Starting over

Chapter 4: Poor boy

Chapter 4

Nova

We're supposed to know if we got in the team today. Katie as really ecstatic about it and can't sit still. We have to wait the whole day and she says that she "can't wait", every ten minutes. I couldn't care less if I get in or not. I actually don't want to be a part of the team at all. Which I've said a lot of times. So, if I don't get in, I won't be sad. If Paisley cares I don't really know. I don't think she minds it if she gets in or not. She says that it would be fun to be in the team, but she wouldn't be very sad if she didn't get in.

We've all been cheerleaders in high school. Only Katie's and Paisley's experiences were so much better than mine. They didn't get stabbed in their backs by people they thought were their friends. Their team. That was me. It's not that I have a phobia against cheerleading, it's just that I don't want to get stabbed in my back again. And I just don’t trust cheerleaders.

We walk into the cafe. I so need a latte before my next class. "Nova hurry up because we have to go", Paisley says.

"I'll be quick", I say and hurry up to the counter where there is only one boy waiting for his coffee. I’m carrying four heavy books in my arms; I can’t carry them while paying for my coffee. I dump them hard into the counter.

"Oww", the boy beside me whines.

My eyes widen as I realize that I smashed my heavy books onto the boy’s hand. "Oh god, I'm so sorry!" I say as I remove my books from his hand. How could I not see his hand? I have eyes, why don’t I just use them? I look at the boy and see that it's the same boy I made spill his coffee on him and tackled in the corridor. I mentally curse myself. Why? Like seriously?

"What can I get you?" The lady behind the counter asks.

"Um... I um... Nothing I'm good thanks", I say as I take my books and hurry back to Paisley and Katie.

I walk past them and they follow me. "Nova where is your coffee?" Katie asks.

"I didn't buy one", I say. "I really have to stop drinking coffee".

"Did you get too much sun when we had lunch outside today Nova", Paisley asks and put a hand on my forehead. "We'd better keep you inside from now on".

"No Paisley I'm fine", I giggle. "Ugh okay the truth is that I hurt that poor boy again, I smashed these heavy books onto his hand".

"How come you always hurt that one boy?" Katie laughs. "And you don't even know his name".

"I don't know", I say. "And I know right?! I just keep hurting him, poor boy, poor poor boy".

"Are you going to apologize one of these days?" Katie asks.

"I want to, but I just get too embarrassed and run away", I say.

We walk into the classroom. "Well, maybe you can go visit him later on at the hospital when you've eventually put him there by accident", Katie says and laughs. "And I don't think that will take too long if you go on like this".

"Katie this is so not funny", I say, trying to hold back my laugh.

We sit down. Paisley sits beside me and Katie beside some guy in front of us. She leans backwards to continue our chat.

"So why does it look like you want to laugh?" She asks slyly.

"Because I'm so pathetic, with my clumsiness it's going to end up with me killing him", I sigh and shake my head. "And I still don't know his name".

Paisley gives me a pat on my shoulder, and I can hear her giggle.

"Um not that I was eavesdropping, but no one can be that clumsy", the guy beside Katie says and turns around towards us.

I raise my eyebrow. "It sounds like you were eavesdropping", I say. "And who are you?"

He chuckles. "Oh I'm sorry", he says and reaches me his hand. "I'm Grey Andersen".

I take his hand. "I'm Nova", I say. "And this is Paisley and the crazy girl beside you is Katie".

"Pleasure to meet you", he says. "And I think you're talking about my buddy, he's been talking about you, you're the girl that bumped into him and he spilled his coffee over his shirt and tackled him".

I nod slowly. "Guilty", I say shamefully.

"Oh, he's going to freak when I tell him I met you", Grey says. "He's been trying to find you".

"Why?" Paisley asks excited.

"Because he finds her interesting", he says.

"What's his name?" Katie asks.

"I'm not going to tell you his name", Gale says. "I think I better let the two of them find each other instead".

I scowl at him. "You're just being mean", I say.

"Heh maybe I am", he says. "Or I'm just helping".

"How is that helping?"

"I don't know, let me think about that and return to you with a good answer", he says and turns back, chuckling.

The teacher starts up the class and I can only think of that poor boy. And if his hand is okay. Because it wasn't really like I put them down the books very carefully. I really smashed them hard onto his hand. Why does this keep happening though? Why do I keep hurting this poor boy? I mean I don't do it on purpose. It just happens. Poor boy.

And he's actually really cute and has really beautiful eyes. And a perfect jaw. But that's about all I know about this boy. And that he's a friend to this evil guy in front of me. I know more about this Grey guy than I know about the poor boy. I have to know who this boy is. I have to.

When the class is over, I realize that I didn't really do anything else but to think of the poor boy. It's only when Paisley drags me off the chair, I actually realize that the class is over.

"Come on! They must have put the list on the board now", Katie says.

She means the board in the common room.

I sigh as we make our way towards the common room.

It's very crowded when we enter and a lot of them are looking at the board. Some of them are crying, some of them are laughing and cheering.

Katie garb my hand and she garbs Paisley's hand and pulls us both through the crowd and up to the board. I don't know how she does it, but somehow, we end up right in front of the board. Katie scans the list for cheerleaders closely with her finger following her eyes on the paper.

"YEESSSS!" She yells. "We're all in!"

Oh no. I was hoping that they wouldn't take me. Actually, I was counting on it. I didn’t sabotage, but I didn’t exactly try either.

Oh well. I can't do anything about it now. I can't let Katie down when she's this happy. I can't. I'm stuck with being a cheerleader. But if I get stabbed in my back again, I'm out forever. And this time I mean it.