When Hardy turned and saw her expression, anger flew through him.
“You are so rude and obnoxious! Sometimes I don’t know why I stay with you.”
Immediately, he regretted his words. Even though they were true, he hadn’t intended to hurt her feelings, which he knew he’d done when her eyes began to fill.
“I’m sorry,” she said in a small voice, blinking her thick lashes to hold back the spillage of tears. “She didn’t do anything wrong. I know she was just being nice, but I can’t help but feel…”
She trailed off, sniffing pitifully, working the one angle sure to get Hardy to calm down—guilt.
“Feel what?”
“Feel like I’m losing you,” she finished, casting her eyes down. “You were distracted all summer. I was hoping that would change once we started our senior year, but it hasn’t.”
Hardy sighed, running his fingers through his short, brown hair in frustration.
“You’re not losing me, I’m just…” Hardy paused, feeling a sharp stab in the area of his conscience over the lie. He consoled himself with the thought that she really wasn’t losing him; he was already gone. It was just a matter of time before she knew it. “I’m trying to focus on football, that’s all. You know how important this year is for me. Dad’s trying to get scouts to come out and watch me, and I have to keep my head in the game. I’m sorry if I seem distant.”
Cheyenne reached for his hand, running her fingers between his as she spoke. “I’d be devastated if something happened to us. I love you. You know that.”
“I know,” Hardy said, pulling his fingers from hers to wrap his arm around her neck and pull her along. For some reason, he didn’t want Miracle to come out of class and see them standing there. “We need to get a move on or we’ll be late.”
“Since when is that a problem for you?” she asked, looking up into his face like the sun rose and set at his command.
“Good point,” Hardy teased as they turned the corner to head to their lockers.
********
Lunch was always a production at Seminole Senior High, at least if you ate third group with the members of the football team. There were a handful of rowdy guys that served as entertainment to any and all who sat near them. Being the quarterback, Hardy seemed always to be in the center of everything, including Charlie and Robert, two of the rowdiest.
Everyone at Hardy’s table had finished eating and had congregated outside on the lawn. Currently, they were all standing in a loose circle watching the disgusting escapades of Charlie and Robert. They were hocking loogies into the air and catching them as they came back down. Although fairly amusing, it still made Hardy’s mouth water to watch the slime run down their chins when they nearly missed.
The crowd was cheering them on between bouts of laughter and groans of disgust. A couple of girls walked by behind Charlie and one of them caught Hardy’s eye.
Wearing her trademark sweet smile, Miracle was walking down the slope of the lawn with a girl he recognized but didn’t know. He was pretty sure she was one of the art students, the type that wasn’t very involved in sports or parties, which were the activities Hardy’s crowd engaged in most often. The only attention he paid her was to notice that she walked with Miracle. Beyond that, she was immediately forgotten.
The couple stepped into the sunshine. The golden light glinted off Miracle’s hair, highlighting an auburn tone and slight wave he hadn’t noticed before. He’d seen enough of Cheyenne’s magazines to know that girls would kill for hair like Miracle’s. It was thick and rich, a far cry from the bald head he’d seen once before.
“Da-yum!”
The explicative drew Hardy’s attention back to Nate, whose head was turned watching Miracle as well.
“What?” Hardy asked, already feeling defensive about what the answer likely was.
“Who is that?”
Although it made no sense, Hardy wanted to punch his best friend right in the mouth. A notorious man whore, Nate had a reputation for chasing anything in a skirt, and, even though he was a nice guy deep down, Hardy had a big problem with the way he was eyeing Miracle.
“She’s new. No one you’d be interested in,” Hardy replied, trying to sound casual despite his prickling ire.
“Why not, Hardy? She’d be ideal for Nate,” Cheyenne piped up, making Hardy grit his teeth in frustration. “He likes the skinny ones. Look, Nate,” she said, addressing Hardy’s best friend. “She looks like a twelve year old boy. Perfect!”
“No, she doesn’t,” Hardy argued a bit sharply.
“Yes, she does! Look at that. She’s straight as a stick and has no boobs.”
“She’s just thin. And her clothes are loose.”
“That’s not ‘just thin,’ Hardy.”
“I like her body,” Nate interjected.
“You would,” Cheyenne sneered.
“You know I like ‘em any way I can get ‘em, don’t you, Cheyenne?” Nate’s barb effectively quieted Cheyenne, her mouth snapping shut with a click of her teeth. She and Nate had a history and he knew just how to push her buttons.
“I don’t think she’s your type anyway, Nate,” Hardy said.
“Any girl is my type.”
“Any girl except nice girls.” Cheyenne took offense at Hardy’s remark, huffing and smacking his arm in a fit of pique. “You know I didn’t mean you,” Hardy clarified with a roll of his eyes.
“How do you know she’s a nice girl anyway?” Cheyenne asked. “You don’t even know her.”
Hardy had no response to that. Cheyenne was right; he didn’t know Miracle. Not really. But, somehow, he felt like he did. And he certainly wanted to.
Looking for any excuse to change the subject and draw attention away from Miracle, Hardy put on his most mischievous smile and teased Nate.
“You’d better put thoughts like that right out of your head, Nate. You’ve got your hands full, remember? Wasn’t Rena supposed to be the one you’d tag in a week? And what’s it been now? Six?”
A couple other guys in the circle jumped in to playfully harass Nate, effectively diverting attention away from Miracle. All except Hardy’s, of course. He couldn’t stop his eyes from straying toward the sunshine, from searching for her dark head.
A sharp jab to his ribs pulled his attention back to the girl at his side. When he turned to look at Cheyenne, she was watching him carefully, frowning. Although he could see some concern in her eyes, what he saw mostly was anger.