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Her cheeks colored again and she nodded while picking up a strawberry. I could tell she wasn’t going to provide any further information, so I asked, “How did you go?”
“Semi finals,” she said quietly, almost like she was embarrassed to admit it, but it put Taylor way above Bianca’s level, a thought that struck joy in my heart.
“Wow! Congrats,” I said again. “That’s awesome.”
The strawberry was in her mouth, so I got no response.
Lucy rattled on about some of the teachers and classes for Taylor’s benefit, and a few minutes later a bunch of other kids joined our table, including Victoria who was part of the student ambassador group. She was mentoring Hannah, a new foreign exchange student from Germany. I wondered who Bianca was mentoring, though she’d probably abandoned them to get her spot at the top lunch table.
Introductions were done all round, and Taylor was made to repeat her status several times—that she was here on a tennis scholarship, though she definitely downplayed it. She seemed grateful when Victoria started a lengthy spiel about her own summer vacation to the Bahamas. Miles was beckoning me over to his table, but I pretended not to see him and stayed there, picking away at my lunch, completely mesmerized by Taylor who was nodding and smiling at all the right times. I felt dreamy and weak.
Lucy declared that they should all go to Peter’s Ice Cream Shoppe after school. It sold Whittakers Ice Cream, which River Valley was famous for.
“You’ll adore the ice cream,” Victoria said. “It’s divine. The maple walnut crunch is to die for.”
“Yes, I’d love to,” Hannah said in her slight accent. “I’ve heard amazing things about it from my host family.”
“How about you, Taylor?” Lucy asked.
“I’d like to, but I have to meet the tennis coach,” Taylor said. “Mrs. Stephens.”
“Well, you could come down after that. They also do a great mochaccino,” Lucy said.
I was about to jump in and offer to take her, but Taylor was quick to say, “Then I’ve got training. Maybe some other time?”
“Sure,” Lucy said. As soon as they’d finished eating, Lucy indicated to Taylor that she’d show her a few more places before the bell rang. I berated myself for eating so slowly, otherwise I could have devised an excuse to tag along. I had heard Lucy talking about the photography room, and being one of my electives, I hoped it meant she was taking it too. Before Lucy left, she leaned down to me and whispered, “How’s Phoenix doing? Do you know when he’s coming back?”
My jaw tightened, and I could only manage an abrupt shake of my head, my friend’s rehab taking much longer than anticipated.
I watched as Lucy guided Taylor out. She was tall, close to five ten at a guess, and she wore her skirt longer than most of the other girls, touching the top of her knees. And she wore dark tights, not the knee-high socks that Bianca and her friends favored. She was like poetry in motion, and I could only imagine how she’d look in a short tennis skirt moving across a court.
It was at that moment that I caught Bianca staring in my direction. Not wanting to establish eye contact, I looked away, but I wasn’t quick enough. Her shiny, plump lips were pouting and her heavily lined eyes tracked me.
And just like that, even though it was a warm fall day, a chill ran through me, the fluttering butterflies in my stomach that I’d gotten from Taylor were replaced by a buzzing swarm of angry bees.
Chapter 3
