Page 4 of Love, A Curvy Girl's Guide

She heard a sickening snap, followed by a scream—her own, she realized moments later as her gym teacher rushed to her side.

“Her arm!” one of the girls shouted. “Is that the bone sticking out?”

“Give her space!” Coach Larsen commanded. “Haley, are you all right?”

She tried to answer, but the pain was overwhelming. Her vision blurred, and her pulse thundered in her ears. Through it all, she saw Ian’s pale face as he pushed through the other kids to lean down and peer at her.

His face was tight with an expression she couldn’t read. Was it guilt? Concern? Haley didn’t know. He reached out a hand but stopped short when he noticed her wince.

“Was it them?” Ian’s voice was low and steady, but there was an edge to it. His eyes darted toward the two boys who had tripped her.

Haley blinked back tears, caught off guard. Why did he care? He’d been mocking her for months. She expected him to laugh with everyone else, not to come to her defense.

“Ian, move back,” Coach Larsen ordered as he arrived with the school nurse. Ian ignored him, his gaze still locked on Haley.

“Was it them?” he repeated, his voice sharper now. His knuckles were white, and his fists clenched at his sides.

Haley shook her head. “I… I just tripped.”

Ian’s jaw tightened, but he didn’t argue. He straightened up, glaring at the boys so fiercely that one of them took a step back. Without another word, he turned and stalked off.

Haley’s arm throbbed with pain, yet her mind stayed on Ian. Why had he looked at her like that? Like he cared?

Coach Larsen’s whistle broke through her daze. “Let’s get you to the nurse’s office, Haley.”

As they helped her up, Haley glanced over at the edge of the field. Ian was still there, watching her. And for the first time, she felt something other than hate toward him—something unsettling and entirely new.

TWO

Senior Prom Night

“Casey, I’m not sleeping with you in the back of your mom’s station wagon.”

Casey Morgan dropped his head between his knees and slumped on the curb outside the high school gym where their senior prom had ended in total disaster. “It’s because I puked on your dress, right?”

Haley wrinkled her nose, holding the plastic garbage bag containing her ruined prom gown. “With any luck, my mom can get it cleaned.”

“At least you had some gym clothes to change into,” he pointed out, gesturing at her wrinkled T-shirt and old black biker shorts that smelled faintly of sweat and body spray.

Haley held back an eye roll. Sure, she could still be sitting in her vomit-stained dress, so she supposed. Clearly, it could be worse. But spending her senior prom sitting outside on the curb in yesterday’s gym clothes wasn’t exactly what she’d call “lucky.”

“So… it’s a hard no on the sex?” Casey asked, hopeful as a puppy.

Haley pinched the bridge of her nose, trying not to lose her temper. All six and a half feet of Casey seemed to be governed by a brain about the size of a peanut.

“That’s a hell no, Case. Even if I wanted to sleep with you, you smell like puke and booze. It’s not really a turn-on.”

“Yeah,” he mumbled, looking properly chastened. “I figured as much. Do you, uh… just want to go home?”

She laughed, a slightly hysterical sound. “That was your whole plan, huh? Bring me to prom, then try to get me in the back of your mom’s car?”

Casey scratched his head, looking genuinely confused. “I mean… we could do something else. What do you want to do?”

“Anything, Case. Anything besides that. Do you want to see a movie? Maybe go bowling?”

He thought about it, his bleary eyes lighting up. “I heard there’s a new superhero movie at the drive-in. Want to catch the midnight show? I’ll buy the popcorn.”

A smile tugged at Haley’s mouth despite everything. She and Casey had become friends in high school. He was loud, obnoxious, and funny as hell. But most importantly, he didn’t seem to care about her appearance. Despite his recent lapse in judgment, Casey was one of the good guys. When he’d moved to the area sophomore year, he’d quickly become her friend. He even stayed neutral when he realized there was bad blood between her and Ian, his other friend. He liked Haley for who she was, making him one of her favorite people.

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