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Bianca handed it to me. “You go first, Max. I haven’t thought of anything yet.”
“Okay,” I said, leaning forward to try to gain Taylor’s attention, “Uh, I once fell off an umpire’s chair and broke my arm. I have a dog. I have five goldfish.”
Everyone guessed the goldfish as being the lie, and the next kid, Aaron, said he had ten goldfish, and the kid after that, seventeen goldfish. It got to be a bit of a joke and Mrs. Stephens pleaded for the rest of the kids to take it a bit more seriously. The next ones did. Destiny, a freshman, said she’d been to Wimbledon, and we thought it was a lie, but it ended up being true.
Bianca was the last to have a turn and as most of the stuff had been fairly innocuous—pets, food, and number of siblings—I wasn’t particularly concerned with what she’d say. After all, as captain of the tennis team she held a position of respect and had to act accordingly. Oh yeah, that’s how naive I was.
“Okay everyone. How are you all doing?” She’d half turned in her seat, so that she was facing the back of the van and leaning entirely too close to me. “Okay, uh, let me see...two truths and a lie.” She was being ultra dramatic. “One. I drive a little red Mercedes.”
I detected a tone of arrogance, but that was probably me.
“Two. I once beat Max Saunders 6-0, 6-0.” She nudged me with an irritating giggle. “And three. Max and I ate a super size peanut butter fudge ice cream sundae and kissed under the—”
My reaction was a half second late, knocking her hand so the mic slipped. She juggled it quickly and expertly. There were cheers and laughter from the back seats and, like she was an emcee, spoke again, “Yeah, guys, I never did beat Max, but as for the kiss...” She raised her eyebrows suggestively. “It was under the mistletoe at the Country Club Christmas Ball,” she declared, oddly her gaze directed at Taylor.
Someone asked if the kiss tasted like peanut butter, but I slid down the seat, glaring into space, refusing to establish eye contact or acknowledge her. The nerve of the girl! I nearly barfed right then and there. Bianca’s gall, her audacity! Why would she bring that up after she’d broken my silly little heart? I’d been like a lovesick puppy at that Ball, so excited that I had a date, so thrilled that she’d asked me, mocking Phoenix who had to go solo. It was the Country Club’s event of the season and I’d dressed in a tux, given her a corsage like it was Prom Night. I now wished I could totally erase the memory.
Luckily we were almost at our destination, and as soon as the van stopped, I was out of my seat in a flash. I was quick to put my hand up for a single kayak, not willing to risk the chance of getting paired with Bianca.
Unfortunately, in my attempt to keep out of Bianca’s way, I ended up isolating from Taylor, which hadn’t been my intention. It was only when we were on the river that I managed to get close to her. From the way she was paddling, it was clear that it wasn’t her first time on the water, and staying behind her wasn’t deliberate—she really was moving that quickly. The girl was paddling like she was in an Olympic race.
Nearing our destination, we’d put space between us and the rest of the kayaks. Having been here before, I shouted to Taylor and signaled over to the small wooden jetty where we’d be taking our lunch break. I went in first, pulling my kayak onto the bank, and going back to assist. Big mistake.
Taylor Frank didn’t want—or need—help.
“Hey,” I said, offering a willing hand.
“Hey,” she clipped back at me, and defying her lean physique, effortlessly hauled her kayak into position next to mine.
“You’ve paddled the river before?” Mr. Dyer was shepherding in the next few kayaks and I knew time alone would be short.
“Not this river,” she said, returning to those short, curt responses.
My heart plummeted—scared I was being given the cold shoulder, and that Bianca’s revelation had tainted me.
“I can tell you’ve done it before. There’s a longer trip, up to Pleasant Point, a bit further up.” I pointed up the river valley. “It’s really nice. Great scenery.” I was blabbering really, desperate to reconnect.
“What did Bianca mean?” I froze, fearing I’d have to admit I dated Bianca, but Taylor continued, “About you not playing tennis this year? Have you quit?”
A momentary relief washed over me, but her question threw me. I offered a shrug as I contemplated my answer. It would be too much to burden her with my issues. She didn’t know Phoenix, so it wouldn’t mean anything to her, she wouldn’t understand what I was going through.
SometimesIdidn’t know what I was going through myself. So manywhat ifs?
What if I’d been on time that day?
What if Phoenix had waited for me?
What if his Mom hadn’t...?
“Have you quit playing?” Taylor’s gentle voice interrupted my thoughts and, pretending I had something in my eye, I rubbed at them. There was no reason I should be getting teary-eyed. I blinked rapidly, keeping up the pretence that I was battling with an eyelash in my eye.
“I gotta lot stuff happening,” I mumbled, which didn’t answer her question.
“Oh,” she said, accepting my vague reply.
The next bunch of kayakers arrived and we helped unload the bags. Mrs. Stephens randomly put us into four teams for the scavenger hunt, and I was pleased not to be placed with Bianca, but disappointed that I wasn’t with Taylor. Taylor’s team ended up winning.
After lunch we divided into boys and girls teams for a variety of games. We had to pass a soccer ball around the team with our feet while lying on our backs in a circle, jump our way through a relay race with a balloon between our knees, build a tower out of plastic cups, and guide our team through an obstacle course while blindfolded.
