Tobias held my hand under the table as people shouted harmless, teasing taunts across the classroom. My neck was on fire under the heated stares in the room. Tobias rolled his eyes when someone shouted, “We hope you’re treating her right fine and good, Mr. King,” in a fake Southern accent.
“You okay?” he asked.
“I’m fine.”
“You sure?” His eyes were bright with mirth. “Because you’re stopping the flow of blood in my hand.”
I immediately released my tight hold on him and gave him a sheepish, apologetic look.
“What is all the excitement about?” Mr. Stone said loudly as he walked into the class. “I could hear you from the other end of the corridor.”
Tension glued me to my chair like a tongue to an overfrosted ice lolly. Please, no one say anything, please, please.
As if they heard my inner prayer, my classmates did me the courtesy of not embarrassing me in front of my favorite teacher. It might have seemed silly, considering how proud I really was to be holding Tobias’s hand, but I wanted Mr. Stone to always see me as the girl who was dedicated to his class. If he found out everyone was gossiping about me and Tobias, I’d seem like just another silly teenager.
I thought we were home free when the bell rang for the end of English but after I’d put all my stuff into my bag, Tobias took my hand. It turned out making sure he knew I was proud to be his girl trumped impressing my favorite teacher, because at that instant, standing in front of Mr. Stone, I made the decision to clasp Tobias’s hand tight.
Sneaking a peek at Mr. Stone as we walked away, I saw him frowning at our hands.
I sighed inwardly.
Over time he’d come to realize Tobias was smart, and that there was so much more to him than a mouthy, angry teenager. I suspected Mr. Stone was getting there already, but he didn’t know that Tobias was grieving. If he thought I was a fool for dating “bad boy” King then...well, truthfully, that would suck, but I’d deal with it.
We were almost out of the door when Heather McAlister suddenly blocked our way. She curled her lip in disgust at me before turning to Tobias. “Her? Really?”
I felt my boyfriend tense but before he could even say a word, Vicki shoved her way between us. “Comet isn’t to blame for everything that goes wrong in your life, Heather. So...shoo.” She gestured for her to leave, like she was an unwanted bug at our friendship picnic.
I smiled gratefully at the back of my best friend’s head.
She was my favorite.
Clearly stumped for a comeback, Heather stormed away.
“Nice.” Steph threw her arm around Vicki.
“Agreed.” Tobias nodded in approval.
I smiled at her. “Thank you.”
Vicki glowed under our praise. “No one messes with my Comet.”
“Heather’s just jealous.” Steph threw Tobias a look over her shoulder. There was a look of longing in her eyes that bothered me. Steph wasn’t interested in Tobias for who he was—she loved how much attention he got. She wanted a piece of it.
A streak of possessiveness coursed through me, surprising me. I tightened my hold on Tobias’s hand and glared at the back of my other friend’s head.
Two seconds later I was berating myself for it.
Steph loved being center of attention, but she would eventually be happy for me. It would just take her a little longer than Vicki. Once people stopped speculating and putting Tobias and me under the spotlight, Steph would think nothing of us.
However, it was too early for that, which I realized as soon as we walked into the school cafeteria. It was a place where people usually paid little attention to anything that was going on beyond their own group of friends.
Today they noticed.
It would appear that students of all ages had heard the news that King was going out with Comet Caldwell, of all people. Most had probably had no idea ’til now who I was. The staring made me feel paranoid, the noise level seeming to rise when Tobias sat with me and my girls instead of heading over to Stevie and his crew.
And that was when everything took a turn for the worse.
“Oy, too good for us now, King!” Forrester shouted, drawing everyone’s attention.
“Ignore him,” I said.
“I’m going to.” Tobias bit into his burger, staring straight ahead.
I exchanged worried looks with Vicki and Steph.
“Tapping virgin arse doesnae make ye God, King!” Jimmy shouted and the group of them laughed.
Wanting to die I ducked my head against Tobias’s shoulder, to hide, but also to murmur, “Don’t,” when I saw him shift in his seat. The muscle in his jaw popped but he nodded reluctantly.
But the mocking continued as one of them affected a posh feminine voice, “Ooh, Tobias, you’ll need to brush the cobwebs from my vagina before you stick anything in there!”
My hand clamped down hard on Tobias’s thigh as stifled laughter muffled in ripples across the room. His muscle was hard underneath my hand, and I could feel the heat of anger emanating off him. I was angry, too. Mortified. Seething! However, I refused to give anyone the satisfaction of seeing me walk out of that cafeteria.
“Oy, Comet! When yer done wi’ him, give me a call and I’ll show ye whit a real man can do between yer legs!”
I shot a glare over my shoulder, searching out Stevie.
Our eyes met as more degrading comments were thrown our way by his friends.
Finally, after what felt like forever, he looked away and said something to the group that made them laugh at us. I tensed, waiting for more barbs to come, but their eyes flew over my head and I turned to see assistant rector Mrs. Penman striding through the cafeteria. She stopped, staring at Stevie and his boys. “Word has reached me that verbal filth is being thrown around the cafeteria,” her voice boomed around the room with authority. “This is your one and only warning. I hear of it again and it’s a three-day suspension for all those involved.”
Quiet descended on the room and then she turned on her heel and left. Not a minute later a disgruntled-looking sociology teacher entered the cafeteria and began to patrol.
Tobias finally turned to look at me. Guilt shone out of his eyes. “I’m sorry.”
Horrified that he should blame himself, I slid my arm around his shoulders and crowded into him, not caring what anyone thought. “Don’t. Stevie’s just acting out.”
“Why is Stevie acting out?” Steph asked curiously. “And what happened to his face?”
“Well...” I didn’t feel it was my place to explain all of the crap going on in Stevie’s life and why he now saw us as traitors, but she knew about the cocaine so... “I think he got in a fight. And after what we saw at Dean’s party... Tobias and I are keeping our distance from him. He won’t stop hanging out with those guys so we can’t be involved with him.”
“Good.” Steph nodded. “I was really worried you were getting in with the wrong crowd, there, Com. No offense,” she said to Tobias.
He barely acknowledged her. Instead he stared into my eyes, anger pushing through the guilt. “It doesn’t give him the right to set those guys on us. On you.”
“It’s just the first day since the bust up. He’ll get bored and leave us alone,” I reassured him, hoping against hope that I was right.
THE FRAGILE ORDINARYSAMANTHA YOUNG
18
If only there was a button she could push,
And suddenly she’d be covered in armor.
Her skin protected from your ambush,
Your bullet-shaped words couldn’t harm her.
—CC
It was a particularly cold late November morning. The trees were nearly bare and glittered with frost. The sea was a dull gray, choppy and uninviting today, making me shiver as I passed by then strode away from the quiet beach through town. I’d sacrificed my head in the name of fashion, wearing a purple woolen headband that just covered the tips of my ears. A woolen flower shot through with silver was attached to the right side of the headband near my temple. I wore matching purple gloves, my turquoise coat and purple ankle boots. I was thinking about Stevie, warring between guilt for taking Tobias from him and fear that he and his friends would continue to make our lives miserable. The boy I knew wouldn’t do that to us, but I hadn’t recognized him in the one who’d confronted me in the hall the day before. Still I held on to my hope.