Read Awakening (Covenant College #1) for Free Online

women – which was fine with me.
    Rick No. 1 sat down next to me and tried to engage me in a conversation. Of the two Ricks, he was clearly the more intelligent of the two, but I was pretty sure that wasn’t saying much. I answered most of his questions in a non-committal way. I was friendly, not gregarious.
    For her part, Brittany and Milton seemed to be enjoying a friendly chat. It didn’t surprise me in the slightest.
    Before I knew it, though, it was lunchtime already and we all decided to go down to the cafeteria together. I figured that expanding our group could only benefit me – mostly because Brittany was going to be so high maintenance.
    As we traversed the cafeteria with our trays, I realized that Tara had been largely quiet today. She’d been friendly and nice to the guys, but when she thought no one was looking she was lost in contemplation. I couldn’t help but wonder if it had something to do with the guy we had seen her with at the UC the day before. I didn’t ask, though. It was none of my business.
    Towards the tail end of lunch, a tall boy with long hair made his way over to the table. His hair was blonde – so blonde it almost looked like an ashy gray. He had warm brown eyes and he carried a skateboard. I smiled despite myself. A hipster carrying a skateboard indoors could only mean one thing: pothead.
    Brittany smiled when she saw the boy approach our table. It was a watery smile, though, and I could tell she was concerned about seeing him.
    “Mark,” she squealed, yes squealed, and threw her arms around him. It seemed like an extreme reaction for someone that looked surprised to see him a few minutes before and embarrassed to see him a minute after that.
    For his part, Mark seemed surprised by the greeting as well. Still, he hugged her back before returning his gaze to everyone at the table.
    Brittany was bubbly as she introduced Mark. “We went to high school together . . . although we didn’t really hang around in the same circles.”
    I smiled to myself. I could bet what circles Brittany ran around with – the same circles I secretly dreamed of starting on fire when I was bored in detention. Mark, though, I bet he ran around in similar circles to me – and I bet those circles were often drowned in a haze of hemp.
    Mark must have sensed a kinship with me, too, because when Brittany asked him if he wanted to join us he immediately moved to the side of the table Paris and I were sitting on and wedged himself between us. I couldn’t help but laugh.
    Paris, Mark and I enjoyed some idle chatter for awhile . Paris asked him about his skateboard – even being so bold as to question him about whether or not she could ride it.
    I thought that was pretty brave. Most skateboard aficionados don’t let anyone touch their ride.
    Mark was either baked or laid back, though. He acquiesced almost immediately.
    “You want to come try, too?” He seemed eager for me to agree.
    Interestingly enough I did. I have negative balance on roller blades, but maybe a skateboard would be different. I could ski, after all. Of course, when you fall while skiing it’s usually in a big soft drift of snow. Pavement is a different thing.
    Paris, Mark and I said goodbye to everyone at the table. I couldn’t help but notice a dark look emanating from Brittany as she watched us go. For a minute I wondered if she had a crush on Mark. I realized pretty quickly that probably wasn’t it. Still, I couldn’t figure out why she was suddenly so hostile.
    Pushing the thoughts out of my mind, Paris, Mark and I went to the sidewalk area behind the dorm. There were a couple of blankets spread out in the grassy area being occupied by a few couples – but for the most part the area was empty.
    Mark gave us a quick tutorial on how to balance ourselves on the board before he nervously handed his pride and joy – which I noticed had Smurf decals on the undercarriage – over to Paris.
    I was surprised. Paris didn’t seem like the