Chapter One
Nearly eight years earlier...
7/30/09
Kate: So how's the new fancy-pants neighborhood in Dallas?
Ana: Nice, but it's not home. I miss you and I miss my room.
Is your new room nice?
Yeah it's bigger, and it has a window seat.
That's cool. Hey, give it some time. You'll settle in.
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9/7/09
Kate: Weird to start school without you tomorrow.
Ana: We don't start til next week. New school, new people (sigh).
How's it going? Met anyone there?
OK. #3 is giving me the creeps, tho.
?
He stands too close, he has bad breath.
And...
He's always watching me. Like he's checking me out.
Creeper! Ana, are you okay? You should tell your mom. Or Ray. Are you afraid he will try something?
I'm OK. Have a good first day at school.
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3/11/10
Ana: Ray is coming to get me. I am coming home.
Kate: WHAT HAPPENED?
Ana: I'll tell you when I get there.
Kate: Where are you? Are you safe?
Ana: Hospital. Yes.
Kate: ? OMG
Ana: I'll talk to you later. Promise. xo
Kate: xo
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Sunday, March 14, 2010
APOV
It feels so good to be back in my bed, in my old room with my books and stuffed animals and little-girl bedding. I'm home where I belong. And I am never, never leaving here again.
"Annie?" My dad knocks softly on my door.
"Come in."
Ray opens the door and sticks his head in. "Are you in bed already? It's only 8:30."
"No... I'm just resting. And it's comfy here." I'm all tucked in, lying on my side with my knees pulled up to my chest.
"Kate's here to see you."
"Kate! Come in!" I squeal, popping up into a sitting position.
Ray moves aside and my best friend comes in. She's not her usual blonde ball of energy, though. She looks wary as she closes the door slowly and comes over to perch on the edge of my bed. I open my arms to Kate and pull her in for a hug.
"Ana..." she whispers. "Are you..."
"Kate, don't... I'm okay now. I'm glad to be home."
"What happened? Did he... you know."
I pull back, looking into her green eyes. They swimming with tears, but she looks determined. She wants the truth, not the glossed-over version of things.
"Yeah, he did. My mom was out with friends... and he came in after I went to bed and he -" I shake my head. "Anyway... my mom came home just as he was - um, finishing - and caught him in the act."
Kate's eyes are wide. "Oh Ana..."
"So he had insisted that my mom have a concealed carry permit, and he bought her a little pink handgun." I can't help the smile that is spreading across my face as I tell this part. "So she grabbed out that gun and held it to his stupid, fat head. And I ran downstairs and called the police.
Kate snorts with laughter at this. Thank goodness...
"They arrested him and took me to the hospital. And then my dad came and picked me up."
"But what if you're... you know."
I shake my head. "No, Kate, I'm not going to get pregnant. They gave me the - you know - morning-after pill."
Kate gives me another hug, and then we settle back on my bed for a nice, long chat. I'm thankful for Kate's chatter and I'm feeling relaxed and sleepy as she talks.
"... and at least it's spring break, so you have a week to settle in before school."
"Yeah... but what'll I say about being back?"
"Just say you missed your dad and good ol' Montesano too much. That Dallas was lame."
I giggle. Kate always knows what to say.
"Just stick with me, Steele. I've got your back. Oh... and we have a new English teacher - Mr. Grey - and he's hot. He's got a wedding ring tho," she says, looking a little wistful.
"Kate! Oh my God..."
She laughs and flips her hair. "Anyway, he'll be the new track coach too. Ooh! You should come out for track."
"I dunno, Kate... You know me and sports... we don't get along."
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Monday March 22, 2010
CPOV
"All right, ladies, listen up. I'm Coach Grey and most of you already know me from English class. This is my first year coaching girls' track here at Montesano, but I coached for two years in Detroit. I want to see good attendance, positive attitudes, and hard work. The rest of it will fall into place. Seniors, stretch them out and lead two warm-up laps. And... GO BULLDOGS!"
"GO BULLDOGS!" The girls echo, and then they break away from where we've gathered at the side of the track, off to stretch on the pad by the high jump.
Kate Kavanagh, one of my juniors, hangs back, wanting to say something to me. She's in my honors literature class, and she's one of those kids who has everything going for her. Looks, money, brains... and a good attitude. She's popular, and she can be a flirt, but she has a good heart. Proof of her caring nature is tagging along behind her, quite literally in her shadow.
"Coach Grey? This is Ana Steele. She went here until last year? And this is her first day... back. Um, she wanted to try track today?"
"Thank you, Kate," I say. "Go stretch and let me talk to... Ana, is it?"
Kate gives the girl's shoulder an encouraging squeeze, and jogs over to join the others. Now she's out of Kate's shadow, I have a better view of her. She's slender, with a long chestnut ponytail thrown over her shoulder. She's looking down at her feet, which are in black Chucks.
"Ana, is it?" I repeat. "Welcome to the track... I'm Coach Grey. I don't think I have seen you in any of my classes?"
She finally looks up at me, and her eyes are clear blue - and they look too large for her small face. Her expression is unsure, and she sinks her teeth into her lower lip, looking like she's not sure if she truly wants to be here. "Yeah... Ana Steele. Um, I just moved back from Dallas? I only came in for a little while today, to get my schedule and books... I'm in honors literature too. With Kate?"
I nod. So she's friends with Kavanagh and smart too. I can work with this. "So have you ever run track before?"
She looks down at herself - plain white t-shirt, jeans, and her Chucks - and gives a nervous little laugh. "Um... no. Sports and I don't get along... but Kate..."
"But Kate can be pretty... tenacious?"
"Yup," she says.
"Okay, why don't you go join the others and we'll see how it goes today, all right?"
She gives me a little smile and a nod, then scurries off, back to Kate's side.
APOV
I join the group just as they're finishing up, so Kate guides me through some quick calf and hamstring stretches. And then we head to the start, lining up at the back of the pack.
"This thing looks bigger from down here," I say. "How many times do we go around? And how far is it, like a mile?"
Kate laughs. "We're going around twice, and it's a quarter-mile each lap. So it's a half-mile warm up."
Only a quarter-mile around... it looks much farther than that. But, I promised Kate - and myself - and now Coach Grey that I would give it a try today. He's standing at the starting line as we approach, his intense gray eyes on me. He gives me a little nod of encouragement, and I line up with the others.
The warm-up laps aren't too bad. About halfway around, I can feel my breathing get a little heavy, and my limbs feel awkward, but by the end of the first lap, I feel okay. What would a runner say? I'm starting to hit my stride.
We finish the warm-up and my lungs are burning a little, but it feels... good. I feel alive. And maybe better than I've felt in the eleven days since it happened.
After the warm up, Kate peels off to go with the rest of the sprinters. I start to follow her, but hold back when I see them all together. Like Kate, they all have compact and shapely builds, muscles rippling as they pull out starting blocks and get ready for their drills.
Hmmm... I'm not sure... I'm definitely not built like a sprinter. In fact, I'm not really built at all. Anywhere.
"Ana, why don't you go with the middle-distance runners today?" Coach Grey calls out as he comes up behind me and leads me over to a group of about a dozen runners. "Collins?... Monroe?... This is Ana Steele. She's new today and I'd like for her to start in your group."
The two girls, who must be the seniors in charge, are standing apart from the rest and consulting a clipboard. One of them, a tall girl with red, wavy hair, waves me over.
She addresses the group. "Okay, listen up. I'm Bridget Collins and this is Jenna Monroe. We'll be leading the middle-distance workouts. Today we're doing pyramids -"
Several of the girls groan, cutting Bridget off. Uh oh, what the heck are pyramids?
"Come on ladies, it's not that bad... and you should've been running over the winter to stay conditioned?" She raises an eyebrow and scans the group. A couple are smiling, looking confident, but most of them look a little guilty. "Hmmm... okay. So we're doing a 200, a 400, an 800... and back down. Walk 200 meters in between each. Two repeats. Everyone got it?"
I quickly do the math... Math is my second-strongest subject. Two... four... eight... four... two... times two. That's two and a half miles total. Plus the walking breaks. Oh God... what have I gotten myself into?
By the time I have done the math, we are stepping onto the track. I tuck into the rear of the pack, behind some young-looking girls who must be freshmen. I am a little relieved that they look as frightened as I feel.
Bridget and Jenna are at the front and they set the pace for the first 200 meters. It's only halfway around the track, and it's not a sprint, so we stay tightly bunched and finish in the same order at the end of the backstretch. As we walk back around to the starting line, most of the girls are chatting with one another.
I pass by Kate as we start up the homestretch, and give her a little wave. She waves back and cocks her head toward the rest of the group. 'Go get 'em girl!' she seems to say.
As soon as we are all clustered back at the starting line, Bridget yells "Go!" and we are off again, starting on the first of the 400 meter repeats... a full lap. I stay in the back again, but I don't fall behind, and I can hear some of the other girls starting to wheeze. And then a few slow down and fall back. I slip past two them... and then a couple more. Like before, my lungs are burning... and I welcome the feeling. It's life-affirming.
We continue up the pyramid to the 800, then start back down the other side. With each run, I work my way further and further up the pack. By the time we reach the 800 of the second pyramid, I am right behind Bridget and Jenna. I don't think I have changed my speed - I think the two seniors are setting an even pace - but some of the others are definitely on the struggle bus.
We finish up our work-out and I hold my place. Whew! I have officially survived my first track practice!
Bridget is grinning and walks over once we have all taken a minute to catch our breath. "Well done, Steele... you sure you've never run track before?"
"Never," I say, gesturing down at myself. "Can't you tell?" All of the other girls are wearing running shoes, nylon shorts, and colorful athletic tees or singlets.
She laughs. "Well if you're here to stay, better get yourself some proper gear."
"Definitely," I say. And I mean it.
We jog two cool-down laps, and I catch Coach Grey's eyes on me again. Not bad for my first day, huh?
As we're rounding the last lap into the home stretch, I see a young woman with darl blonde hair coming through the gate to the track. She looks like a businesswoman, in a dark gray blazer and pencil skirt.
We finish up our cool-down, and when I turn back, the woman is standing with Coach Grey. He's smiling and has his arm wrapped around her... Hmm. I feel a little pang in my gut. I mean, I know he's married and he's probably like thirty. But - Kate was right - he's a hottie. And I'm allowed to have a little crush, right? A teeny-tiny, little crush?
"All right ladies... good first practice," calls out Coach Grey. "If you haven't done your cool-down, please do so after this. I'd like to introduce you to my wife, Natalie Grey." The woman smiles at us, and she's friendly-looking with a smattering of freckles and twinkling, hazel eyes. "Like I said, this is my third year coaching. But before that, I ran track and cross-country throughout school and college, so I've been where you are. My wife is also a runner, and we have done three marathons and many other races together through the years. We share a lifetime goal of running a marathon in all fifty states."
Wow... these two are running fools!
"Natalie will be out here with us at times as a volunteer, for track meets and other events. Please help me in making her feel welcome. And... GO BULLDOGS!"
"GO BULLDOGS!" We echo. And for the first time ever, I am part of a team. An honest-to-God sports team. Me. Go figure!
"Ana!" I hear Coach Grey call as we're dispersing.
I turn to look at him, and he still has his arm around his wife. "Yes, Coach?"
"Nice job today, Kid." He says. "You coming back tomorrow?"
I think he already knows the answer, but I shrug and say, "Yeah."
"Good. I think you're a natural and that you'll go far."
Not trusting myself to speak without squealing, I give him a little wave and a stupid grin as I turn to leave.
He thinks I'm a natural!
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A/N: Thanks for reading & reviewing!
I hope to post new chapters twice a week, on Mondays & Thursdays, so keep an eye out!