Page 10 of Never Forever

“Hey, Matt.”

I sounded casual. Totally normal. Not at all like my heart was going a million miles in my chest.

“You left this on the ferry,” he said.

Yeah, I thought. That’s our game. Books and notes, and once, I left him cookies. Iobsessedover what I was going to leave him.

But today he had my book bag in his hand. It was red leather, designer and very expensive. Whoops. That had not been on purpose. I was really out of it with all this drama between Mom and Dad.

“Thanks,” I said and took it from him, putting the strap over my shoulder and between my barely there boobs.

Barely there boobs that apparently fascinated Matt.

I twisted away from him, suddenly shy, and he coughed into his hands.

“Uh. Yeah. Sure. No big deal. See ya in class.”

He walked on and I wondered if I was making progress, or if Matt just looked at any girl’s barely there boobs.

Maybe I should just go out with the junior football player who stopped by my locker after fourth period. Maybe if I did, Matt would get jealous enough to do more than just leave books and notes for me on a ferry boat.

Gran would call that using my feminine wiles on a boy. No good would come of it, she would say.

But I didn’t want to go out with the football player. I just wanted Matt. So, I figured I would wait for Matt to finally come around.

3

When They Became A Thing

Matt

At the end of freshman year, I found myself sitting next to Carrie in Principal Ator’s office.

“Hey,” I said, slumping into the chair next to her, half the side of my face throbbing. I covered it with the ice pack Mrs. Jennings had given me.

“Matt, what happened to your face?” Carrie asked. She sounded upset. Like really upset.

Carrie was becoming one of the cool girls in school. It started when she got a part in the Fall play, which never happened for freshman. And then she absolutely stole the show. For weeks Carrie Piedmont’s performance in Our Town was all anyone talked about.

Plus, she was hot. Without even trying she was hot.

“I got in a fight,” I said.

“With who?” she asked.

“Ryan Blants.”

“Oh my God, Matt,” she breathed.

Yeah, it wasn’t smart. Ryan Blants was man-sized. The rumor was that he got held back in kindergarten and then again in 3rdgrade and was actually nineteen and trying to graduate high school. There was also a rumor that he carried a knife to school. I was going to walk home with eyes in the back of my head.

“Why would you fight him?” she asked.

“He was picking on somebody.”

“Of course, he was,” she said, and then she reached over and touched my hand, pulling it away from my face. She winced. “That looks really bad.”

It felt bad, but all I could feel was her hand touching mine. She smelled good, too. Like flowers and caramel.

---