“Oh, he would. That’s why I don’t want to.”
He seemed confused and amused at the same time. “Ok. I’m gonna assume there’s a story there and you’re not just suffering from a head injury.”
I realized then that we were still sitting on the sidewalk next to each other, in the middle of town.
“No, I’m fine. Look, I’m sorry. I’m fine, I promise. I didn’t mean to hold you up,” I stammered and stuck my hair behind my ear.
“Are you kidding? You saved my life. The least I can do is make sure you get where you’re going. Here.” He grabbed my arm gently and helped me stand, keeping it there to make sure I was steady. “You good? No stars, no spots, no blurs?”
“I’m good.”
“Where you headed?”
“I have no idea. Nowhere. I’m just waiting for someone to call and needed to get out of the house.”
“Did you go to graduation?”
“Yeah, I graduated.”
“Really? You look too young to be graduating.”
“Seventeen. My birthday’s in a few weeks. I, uh, skipped a grade so I graduated early.”
“Aha. So, I was saved by a genius. This just keeps getting better,” he said grinning.
“I’m not a genius,” I laughed. “I just used to like school. I loved tests.” I saw his expression. “I know, I know. I’m a freak. But I liked it, for whatever reason.”
“Not anymore?”
“Long story. Bad year.”
He nodded and seemed to know to leave that one alone.
“You’re not a freak, by the way.” He leaned close and stage whispered to me. “I love to do geometry speed drills. Love it.”
I raised my eyebrows and dropped my jaw in mock shock.
“No way. That’s crazy.”
“I know.”
“Maybe you’re the freak.”
“Hey!” We both laughed and then smiled at each other. “So, where can I take you?”
“Really, I’m fine. Where were you headed?”
“Oh, my uncle’s house a couple streets over. My cousin graduated, too. My mom and dad are here with me, partying it up with the family. You know.”
“Yeah,” I said bleakly as I most certainly did not know. “Who’s your cousin?”
“Kyle Jacobson.”
My jaw dropped for real this time. “Kyle is your cousin?”
“Yeah, you know him? Oh, of course you do.”
“Yeah, I’ve been friends with Kyle since...forever. He’s actually the one I’m waiting on. I thought his party was from five to seven?”
“It is. I snuck out for a walk. I can’t handle so many Jacobsons in one room.” He put his hands back in his pockets and rolled his shoulders, looking a little uncomfortable. “So, you’re Kyle’s big date, huh? He kept talking about you earlier.”
“It’s not a date. Well...I guess it is. We’re just friends. He’s sweet.”
“Well, I’ll tell you, he definitely thinks this is a date and wants to be way more than friends, trust me.”
I bit my lip and he smiled sadly at me. “Really? I wasn’t trying to get his hopes up, I just wanted to do something and he’s asked me out a few times already. I just didn’t want to say no again. You know?”
He nodded and rubbed the back of his neck. His hair fell across his forehead and I wanted to fix it for him. In fact, my fingers twitched with wanting to, but I clenched my fist and mentally shook myself. I was not one of those girls who got all swoony over a cute guy. I wasn’t about to start being one.
“Well, I can walk you there since that’s where I’m headed anyway. Kyle will be happy to see you.”
He looked as disappointed as I felt at that prospect. I’d never been attracted to anyone but Chad before. And I was definitely attracted to mister blue eyes.
“Ok, but we’re just friends. I’ve never even been to his house before. You don’t think he’ll mind my just showing up when he said he’d text me, do you?”
“Positive that he won’t.”
“Ok.”
We started walking in that direction. I knew where Kyle lived but it was nice to have someone to walk with in the dark. “So, what year are you?” I asked to fill the silence.
“Heading into sophomore. I’m studying to be an architect.”
“Really? That’s neat. I guess that’s why you like geometry.”
He smiled and nodded. “What about you? Are you headed to school anywhere?”
“Uh.” I sighed. “To be honest, as lame as it sounds, I haven’t even thought about it. I kind of blew it this year with my grades and haven’t even applied to any colleges yet. I have no idea what I’m going to do. My dad, he…he kind of needs me right now. I work at the diner in town. I guess I’ll work there until I figure it all out.”
“Hey, taking care of family is just as important if not more than taking care of yourself. You’re doing a good thing, staying with your dad while he needs you.”
It was the first positive thing I’d heard someone say about anything I was doing all year.