She squinted at him. “Don’t be coy.”
He crinkled his brow at me. “She always like this?”
Before I could answer, Roger shoved himself between Naomi and me. “Anyone game for Taco Bell?”
“Count me in,” Naomi said.
Roger pushed his shades down his nose and peered at me. “What about you, Grannie Panties? You and your boyfriend want to come?”
I looked away. His presence and loud voice made me cringe. “Can you not call me that?”
“I’m just teasing. Don’t get your panti—” He paused and laughed. “Oops.”
“Why don’t you drop it, man?” Justin asked.
Naomi’s eyes widened, and she made an
Roger held his hands up. “I’m just playin’. You guys coming or not?”
Justin raised his pizza crust at him. “Nah, I’m good.”
“Aren’t we supposed to stay on campus at lunch?” I asked.
Roger pulled my lunch box into his lap and inspected it.
I snatched it from him. “Don’t touch that!” They wouldn’t understand my reaction. How could I explain the box was part of me—my space. I wanted to grab my stuff and run into the nearest bathroom stall. It was the only place at school that allowed me to lock people out. Sometimes it felt like the only place I could breathe.
Roger yanked on one of Naomi’s purple pigtails. “Where’d you find this chick?”
She scrunched her nose at me and bit her lip. “I’m gonna split. But I’ll see you in PE, okay?”
“Sure,” I said, feeling Justin’s eyes burning into me.
“Later,” Naomi said, ruffling my red curls.
As Naomi disappeared into the crowd, I wondered why she’d want to spend so much time hanging out with a guy she didn’t even seem to like.
“What a tool,” Justin commented.
“Roger?”
“Who else?” He gave me a little nudge. “Naomi seems cool, though.”
“Yeah, she’s the first person who… never mind.”
“Tell me.” He leaned close enough for me to inhale a musky scent. Kind of like rain in a forest. It made my stomach tickle.
I counted the cracks in the pavement below my dangling feet. “She’s really friendly—most people aren’t.”
“Maybe because you aren’t very friendly to them.”
I met his gaze. His eyes matched the cloudy sky. “What does that mean?”
“Well”—he glanced down at his long fingers—“you weren’t exactly Miss Sunshine to me this morning.”
“I’m sorry. Was I supposed to do a cheer for you?”
He rolled his eyes and chuckled. “No, but looking at me would’ve been nice.”
“If I’m so horrible, why are you sitting here?”
“Because I think you’re interesting.”
Since when did guys like him find
A smile edged at his lips, showing off a dimple on his left cheek. “I’m good at reading people.”
I crumpled up my paper bag and shifted away from him. “Shouldn’t you be hanging out with people more like you, then?”
“And who would that be?”
“Kari.”
“How did you come to the conclusion that I’m like Kari?”
“Usually guys like you—”
“Guys like me? Spit it out, Drea. What little box have you stuck me in?”
His questions made my stomach shrivel, and my mind was at its limit. I couldn’t even think. Nobody ever confronted me like this before. Usually I’d say a few sentences and they’d never talk to me again. Simple.
“I have to go.” I snatched my backpack and headed toward the school building, tossing my bag in the trash.
“It’s been a pleasure,” he called after me.
My chest felt tight as I walked down the hallway in search of the restrooms. The never-ending rows of lockers bowed in and out, and my boots squeaked on the green tile floor. A group of girls stared at me as I passed them, their whispers like needles poking at my skin. Kari was one of them.
