"Yippee!!!"
Connor is watching our little exchange, so when I roll my eyes he winks at me.
"You ready for Coach Reed tonight?" Ethan asks Connor.
"Yeah, today"s practice is going to suck though. I heard he"s still p.i.s.sed about our loss last week."
"I heard that too. All I gotta say, is we"d better win at Thursday"s game."
"No s.h.i.t," Connor states.
I"m picking through my food and am relieved when lunch is over. I"m feeling really awkward around Connor right now, and until we can be alone I don"t want to bring up what I heard in the bathroom.
The rest of the day moves along with everyone unaware of my inner thoughts and panic. After choir, I turn into the instrument room to get my cello out. I don"t have much longer before the district compet.i.tion and I"m pretty happy with my progress. Even Mr. Holcomb was really pleased when I worked with him a couple times last week. But I want to practice my piece a few more times to make sure I don"t have any glitches.
Once I"ve gotten through it three times, I finish for the day. I still have thirty minutes before Connor will be ready to go, so I decide to sit on the bleachers by the baseball field and wait for him. I"ve been to his baseball games throughout the years, but I"ve never watched practice. I wonder if it"s as tough as the guys make it sound.
I settle myself on one of the bleachers and watch the guys run drills and after a while, I pull out my phone to read a book I downloaded the other day. I look up later when I hear shouting followed by the loud shriek of a whistle. There"s a cl.u.s.ter of guys together on the field, and the coaches work to pull them off each other. I"m surprised to see Connor in the middle of everyone breathing heavy and glaring at another guy on the team that I don"t recognize. Ethan stands next to him staring at the other kid, with the same expression on his face.
What the h.e.l.l?
Coach Reed pulls the other guy aside while the rest of the coaches herd the team, including Connor, to the locker room. No one has seen me so I sit a little taller and see the kid Coach pulled back shaking his head before jogging to the warning track to run laps. I wonder why Connor was fighting with him.
I pick up my backpack and walk to Connor"s truck to wait for him. He comes out a few minutes later with a nasty red mark on his face, but doesn"t say anything to me as he unlocks the truck and gets in. I wonder if he"s so p.i.s.sed that he will drive off without me.
"Get in Harp."
His words are sharp and I do as he says, hoisting myself into the truck. I decide not to say anything but the closer we get to my house the more unbearable the silence becomes, and finally I can"t take it anymore.
"What happened between you and that guy?"
He doesn"t answer me or look at me right away.
"Nothing. How do you know something happened?"
"I got done early, and watched the last half hour of your practice. I was reading on my phone when I heard noise and looked up to see all the coaches pulling people apart to get to you two. So what happened?"
"It"s nothing. He p.i.s.sed me off."
"Cryptic much?"
Connor slams his hand against the steering wheel, and pulls over stopping in front of a park by my house. He throws the truck in park, and runs his hand through his hair.
"You want to know what happened today? Fine. That other guy is Marcus Andrews," he spits out. "He"s been saying stuff about you and the last time he did, I warned him he would regret it."
"What do you mean he"s been saying stuff about me? I don"t understand."
"Of course you don"t."
"What does that mean?"
"You are so busy hiding from everyone, that you don"t see things clearly. Marcus was saying ... s.h.i.t, he was saying crude things about you and after what he said today, I just snapped."
"Who cares what that guy says about me ... crude or not? Maybe if that"s what he"s interested in he should ask out Taylor."
"What are you talking about?"
"I"m talking about you and Taylor," I whisper and watch his face pale. "Right, that"s what I thought. Take me home, please."
"Harp, it"s not really what you think, I promise. Please look at me ... please," he begs.
"So, you"re saying you didn"t have s.e.x with her?"
"Well ..." he starts and looks down.
"Take me home. Now."
"No, I will not take you home until you talk to me about this. I won"t let you shut down. I promise it didn"t mean anything. We were both a little tipsy at one of Josh"s parties and one thing led to another. I found out later she was only using me to date Austin. Harp, I promise that"s the truth."
He"s confirming what I heard in the bathroom today. If there is truth in that rumor, I wonder if there"s truth in the rumor that he"s just using me.
"Connor, I"m going to ask you a question and I need you to be honest with me. Ok?" I turn to face him. I can clearly see the worry on his face.
"I promise, ask me anything you want."
I take a deep breath, bracing myself for his answer to my question, "Are you using me to get back at Taylor?"
"WHAT? No, no, no ... G.o.d no. Why would you ask that?" he exclaims. I can tell he"s being honest with me but I"m still hurt.
"I heard some rumors in the bathroom today, that"s why I was late to lunch. The girls were talking about you and Taylor and that you are just using me to get her back."
He sighs and scrubs his face with his hand before running them through his hair. "No, Harp, Taylor and I are done."
"I just need you to be honest with me. Finding that out in the bathroom from random strangers was horrible. I felt so betrayed-you should have been the one to tell me ... and," I pause feeling embarra.s.sed and hurt.
"And, what?" Connor prods.
"Well, why haven"t you tried to do that with me?" I ask nervously, looking at my hands while rubbing the calluses.
"I"m sorry, Harp. You"re right, I should have told you about Taylor, but there shouldn"t be any doubt in your mind that I am with you because I love you. I"ve never told anyone else that, and it makes me crazy that you doubt me. I will do anything to prove it to you," he says genuinely. "But, I"m not going to rush that with you. What we have is too important and I want to make sure that you"re ready-like really ready because it changes things, ya know?"
I nod my head, still staring at my hands, "So ... you love me, huh?"
Connor gets a serious look on his face, "Harp, I love you. I do. You are my best friend, my girlfriend and the only girl I"ve ever loved. It"s always been you."
"I love you too," I say beaming at him. "Why are you smiling?"
"Well, that was our first fight, so ..."
"So, what?"
"So, this will be our first make up kiss," he says as his hand reaches for the back of my head pulling me toward him. His mouth is on mine crushing my lips hard. I respond by opening my mouth with a gasp. We pour all the heat and pa.s.sion from our fight into this kiss and it"s incredible. I think I finally get what everyone says about making up. Every time we kiss it"s amazing, but this one has my stomach clenching and I swear there are fireworks exploding from our closeness.
Connor puts his other hand on the small of my back, urging me to him, so I scoot onto his lap and straddle him. He continues his kisses along my jaw, finally kissing the tender spot behind my ear that drives me insane. He slowly moves down to the crevice at the base of my neck and I am on fire. Everywhere he"s kissing me feels like a spark and makes my heart flutter. His left hand is firmly holding my hip while his right hand skirts under my shirt making circles on my stomach causing a cascade of tingles to rush throughout my body. I reach for his face and pull it back to my lips.
We finally pull apart so we can catch our breath while Connor holds me still, "So, does that mean I"m forgiven?"
"You are obnoxious. You know that, right?" I say playfully smacking him across his chest.
"Yes, I know, but I don"t know if I"ve been forgiven yet," he says before placing a kiss on my neck.
"Fine, you are forgiven, but don"t lie to me again or there will be no make-up kiss," I warn raising an eyebrow.
Connor chuckles and moves his hands to rub up and down on my arms, "I got it. I promise, you are the most important thing in the world to me."
"Now that we"ve sorted that out, I think you"d better get me home."
"You promised I could do your hair and makeup tonight, so don"t you think for one second I"m letting you back out now," Emma says with her arms crossed over her chest.
"Fine. Just promise not to go overboard, ok?"
"I heard you the twenty millionth time you told me that, Harp. I got it. You just need to trust me. Now, get your b.u.t.t in this chair so I can do your makeup."
Rolling my eyes, I move from Emma"s bed to the chair she"s placed in her bathroom.
"Hey Emma, can I ask you something?"
"Sure, anything."
"Did you know that Connor and Taylor ... you know?"
"Yeah," she says wincing and looking at me. "I had heard through the rumor mill."
"Yeah, that"s what I thought. I found out the other day when I heard some girls talking about them in the bathroom," I tell her. "We ... you know, haven"t ... and now I"m freaking out that we should."
"Harp, I love you, but sometimes I wonder what planet you live on," she says chuckling.
"Could you be more specific?"
Sighing, she hops onto the counter and holds herself up with her arms, "Harp, I don"t know why you are so ... how do I say this? ... focused? But it"s pretty obvious to me that Connor has liked you for a long time. You"re different than Taylor, ya know? What you guys have is special, so don"t sweat it. It"ll happen when it"s meant to happen."
I don"t say anything for a little while trying to absorb her words. I know she"s right, and it"s pretty much what Connor said the other day, but I can"t help but feel insecure.
"Ok, I can tell you"re freaking out," Emma says looking at me. "You are a great catch ... a little distant maybe, but you"re a good person and a total babe. Besides, you and Connor were made for each other."
I roll my eyes at her but don"t say anything else. I quietly sit in my chair remembering the last make out session I had with Connor in his truck, and how amazing that was.
"Yoohoo ... earth to Harp!"
"Oh, sorry what"s up? Are you done?"
"Yep, but before you"re allowed to see yourself you need to change into the clothes I laid out for you on my bed."
"You"re not going let me say no, are you?"
"Uh-huh, now go and change!" she demands by folding her arms across her chest and stomping her foot.
I quickly change out of my top and into the, silk emerald loose tank and black blazer she has set out for me. Just as I"m slipping the blazer on, Emma hands me a long gold chain necklace, "Here, put this on too!"
I do as she says, again, still afraid of defying her. "Well, how do I look?"
Emma jumps up and down clapping her hands, "You look great! Connor is going to die when he sees you. Come on, let"s go!"
"Um, Emma?"
"OMG Harp, you look amazing, what are you freaking out about now?"
"Well, nothing really, but ... do you think I could see what I look like before we leave?"
As soon as I say it, we both bust up laughing so hard, a few tears escape my eyes and I think I might pee my pants.
"Oh my G.o.d, I"m laughing so hard I"m crying," I barely spit out.
"No! Don"t ruin your makeup. Come on, I"ll touch you up and you can see how gorgeous you are!"
I walk into the bathroom bracing myself for what I"m about to see. I trust her, I really do, but I am so used to being a plain Jane that I"m not sure what to expect. Emma turns me to face the mirror and I open my eyes at her command. She has really outdone herself this time. The emerald tank top shimmers and complements the natural copper tints in my hair. She"s rimmed my eyes giving them a soft, smoky effect that make my ordinary hazel eyes sparkle with gold flecks. I soak in how she"s taken me from plain to pretty while at the same time fighting the hateful words I"ve heard over and over again from my mom. I remind myself that I"m stronger now, so I don"t let her hatefulness seep into my pores and ruin my night.
"Emma ... I love it, thank you!" I say rushing to give her a hug.
"I know I know, I"m a genius! Now, let"s go show off my handiwork."
When we get to Josh"s, I can hear the music before we even walk through the front door. Emma leads the way through the living room and into the kitchen where I am immediately wrapped in a pair of strong arms as Connor pulls me into his chest.
"I"m so glad you are here," he says softly into my ear. I smile at his warmth before turning around to face him.
"Holy c.r.a.p, you look unbelievable," he says with a twinkle in his eye and his signature crooked smile.
"Yeah, Emma really outdid herself, huh?"
"Yeah, she did, but whether you"re dressed like this or dressed in jeans and tennis shoes, you are always beautiful to me."
"Nice job, sweet talker," I say giving him a quick peck on the cheek.
"Come on," he says pulling me into his side.
We join some of the guys on the team outside, and soon everyone is joking around and laughing. I"m having a much better time than I did the last time I was at a party, and it"s a huge relief. When Connor leaves to go to the bathroom, I walk over to Ethan, "Hey Ethan."
"Hey Harp, you look great."