The Fate of Our Hearts

Chapter 24 - Showing Off Our Tricks

Ren

The sugary sweetness mingles with the peppery pop of carbonated bubbles in my mouth as I take a last sip of the Pepsi I'm sharing with Gio. I pass it to him, and he tips it back over his lips, downing the rest as I pry my homework out of my crammed bag. It's the last Wednesday in January, and as usual, we are about to start our schoolwork out on the football field. 

"Hey, babe?" he says, breaking the silence just as I'm getting into it. 

 "Yeah?" I reply, still engaged in what I'm working on.

"Are you gonna go to your dance class at the Community Center after school today?"

I put my pencil down and glance up at him. "Yes." 

"What time does it start?" a smirk starting to bow the edge of his mouth.

I cock my head to the side and narrow my eyes. "Um, 3:30... why?"

He laughs low and traces a G on my leg. "Um, do they let people come watch?" 

My eyes go wide as I see where he's going with this. A tangle of poorly wired nerves spark and crackle in my stomach as I imagine him watching me dance, and it raises my body temperature by several uncomfortable degrees. 

Crap. Why do I feel so freaked by that?  

Honestly, I had imagined him there watching me last class. But that was in my head—this would be for real. A bead of sweat tickles my armpit as it slides down.

"Um, I'm not sure..." my voice trembles just slightly, giving my uncertainty away.

He ducks his head closer to me and smiles reassuringly, his eyes glimmering hopefully.  "I'd love to come see you... Eddie and some guys are meeting there to skate the basketball court. You could also finally see me skate..." He scratches his neck and looks down. "I mean, if you have time, after." 

Oh! So I'd get to see him, too. 

Well, that changes things! He'd look so hot skating. I've fantasized about watching him for years. The idea of getting to see him skateboard suddenly overshadows my nervousness.

"Okay! I'd love to come watch you! But where's your skateboard?"

"In my locker," he says matter-of-factly, then, more suggestively, "What do you wear for dance class?" He eyes my current clothes, tugging at the hem of my pants. "Not these jeans, right?"

I smirk "No. I have special dance clothes."

"Looking forward to seeing it," he grins.

♡♡♡

After school, we stop by his locker to grab his board, which is pretty thrashed—the deck is all chipped. The wood bottom has three black stripes going tip to tail with some sort of unrecognizable image in the center and is completely marred with deep scratches. 

While he grabs it with one hand and heaves out another book he'll need with the other, my eyes go wide as they land on the sketch I drew for him of the girl with long dark hair taped to the inside before he slams his locker door.

The drive to the Community Center is short, just down the hill from school, and there's about half an hour to kill until it starts. Sure enough, I find Hannah sitting on the bench by the front door, doing some school reading. I tell Gio to go ahead, and I'll meet him at the basketball court in a second.

"Hi Hannah, want to have some 'light entertainment' before class starts?" I smile.

She looks up, confused. "What?"