out.
Cricket gasped, nudged me again. “I knew it. You do like him.”
Why can’t I just keep my mouth shut? I thought. “I just said he was cute,” I repeated.
“You know, denial is the first sign of a problem,” she said, with mock authority. “Hey, there’s my mom,” she said, starting down the stairs. “Call me if you wanna get together before school starts or something,” she said. “I’m free whenever. I get sooo bored stuck at home with my mom.”
“Yeah, I know what you mean,” I replied. “My parents drive me crazy.”
Those girls were still standing in a circle near the bike rack as Cricket jogged by them. One of them made a chirping sound. I cringed. What a bunch of brats , I thought. Cricket didn’t skip a beat, zipping past. “Get a life,” she called out. I silently cheered her on. Way to go, Cricket, way to go.
When I saw my mom’s white van pulling into the lane, I realized I was going to have to pass by the Beautiful People, too. I gauged how far to the left I could walk without making my avoidance obvious. But Cricket had inspired me, and I plopped my hat on my head and walked straight toward them instead. I was so busy being cocky that I didn’t notice, at first, that Zach was walking toward me, smiling. The others stood laughing and talking. One of the girls placed her hand on her hip, her mouth open to say something. He must be just going back in to get something he forgot , I thought. As he got closer, he smiled and opened his mouth to say something at the exact moment that I felt someone whiz by and bump my arm. My folder and all its contents lay scattered on the ground. I bent down to pick them up, noticing someone else close by with his hand on my folder. I stood up. It was another guy in one of those blue shirts with a nametag that read 'Alex, Student Volunteer.'
“I’m sorry. Are you ok?” He asked as he handed me the papers.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Thanks.” I looked around for Zach, but he had disappeared.
Alex smiled. “You’re welcome.”
Talk about embarrassing . I kept walking toward the curb where my mom was waiting. Alex followed alongside. As we passed by the Beautiful People, one of the girls looked over her shoulder and said, “Hey Alex, great job today!” She curled up her lip and glared at me, then turned away.
One of the guys reached out and punched Alex jovially on the arm. “Brown noser!”
“Yeah, when you’re stuck here on the last day of school, I’ll be on the river,” Alex said.
The girls giggled. “No doubt ,” one of them said.
“As Student Body President, I get the last day of school off for volunteering throughout the year—in exchange for my speech at graduation, of course,” Alex explained as we neared the curb. “Senior float trip.”
“You’re a senior?”
“Yep, on my way out. How about you?”
“Sophomore.”
“You’re new, right?”
“Well, sort of, yeah….”
“I’ll show you around sometime if you want,” he said, jogging down the sidewalk. “Just look me up on Facebook,” he replied. “My e-mail’s there.”
“Thanks,” I called out. I smiled, feeling a small sense of accomplishment. I had made not one, but two friends in one day. And, the Beautiful People obviously liked Alex. He was a good person to have on my side.
For some reason, I couldn’t stop thinking about Zach, even as I sat at my computer desk that night, browsing Alex’s FB page. Was he coming to talk to me outside the school earlier that day? No way. Why would he walk up to a complete stranger? That sort of stuff never happens to me. Zach was cute, though … utterly gorgeous if you want to know the truth. He looked familiar, somehow, but I wasn't sure why. I sighed. He probably has a girlfriend, someone as smart and good looking as he was. Someone as tall as he was. That’s why he seemed so