AllFreeNovel
Share Us
In the school halls that afternoon, he’d overheard a group of guys talking about who they were going to invite to the spring dance. Susan’s name had come up. Jerry wanted to ask her.
Sam knew for a fact that Susan didn’t have a crush on Jerry, but she thought he was a swell enough guy. That might change if they went on a fancy date, and she might start to like him. Sam had been privy to all of Susan’s crushes over the years. They started out strong, but fizzled quickly. They always laughed about that. Ironically, Sam never had crushes on other girls. Sure, he’d date, mostly double dating with Susan and her current crush. But he had never wanted anyone more than he wanted her.
He found her in her backyard after knocking on her front door.
“Hey,” he said, spying her lounging on the hammock with a book in her hand. She was always reading something, and invariably, he’d end up reading it, too, just so they could have a conversation about the book.
“Hey.” Susan turned her head and gave him a lazy smile.
He loved her smile. He loved the way her lips quirked, and he loved the light blue of her eyes, and the freckles that seemed to dance along her skin.
“Your mom said you were back here. Are you busy?”
She held up the book. “Not really. Have you read My Antonia?”
“Not yet—you getting ahead in English class?”
“I’ve read it before,” Susan said, moving to sit up on the hammock. She patted the space next to her.
Sam didn’t hesitate to join her. Sitting next to her on the hammock would mean that their shoulders would be pressed together. He didn’t mind, but he also wondered if it was the best situation to confess to her. “Of course you’ve read it before. Is it good?”
Susan laughed.
He loved her laugh too.
“Do you think our English teacher would assign a bad book?” She nudged his shoulder.
He nudged her back. “I guess not.” She smelled of strawberries—he already knew it was her shampoo because she’d told him once.
She used her foot to propel them into a swaying motion. “Did you get the job?”
“No,” Sam said. “They gave it to a man with a family. He’s a war veteran.”
Susan’s brows lifted. “The gas station doesn’t pay enough to support a family.”
“It doesn’t, but my folks say things are getting more desperate around here.” He shook his head. With all the soldiers having returned from war, the jobs were snatched up in minutes.
“Yeah, my mom said we have to start scrimping more. No extras.”
They swayed for a couple more minutes, then Sam said, “You thinking about going to the Spring Fling?”
Susan scrunched her nose. “That’s weeks away. No one’s asking yet.”
“I overheard some guys talking about it.”
She turned to look at him. “Already?”
“Yeah.”
She lifted a shoulder. “I won’t have a dress, so I’ll probably stay home. Are you asking someone?”
“I want to ask someone, but I don’t know if she’ll say yes.”
Susan gave a small laugh. “She’ll say yes. You’re a catch, Sam Davis.”
“I am?”
“I mean, you shower, you’re on the baseball team, you have goals in life, and you’re not terrible looking.”
