Knight

10

"I'm sure he would have driven you," Bella countered.

I'm sure he would have too. I decided to drop the topic, not wanting to speak more about Sam, especially to Bella. She seemed to be willing to do anything to get me to talk about him. Maybe he was right, she was obsessed with him.

"Do you want to go running after school tomorrow?" Ross asked, changing the subject.

I groaned aloud at his suggestion but nodded in agreement anyway.

Ross smirked. "Perfect."

"You can count me out of that," Pete cut in, shaking his head. "I won't even be there for moral support this time."

"Good," I shot back. "Didn't want you there."

Pete placed a hand over his chest. "Mase, you wounded me."

"I'll drive us to my place after school tomorrow," Ross told me, ignoring Pete. "We can use the trail behind my house."

"We're running on a trail?" I asked in an almost whining tone.

Ross nodded. "I figured it's better than just running around the track a bunch of times."

While Ross was probably right, I wasn't a big fan of being out in the woods. It wasn't that I hated the outdoors, I just hated bugs and the possibility of poison ivy and the threat of getting attacked by an animal.

"Do you think Sam would like me if I was more athletic?" Bella asked curiously, stabbing her salad with her fork.

I threw my head back and groaned. When I brought my head back down to look at her, Bella was giving me a scowl, her green eyes dark and shooting daggers at me.

"No, he won't," Pete answered her with a laugh.

"By the way Bella," I started. "Please don't hang around the bakery today."

Her scowl deepened and Pete let out another obnoxious laugh.

"You stalked him at the bakery?" Pete asked, not able to contain more laughter.

"I hate you guys," was Bella's only response as the lunch bell rang. She was quick to grab her backpack and her tray and head out of the lunch room ahead of us.

"She needs to chill," Ross commented as the three of us made our way out of the cafeteria.

I let out a sigh and nodded in agreement. "I don't know what her problem is. Of all people she has to be after Sam Knight."

"We have to find her a new dude to hook up with, then she will be over him," Pete suggested before he bid Ross and I a goodbye and headed toward his class.

Ross and I stopped in the hallway where we would have to part ways.

"I'll try and keep Bella busy today so she doesn't go to the bakery," he said thoughtfully, adjusting his backpack on his shoulder.

"Take her out somewhere so she won't feel like going to the bakery after," I suggested with a slight smirk.

Ross nodded with a solemn look on his face. "Good idea."

After our exchange, the two of us headed off to our own designated classes. I passed by Nathan and his group of friends as I made my way toward my math class. He gave me a worried look before excusing himself from his friends and catching up to me.

"How are you feeling?" Nathan asked kindly.

I kept walking quickly, but Nathan had no trouble keeping up with my pace.

"Fine," I answered blandly.

"Let me know if you need to go home early," he said.

I could tell he was just trying to suck up to me so I wouldn't be mad at him. That or he was hoping I would want to leave early so that he could leave early.