Page 49 of Further To Fall

“Nosy B.”

“My bestie’s got the love of her life sitting on the couch pouring his heart out, and you think I’m not going to listen? Pssshhh.” She pinched my leg. “So, what are you thinking?”

“I honestly have no idea. I’m all over the place. Half of me wants to jump into his arms and scream ‘love me forever.’ The other half of me wants to run in the other direction because there’s a huge chance I could get hurt. And I know it would be so much worse this go-around.”

Taylor looped an arm around my bent knees, hugging them to her. “Honey, loving someone always means you’re running the risk of getting hurt. But the only alternative is to completely shut yourself off from the world, and that would be one lonely life.”

I sighed. “You are a wise woman, Miss Lawson.”

“Don’t I know it.”

My ringtone sang out from the living room. “Crud, that’s my phone.”

“Come on, lazy bones, can’t stay on the floor forever.” She stood and reached out a hand to me.

I took it and grumbled, “But I like the floor, things are safer down there.” Taylor chuckled and slapped my butt as I passed her. I grabbed my phone from my purse just as it stopped ringing. The screen read:One missed call – Kyle. “Oh, come on.”

“What is it?” Taylor asked as her nosey butt leaned over my shoulder to peer at my screen. Then she snorted. “Oh, lordy, that boy can’t catch a clue.”

I slipped my phone into my back pocket without checking the message. “I don’t know what I’m going to do about him. It’s so awkward. Those flowers over there are from him.”

Her eyes widened as she took in the monstrosity of a bouquet. “Whoa.”

“Whoa is right. He said he was apologizing for snapping at me when I told him I was meeting up with Austin, but he signed it ‘Love, Kyle.’ Something like that doesn’t exactly require flowers. We’re not together anymore. We were barely together for three months to start with.”

Taylor drummed her fingers on her bottom lip. “I’d say have another conversation with him, but all the other talks you’ve had with him haven’t worked. I think you just need to distance yourself from him as much as possible. Don’t call him back, and try to make your interactions at school as brief as you can.”

“I think you’re right. I’ll just avoid him as much as possible.”

“Of course, I’m right. Now, you want to order Chinese and watch a Lifetime movie?”

I grinned and handed Taylor my cell phone. “Sounds like perfection. You order while I go change?”

“You got it.”

I bounded towards my room, feeling a burst of energy from the gratitude that filled my heart. Friends, food, and cheesy TV made everything else in life just melt away. Any and all decisions could be postponed for another day.

27

Carter

The past few weeks had brought with them a turn to a new normal. Between helping to get the new youth program up and running, and spending time with our friends, I saw Austin almost every day. He never pushed the romantic envelope, but he wasn’t afraid of showing his affection either. Cupping my face in his hands, kissing my forehead, lingering hugs. I was about ready to combust, yet something was still holding me back from jumping in with both feet.

Today, I was standing next to Michael, who seemed to have grown a foot in the past year, and watching Austin do a demonstration with one of the fighters he was training. “He’s badass, huh, Miss Carter?” I had told Michael he could call me Carter now that I wasn’t his teacher, but he couldn’t quite break the formal habit and had settled on Miss Carter.

My eyes had been focused on checking out Austin’s butt, which was straining against his workout pants, so I really couldn’t say anything about his athletic prowess at the moment. “Watch your language. If your mom hears you, you’re going to be cleaning the house for a month.” That was another thing that had changed in the past few weeks of spending my afternoons at Austin’s gym. I’d gotten to know Michael’s mom, Sofia, even better, and she was a gem. A total sweetheart who wasn’t afraid to crack some skulls if necessary.

Michael instantly spun around, looking for his mom. The comically petrified look on his face had me busting up laughing, and Austin turning around at the sound. “Now, class, it looks like someone isn’t paying attention.” Austin started stalking towards me as the twelve-year-old students began to snicker.

I started to slowly back away as Austin advanced. “Now, Austin…” My voice trailed off as he surged ahead, throwing me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. I shrieked and laughed even harder as he ran around the studio with me over his shoulder. Just as he passed the hooting group of boys, I felt my phone vibrate in my front pocket.

Austin slowed. “Is that a phone in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?”

I smacked his shoulder. “Put me down, you big buffoon.” Austin chuckled as he slowly slid me down the front of his body, the friction causing sparks of electricity. Our eyes met and held for a moment, our mouths just a whisper apart. It would be so easy to just lean in that fraction of an inch and taste his lips. My phone buzzed again, and I jolted away. Fumbling to untangle my phone from my pocket, I almost tripped. Austin chuckled.

“Hello?” My voice sounded husky and breathless. I really hoped it wasn’t one of my parents calling; I hadn’t even looked at the caller ID. There was no answer on the other end. “Hello? Anyone there?” Again, no answer, but I heard shuffling in the background. Maybe it was a pocket dial. I pulled the phone away from my ear to see who it was, but it just saidUnknown. I put the phone back to my ear. “Hello-o-o?” There was just a click in response. Call ended. Weird.

I looked up at Austin, who I realized was standing very close, brows furrowed. “Who was it?”

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