helping my already restless mood. I made a big presentation of looking at the clock on my cell phone and said, 'We better get to school, Vee. We have a bio test to study for. Elliot and Jules, it was nice meeting you.'
'Our bio test isn't until Friday,' said Vee.
On the inside, I cringed. On the outside, I smiled through my teeth. 'Right. I meant to say I have an English test. The works of… Geoffrey Chaucer.' Everyone knew I was lying.
In a remote way my rudeness bothered me, especially since Elliot hadn't done anything to deserve it. But I didn't want to sit here any longer. I wanted to keep moving forward, distancing myself from last night. Maybe the diminishing memory wasn't such a bad thing after all. The sooner I forgot the accident, the sooner my life would resume its normal pace.
'I hope you have a really great first day, and maybe we'll see you at lunch,' I told Elliot. Then I dragged Vee up by her elbow and steered her out the door.
The school day was almost over, only biology left, and after a quick stop by my locker to exchange books, I headed to class. Vee and I arrived before Patch; she slid into his empty seat and dug through her backpack, pulling out a box of Hot Tamales.
'One red fruit coming right up,' she said, offering me the box.
'Let me guess… cinnamon is a fruit?' I pushed the box away.
'You didn't eat lunch, either,' Vee said, frowning.
'I'm not hungry.'
'Liar. You're always hungry. Is this about Patch? You're not worried he's really stalking you, are you? Because last night, that whole thing at the library, I was joking.'
I massaged small circles into my temples. The dull ache that had taken up residence behind my eyes flared at the mention of Patch. 'Patch is the least of my worries,' I said. It wasn't exactly true.
'My seat, if you don't mind.'
Vee and I looked up simultaneously at the sound of Patch's voice.
He sounded pleasant enough, but he kept his eyes trained on Vee as she rose and slung her backpack over her shoulder. It appeared she couldn't move fast enough; he swept his arm toward the aisle, inviting her out of his way.
'Looking good as always,' he said to me, taking his chair. He leaned back in it, stretching his legs out in front of him. I'd known all along he was tall, but I'd never put a measurement to it. Looking at the length of his legs now, I guessed him to top out at six feet. Maybe even six-one.
'Thank you,' I answered without thinking. Immediately I wanted to take it back. Thank you? Of all the things I could have said, 'thank you' was the worst. I didn't want Patch thinking I liked his compliments. Because I didn't… for the most part. It didn't take much perception to realize he was trouble, and I had enough trouble in my life already. No need to invite more. Maybe if I ignored him, he'd eventually give up initiating conversation. And then we could sit side by side in silent harmony, like every other partnership in the room.
'You smell good too,' said Patch.
'It's called a shower.' I was staring straight ahead. When he didn't answer, I turned sideways. 'Soap. Shampoo. Hot water.'
'Naked. I know the drill.'
I opened my mouth to change the subject when the bell cut me off.
'Put your textbooks away,' Coach said from behind his desk. 'I'm handing out a practice quiz to get you warmed up for this Friday's real one.' He stopped in front of me, licking his finger as he tried to separate the quizzes. 'I want fifteen minutes of silence while you answer the questions. Then we'll discuss chapter seven. Good luck.'
I worked through the first several questions, answering them with a rhythmic outpouring of memorized facts. If nothing else, the quiz stole my concentration, pushing last night's accident and the voice at the back of my mind questioning my sanity to the sidelines. Pausing to shake a cramp out of my writing hand, I felt Patch lean toward me.
'You look tired. Rough night?' he whispered.
'I saw you at the library.' I was careful to keep my pencil gliding over my quiz, seemingly hard at work.
'The highlight of my night.'
'Were you following me?'
He tipped his head back and laughed softly.
I tried a new angle. 'What were you doing there?'
'Getting a book.'
I felt Coach's eyes on me and dedicated myself to my quiz. After answering several more questions, I stole a glimpse to my left. I was surprised to find Patch already watching me. He grinned.
My heart did an unexpected flip, startled by his bizarrely attractive smile. To my horror, I was so taken aback, I dropped my pencil. It bounced on the tabletop a few times before rolling over the edge. Patch bent to pick it up. He held it out in the palm of his hand, and I had to focus not to touch his skin as I took it back.
'After the library,' I whispered, 'where did you go?'
'Why?'
'Did you follow me?' I demanded in an undertone.
'You look a little on edge, Nora. What happened?' His eyebrows lifted in concern. It was all for show, because there was a taunting spark at the center of his black eyes.
'Are you following me?'
'Why would I want to follow you?'
'Answer the question.'
'Nora.' The warning in Coach's voice pulled me back to my quiz, but I couldn't help speculating about what Patch's answer might have been, and it had me wanting to slide far away from him. Across the room. Across the universe.
Coach chirped his whistle. 'Time's up. Pass your quizzes forward. Be expecting similar questions this Friday. Now'-he sanded his hands together, and the dry sound of it made me shiver-'for today's lesson. Miss Sky, want to take a stab at our topic?'
'S-e-x,' Vee announced.
Precisely after she did, I tuned out. Was Patch following me? Was he the face behind the ski mask-if there even was a face behind a mask? What did he want? I hugged my elbows, suddenly feeling very cold. I wanted my life to go back to the way it was before Patch barged into my life.
At the end of class, I stopped Patch from leaving. 'Can we talk?'
He was already standing, so he took a seat on the edge of the table. 'What's up?'
'I know you don't want to sit next to me any more than I want to sit next to you. I think Coach might consider changing our seats if you talk to him. If you explain the situation-'
'The situation?'
'We're not-compatible.'
He rubbed a hand over his jaw, a calculating gesture I'd grown accustomed to in only a few short days of knowing him. 'We're not?'
'I'm not announcing groundbreaking news here.'
'When Coach asked for my list of desired characteristics in a mate, I gave him you.'
'Take that back.'
'Intelligent. Attractive. Vulnerable. You disagree?'
He was doing this for the sole purpose of antagonizing me, and that only flustered me more. 'Will you ask Coach to change our seats or not?'
'Pass. You've grown on me.'
What was I supposed to say to that? He was obviously aiming to get a reaction out of me. Which wasn't difficult, seeing as how I could never tell when he was joking, and when he was sincere.
I tried to inject a measure of self-composure into my voice. 'I think you'd be much better seated with someone else. And I think you know it.' I smiled, tense but polite.
'I think I could end up next to Vee.' His smile appeared just as polite. 'I'm not going to press my luck.'
Vee appeared beside our table, glancing between me and Patch. 'Interrupting something?'
