Rumors (A Lingering Echoes Prequel)

There it was again.

  This time, there was no mistaking the dirty look thrown my way from the girl with jet-black hair, seated a couple of tables away. She wasn’t even trying to hide it this time. The dark eye makeup drawn around her eyes emphasized the scowl. She had one thin leg crossed over the other while her left arm draped across her stomach. The fingers of her right hand played with her silver earrings, the loose chain decorating the entire curve of her cartilage.

  I nudged Tara beside me. “Do you know that girl? Why does it look like she’s trying to strangle me with her eyes?”

  Tara munched on a chip before glancing across the cafeteria. “Oh, the girl with the bad dye-job?” Tara’s observation was accurate. The girl’s hair was so unnaturally black that it washed out her already pale skin. “Not sure, but if she keeps it up, I’ll gladly go find out.” With both Tara and I returning her stare, the girl finally turned away to mutter something to her friend. No doubt, the words were about us, since the equally skinny friend sent a look of disgust our way.

  “All right, what’s her problem?” I was used to people talking about me out of curiosity or pity, but not with such blatant dislike.

  “She’s just jealous.” Taylor’s voice spoke from behind me. She and Leah placed their trays on our table. “That’s Crystal Jennings. She’s a sophomore and already notorious for hooking up with all the hot juniors and seniors.”

  “I’m pretty sure your boyfriend was near the top of her list,” Leah added. She sat down. “Crystal takes pride in completing her checklist. At least, she’d proved that last year as a highly confident freshman.”

  I felt the need to clarify. “Ok, first of all, Shane’s not my boyfriend.”

  “Isn’t he?” Tara asked.

  “I hooked up with him one night and was almost arrested the next. I’m not sure that qualifies him as becoming my boyfriend.” While I’d kissed a couple of guys in the past, and had a boyfriend for a short time, I’d never let any relationship get serious. It was unchartered territory as far as I was concerned, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to explore it with Shane.

  “Well,” Tara said, “Here he comes with my boyfriend, so maybe you can clear that up with Shane right now.” She waved at Austin’s and Shane’s approaching figures. They both sauntered across the cafeteria floor, only moments away from reaching us.

  “Tara, no!” I hissed. “I am not having that conversation here in the cafeteria, especially with that creepy girl staring me down.” Shane had flirted with me all day Saturday, and he’d had the opportunity to kiss me at the golf course but hadn’t taken it. He’d teased me instead. Not that kissing made him my boyfriend… but maybe he had decided a one-night stand was good enough after all. That was what I’d wanted in the first place so maybe it put us on the same page again.

  “Relax. I’m just kidding,” she muttered, her teasing grin transforming into a full smile. She stood, and Austin embraced her with strong arms before kissing her cheek. They seemed natural together—nothing forced or uncomfortable about their interaction.

  And then there was Shane and I. We’d had fun together on Saturday, but I felt unsure about his intentions with me. Or even my intentions with him.

  I didn’t know what to do with myself, as I stared up at Shane from my seated position. His brown eyes met mine. “Hey, Shane.” Was I supposed to hug him? He didn’t make a move, so I didn’t either. Instead, his smooth expression greeted me with a simple smile—a smile that set my nerves dancing on edge despite myself.

  “What’s up, Allie?” Shane appeared so at ease in his skin, like nothing could rattle him.

  “Oh, not much,” I managed to say. A sense of shyness crept over me. I felt more comfortable when it was just the two of us, rather than having to worry about spectators. It didn’t help that I could feel the dark-haired Crystal observing and assessing our interaction. She was probably wondering if it was safe to make her move with Shane in the near future—which, considering I could think of nothing interesting to say in the moment, could very well be soon.

  “So…” Leah said, breaking the awkward silence. “Did you guys hear Walsh is out for the season?”

  “No way!” Tara said. She pulled away from Austin, fully engaging in the conversation. “What happened?”

  Leah led the conversation about Maya Walsh, the critical point guard for one of our rivals and how her broken ankle would need surgery. Apparently bored with our conversation, Shane and Austin wandered off to the lunch line. With a subtle move, I squeezed Leah’s knee in thanks for saving my inability to speak.

  Still, I peeked at Shane, thinking about Saturday night. After we had reached my car, we regrouped with our friends and things remained casual between us. We shared our escape stories, which proved less harrowing for our friends than for Shane and me. Shane and I laughed about how we’d flung ourselves into the trees and away from the police spotlight. Shane didn’t mention how he and his camouflaged self had fallen on top of me, so I didn’t either. He also hadn’t tried to kiss me when our night was over, and I couldn’t figure out if I was more relieved or disappointed.

  By the time Shane and Austin returned to our table with their food, my social skills had warmed up enough to chat about my lazy Sunday and the monotony of school life… It wasn’t until the bell rang and our group broke away for classes that Shane pulled me aside. His fingers lightly touched my elbow to hold me back.

  “What’s going on?” I asked.

  “Nothing. Just wondering if you’re ok. You seem a little… uncomfortable today.”

  I hated that my cheeks turned pink, proving him right. I wished I could read him as well as he could read me. “I’m not… ok, maybe a little. I don’t know…”

  Shane grinned. “You’re pretty cute when you’re nervous.”

  Ah! Flirting again! And all I could do was blush and feel tongue-tied. Why did he wait until we were alone to talk like this? I couldn’t play his games. I flicked my gaze around the emptying cafeteria, looking for an exit point—namely Tara or my sisters to chase after. No such luck. I returned Shane’s steady gaze. “I’m just getting used to hanging out with people again, I guess.” Lame. But it was a truthful statement.

  “I can understand that. You have kept to yourself a lot this year.”

  At least he had noticed. It reminded me of the short conversation we’d had at his party when he’d referred to me as a “hermit”. I hadn’t appreciated it at the time, though it was accurate. When the school year begun, I did whatever I could to be invisible, whether it was hiding in the bathroom stalls, the library, or simply hurrying home right after school to escape social settings. It was too hard knowing how to respond to questions about the accident, or Maddie, and not knowing how much people knew or cared.

  “So, how about coming out with us again tonight?” Shane continued.

  “It’s Monday…”

  “Yes…” Shane nodded once. “This is true.” The corners of his mouth turned up ever so slightly. He lowered his voice, moving his mouth closer to my ear. “It is ok to have a social life beyond the weekend.”

  An uncomfortable laugh escaped my mouth. I busied myself with tucking hair behind my right ear and licked my lips. I lifted my face to Shane again. “Ok, sure. What’s the plan?”

  “I’m not sure there is one yet,” Shane said, walking with me towards the cafeteria doors. “But it beats doing homework. We’ll think of something.”