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Actually I could. Rafe didn't just flirt--he charmed girls right up to the point where they fell for him, then he changed his mind. I called him a player with attention deficit disorder. That made Daniel laugh. I didn't think it was so funny.
Would I think better of the guy if he followed through and scored with every girl he could? No, but he seemed like a cat toying with a mouse--no plans to make a meal of it, just batting it around awhile, leaving it wounded and dazed, then sauntering away.
He'd taken a run at me shortly after he arrived. When I turned him down, he'd seemed to take the hint and had backed off. Had that only been a temporary reprieve? I hoped not.
"Maya?" a soft voice called.
I glanced over to see Nicole Tillson, the mayor's daughter, at her locker. She looked from me to Rafe, concern darkening her blue eyes. I mouthed "Save me," and her pixie face lit up in a grin.
She scampered over. "Oh, thank God I found you. Did you read that chapter for history? I was halfway through when Hayley called and I never got back--" Her eyes widened as if she'd just noticed Rafe there. "Oh, hey, Rafe. Do you mind if I steal Maya's brain for a minute? I seriously need it."
She tugged my arm, pulling me away before he could answer. "Okay, so the first part was on World War II, right? I got as far as ..."
She continued babbling for another minute, then glanced over her shoulder. "Okay, he's gone."
"Thank you."
"Anytime. I know you don't like him so--" She glanced up at me. "You don't, right? I mean, I guess not, or you wouldn't have asked me to save you, but if you do ..."
"No. Hayley can have him."
"Good. So did you bring your lunch today? If you didn't, I was thinking maybe we could all pop over to the Blender. My treat. Mom finally paid me for that extra work I did at the clinic."
We stopped at her locker so she could get the book she'd come for. I had to help her with that. I'm only five foot five, but Nicole's at least four inches shorter, and the guys like to stick her books up where she can't reach them.
Nicole was on the swim team and in the choir, so she'd been more Serena's friend than mine. That changed after Serena died. We'd kind of taken on each other as replacement pals. It wasn't a great fit--we didn't really have that much in common--but it filled a gap.
THREE
I DON'T MIND SCHOOL. I'd like it a lot better if it wasn't indoors. Being inside just seems to sap my energy. It's gotten worse the last couple of years. I go home and I crash.
That worries my parents, but the doctors say it's a combination of hormones and my metabolism--I'm used to being outside and active, and being a teen only makes it worse. They gave me some vitamins, but I still need a nap most days.
When school ends, I get outside as fast as I can. Today I was waylaid by Ms. Morales, who wanted a firsthand account of my cougar encounter. When I finally escaped, I spotted Nicole with Daniel on the other side of the playground. He had an eighth-grader pinned to the grass, arm twisted behind his back.
"Bully!" I shouted.
Daniel glanced over and grinned. Then he let the kid--Travis Carling--go and got down on all fours so Travis could try the move on him. As Daniel gave instructions, Travis's brother, Corey, made suggestions that had everyone within earshot laughing. Travis and Corey were Chief Carling's sons.
Dark haired, over six feet tall, big, and burly, Corey was the school's second-best wrestler and boxer after Daniel. Also Daniel's best guy buddy. I could only imagine what he was suggesting Travis do to Daniel while he had him pinned. It was drawing a crowd. Corey always did. He was one of those guys who can talk to anyone--and talk his way out of trouble, which in Corey's case is a necessary survival skill.
If I had to pick the most popular guy at our school, it'd be a toss-up between Daniel and Corey. Daniel's the one everyone wants on his team--the steady, responsible leader. Corey's the guy everyone wants to party with.
As I headed toward them, I felt someone watching me. Rafe. When I looked over, he sauntered my way, grinning like I'd been the one caught staring.
Nicole said something to Corey, who looked in my direction. Daniel was on his feet now, coming to meet me. He veered toward Rafe, gaze on me, like he didn't see Rafe there. He cut right in front of him, so close that Rafe had to stop short. Daniel pretended not to notice.
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As Rafe stopped, Samantha--Sam--Russo walked past and shouldered him aside with a smirk. She switched it to a genuine smile as she said something to Daniel. Sam is our second newest student. Her parents died three years ago, and she'd come to live with the Tillsons, who were her second cousins or something like that. If there was any resemblance between Sam and Nicole, though, I couldn't see it.
Sam is an inch taller than me, kind of stocky, with dark spiked hair and wide-set blue eyes. She has freckles, too, and the only time I've seen her wear makeup is when Corey teased that her freckles were "cute" and she tried to cover them up.
When she first arrived in Salmon Creek, we'd all tried to make her feel welcome. Serena and I tried harder than anyone, because we thought she was cool, in a smart-mouth, big-city way. But Sam wielded her outsider status like a shield, so we'd given up.
I still liked her. She was different. She was interesting. And we got along fine, although it'd become clear that "getting along" was the best I could hope for. The only person at our school she really liked was Daniel. It wasn't a crush, though. She didn't even seem interested in him as a guy, only as a potential friend. Daniel was nice to her, but he already had his quota of female friends.
The student she liked least these days was Rafe. He'd made one halfhearted move toward her and I have no idea what she'd said or done, but he'd steered clear ever since.
