Page 3 of Loyalty, Lust, Love
Lynx turned to walk away, and just as he was about to bend down again to get his books, Mitchell pushed him. Lynx was only on the floor for half a second before he was up and swinging on Mitchell. A crowd was already surrounding them, and it only got bigger.
When Lynx began to get the best of Mitchell, Terry, Mitchell’s best friend, jumped in. There was no way Fateema would let them double-team Lynx, so she jumped in. She and Lynx were beating Mitchell and Terry’s asses before someone finally showed up to stop the fight.
On his first day at a new school, Lynx was suspended for ten days because he came to Fateema’s defense. She felt terrible, but she was suspended right along with him. Unfortunately, they didn’t exchange phone numbers before their suspension. However, two days into it, Lynx looked out of his bedroom window and saw Fateema in the backyard of the house behind the one he now shared with his father.
His father was at work, and he was given strict instructions not to leave the house or let anyone inside. Lynx and his rebellious spirit convinced him that going to the backyard wouldn’t be a big deal. He bundled up in his winter coat and exited the house through the patio doors.
“Hey!” he shouted, trying to get Fateema’s attention.
When she didn’t notice him, he walked to the back of the yard until he reached the fence that divided the properties.
“Hey!” he repeated, louder this time.
She turned around, obviously startled, but when she realized who was trying to get her attention, she smiled.
“Oh my God. Is this where you live?” she asked after jogging to the fence.
“Yeah. We moved in right before I started school.”
“Wow, that’s cool. I’m sorry for getting you suspended.”
“Why are you sorry? It wasn’t your fault.”
“It was your first day, though. I feel bad.”
“You shouldn’t. I’ll do it again if those punks try anything.”
Fateema smiled. “Thank you. What have you been doing since we’ve been out of school?”
He shrugged. “Nothing, really. I finished all the work they sent home on the first day.”
She gasped and followed it up with a laugh. “Me too. It was so easy.”
“Yeah. Are you grounded?”
She shook her head. “My dad was glad we beat those guys up. I’ve been complaining about them all year, and he said they deserved it. Are you grounded?”
“No, but my dad was mad until I told him what happened and what you said about them.”
“Cool.”
“Is that a treehouse?” Lynx pointed to the structure in the corner of Fateema’s yard.
“Yeah. My dad works in construction. He built it for me when I was little, but I still go up there a lot. There’s a lot of space on the inside. I even have a gigantic bean bag chair up there.”
“That’s cool.”
“It’s too cold to hang out up there now, but I can show it to you if you want?”
“Not today. I wasn’t supposed to leave the house. Do you have a cell phone?” She nodded, prompting him to remove his from the pocket of his sweats. “What’s your number?”
After Fateema shared her number, he called her and saved the number.
“I only planned to come out for a few minutes to get some fresh air, but it’s cold. I’m going back inside,” she told him.
“Okay.”
“I’ll call you.”
