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North flung Kota’s controller back to him. Kota kept me pinned to the ground as he resumed the race. I tried wriggling underneath him but as I squirmed, he briefly sunk his full weight into me and it sparked a slight sting to my still healing tailbone. I laughed, giving up and watching the rest of the race with my head propped up in my hand.
“Ugh,” Gabriel shouted as Kota took the lead again.
“You have to get him now,” I said from the floor.
“Are you kidding? He’ll kick my ass.”
“I have to do everything,” I said, and I half twisted from the floor, reaching back to poke Kota square in the stomach.
“You’re already in trouble, missy,” Kota said, wriggling on top of me.
My poking seemed to be getting to him. I kept doing it, aiming for different spots.
He tried ignoring it but when the race was almost over, he let go of the controller long enough to reach around and land a deafening slap on my thigh.
I squealed, crying out. The guys laughed. Kota won the race.
“Alright, enough,” Victor said. He got up to stand by my side. He nudged Kota with his leg. “Come on, you can’t sit on her like that.”
“She started it,” Kota said. He popped me on the leg again. I squealed again, laughing. Kota hovered over me, standing.
Victor bent over to take my hands in his and assisted me up until I was standing next to him. “Did he hurt you?”
I smiled, blushing. “No, I’m fine.” I squeezed his hand gently, trying to show some assurance that I was being honest.
Victor dropped a hand on my hip and lured me around so he could take a look at my leg. “She’s got a big red handprint on her now.”
“I didn’t get her that bad,” Kota insisted. “She’s not hurt. Look at her, she’s laughing.”
Gabriel stretched from his chair and poked at Kota’s knee. “You leave a bruise on my model, you’re gonna get it.”
“What’s wrong with you guys?” Kota said, losing his smile. “We’re playing.”
“Well don’t play so rough,” Victor murmured.
The air stilled around us. I glanced between Victor and Kota, not understanding the harsh stare falling between them.
“What the hell, guys?” Nathan stood up next to Kota. “We just spent two hours flinging her across the pool and now you’re all worked up over this? We’re just playing around. She’s having fun.”
“I’m fine guys,” I said softly. I wasn’t sure what was happening but I maybe I’d taken cheating too far. “Really. Let’s just play another game.”
The silent communication zinged between all of them and I simply couldn’t keep up. I had never seen them so worked up between each other. Was it my fault? Why did I have to take things so far with Kota?
“Hey,” North bellowed. He stood up, stepping between Victor and Kota. “That’s it. Game over. Sang, in the kitchen with me. Everyone else straighten up and pick out a DVD. We’re going to eat and we’re going to watch a movie.” North snagged my hand. He guided me away from the others. I heard some grunting but everyone broke away to rearrange things.
North just gave orders to Kota! How did that happen?
North held on to my hand until we were in the kitchen again. He let go when we were within view of Erica, who was bent over the counter pouring no-bake chocolate cookies out onto waxed paper. “How’s it going in there, guys?”
“The boys are hungry,” he said. He crossed to the pot of cowboy stew and gave it a stir. “Is this done?” he asked me.
I nodded, feeling shy again. I wasn’t sure where to move or what to do. My mind was whirling as to what just happened. Were they still mad? And why did North let go of my hand in front of Erica? Why did it feel like he was hiding it? They didn’t do that at school.
Erica stopped her cookie making and put the pan in the sink. She dug in a cupboard for some plastic spoons and bowls. She handed them to me. “Here,” she said. “I let the boys eat in the living room when they’re all here. Should we have anything else?”
“They might like some cheese or sour cream on top,” I offered. I was grateful for a job to do. I slipped next to North, stacking the bowls on the counter near him and putting the spoons nearby.
Erica bowed into the fridge to collect cheddar cheese and sour cream to place on the counter.
North caught my eye and whispered low enough so only I could hear. “Smile,” he said.
I grimaced.
He patted my arm. “They’ll be fine. Don’t look so scared. Go call the guys in,” he said, nodding to the doorway to the living room. “We get them fed, and they’ll be in a much better mood.”
I sucked in a breath and started back to the living room. Kota was calling out DVD names and the others were yay-or-nay voting.
“Ready guys?” I said, trying to test the mood in the room.
Silas jumped up from the couch, stretching and smiling. “About time,” he said.
The others got up as well, but quietly. I sensed an unspoken and tender white flag hovered in the air between them.
“Where’s Victor?” I asked, noticing he was missing.
“He went outside,” Kota said. “Wanted some fresh air.” Something in the way he said it made it sound like there was more to this than he ever wanted to say.
“I’ll go get him,” I said.
“Not in those socks,” Gabriel said. He fell behind the others heading to the kitchen and snapped at me. He bent over, stripping the socks from my legs. He balled the socks up and shoved them into his pocket. He tucked his head close to mine and whispered, “Be gentle with Victor.” He caught my eye with his crystal blue gaze and headed toward the kitchen, leaving me puzzled as to what he meant.
ThE Crazy Beautiful Girl
I tiptoed out into the garage, not wanting to spook Victor. He stood alone in the driveway, half leaning on Kota’s car that was parked in the corner. The sun had gone down and he stared after the sprinkle of stars just over the crests of trees. His hands were stuffed into the pockets of his jeans. He looked so quiet and lost. I almost hated the thought of interrupting him. What happened when I left? Why was everyone being so weird?
I padded across the pavement in my bare feet, half wondering where Max was and why he wasn’t barking. The concrete was still warm from the day of sunlight. The air was muggy.
I closed the gap between us until I was a couple of feet away from him. “Victor?” I called softly.
He flinched and made a slow turn to face me. His deep brown eyes seem distant, but when his eyes met mine, a spark flickered. There was a tiny curl to his lips but he lost it and instead stared at me, his face a blank perfection.
What should I say? Could I pretend what happened never did? Should I just insist he come inside and eat dinner like everyone else? I remembered what Gabriel had whispered to me. “Are you okay?” I asked in a small voice.
He huffed. “I’m fine.”
Was that not the right thing to say? “Would you tell me if you weren’t?”
That seemed to strike him. His eyes blazed again. “Only if y
ou promise to tell me.”
I pushed my forefingers and thumbs together in front of me as if I was holding a tiny ball between them, twisting nervously. “I don’t know what to say. I feel fine. I’m a little worried about you.”
He sighed. He turned away from me and looked back toward the sky.
What now? I wasn’t sure if I should leave him. I didn’t want to. Instead, I moved up beside him, standing to his right. I glanced up at the twinkling, trying to depict planets from stars.
“What are you thinking?” I asked.
“Mmm,” he mumbled.
To lighten the mood, I thought of something I didn’t really want to know. Still, Victor needed cheering up. “Maybe about some crazy girl you met at school?”
His eyebrows furrowed as he gazed down at me. “What?”
My lips trembled because I was unsure of how to approach the topic but I forced a smile. “The one you told the lady at the jewelry counter about.”
The corner of his mouth lifted. “You heard that?”
“Yup,” I said, looking back up at the sky to avoid his stare. I couldn’t stand to see them blaze now and I wasn’t sure why. “So is she nice?”
“The jewelry woman?”
“No,” I said, but laughed. “The girl you like at school.”
He chuckled. “She’s amazing.”
I reflexively looked at him and his eyes were intense on me. My fingers started quaking so I put them behind my back. “Pretty?”
“Of course.”
“Have you talked to her? Did you tell her you like her?”
“I’ve been trying,” he said, shifting on his feet. The waves of his soft brown hair drifted in the gentle breeze that swept around us. “Sometimes I wonder if she notices. She gets a lot of attention from other people.”
“Well if she doesn’t, then she’s an idiot,” I said. Suddenly I was very uncomfortable with this. What did I know about giving advice about boys and girls? Anything I knew about was from books. Nothing like that could apply to real life, I learned that much from being around them. “I mean if you have to buy her stuff for her to realize how awesome you are, then she doesn’t deserve it.”
Victor’s head tilted back in surprise. “You think I’m awesome?”
