Andromeda

Chapter Five

The remainder of that period was a haze. Anna did not return to class, still reeling from the humiliation of running out like that. Once the bell rang, she casually slipped into the crowds of students as they flooded the hallways, anxious to get away from classes and move on with the rest of their day. Anna kept her head down, trying not to make contact with anyone who might have seen her little episode.

She wondered what she was going to say to her parents when she got home. They wanted to know every time she had a spasm, but at the same time, she hated the idea of making them worry, considering that this one had been the worst one to date. She sure as hell couldn't let Abigail know about it. Abigail would never let her hear the end of it. Of course, Tamara was probably having a field day with her sudden departure from the classroom, but as far as she was concerned, that did not compare to what Jason must have thought.

Anna struggled to put it out of her mind. Most days, she would spend her time after school hours in homeroom or the library working on assignments, as Lynn did not come to pick them up until Daisy was let out, which was usually at least an hour. This time, however, despite her embarrassment, she decided to head out to the track and field where Jason said he was having Lacrosse practice.

There were less people out at the track than she expected to find. There were only about a dozen boys on the field, and Anna guessed that they were conducting tryouts. Of course, with it being such a small town, she imagined it did not involve a whole lot of trying out. There were about twice as many girls sitting around in the stands in several groups, not even paying attention to the boys but just chatting and giggling amongst themselves. Not wanting to draw attention to herself, Anna slipped in among the lower section of the bleachers.

She quickly spotted Jason on the field, practicing passing the ball to one of the other boys. Anna watched with fascination as they caught the ball smoothly in the nets of their sticks. Something about the way they moved so fluidly had captivated Anna's attention. She almost couldn't take her eyes off the ball as it transferred back and forth between them. She found her mind going back into Calculus mode, ceaselessly tracking the movement of the ball and sticks. It was almost as though she was out there herself, waiting to snatch the ball out of the air with pinpoint precision.

Barely half an hour had gone by before the boys started packing up their equipment and the girls began to disperse from the bleachers. Anna looked around aimlessly, wondering if it was time for her to move along as well. Frankly, she was beginning to wonder if coming here was worth it.

"Hey, you made it!"

Anna jumped from her distracted trance. She turned back to the field to see Jason approaching. Anna forced a smile on her face as she shifted awkwardly where she sat.

"I wasn't sure you were coming," Jason said as he leaned against the short fence separating the field from the bleachers. "Is everything okay? You didn't seem like you wanted to be bothered when you left class."

Anna's face started to go red. "I'm so sorry about that."

"Don't be," Jason responded. "What happened anyway? You looked like something was hurting you."

"You noticed?" Anna said, lowering her head. "I don't wanna talk about it. To be honest, it's kind of embarrassing."

"Well, would it help if I told you something embarrassing about myself?"

"I don't know," Anna snickered. "I doubt it could compare."

Jason just shrugged his shoulders. "Don't think about it. Hardly anyone even noticed. In fact, Tamara was the only one talking about you."