Page 14 of My High School Rebel Boyfriend
“Didn’t it swell?”
“Yeah,” I said,”but it didn’t go black. Just red for a bit. And she said it stung.”
The thing is, Mitchell hadn’t reacted one way or another when I’d made fun of his injury. I cringed as I recalled my words, “Did you have a fight with your basketball, guess it won.” It had been juvenile and mean, and usually I’m not a mean person.
And he probably thought I’d intended to hit him with the volleyball, but I hadn’t—the shot had been too good not to kill, and how was I to know he was going to cower and not try to block it with his hands?
He had ignored my apology, well ignored me totally, and that worried me. Was he planning something bigger, some payback that woulddestroy me? I knew he was capable of more. Watching him throw the basketball at the park had nothing to do with training and everything to do with aggression and anger. As the rumor mill suggested, his black eye had been caused by a fight, not a basketball.
I was under no illusion that Mitchell Finlayson wasn’t over this, that he would strike at some stage, and strike hard.
“Anyone want to go for a run with me?” Tanchia asked, as we congregated around our lockers after school the next day.
“Sorry, I’ve got work,” Bella said with a pleased smile.
“Sorry, I’m getting a ride with Bells,” Maddie said, putting her arm around Bella’s shoulder. “Harper?”
“Me?”
“Harps, will you?” Tanchia fluttered her eyelashes at me. “Please? Just a few laps round the track.”
“You’ll be too fast for me,” I said, though the thought of a run sounded like it would be good for my fitness.
“No, I’m not sprinting. Just a slow jog, some endurance work.” Track season didn’t start till the New Year, but Tanchia trained all year round. “I won’t leave you behind, promise.” Her light brown eyes widened, puppy dog pleading.
“Uh, I’d have to test myself first,” I whispered apologetically. See, that was the thing with diabetes, you couldn’t just do spontaneous exercise, you had to consider your blood sugar levels, your food, your medication.
“That’s fine,” Tanchia said, “I’ve got an extra banana in my bag if you need it.”
“And I’ve got a granola bar I didn’t have for lunch,” Maddie offered.
“No, I’ve got plenty of snacks,” I said, “okay, I’ll just go test.”
Not knowing how long Tanchia intended running for, I ate my own granola bar, knowing that the oats and honey would give me about 15 grams of carbs. Enough to not have me go low and collapse, always my biggestfear.
I changed into my volleyball shorts and I had a t-shirt under my layers which would be okay. The first lap might be chilly but I was sure it wouldn’t take me long to warm up. Tanchia had proper track shoes, but my sneakers would have to do.
The football team was training, as were a bunch of other kids. Tanchia took us to the outside lanes so as to not get in the way. She set her watch and off we went, though she kept it to a gentle pace which I easily kept up with. Speed wasn’t my concern, endurance was. My only running now was the laps of the gym that Miss Barber made us do.
We went at a pace that allowed us to talk, but I couldn’t help notice Tanchia kept looking to the football players who were doing throwing drills in the center of the field.
“I wonder why Dean has a brace on his arm,” she said. I looked over to see the Otters’ quarterback doing sprints between two cones.
“He’ll be all right for this week’s game?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” she said, “I didn’t know he’d hurt it.” We came alongside where he was training, and Tanchia suddenly veered off towards her next door neighbor. “I’ll just find out. Keep going. Catch you on the other side.”
Feeling self-conscious, I carried on, but it was likely no one was watching me, not when the Otters were in action. As I rounded the bend there was no sign of Tanchia rejoining me, still chatting to Dean. My legs felt okay, so I continued on for another lap. That’s when I saw Titan, his hair conspicuous a mile away. He had run onto the center of the field and was talking to a couple of football guys. My heart rate stupidly elevated, wondering if Mitchell was around. Why would I care if Mitchell was around? He’d probably try to trip me up. As I looked around for Tanchia, Titan thundered up beside me.
“Hey Dent!” He grinned as he adjusted his footsteps to my stride.
“Hey Dell,” I responded, concentrating on maintaining my breathing.
“Looking good,” he said. I prayed he’d run off in another direction, but he stayed beside me and said, “You were impressive in training yesterday.”
Inwardly my chest swelled, but I kept a passive face. “Impressive how?”
“That shot that nearly took my boy Mitch’s head off.” He laughed, without losing any pace.
