Nicole
“That red hair would’ve gone so well with our home kit, don’t you think?” He added, making me confused.
“What red hair?”
“Ellie’s?”
Ellie? Who was … of course, Elizabeth! An uncontrollable laugh stumped its way up my throat and I didn’t force it back. “You’re talking about Elizabeth?”
“Of course, I am!” he threw the words out like it was the undeniable truth.
“For a second there, I actually thought you could think.” I confessed, still laughing but relieved. I wouldn’t wanna have to fire any warning shots.
“You’re putting it like I’m wrong.”
“You are.” I clarified. “it’s her friend there that tried out.” I said, jutting my chin in their direction, and met eyes with Rina. No sooner had our gaze locked than a smile was born on her face. Same was with me.
“Really?” He paused as the warning bell rung. It felt kinda strange. I hadn’t heard that sound while sitting in a classroom for quite some time now. “But I wasn’t wrong about that bombshell part.”
Beauty really is in the eye of the beholder, I guess. It’s not like Elizabeth isn’t pretty but she obviously , in my eyes, just doesn’t hold a candle to her friend.
“Maybe not.” I agreed, turning back to the front as Rina did the same, and asked the guy the question that’d been there for quite some time. “Anyway, did she make it?”
“She didn’t.”
“Those joining this class for the first time note that this assignment is your chance to make your first and lasting impression on me. And the result will have a lot to do with how I’m gonna grade your works the whole semester.” Boy, does he say that a lot!
This was the third in four classes this morning I’d had together with Rina. Not like we whispered to each other, or sent messages during classes; on a side note, I still didn’t know her number. We just exchanged glances and smiles as usual. And smiling isn’t that hard for one to find me doing anymore.
I chanced a glance at Rina and found her staring at the teacher, just as Elizabeth. Whether she’d make ‘the first and lasting impression’ on the guy or not after the assignment, he surely did make that on her.
Thank god, he was old and wobbly. If this was Curt who’s relatively young and sort of good-looking, I might have to do something about it; you know, to stop … inappropriate things from happening.
Before the teacher could say anything more, the bell wrapped up his class for him. Nobody jumped out of their seats and sprinted towards the door, just like how those high school movies had us pegged out to be doing at the end of each class.
“That’s it then. See you at the next class.” As I was starting out of the room, he called the names. “Trevor Maxwell. Carrie West. Rina Haven. Chloe Ravenwood.” And my course altered to his desk. “Ms. Ravenwood still isn’t here.”
I’d noticed that since after the attendance was taken. She hadn’t shown up since Friday, nor had she called, which I’d taken as a safe bet that she would do, considering how she’d been with me that day. I admit I kinda liked hanging with her.
“And Ms. Taylor, yes?” Actually, I hadn’t thought of a reason but I quickly found one as the teacher gave me his full attention. “I haven’t finished my composition. Can I turn it in later?”
That usual, frigging annoying, knowing smile was cooked up on his old face. “Of course,” he said a second later. “You have till tomorrow.”
I gave him a polite nod as he turned to the other students. Before it got any more awkward, I broke away from the group as he started running them through how things worked.
And guess who I ran into as I walked out of the class?
Truth be known, I’d never even noticed Derek sharing a lecture with me until today. I only knew he existed because we were on the same team and, of course, because whenever he was seen off the pitch, he was with that jerk, Clyde. But unfortunately, he also seemed to be a junior and the two classes this morning wouldn’t surely be the only ones we’d be having together every week.
I decided to wait for Rina. Elizabeth was still here but I just didn’t feel safe for her around him. Not sure it was just an act of sisterly nature but I opted not to dig deep for unimportant reasons.
“Hey.” He surprised me by greeting me first as I leaned against the wall beside the doorway. He was on the other side.
I only acknowledged with a nod.
“I never got a chance to say sorry.”
“About what?”
“What happened the other day outside the locker room. I’d apologized to your friend but …”
“You don’t gotta do this.” I paused but went on just as he was about to ask. “We ain’t gonna be friends.”
He didn’t say anything but gave me this slightest of nods, his gaze steady on me.
“But if you want a word of advice, stay away from Rina.”
“Heh, I don’t want it.”He replied coolly, unfazed. I had to admit; I like this about him. I’m not saying I’m too formidable for a guy to make a stuttering reply every time I say a word.
What I mean is, there’s no anger, nor complacency. His emotions, like mine, don’t reflect on his face. I’d noticed that when he first took on me the other day. I thought it was Dutch courage. Seems it wasn’t.
“And I don’t think that’s your call.”
“Yet.” Just as I finished his sentence for him, we both felt another’s presence nearby.
“Derek.” A familiar voice called and while he turned around to look, I didn’t. there was no need. Only one douche in this school had a normal voice this cocky, even when he’s just calling out to his male friend. “What’re you doing there, with that …”
A smirk grew on my face. He didn’t dare finish. I stood up and turned to him. As I did, Derek quickly walked up to Clyde. “Com’on man.”
“You were saying?”
“Do you really wanna know?” He still stayed defiant while his friend tried to hold him back. But evidently not that defiant since Derek, looking annoyed, easily succeeded in dragging him away.
Just as they disappeared around the corner, the door to the class room swung open and out came the teacher. He gave me a passing glance and went on his way. Then Rina appeared behind him and Elizabeth strutted out after.
“Hey,” was the surprised and a little bit tentative greeting from her. And why does her chum give me these weird looks whenever we meet? To be honest, it unsettles me, just a little. “Skipping lunch?”
“No. I’m just waiting for …,” So what if I was waiting for her? Why in the frigging hell was I reluctant to tell her the truth? “… Trevor there.”
The guy was just walking past us as I said his name and he seemed to have got equally confused as I was. “I’m sorry?”
To my utter relief, he was one of those at the tryouts yesterday, as I remembered. “Did you make it?”
“Make what?” it was stupid and rather ridiculous. I was having this phoniest conversation ever when the real one I wanted to talk to was standing beside me, with her friend looking most annoyed obviously consumed by hunger.
“The last three? The soccer team?” Any other time, I’d making verdicts like ‘is this guy this slow?’ or such. “I’m going to the coach’s office so if you wanna know, you could come along.”
“I already know.” He didn’t say whether he got in the shortlist; I could easily guess that he didn’t. Of course, there were girls present, pretty ones at that. What guy in his right mind would ‘man’ up and declare something like that which would hurt his pride? “But thanks, anyway.”
“You’re going to the office?” Am I ever!
“Yes, why? Do you wanna come?”
“We can’t just up and pull a girl onto a field pitch full of guys,” I explained on our way to the office, “there’s a lot of paperwork to be done.”
She nodded.
I took a quick glance at her and added, “you’d have been selected if we didn’t have the game. You did good yesterday.”
She just smiled at my compliment. “But if the game wasn’t so close, you guys won’t have to rush for a new keeper, right?” she pointed out.
“Yeah.”
“So I never even had a chance.” She said, with that smile still in tact.
“Kinda.” I admitted. She was right. “I guess Rod just wanted you to get used to some of the players.”
She nodded and I stole a glance at her when she turned away from me. She just must’ve been super gullible to let Derek get close to her again. I couldn’t find any other reason why she’d do that. Nor did I want to.
“Nik?” Great, just when I thought I had some alone time with her!
“Jeremy.” If he noticed the scowl in my reply, then he didn’t show it.
“Where’re you off to now?”
I sorta somehow thanked him he didn’t add anything about a closet or anything like that. “To see coach.”
“Coach’s not there.”
I couldn’t help a suspicious look on my face.
“Really. He’s at the principal’s, I think. Some problems at the conference yesterday. Hi.” Douche didn’t even take a moment to pause there, his already swaying gaze now full-scale onto her. I didn’t like that.
“You’re very pretty.” Oh, come on!
“Nik’s been going off about you for quite for a while now.”
“Aheh,” that was me having had to cough away the F-word. I didn’t know whether to throw profanities at him, or just laugh.
“You’re ……Samantha, right?”
I laughed.
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Rina
I giggled along with Nicole.
The way he was trying to cheese off his friend, he must be thinking I was her girlfriend.
“I’m not…”
I was about to clarify but Nicole cut me off saying, “Real cute, Jer! Now go, your playmate’s craving your presence in the cafeteria.”
“My playmate? You mean, as in my playmate, or as in my…..playmate?”
I laughed at his confused look, and also at what she said next, “As in Adam.”
“Jeez, where did that come from?”
“I don’t know, it just occurred to me. You guys look that. Now beat it.”
“Alright, alright. I’m off, I’m off.” He stood up straighter, fastening the strap of his backpack and turned halfway to me. “By the way,…”
“Rina.”
“Rina, that Samantha – she’s real, if you must know.”
“Will you just cut it?”
“Alright, alright. I’m off,” saying, he started to jog past us. “See you, Rina. And Nik.”
It felt great not only to be getting to know Nicole but also her friends. Even though, she didn’t exactly introduce me as her sister, I knew I should be grateful just for this.
“If you really have to talk to coach, we could go and wait by the principal’s office.” She offered but I couldn’t let her. She must be hungry. And I was too, to be honest. Besides, I’d planned to go to the soccer coach only after school until she said she was going there.
I shook my head no. “It’s not that important. I just wanna know for sure what I have to do.”
“I guess you’ll just have to wait till after the McClymonds game.” She said, as we started heading back where Jeremy just went.
I nodded my understanding. And my phone rang just as silence started to accompany our walk. Must be Jen. She hadn’t called this morning. I stopped to take the call and so did she.
“Hey.”
“Liz?” I looked at my watch. Of course, she’d be going all angsty. Break was halfway gone.
“Who did you think? Are you still coming?”
“Yeah, I am. Right now.”
“Alright, then.”
“Okay.” Just as I hung up and glanced her way, we met eyes.
“Guess I’m off then.” I wanted to tell her to come along but didn’t. Instead, I just nodded. “Okay, see you.”
“Hey, Nicole,” I stopped her as she was turning around, “I’m going to Liz’s this evening. Gonna be a little late.”
I knew I’d regret it even before I said, “I’m having dinner there so …,”
Yeah, I regretted it. Something told me she too wanted a repeat of last night.
She gave me a slight nod. “Okay.”
She turned on her heels and walked back in the other direction. Only after her retreating back disappeared at the end of the corridor, I moved to resume my walk, alone.
I kinda hoped we could have lunch together. And I thought we would until Liz called.
But I knew I had to be patient. Because good things take time.
And great things take more.
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