Page 22 of Every Broken Thing

Unsure whether it was an insult or not, I scrutinized him before sending him a wicked smile and an exaggerated wink. “Well, there’s definitely one thing that isn’t average, if you know what I mean.”

His blush deepened, traveling down his neck and over the tips of his ears, as I waggled my eyebrows suggestively. “Wow. You just jumped right to dick measurements. I’m pretty sure we skipped a few vital friendship steps.”

“Psh, we aren’t friends,” I said, ignoring his bewildered expression.

“This is us not being friends?”

“Exactly.” I patted his curly head like one would a dog. “Now you’re getting it, Adams.”

Shaking his head, he turned his attention to the now-glowering teacher, and I followed suit as I tried to quell the satisfaction warming my chest from our interaction. What the hell was I thinking? I was supposed to be staying as far away from Ben Adams as I could, and I’d just made conversation with him. Purposely.

I spent the rest of class vacillating between watching Ben from the corner of my eye and pretending he didn’t exist. Of course, he remained calm and collected, completely indifferent to the mixed signals I constantly sent him, and when we parted ways in the hallway, he waved.

“See you around, Silas,” he said, garnering curious glances from the surrounding students traversing the hall.

“We’re still not friends,” I reminded him pointedly, and he threw his head back with a laugh.

“Sure.”

I spent my detentionwatching the woman who taught Typing 1 grow increasingly red in face as she read an erotic novel hidden inside herMicrosoft Office for Dummiesinstructional book. I knew computers were exciting, but they weren’tthatexciting. Ugh… gross!

Not allowed to use my phone, I stared into oblivion and contemplated the world’s most important questions as I tried and failed to ignore the heavy breathing of the sexually deprived forty-year-old teacher. Okay, I did homework, too, but it took twenty-eight minutes tops. The rest of the time, I sat subjected to Ms. Needy’s wanton sighs and the snores of my fellow classmates seeking solace in the comfort of unconsciousness.

Detention ran fifteen minutes over thanks to the smut novel. I wanted to interrupt her reading, but the deep magenta of her skin conveyed the exact part of the story she greedily feasted on. I was too grossed out to say a word. It was safer to wait until she took on a more natural hue before I cleared my throat and pointed to the clock.

To be honest, the mind-numbing boredom gave me time to reflect on the whole Ben predicament facing me. On one hand, Ben was funny, smart, kind, and hanging out with him didn’t make me want to scream. Not to mention, he would make a good bodyguard. On the other hand, he’d witnessed my sexual assault, which couldn’t be a good foundation to a friendship.

After thirty minutes of deliberation, I decided to sever ties completely, forget we ever met, and refuse to speak to him again.

Somehow, my resolution got lost on the walk to my truck, and I found myself here, standing in the gym hallway with my back against the wall, waiting. I tried to leave, I really did, but my body rejected my brain’s orders. I stood against the wall, frozenand wary, as I fought against the memories of what happened over a month ago in the bathroom down the hall, trying instead to plan what I would say to Ben when he finished with practice.

Water sloshing in the pool was at a minimum, and my stomach rolled with nerves. Nothing said,Be my friend!like blowing chunks all over his shoes, right? Seemed like a smooth way to begin.

Eventually, members of the swim team poured from the pool doors, and I straightened my stance, tightening my hand on the strap of my backpack. Most of them sent me cursory glances before dismissing me while others stared in open curiosity. I glared at the latter group and ignored the former.

After half the population of Indiana made its way out of the pool room, I spotted Ben’s damp, curly head and swallowed the frog in my throat as he exited with a skinny brunette attached to his arm. I stamped out my automatic flash of annoyance and reminded myself I was here to make nice and be friends. Getting jealous and crushing on said friend prospect was a no-no. Plus, he was straight and had a girlfriend, and I wasn’t a part of some cliché love story.

The brunette, Alice, giggled hysterically at something Ben said, and the blushing boy struggled to detach her from his person. I laughed internally at the panic in his eyes as he searched the hallway for assistance. Of course, his gaze latched on to mine, and his discomfort melted into a surprised grin.

“Silas?”

Alice noticed me a second later, and her laughter faded to a perplexed frown. Glancing between us, she struggled to fit the pieces of the puzzle together, and her fingers tightened around Ben’s arm possessively even as a plastic smile slid across her face.

“Oh my God, Silas,” she said with extra affectation in her voice, “how are you?”

Mimicking her over-the-top excitement at my presence, I said, “Oh my God, Alice, I’m so great. How are you?”

“I’m great!”

“That’s great,” I said.

She simpered. “So great.”

“Great.” I dropped the act and the smile. “Ben, can I talk to you?”

Ben looked moments away from bursting into laughter, but he managed to swallow it as he turned to Alice. “I’ll see you later.”

“Definitely.” Alice took the dismissal with grace, but she shot me a scrunched-nose-pinched-mouth scowl before she headed toward the exit doors.

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