Page 23 of My Life with the Walter Boys
“Fine,” he said, laughing. “At least let me walk you to your table.”
“Sure.”
I led the way through the crowded room, Cole following me. The rows between the tables were so congested that sometimes Cole’s elbow bumped into mine as people shoved by us, sending goose bumps up my arm.
“Hey, girls,” I said and set down my tray. Riley and Heather both stared up at Cole without responding.
“See you after school, New York,” Cole told me. He nodded in Riley and Heather’s direction. “Ladies.” He flashed them a grin before walking away.
As soon as he was out of earshot, Riley began to babble. “Oh, my word! That boy just walked you to lunch. I can’t believe it.”
“Can’t believe what?” I asked.
The two girls looked at me like I was clueless, which I probably was, but it was only my second day. They needed to give me a break.
“The god of all guys is flirting with you,” interjected a boy who appeared out of nowhere and dropped his tray on the table. “And not just casual flirting. More likeIwantyouinmypantsflirting.”
The new boy was wearing a crisp blue shirt with a red bow tie. His flawless blond hair was combed to the side, and by flawless I mean like Fabio,Baywatch, or Ford models. “You must be Jackie,” he said. “I’m Skylar, Valley View High’s fashion expert. I run the style blog for the school newspaper. If you’re interested in an editing position, I’d love to work with you. Your East Coast look is so chic.”
“What? No business card?” Riley said, laughing.
Skylar rolled his eyes and turned to me. “She loves making fun of me, but at least I don’t look like a hick,” he mocked in a terrible Southern accent.
“Would you two stop?” Heather said as she flipped the page of thePeoplemagazine in front of her. “I wanna hear juicy details about Cole.”
Everyone turned to me.
“What?” I asked, looking back at them. I hadn’t realized they were expecting something from me. I barely knew the guy.
“So?” asked Skylar. “What happened?”
Why did everyone care so much about Cole? He was just one guy.
“He’s in my class before lunch, so he walked me to the cafeteria,” I responded, not knowing what else to tell them. I wasn’t good with all this boy gossip, and I could tell right away that Heather wasn’t happy with my answer.
“But what did you guys talk about?” she demanded. To show she was dedicated to the conversation, she pushed her magazine off to the side. “Did he compliment you? Maybe he touched your arm?”
“Are you talking about Walteragain?” asked another girl who plopped down onto the bench next to Skylar. “Sorry I’m late. I got caught up in the computer lab.”
“This is our pet nerd, Kim,” Riley said, introducing her to me. Kim was a slender girl whose long, flowing hair and flawless skin reminded me of an elf. “As long as you don’t make fun of her little computer game or whatnot where she battles mythical creatures, she won’t bite.”
“It’s called a massively multiplayer online role-playing game, Riley.” Kim flipped her hair over her shoulder. “Besides, I don’t battle mythical creatures. Iama mythical creature. My avatar is a dwarf.”
“Avatar?” I couldn’t follow anything Kim was saying.
“It’s a graphic representation of my character, a reflection of my personal self,” she explained for me, even though I didn’t understand a word. I wasn’t quite sure how a three-foot-tall creature could symbolize her tall, willowy frame, but I nodded my head like it made sense.
“Hi, you must be Jackie.” Kim extended a hand to me across the table.
“Wow, does everyone already know my name just because of Cole?” I asked.
She shook her head. “Actually, I’m a friend of Alex Walter. He mentioned you just moved in.”
Heather’s spoon fell from her hand. “What did you just say?”
“That Alex and I are friends? You already knew that,” Kim said, frowning at Heather.
“No, the other part,” Heather said. Her spoon was back in her hand, and she was waving it wildly. “About moving in.”
