by K. Walker
“I knew it wouldn’t last,” I whispered to Amanda, referring to Callie’s absence.
Amanda groaned. “Tell me about it.”
Callie tightened her lips and didn’t even as much as acknowledge the man. He glowered at her and watched; the entire class sat silent as she slipped quietly into her seat and stared at the desk.
I glanced over my shoulder just in time to see Zoe handing her something. She ripped it from the girl’s hand.
“Ow!” Zoe’s lips mouthed.
Callie’s face was stone as she looked forward again, and then her eyes met mine. I didn’t linger. I turned away quickly, but I knew she was still looking. I didn’t want to be on her radar with that attitude, as if she wasn’t bad enough already.
I raised my brows at Amanda, and she sighed before Mr. Anglin resumed the class. I was one of the first students through the door as soon as the class was over. I wasn’t scared of her, but I hated always having to defend myself over one crap or another.
“See you later,” I called to Amanda when I noticed her behind me.
She said. “See ya.”
I grinned and hurried off. Second period was better. None of them were taking World Literature. But I dreaded lunch and yet another outburst.
Sophia: Hey, babe
Chad: Hi, beautiful. Aren’t you in World Lit or something now?
Sophia: Lol! Are you spying on me?
Chad: I know everything about you, don’t you know that?
Sophia: I’m beginning to see that. Stalker!
Chad: Dwl! Call me anything you like.
Sophia: Guess I’ll see you at lunch. And have you seen Callie? She seems pretty pissed. You think that was from yesterday?
Chad: Nah. That’s her resting state. Callie always has a chip on her shoulder.
Sophia: You’re right. I’ll ignore her. See you later. Love you!
Chad: Back at you!
Even after that, I wasn’t convinced Callie wasn’t a ticking time bomb. I just didn’t want to get caught in her crosshairs.
When we converged in the cafeteria, Alexi was MIA, and so was Stacey. I checked the room as I hurried to the table with my tray. Callie wasn’t there either. But her girls were— another weird coincidence.
“Hey, look,” I said to Amanda as I slid into the seat. “She’s not here again.”
Amanda looked at the table. “Nope. Not sure why you’re checking for her, but…” she shrugged and spooned some of her mashed potatoes into her mouth.
“It’s hard not to notice weird things. Plus, I’m kinda expecting her to go full-frontal today after the way Chad threatened her yesterday.”
“That’s not new, sweetheart,” Liz said with a wave of her hand. “Chad and Callie have been like this ever since they broke up or before. She wanted to control him, and couldn’t, so she gets mad at everyone else. And then, there’s her mother. Sad,” she ended and clicked her tongue.
“Oh, right. Her mother,” I said listlessly as I remembered the conversation from the bathroom. Any mother who would help to ruin families’ lives must be ridiculous to live with – but people like Callie always got their way.
“No, that pass was the lamest one I’ve ever seen!”
My heart sped up when I heard Chad’s voice, and I looked over at the entrance. He and his boys were just coming into the cafeteria, tossing a football over everyone’s heads and making a ruckus.
I groaned and lowered my head. “Please tell me they’re staying over there.”
Liz giggled. “Nope. Here he comes.”
I looked back up just in time to see him over me, just before he slid into the seat next to me. He threw his hand around my shoulder and kissed me on the cheek.
“Do you have to be loud all the time?”
“Um, kinda! I’m the QB1. How else will they hear me?” he grinned.
“I don’t know, maybe whisper? They’re right there,” I said and rolled my eyes.
“Is that attitude I’m hearing?” he asked and pulled me tighter to him. “Because if it is, you’re not coming over later, for that thing.”
I giggled. “What thing? I don’t know about any thing,” I said and tried to pull away from him. “You’re kinda crushing my lungs with those QB1 arms.”
“Oh,” he said and loosened his hold without letting go.
“I can’t with you both,” Amanda said and started to get up. “Gotta go!”
“Aww…Amanda’s a little jealous,” Chad pouted his lips and teased, as Liz and Stacey giggled. “Maybe we should do something about that.”
“No, thank you,” Amanda said bitterly.
“Does that mean you don’t want to meet that…I don’t know…hot guy, who’ll be at the exclusive get together at my house later?”
All eyes looked at Amanda as her cheeks started to color. “What hot guy? Chad, get away from me!” she hurled and started to walk off.
“Okay! Don’t say I didn’t try!” he yelled after her.
“Why are you so ‘not nice’ sometimes?” Liz asked and shook her head. “She doesn’t even want a boyfriend.”
“Everyone wants a boyfriend,” Chad grinned. “It’s how you make the most of your senior year. You want to look back at your life years later and groan with contempt?”
“Look at that,” Stacey drawled. “He has a word like contempt in his vocabulary.”
Chad narrowed his eyes at the unimpressed Stacey who tried to avoid his gaze. “I have a couple more words in my vocabulary. Would you like to hear them?”
“Okay, that’s enough,” I said and patted Chad’s chest. “I think you’re needed over there.”
He glared at Stacey a while longer before his eyes softened and he looked back at me. “Fine. Later, babe,” he said and kissed me.
I was blushing when I looked at Stacey. “Sorry,” I apologized.
“Nothing to apologize for,” Liz said and drank from her water bottle. “She started it, and he didn’t actually say anything.”
“Whose side are you on?” Stacey spat.
“No one’s,” Liz replied airily. “I’m on the right side.”
“Ugh!” I groaned. I hated when a semi-fight started because of my boyfriend. “So, anyone coming to the house later?” I asked and pushed up my shoulders as I pleaded with Stacey in particular.
“Nope,” she replied without hesitation. “I can do with one day without all of that.”
I glanced at the raucous table of hormone-driven football goons she was indicating. Maybe if Chad wasn’t my boyfriend, I’d be more offended. “Okay,” I sighed.
“Count me in,” Alexi replied as she tore her eyes off of Brody.
“Of course,” Stacey said bitterly. “I guess that means you won’t be coming over to my house, then?”
Alexi looked apologetically at her. “I’m sorry, hun.” She reached across the table to touch Stacey’s hand. She pulled it back. “I’ll come over tomorrow.”
“Stacey…” I said as she started to pack the remainder of her lunch onto her tray. “Don’t leave.”
“I’m sorry, too,” she said and walked away.
Alexi, Liz, and I stared at each other. “I guess that leaves just us,” I sighed.
“They’ll be fine,” Alexi said confidently.
“But maybe Chad has a point,” Liz piped in. “I wouldn’t want to hang with us either and feel like the odd one out.”
“You’re right,” I agreed.
“Well, let’s throw some boys their way. Let’s see if Chad really was serious about Amanda,” Liz said excitedly.
“Amanda’s going to hate me for that,” I groaned.
“But she’ll appreciate it later, for not having the suckiest senior year ever! This year should be epic, and we know she’s interested.”
“Yep,” Alexi said.
“So, let’s do it!” Liz exclaimed.
I wasn’t so sure about that plan, but hey, if it saved us some grief from those two girls, it would be well worth it.
Possibly!<
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I didn’t see either Liz or Stacey for the rest of the day. Or Callie. When we reached the parking lot that evening, her car wasn’t there either. She must have gone home early.
It seemed the longer I stayed in that town, the harder it became to have a simple life. Everything was complicated and weird and unnerving.
“Do you think she knows about what they’re planning?” I asked as I stared at her empty parking slot.
“Does who know what who’s planning?” Alexi asked.
“Callie. Maybe she knows what’s going down, and that’s why she’s keeping a low profile.”
Alexi sighed and clapped me on the shoulder. “Grasshopper, you worry about Callie too much. If I had to guess, I would say she got into it with her mother again and she cut her allowance. Or she didn’t do something she wanted.”
“It’s true,” Liz said. “It has happened before.”
“Oh,” I said and relaxed a bit. “Maybe that’s it.”
But I couldn’t shake the feeling there was more to it than that. But then, I hadn’t lived in Madison Falls for all of my life – the girls must be right.
“Okay, come on,” I said and opened my door. “We have a ‘thing’ to get to.”
“Yay!” Alexi cheered and walked off. “See you there.”
“Yep,” I replied and got in.
Liz nodded and hurried off, her hair swooshing over her shoulders as she did.
Chapter 11
Chad
“Took y’all long enough,” I said as I rose to greet my girl. I pulled her into my arms and kissed her like I hadn’t seen her all day.
“Damn, dog, slow your roll,” Deven laughed from behind me.
I didn’t stop, until she pulled away, blushing heavily because she hated being observed making out, which is why I did it all the time. Maybe a dick move, but I had to break her out of her shell.
“Um,” she said and swiped her hair behind her ear like she always did when she was nervous. “Hey, guys.”
“Come here, mama!” Brody said as Alexi straddled him and they started kissing.
“And you say I was bad,” I chuckled.
“I stand corrected,” Deven said as he grabbed a cushion from the chair and smacked Brody in the back of the head with it. “Not allowed right now.”
“We could always go upstairs,” Brody grinned and punched him on the arm.
“I think I like that idea,” Alexi laughed.
“No,” I said resolutely. “We came here to hang, and that’s what we’re going to do. This is a fuck-free evening, so get used to it,” I warned.
“A what?” Sophia giggled.
“Some shit he just made up,” Brody whined.
“I don’t see why we can’t have a little fun with our girls, and hang, too,” Cody said as he snuggled with Liz.
“Jesus, you guys are becoming so lame,” Chad argued.
“Help us out, Sophia,” Cody said in a muffled voice as he nuzzled Liz’s neck.
“I agree with Chad,” she said.
“That’s my girl,” I beamed and took her hand.
“Wuss!” Brody complained as he slapped Alexi’s ass and she climbed off of him and slipped onto the sofa next to him instead.
“Okay, what’s the plan, because this isn’t the ‘thing’ you were talking about,” Sophia said and cocked her head to the side as she stared at me.
“I just wanted us to hang. Is that a crime?” I asked her. The truth was, with everything going down between Brody and the cops, and Callie, I wanted to keep things as light and calm with everyone as best as I could, and with as much beer and tequila.
“Chad?” Sylvia called as her head pushed around the corner to the den.
“What?” I asked. “You know you shouldn’t be down here now.”
“I know,” she said with all the adolescent attitude she could muster at twelve. “I just need some money, and then you can go back to ‘playing’ with your friends,” she smirked and air quoted the word ‘playing’.
I knew what she meant, being a smart ass. I narrowed my eyes and walked up to her. “Why do you need money from me, you little twat?” I asked and started tickling her.
“Chad, stop!” she screamed and ran off. “This isn’t funny,” she cried. I looked up when we reached the living room to see she had company over too.
“Oh,” I said straightened, scratching my head as I did. “Hi, Courtney.”
“Hi,” the girl replied as a wide grin spread across her face.
“Okay, why do you need money?” I asked more civilly and with a smile.
She scoffed and pulled me to the side. “Because that’s Courtney, and I don’t want to look lame, so I want to order something online, and I don’t have enough money.”
I folded my arms across my chest. “Buy what?”
“Does it matter?” she asked impatiently, but I stared her down until she relented. “Okay, fine. It’s a new makeup product,” she said very softly that I barely heard her.
“A what?” I chuckled.
“I knew you wouldn’t get it,” she said and started to turn.
I grabbed her arm. “I didn’t say I wouldn’t, but why do you need makeup?”
“I don’t,” she said through clenched teeth and her shoulders grew tense. “But it’s Fenty!”
I wrinkled my brows. “I’m sorry, should that mean something.”
“It’s the new Rihanna line, and everyone’s wearing it.”
I sighed. “Girls.”
“Like you don’t act like that overtires,” she said in a feisty way.
I chuckled and reached into my pocket. I took out my wallet and slipped the credit card from the slot and watched as her face lit. “Borrow this, and don’t make me have to kill you.”
“Thank you, thank you!” she said and bounced on her feet. “Courtney, guess who’s going shopping?” she asked and waved the card in her hand.
Courtney clapped her hands as Sylvia hurried over to her. They already had the laptop going and their eyes glued to the screen by the time I turned back around.
“What did she want this time? A jaguar?” Deven laughed when I returned.
“Fenty,” I replied and laughed.
“What?” Alexi asked in disbelief, and amusement riddled her face. “What’s she doing with Fenty?”
“That was my question, but hey…I don’t get in the way of girls and hormones,” I said and held my hands out. “But I’d much rather give her these harmless things than have her experiment with drugs or other substances.”
I plopped down on the sofa next to Sophia. Deven and Jake had gone out to the pool, and the other couples were laced between each other, apparently making out after I’d gone.
“I agree,” Liz said between kisses. “Okay, we really need to do something else quickly, or I’m going to have to go upstairs.”
Amanda giggled. “Okay, what was your grand plan for today?” Sophia asked as she curled her legs under her. “Surely it’s not this.” She spread her arms out and indicated the room, with nothing going on but kissing and touching.
“You’re right,” I said, “Okay, let’s go to the pool.”
“That works,” Liz said as she flew out of Cody’s lap.
“You all can go on ahead,” Cody grinned.
Alexi glanced over at his crotch and started laughing, and I turned away and took Sophia’s hand. “So, before I go blind, come on.”
“I didn’t bring a suit,” she said as she stumbled after me.
“What about your underwear? Kinda the same as a bikini.”
“Can you be any more dense?” she asked and shoved me. “It’s not the same.”
“Kinda is,” Cody agreed as he stood uncomfortably, shaking his legs one at a time and smoothing out his crotch, much to the girls’ amusement.
“Oh, god,” Liz said as she covered her face in embarrassment. “I’m going outside.”
Deven and Jake were already down to their boxers and leaning casually against the side of t
he pool when we reached outside.
“See?” I asked and pointed at them, “Underwear.”
“Not the same,” Sophia argued and crossed her arms.
“Oh, what the hell,” Alexi said and started to push her jeans to her ankles.
Brody whistled. “That’s my girl.”
Liz shrugged and started to do the same, and then all eyes found Sophia. “You game?” I asked.
“You know, this is essentially the definition of peer pressure,” Sophia said as she started to pull off her sweater top.
“Yep,” Alexi cried as she hooted and jumped into the water. Water splashed around her, sending a mini-wave at Deven and Jake.
“Hey!” Jake howled.
“It’s just a little water,” Liz said, right before she did the same.
“You’re the only one left, babe,” I grinned and waited for her to finish removing her top layers of clothing.
“This is criminal,” Sophia pouted.
“Come on in!” Alexi called. “Water’s great.”
“I bet,” Sophia grumbled and tossed her clothes onto the pool chair. “Happy?”
“Very,” I said and rubbed my hands together as I checked out the black, lace underwear she had on.
Jake whistled.
“Take your eyes off my girl!” I shouted and pointed at him, playfully.
“You wanted them to see, so, voila!” Sophia said as she ran off and dived into the water.
“Alright,” I laughed and was out of my clothes in a jiffy. I grabbed the ball and tossed it into the water. “I’m gonna hook up the net and then we can get a game going.”
“Yeah!” they all shouted and splashed around until I returned.
It didn’t take long for us to be romping around, splashing, swearing at each other over points, and getting messy.
“That wasn’t your serve!” Alexi shouted.
“It was!” Cody replied hotly.
“How would you know? This isn’t football,” Alexi fired back.
“Whatever, man!” Cody said and waved her off. “I’m done, anyhow,” he said and waded to the side of the pool. He jumped up onto the edge and kept his feet dangling in the water.
“Yeah, I’m done, too,” Liz replied.