A stream of students was flowing out of the gym to the locker rooms. I walked slowly toward them, pretending to be looking in my bag while covertly surveying the mass of bodies for Chase. He was handsome, I’d give him that much, with sandy hair and a strong jawline. His stock photo cuteness had always irked me, and it only bothered me more that I cared at all.
Where was he? Had I missed him? A moment of panic seized me along with the fear that all my work had been for nothing when I saw him breeze out of the gym wearing his Heller High Athletic Department tee and sweatpants.
In one terrified moment, I decided to collapse to the ground and start sniffling, praying that he would stop. My face was in my hands and I squeezed my eyes shut, willing a couple of tears out. Risking a peek through my fingers, I saw him glance in my direction and then around the hall, which had emptied of everyone but us.
He cleared his throat, clearly straining against the impulse to leave me there or kick me while I was down. “Hey, um, what’s wrong with you?”
“I—” I faltered. I hadn’t thought this far. “I’m ok. I just had a really tough conversation with my sister.” April was never far from my thoughts, and she was the first person who popped into my mind.
“Oh,” he said. For a second, I thought he would leave it at that, but he continued, “Is she ok?” The words were forced through stiff lips. This wasn’t going well. He looked down the hall again, trying to find an escape.
“She’s a wheelchair user, and has been for a while, but she quit physical therapy.” April was a wheelchair user, but she was a star at physical therapy. I didn’t feel right lying about her. My sister was the one who was always on my side when I argued with my parents. The one who used to sneak me dessert when I didn’t finish my dinner. She was my soft center that I protected with a fence. An electric fence. Topped with barbed wire. I’d even considered adding a moat with crocodiles around it for good measure.
Something shifted in Chase’s expression, and his mouth tightened to a thin line. My lie stripped him of his normal bravado.
“My older brother was in a car wreck last year. He went through something similar. Not nearly as serious, but he tried to quit PT, too. Said it was too hard.” His sincerity was astounding. What universe was I in that Chase was nice to me? When we had to recite Shakespeare soliloquies in English last year, he was the only one who didn’t clap for me. We clapped for everyone; it was required.
I sniffled loudly for effect. “What did you do?”
He paused for a beat and flicked his eyes to mine before looking away again. “I was getting my license at the time, so I offered to drive him. When he said he wouldn’t go, I told him I would only practice driving with him. He knew how badly I wanted to drive, so he agreed. Twice a week, I drove him to PT and back.” A wide smile stretched across his face, and his eyes unfocused like he was seeing into a memory woven by his words. “He was with me when I passed my driver’s test last week.”
My own grin crept onto my face until I was smiling as broadly as Chase. His plan was hopeful, and just a bit devious. I could appreciate both aspects equally. Also, my own birthday was two weeks ago. I was a week older than him and that made me feel warm, almost happy.
I thought back to my lie and my smile faded to a frown. “I already have my license,” I murmured.
Chase’s attention snapped back to me and a blush crept up his neck. “I...I wasn’t suggesting you do the same thing or anything like that. I don’t know anything about your sister. It’s just... It’s just that sometimes you have to pull people outside of themselves. Get a different look at things, you know?”
“Thanks,” I said.
Chase nodded and began to walk away. I suddenly remembered that our exchange was supposed to result in a staged photo and scrambled to think of something else to say.
“Chase!”
“Yeah?” He had the barest hint of a smile. I’d never said his name before, only cursed it silently.
“Did he get better? Your brother?” I stalled for just a bit more time.
My hand went absently to fiddle with the ends of my long brown hair, pulled into a no-frills ponytail. One nervous tell I hadn’t been able to stifle.
His smile turned fond. “He did. He’s going to school to be a physical therapist, actually.”
He turned to go again, so I stood up suddenly, gave a yelp of pain, and reached down to my ankle.
Alarmed, Chase jogged back and reached out to steady me at the waist. I put some weight on my faux-injured ankle and let it buckle. Chase’s grip tightened and I pulled him close to me for the briefest second before righting myself and letting go. He smelled warm and spicy, better than a boy should smell after gym.
“It must have gone numb from sitting on it wrong. Please go. I’m sure you’re already running late for something.”
He gave the slightest suggestion of a shrug. “I don’t have anything that won’t keep for another minute. Are you sure you’re ok? I’d hate to leave you here with a hurt ankle. You’ll be trampled when the bell rings.” Was that a joke? Were we friends now?
As if on cue, the bell rang, signaling the end of the day. I put my foot down again and made a show of testing my ankle’s strength.
“It’s fine, really. Go.” Suddenly, I couldn’t bear to be next to him. Even though he’d just finished gym, I was the one who needed a shower.
“Alright, Ember. I hope you and your sister work it out.”
We turned at the same time to head in opposite directions. It was only after I peeked over my shoulder to see him ducking into the boys’ locker room that I realized he’d said my name. It gave me a small shiver of delight.
A hand shot out from behind a pillar and jerked me back. I forgot Haley was stationed there, so I quickly joined her behind the pillar and glanced at her face. She looked triumphant and held up a cell phone with a picture of Chase and me. He had both hands on my waist and my face was tucked neatly into his neck. It could have been innocent, but what really sold the whole thing was his expression. He had this relaxed, confident look on his face that said there was nowhere else he’d rather be. It was perfect.
“Ember!” Haley gave me a small but rough shove. “You nailed it. I couldn’t hear what you said, though. How did you get him to do it?”
Something told me not to divulge the details of our conversation to Haley. I didn’t think telling her about my sister would do me any favors in the long run. April said she never told anyone who caused her accident, that as far as the Red Court and the rest of the school knew, she believed it was just bad luck. My attitude with Haley had to be beyond reproach so she never doubted my intentions about joining. Everything depended on it.
“I just told him some sob story.” Keep it close to the truth. “He ate it up, too. Seems like he’s not the worst guy after all.”