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Chapter 1~
Levi Corbin
I sat at the lab table directly behind Ali Philips and Brody Nash. My jaw clenched as I listened to them beg Mrs. Dolgen to let them be
lab partners. Were they dating? The
thought made my stomach sink to the floor. So much had changed since I’d last
been in Haldeen, almost three years ago now.
I looked around the room without making
eye contact with anyone. Immediately, I noticed Shelby Blake. My heart ached
with guilt at the thought of poor Ali fending for herself against the likes of
Shelby. Although, if Ali was in fact dating Brody, then I had to assume Shelby
was leaving Ali alone. Everyone always bowed to Brody and what he wanted. He
was the type of guy every other guy wanted to be friends with and every
girl wanted to date. I just never thought Ali would be one of those girls.
My gaze settled back on Ali. Her golden
blonde hair stopped in the middle of her back. When I’d left, her hair had been
short, a pixie cut she’d called it. I definitely liked it better now. Her long,
tanned legs were showcased by the denim skirt that hugged her hips. A fitted,
short-sleeved shirt clung to her torso, and brown cowboy boots came up to the
bottom of her calves. I let my gaze rake up her body and down again, lingering
on the spot where the hem of her skirt met her bare legs. She shifted, leaned
forward on the lab table, and I fought to stifle a groan.
“I must be going blind. Is that Levi
Corbin I see sitting back there?”
I looked toward the sound of my name. Jimmie
Allen walked toward me. He hadn’t changed a bit since I’d last seen him. His
large head was still covered with jet black hair, and his eyes were still a
size too small for his face.
“Hey Jimmie,” I said. And then, all at
once, all eyes were on me. Perfect.
“Mr. Vincent, you’re late. Please take a
seat and stop disrupting my class,” Mrs. Dolgen said.
“Yes, ma’am.” Jimmie Allen took the seat
next to me. “So, what dragged you back to little ‘ole Haldeen?”
“Stuff.” I shifted my gaze back to Ali,
hoping Jimmie Allen would get the hint I didn’t want to talk. She had turned
around. One hand was propped on the lab table and the other on her cocked hip.
Against my better instincts, I met her stare and swallowed the lump in my
throat. “Hey, Al.”
I couldn’t take my eyes off of her. She
was stunning. Al had gone and grown up on
me. She turned around without saying anything, and I knew she was angry. I
couldn’t blame her.
Mrs. Dolgen closed the classroom door and
cleared her throat. She wrote an equation on the board and then turned to face
the class. “Page two seventy of your lab books, problems seven through
fifteen.”
A collective groan rippled through the
room.
“I could give you a few more problems to
work on if you’d like.” The room quieted, and the only sound was of Mrs.
Dolgen’s heels clicking against the tiled floor as she made her way toward the
back of the room. “Mr. Corbin, please come get a book.”
I stood and retrieved the lab book Mrs.
Dolgen held out to me. When I turned to go back to my seat, I caught Ali
staring at me. I smiled, hoping maybe she would finally talk to me, but she
quickly averted her gaze. I sat down next to Jimmie Allen, opened the book, and
looked over the assigned problems.
“Shut up.” Ali giggled and bumped her hip
against Brody’s.
The sound of her laugh drew my attention,
and I scowled at the sight of them whispering, of Brody putting his arm around
Ali’s waist and drawing her closer to him.
“I’ll do the first half of these if you
want to do the second half,” Jimmie Allen said.
I tore my gaze from Ali and gave my
attention to the task at hand, but concentration was difficult when every so
often, she would laugh. And I swore if Brody touched her one more time…
“Brody, don’t you dare!” Ali said.
“Ali and Brody, do we have a problem?”
Mrs. Dolgen’s shrill voice cut through the room.
“No, ma’am,” they chimed in unison.
“Good. Let’s keep it that way.”
I refocused my attention back on the
problems in front of me and breezed through them rather easily, but my thoughts
once again drifted to Ali. I had to talk to her, try to make her understand. If
she would just let me apologize, things could go back to the way they used to
be.
“So, Levi,” Brody turned to face me, “is
Tucker back, too?”
What kind of dumbass question was that?
“Of course he is.” I noticed the way Ali hung her head, and her shoulders
slumped. Talk about an odd reaction. I thought for sure she’d be happy to see
us again.
The bell rang, and Ali was out of the room
before I could even close my book. I rushed out after her, but by the time I
made my way into the hallway, it was crowded and hard to find her. When I finally
did spot her, I didn’t waste any time going to her.
I cautiously approached where she stood at
her locker. I reached out to touch her, but thought better of it and clenched
my hand into a fist, dropping it to my side. “Hey, Al, got a minute?”
She spun around and faced me, anger
blazing behind her blue eyes. “I’m sorry, do I know you?”
Ouch,
that was harsh. “I guess I deserved that.”
Ali looked away, refusing to acknowledge
my presence.
“Look, Al, I’m real sorry. Can you please
let me explain?” My heart thundered in my ears. I had no idea what I’d do if
she didn’t let me explain.
“I’ve been waiting two years. This had
best be good.” She clutched her books to her chest and tapped her foot, the
rhythm of her impatience spurring me on.
I took a deep, shaky breath and licked my
lips. “Dad wouldn’t let us visit. He said he didn’t want to worry about
cleaning up after our trouble making ways.”
“And your Momma wouldn’t let you use the
phone? Or did you just forget how?”
I cringed. Had she always been this feisty? “I have no excuse for that.” I
shoved my hands in my pockets so I wouldn’t be tempted to touch her and stared
at the ground. “I’m sorry, Al.” God, I was royally messing this up.
“And what’s Tucker’s excuse?” She shifted
her weight, her eyebrows drawing together in a scowl.
“He doesn’t have one either.”
“I gotta get to class.” She turned her
back on me again and proceeded to walk away.
“Ali!”
She stopped cold and stood there with her
head down and her back still to me. Everything felt like it was in slow motion,
the sounds of students going to class dulled to a barely audible hum. I’d never called her Ali before. For as long
as I’d known her, she had always been just Al, one of the boys. But now,
standing there, staring at the back of her, she was no longer one of the boys. It
was a hard truth for me to swallow, but one I couldn’t deny. Slowly, she lifted
her head and continued to walk away. I watched until she disappeared into the
crowd.
Well, that hadn’t gone as I’d hoped. I’d
give her some time to adjust to the shock of seeing me, and then I’d try to
talk to her again. She couldn’t stay mad
at me forever, could she? I checked my schedule and realized my next class
was English Lit. It wasn’t my favorite, but if I got lucky, Ali would be in
class with me again.
I made my way toward room one sixteen. The
room was full when I arrived, and the only empty seat was next to Shelby Blake.
She was the last person I wanted to spend an hour and forty-five minutes with. Just
the sight of her sleek black hair, dark eyes, and oblong face made me sick. She
was single handedly responsible for so much trouble and drama. I looked around
to make sure I hadn’t missed another empty seat. No such luck. I sighed and
took the seat beside her.
“Hey there, Levi.” Shelby turned in her
seat and crossed her legs.
“Hi.”
“Your return is the talk of the school ya
know?”
“Yup.” Did she think I didn’t know? Or
that I cared? There was only one thing on my mind: Ali. I had to make things
right with her. Even though I’d missed her every minute of every day I’d been
in California, I had liked living there. Ali was the only reason returning to
Haldeen was bearable. And now she wouldn’t even speak to me.
“So, why did y’all come back?” Shelby
snapped her gum.
“Wanted to.”
“I noticed Ali ain’t talking to you.
That’s a switch.” She blew a large bubble and popped it loudly.
I really just wanted her to shut up. Then
a thought struck me. If Ali wouldn’t talk to me, Shelby would. “Is she dating
Brody Nash?”
Shelby flung her head back and laughed.
“No, but it ain’t for a lack of trying on Brody’s part. That boy has been
chasing her since the day she dumped him.”
Relief washed through me until the rest of
Shelby’s answer settled in my mind. So, Ali and Brody had dated, but no longer
were. Interesting. Why had Ali broken up with Brody? The question was on the
tip of my tongue, but I didn’t want to talk to Shelby any longer. I knew how
she operated. I’d ask a few innocent questions, and she’d twist my words around
and start a nasty rumor. She’d done it to Ali more than once, and I wasn’t
about to give her an opportunity to do it again.
“I heard she hooked up with Jimmie Allen
over spring break, though.”
I glared at Shelby. Ali and Jimmie Allen?
Was Shelby lying? I didn’t know if she was telling the truth or not, but on the
slim chance she was being honest, I was going to make a point to have a chat
with Jimmie Allen. The second bell rang, and I sighed with relief. At least I
wouldn’t have to listen to Shelby run her mouth anymore.
Copyright 2015, Kara Leigh Miller
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