Filed to story: My Life with the Walter Boys Book (I & II) PDF Free
“I suppose,” Nick said, still not sounding entirely convinced. “We’re not taking my car, though.”
“Might be able to snag the truck keys.” Cole pulled out his phone. “I’ll text Isaac.”
We were coming up on Valley View High now. I could see the building at the top of the hill in the distance. Cole’s fingers were punching away, but Nick still looked uncomfortable.
“Don’t invite anyone else, okay?” Nick said, his eyes flickering toward me again. “I don’t want to get in trouble.”
Hearing this, I focused my attention back out the window. I wasn’t sure what they were talking about, but whatever it was, it sounded like trouble. I kept my mouth shut until the car was parked.
“Thanks a bunch, Nick,” I said, throwing open my door. By now, the parking lot was mostly empty, and only the kids who didn’t care if they were late lingered outside. “See you guys later.”
I tore across the pavement without waiting for them, and thankfully, I managed to make it to class as the final bell rang. Slamming my bag down on the table, I turned to Alex. He was staring down at his textbook, pretending to cram in some last-minute studying, but his eyes weren’t moving over the page.
“What the heck was up with this morning?” I demanded.
“What do you mean?” he said, not bothering to look up.
“You guys left without me,” I said as I pulled a handful of pencils from my bag. “I had to get a ride from Cole’s friend Nick.”
Alex bit his lip. “Cole said you wanted to go with him.”
“Are you for real? When did he say that?”
“At breakfast,” he told me.
“Unbelievable,” I said, gritting my teeth. Cole was in serious trouble.
“Sorry?”
“Alex, my alarm clock didn’t go off this morning. Cole must have messed with it, because he didn’t wake me up until after you guys were already gone.”
“Really?” Alex asked, finally looking up at me. When he saw how irritated I was, relief washed over his face. “Thank God. I thought you gave in to him.”
“I didn’t. And by the way, I’m totally mad at you,” I said, half joking. “I didn’t have any time to get ready this morning. Do you see what I’m wearing?”
Alex looked down, and his face froze when he spotted the jersey. “Where did you get that?”
“Cole loaned it to me. I didn’t have anything else to wear.”
“He loaned it to you?” Alex asked, as if that was the most insane thing he’d ever heard.
“Yeah. What’s the big deal?” I asked. “It’s just an old jersey.”
“But that’s Cole’s football jersey. I haven’t seen it since…” Alex trailed off, too shocked to finish his sentence.
Suddenly a conversation I had with Nathan came back to me.
He used to be the best receiver in the state until he got tackled wrong and broke his leg…
“Since the game he got hurt,” I finished for him.
“Yeah, how’d you know?”
“Nathan mentioned it to me when I first got here.”
“Jackie,” Alex said slowly, still shaking his head in disbelief. “The thing you don’t understand is that football was Cole’s life. After he lost his scholarship, he stopped talking about the game completely. It was like he’d never played at all.”
“And?”
“And for him to just give you his jersey…” Alex said. “I don’t even know what that means.”
Neither did I.
Mr. Piper appeared at the front of the room, clapping his hands to get out attention. “All right, everyone, listen up!” he said. “Put everything away. Books and notes under the table. It’s time to take this test.”
***
It was the easiest test I had ever taken. Even though I was distracted by what Alex told me, I was able to get through all the questions in thirty minutes. If that was any indication of what my examinations would be like, these last few months were going to be a breeze. But for some reason, the thought didn’t lighten my mood.
As my morning went on, I became more and more self-conscious about wearing Cole’s jersey. I almost asked Heather if I could borrow something. I had seen the backup outfits she kept in her locker in case someone showed up wearing the same clothes as her. But if I borrowed something, I’d have to tell the girls about what happened this morning and they would freak out.
Intent on asking Cole exactly why he let me wear the jersey, I arrived at math five minutes early so I could ambush him before class started. As I stood outside the door waiting for him, someone tapped me on the shoulder.
“God,” I gasped, spinning around. “You scared me to death.”
“Sorry.” It was Mary, Alex’s ex-girlfriend, and the way her eyes narrowed made it seem as if she wasn’t sorry at all. “You’re Jackie, right?”
“Um, yes…” I said back.
“My name is Mary Black.”
“Nice to meet you, Mary,” I responded slowly and calmly. “Can I help you with something?”
“I really like your outfit,” she said, sarcasm tainting her voice. “Very…cas-chic. Is it part of your mother’s new collection?”
“I—what?”