didn’t say anything, he continued on, “You’ve got your bathing suit on under there, don’t you?”
She nodded.
“Do you want to take a dip or not?”
Mina shook her head. “My Dad will be coming soon. And if he tells Ma he saw me here with you, I’ll probably get in trouble.”
“Ahh, okay. So what do you want to do? Swim or not? Do you want to go to Regent’s?”
Regent’s Pool was a more secluded spot with a deeper swimming hole down the river a ways.
Mina shook her head again. “Too far, I don’t have that much time. You wanted to talk, remember?” She still hadn’t moved.
“Are you going to sit down, at least?”
“How about we sit on the rocks by the shoot? My father won’t see us down past the falls.”
Sam headed down the path toward Regent’s Pool, veering off onto another path that opened out onto large smooth rocks. A few feet away, the rock dropped off into a man-made channel that a hundred or so years before corralled the river water and forced it through a wheel to create energy for the mill that sat atop it. The river was riddled with such channels chiseled through the rock, and they were popular swimming spots. Despite the heat, no one else was there today. Sam sat down on the warm rocks, crossed his legs, and waited.
Mina stopped, kicked off her flip flops, and dropped down a couple of feet away, also crossing her legs. She picked at some moss growing in a crevice.
Neither spoke for a few moments.
“I’m sorry for the way I acted in assembly today.”
Mina continued to dig at the moss. “What was that all about?” She looked up when Sam didn’t answer right away. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Like what? What’re you talkin’ about?”
This is it. He was going to tell her about Naomi. I can’t hear this. I can’t. Brushing her hands off, she made to stand. “I have to get home.”
“Wait.” Sam reached out as she started to rise.
Mina looked down at his hand as if it were an alien creature. “Please let go.”
Releasing her, he held his hands up, palms out. “Sorry. Sit down. Please.” Sam waited until she settled back down a little further away from him. “Mina, I’m sorry about today. I guess I was being stupid. I’m your friend, and I don’t want to see you get hurt.”
He doesn’t want me to get hurt? When he’s going to hurt me more than any old name calling ever could? “Say what you have to say, and get it over with.”
“Okay, don’t bite my head off.” Sam took a breath. “Sometimes, you think someone is your friend, but it turns out they want more.”
You mean like Naomi? “Who?” Just say it! Mina shouted in silence.
“I don’t know who. One of the bunch circling around.”
Naomi. “Who?” she repeated, this time barely a whisper.
“How do I explain this?” Sam thought for a moment. “Look, not everyone is interested in brains.”
Good thing you picked Naomi then.
“Some guys are only interested in a great body.”
“Enough. I get it!” Mina shouted, jumping up. “Naomi’s got a great body. You like it. I’m happy for you. I gotta go.” She turned and ran. At the main path, she turned left and ran down the hill toward Regent’s.
“Mina? What’re you doing? What’s wrong?” Sam was on his feet and after her in a second. He had his sneakers on, but she was barefoot and running downhill at top speed, oblivious to sharp rocks and sticks that littered the path. “Mina, slow down, you’re going to get hurt.” He picked up speed too. Mina arrived at the open field, but instead of stopping, she ran all out. But Sam was faster, much faster. Grabbing her by the arm, he spun her around.
“Mina, what the hell is going on?”
Mina was doubled over, trying to catch her breath, her hands resting above her knees. He’s not even winded. “Naomi. You like Naomi,” she said between puffs.
“Who told you that?”
“You did.”
“When?”
“Just now.” Mina stayed bent over. “You said bodies instead of brains. No offense to your girlfriend. Besides, I know she’s been over to your house, more than once this summer, and you sat next to her in homeroom this morning.” Straightening, she pushed a stray strand of hair out of her face. “It’s okay. I knew it was coming.”
“Are you serious?” Sam shook his head. “Naomi Sanders? Not in this lifetime. I sat next to her this morning because it was the only open seat left, and yes, she came to my house a couple of times this summer. Lots of kids did, except for you. Is that why you didn’t?”
Accusation laced his words. She shrugged.
“Pay attention now, because I’m only going to say this once. There’s no me and Naomi Sanders, got it?” At her nod, he continued. “I was talking about you, and all the guys coming out of the woodwork.”
He isn’t going out with Naomi Sanders? “What?” Mina realized she’d missed the last thing he’d said.
“I’m trying to tell you some guys are going to want to go out with you for one thing, and it’s not your brains. Analyze that.” He waited.
It took all of a second for Mina to analyze it. A rapid blush stained her cheeks. “I’m the great body?” At his nod, Mina felt her face flush e
ven more as the rest of what he said registered. “I’m not a complete idiot, Sam Miller. I’m not going to fall all over someone just because they pay me some attention.”
“Mina, look at yourself. Guys will tell you things they think you’ll want to hear to convince you they care about you.”
Mina shook her head. “Yeah, right.” She turned and started back across the field, only to stop after a couple of steps. She dropped to the ground and twisted her foot around, trying to study the bottom. “I think I’ve got something in my foot.”
“Let me see.” He dropped to his knees in front of her. Rubbing his hand across the sole of her foot, he stopped when she jumped. Looking closer, Sam pulled out a thorn.
“Thanks. Ouch, that stings.” She scraped her foot back and forth on the ground a couple of times. “Okay, I’ll go along with this for a minute.” Mina pulled her legs up, wrapped her arms around them, and rested her chin on her knee. “If you’re such an expert, tell me, what are they going to think I’ll want to hear? Keep in mind I’ve been in school with most of these boys since kindergarten and haven’t spoken two words to most of them.”
“I don’t know…let me think.” He was still on his knees, eye level with her. “Ahh, they’ll tell you lots of things, like you’re pretty, or…” Sam hesitated. “You dress nice.” Mina rolled her eyes, and he ignored her, thinking for a minute. “Maybe they’ll say they like your hair because it smells like flowers, or that you’re the smartest person they know. Or maybe even that you don’t smile much, but when you do you look very happy and glow…” He trailed off, staring at her.
Mina didn’t move. Wow. Her insides felt all mushy. It was a good thing he wasn’t really telling her these things; she just might fall for it. Does he tell other girls this? That thought set her back for a moment. You don’t care, remember? College? Hello! Mina straightened and cleared her throat. “Well, that’s all very fascinating. I guess it’s a good thing I’m not interested in having a boyfriend. So, it’s really not an issue.”
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