Every Summer: Book One In The Love Through The Seasons Series

Chapter 13

I scratch a rough sixteen into the barn wall with my car key, tallying down my days spent here at the farm. Sixteen days spent either in my room or avoiding Jeremy, on the internet or drawing my favorite cartoon characters. A top portrait being Freya from Chobits, even though my favorite manga is Code Geass. Occasionally, I message my brother, but all he can seem to talk about is Keily or the latest episode of The Mindy Project. I love him and all, but kid needs a life. Then I remember the one person I haven't bothered to call my whole trip because I just assumed they'd be too busy. But, desperate times call for desperate measures. I slip pass a totally oblivious Jeremiah and out onto the green grass surrounding the whole back-acres and swipe out my phone and debate on either calling or texting. I choose text.

ME: Chance!          

LastCHANCE:...seen

ME: Bitch!

LastCHANCE: Jk, god. 

LastCHANCE: Call me im usin my hands

I ignore how suggestive his message sounds to me and exit out of the texting app and switch to my calling one. Ring...ring...rin- "Davey!" my exuberant college room mate greets me in a sarcastically cheery voice.

"Shut up, I know you're happy to hear from me."

"Yeah, yeah. Of course. What's up with you? Still at the elderly farm?" I roll my eyes at his nickname for Pa's strawberry vineyard.

"Yeah."

"That reminds me, how's that thing going with the charity case?"

"He's not a charity case, I was doing my parents a favor."

"Was as in not anymore?"

"I guess so..." I twirl the end of my white shirt with the Instagram icon on it.

I detect the scribble of a sharp pencil on paper.

"...Are you really doing homework right now? It's summer! You promised me you'd relax!"

"I swear I am! I'm writing a complaint to the company that issued this game I've been addicted to lately." I grin, knowing that's exactly the kind of thing Chance would do.

"I bet you are."

"Back to what I was saying, exactly why aren't you persuing the hillbilly anymore." I don't even try to tell him Jem's not a hillbilly.

"Because...because...Well, because he's an idiot!" I kick the dirt with my tan sandaled foot.

"Because he's an idiot?" I hear the pause in Chance's letter writing and can just imagine his brown eyebrow arched in doubt. "Hold on a minute..." I can tell he's come to a conclusion. "You like him, don't you!?"

"God damn, speak any louder and I won't need the phone to hear you!" I whiper-yell into my phone, glancing around to see if anyone can hear. I hear my friend suck his teeth, ignoring me.

"Do you like him or not?" I chew on my bottom lip, still checking for any eavesdroppers.

"Maybe I do," I hiss over Chance's cries of pride. "But, it doesn't matter." He stops yelling.

"And why not?"

"I told you. He's an idiot," my voice cracks a little bit, but enough for Chance to notice.

"Oh, Davey..." he starts, pityingly. I nod my head in defeat, looking angrily at the ground. "He doesn't like you back!"

"No," I scream in frustration. "No, he doesn't. He thinks I'm disgusting, Chance, he really does. He doesn't even wanna be in a closed room with me and if I just look at him he thinks I want to have sex with him!"