Page 117 of Stealing for Keeps
“You’re going to be okay. I promise.” She takes my hand and squeezes it. “I’ve always got your back. Whatever you need.”
She stays for a little while longer and catches me up on all the other drama I’ve missed overnight. Apparently, Ashley and Eddie broke up, one of the girls on the cheerleading team had to get her stomach pumped after drinking too much, and there’s a new rumor that the high schoolvolleyball coach is hooking up with his assistant coach. I’m pretty sure she’s just trying to make me feel better about my own drama, but it works.
After she leaves, I finally check my texts from Austin.
Austin: How are you feeling? Sorry I had to bail so fast this morning.
I’m typing out a reply when my phone rings in my hand. Austin.
“Hello,” I answer tentatively.
“Are you home?” he asks. “I’m outside.”
I walk over to the front door and pull it open. Seeing him makes me feel better than I have all day. He smiles, but he has a tiredness about him that reminds me of the game. And then of course, his purple-and-black eye. It looks like it hurts.
“Hi.” I step back to let him inside.
“Are you okay?” he asks. “Can I hug you?”
“I feel better, but I might still be contagious.”
Before I’ve finished the statement, he has his arms wrapped around me. He holds me like he’s been waiting to do it all day long.
“You scared me last night,” he says against the top of my head. He continues to keep me tight against him. I rest my cheek against his chest and breathe him in. He smells like laundry detergent and his body wash.
“I’m fine. Really. How are you?”
“Better now.” He eases his grip and looks down at me.
“Do you want to sit?” I ask. My legs still feel a little shaky.
“I can’t stay,” he says, and it’s not the words but thetightness in his expression that tells me something else is wrong. “I’m grounded, but I had to stop by on my way home to see you.”
“You’re grounded because of last night?”
“I think it was a combination of the fight, not coming home, missing practice, getting benched for the game, and then yelling at Torrance.” He tries to smile, but it doesn’t light up his face like normal.
“I heard about the game. I’m so sorry.”
“It’ll be okay.”
Will it though?
“Why did you yell at Torrance?” I ask.
He gives me a look like it should be obvious.
“What she did wasawful, but we were the ones hiding it.”
“She knew exactly what would happen if she told everyone. She wanted to hurt me, and that’s fine, but not you. You’ve done nothing to her.”
I can see how mad he is at her, but I don’t know. I don’t blame her. She’s hurting, and she saw an opportunity to hurt someone else. An opportunity we gave to her by keeping things a secret when we should have been honest.
“Anyway. I better get going. If you’re feeling up for it, do you want to come over tomorrow to work on our art project?”
“I thought you were grounded.”
“They have to let me do school stuff.”
