So, here it is two years of pestering and flirting heavily with Rae and it still hasn’t grown old. The summer between eight and ninth grade was when I became more than hooked on Rae. She’d come back from vacationing in California with sun kissed skin and a body that was definitely more like a woman’s than a girl’s. My fixation with Rae only gets worse by the day. My picking on her has turned from flirtatious fun to needy hunger, an addiction. Her jet-black hair and fair skin make her blue eyes standout. She looks like a modern Snow White. My personal Snow White.
I took one look at her when she got back from vacation the summer before high school and knew every asshole in school would be trying to take her out and there was no freaking way I’d allow any of that. That’s why I decided I’d do whatever it took to score a date with her while telling every other asshole at school that she was spoken for. I even enrolled in the advanced curriculum courses for ninth grade just so we would end up with many of the same classes.
Lucky for me, at a Sunday barbeque the week before our high school journey started, I snuck into her room and found her prepared backpack. Rae is a teacher’s pet—a total hot nerd. The girl is a walking oxymoron. I knew she would have all her things ready to go for the first day of high school well in advance. I copied her class schedule card on my palm using a purple glittery pen I stole from her backpack—a pen I chose to keep which pissed her off so bad. When we left the barbeque, I made sure to wave my palm in her face so she’d see what I had done. Her mouth gaped, and she shook her head before stomping to her bedroom no doubt to see if I messed with anything else.
When I went into the counselor’s office the first day of school, I simply fed our guidance counselor, Mr. Gafford a crock of shit when I told him I chose to change to the more challenging courses to prepare for college. He ate that shit up with a spoon and was all too happy to ditch what I had been assigned for the schedule I requested—Rae’s schedule. Truth was, I wasn’t happy about the harder work—that part sucked then and it still sucks now and I knew it would interfere with the amount of time I could slack off with the guys but it was worth it. Rae was worth it and I would make her help me if I needed it whether she liked it or not. One mention to her momma that I needed help and she would be forced to tutor me.
The bit about college was bullshit too. I knew I was going into the military, just like Steven, my big brother. He just got out of the Marine’s having finished up four years. He will be moving back home next month. Dad’s already been helping him look for a job here in town. I haven’t said anything to anyone aside from Chick about me considering joining the Marines. I’ll have to figure out a good time and the right words to spill those beans.
The bell rings just as Rae slips through the door to Mrs. Burke’s tenth grade English class. She chooses a seat in the first row, closest to Mrs. Burke’s desk. She’s a squat woman with gold-framed glasses and a severe lisp. She goes to the same church my family and the Potter’s do.
Rae is oblivious to me as she settles in and digs out her notebook and two pens, one blue, one black. I grab my backpack and tap Kyle on the shoulder. He’s sitting directly diagonal to her on the second row. He tilts his head up at me and I jerk my head telling him to get lost. Kyle smirks and then grabs his stuff to swap desks with me. The switch grabs Rae’s attention and her ice-blue eyes land on me then immediately narrow when she realizes I moved just to get closer to her.
“Good morning, clath. Today we will be taking the thummary tetht covering Far From The Madding Crowd by Thomath Hardy, which all AP English thtudenth were to read over the thummer break.” Half the class groans in protest. I assume they didn’t read the stupid book. I did only because Rae seemed pretty engrossed in it and I had to know what the hell had her so rapt. I was happy to find out that the dude that stuck around long enough got the girl. The book was pretty good.
“Hey, Rae. Wanna go get a burger tonight?” I ask leaning forward whispering low absently twirling Rae’s glittery pen in a circle on top my desk. Mrs. Burke is handing packets down each row of desks so I take the opportunity to mess with Rae.
“Stop. It,” she whispers back with her jaw locked. I grin and lean back in my chair, getting comfortable.
“Gimme the anthwerth to the tetht then,” I whisper back poking fun at Burke while she’s still counting out test packets for the first row.
“You know the answers. I saw you reading the book Sunday at your house and judging by your spot in the book, you finished it,” she says low, refusing to look at me.
“Aw, you were watching me Rae?” I press my hand to my chest like I’m real touched by it. Steam is practically billowing out of her fair little ears.
“Stop,” Rae whisper-yells. Burke clears her throat and props one balled fist high on her hip.
“Agree to one date,” I counter.
“Thinth clearly there ith thome confuthion leth clear it up now. There ith no reathon for anyone to be chatting up their neighbor unleth they have or crush or thomething. Tho, if you have a crush on your neighbor and mutht profeth your undying love, by all meanth, thandup now tho the retht of us can go about tethting.”
Oh, this is just too beautiful to pass up. I grin, my cheeks aching. This is a golden opportunity to embarrass Rae and coerce her into going out with me. I slowly unfold myself from my desk, standing tall much to Rae’s horror as I smile proudly down at her in her seat. “I’ll be your Gabriel Oak,” I cite the dude in the book that eventually got the girl. I glance to Mrs. Burke who is pissed but also visibly pleased that I obviously read the book. “How about that burger, Rae?” I ask clear and loud for everyone to hear me. Rae cups her hand, bracketing her face, pretending to not see me as she sinks lower into her chair. Her gorgeous skin turning a shade of deep pink, the tips of her little ears turning red as our classmates giggle.
“Brouthard, athk Raegan out on your own time,” Mrs. Burke warns.
“But I’m already asking her out now. Just waiting for the green light, Miss Burke,” I argue with my arms flung outward.
“Jesus,” Rae groans quietly somehow sinking further into her desk. The class is giggling and whooping.
“Oh, thit down Brouthard!” Burke snaps at me, sending fine spittle flying out of the edge of her mouth. I laugh quietly, raising my hands in surrender, take a bow facing the rest of our classmates who are all whooping and clapping, then do as I’m told while plotting against my stubborn Snow White. She’s mine she just doesn’t want to admit it yet. Or maybe she hasn’t figured that out yet. Either way, I’ll help her see it like I do. We are meant for each other.
Chapter 7
Raegan
I should just begin making a list of all the shitty occurrences as they come my way during this trip home that way next time I am supposed to make the trek back to Palmetto Grove I can refresh my memory of all the reasons I should manufacture a really worthy excuse to just... not.
Do or die work obligation, broken bone, house fire, goddamn Ebola virus! Anything to never repeat this trip, Anxiety says frantically.
The raging hangover was the least of my issues today. Sylas Broussard in my face, bright and early on my twenty-eighth birthday, smiling that fucking smile of his which was definitely a big, fat, unfortunate trump card on what would normally be a hangover for the history books. Hangover? What hangover? That is the least of my worries at present.