Her

  Her

  Copyright © 2013 by Carey Heywood

  Cover by Okay Creations (http://www.okaycreations.com)

  Edited by Yesenia Vargas

  Interior Designed by Jovana Shirley, Unforeseen Editing (http://www.unforeseenediting.com)

  All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior written permission of the author.

  The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and the punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

  Her is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  ISBN-13: 978-0-9887713-8-3

  Other Books by Carey Heywood

  A Bridge of Her Own

  Uninvolved

  Stages of Grace

  Him

  For Zachary, you gave me the strength to fight for my dreams.

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  There’s this girl. She’s in my English class. She sits in the desk next to mine. I see her everyday, but I’ve never really noticed her.

  We’ve been paired up to do a project on the book Sarah, Plain and Tall, which is funny since that’s her name too. Yesterday, I went over to her house to work on it. At first, she had asked if we could meet at my house, but I’d rather be anywhere else. Sarah and I went to different schools last year. Kids from my old school already knew I never invited anyone over.

  This is the first time I have ever hung out with someone who lives outside of my neighborhood. She gives me directions to her house, and I ride my bike over. Her house is a lot smaller than mine, but I like it. It feels like a family lives there. I can’t remember the last time I felt like that in my house.

  She’s so quiet at first. I keep having to ask her to repeat herself. After a while, I don’t have to. We hang out in her kitchen. Her mom is working around us, making dinner. She invites me to stay and eat with them, telling me to call my mom first to make sure it’s okay.

  I use their cordless, but I only pretend to call. It doesn’t matter. My mom won’t notice if I’m there or not.

  Sarah has an older brother named Brian. He seems cool. I’ve never really hung out with someone in high school before.

  When I go home that night and have to walk past Bethany’s room to get to mine, I almost wish I was still at Sarah’s.

  I’m going back there today to work on our project some more. Maybe her mom will invite to me eat with them again. It’d be nicer than microwaving a hot dog like I do most nights. There’s something about her house that makes me feel like I can relax.

  Sarah is so nervous and for what? We kill it. Sure getting up in front of the whole class can suck, but I do most of the talking. I glance over at her as we sit back down. She gives me a shy smile. The next pair to go up are Mariah Osborne and Kelly Sotello. They have a shoebox, another diorama. I like Sarah’s cereal box idea. It was creative. They’re being weird about their project, though. Most people hold their project up first so everyone can see it. The lid is still on theirs.

  Mrs. Hall notices too and asks them to take the lid off. When they do, there’re a couple of gasps from the front row. Sarah and I sit towards the back so I squint at it, trying to see it better. It looks like the farm from the book, with a couple of people standing in front of it. During each of the oral presentations, the project part gets passed around the room for everyone to get a chance to see. I can hear people snickering and looking back in our direction as it makes its way around the room.

  I get it before Sarah. What the fuck? Now I know what everyone is laughing about. Sarah reaches out for it. I shake my head. There is no way I’ll let her see this. Mariah and Kelly have taped a picture of Sarah’s face over the doll in the diorama. Everyone is watching us now. Kelly looks smug, and Mariah looks nervous. I have a feeling it wasn’t her idea.

  Sarah just looks at me confused. “Will?”

  Mrs. Hall walks over to us. “Is there a problem, Mr. Price?”

  Shit. I wait for her to get to my desk and tilt it so Sarah can’t see it, only I don’t know she has gotten out of her chair and is standing behind me until I hear her gasp. I turn back in time to see her, eyes wide, hand covering her mouth before she runs out the room. I set the diorama on my desk and look at Mrs. Hall. She nods her head, and I get up to run after Sarah. Kelly flinches as I pass her. What a bitch. I pause at the door. I hadn’t seen which way she went. Luckily, she hasn’t gone far. She’s halfway between our class and the next room over, sitting up against the wall, her head in her hands.

  Once I get closer, I can tell she’s crying. She’s making sniffling noises, and her shoulders are shaking. I didn’t really think before I ran after her. I don’t know what to do. I just want her to stop crying.

  I slowly sit down next to her. “Are you okay?”

  She doesn’t say anything, just shakes her head.

  “Those girls are jerks. Don’t pay attention to them.” I think about putting my arm around her, but that would be weird so I knock her elbow with mine.

  She lifts her head up a little and looks at me. Her eyes seem so big, and I can see them just brimming with tears.

  “Why would they do that?” Her voice is so small.

  Shit. I didn’t really know her before we worked on the project together. She’s cool, really cool. “Some people are just assholes.”

  “I never—” Her voice breaks. “Did anything to them.”

  I watch one plump tear crest then roll down her cheek. She’s right. I don’t know her that well, but I can tell the kids who are jerks from the ones who aren’t. Sarah’s quiet. She hangs back. If we weren’t paired up, I wouldn’t know how cool she is.

  Mrs. Hall walks out of the class. “Sarah, are you alright?”

  She shakes her head as she lowers it back into her hands.

  “Do you want to go to the nurse? Maybe see if your mom or dad can pick you up?”

  She keeps her head down but nods.

  I look up at Mrs. Hall. “Can I take her to the nurse?”

  She nods. I stand first and hold out my hand to her. Sarah sniffles and slowly reaches her hand up to mine. I help her up.

  “Thanks,” she whispers.

  “It’s cool.”

  She stops, turning to look at me. “Not just for walking with me.” She pauses and looks down at her feet, then takes a deep breath before looking back up at me. “For not wanting me to see it.”

  We start walking towards the nurse’s office. “Is it okay if I come over again today? I know we’re done with the project, but I can bring you your book bag.”

  “You don’t have to do that.”

  We reach the door. The nurse looks up at us. “I want to.”

  She smiles just a little bit. “Okay.”


  She’s spinning her ring again. She always does that when she’s nervous. Why is she nervous?

  “You okay?” I ask.

  Her chestnut eyes lift from her math homework and meet mine. She nods before dropping her eyes back to her work. She wore a tank top under her shirt at school today, I don’t even know until we get to her house and she takes the top shirt off. I’m not sure if I’ve ever really noticed her shoulders before.

  I tilt my American History book so it looks like I’m reading the chapter I’m supposed to be reading. Instead of reading, I watch her. Her hair is pulled back, a couple of pieces hanging around her face. My fingers itch to tuck each strand behind her ears. She has small dragonfly studs in them. I was with her when she bought them.

  She couldn’t decide between the dragonflies or elephant ones. I offered to get them both for her, but she wouldn’t let me. The only gift she’s ever accepted was that ring she’s still spinning. I start to look at her hands and almost drop my book when she leans forward. She’s across the coffee table from me; her tank top is loose, and I can see her bra. It’s white with a lace trim. I gnaw on the corner of my lip.

  The skin peeking out over the top of each cup is driving me crazy. I want to touch her. I pull my eyes away from her breasts feeling like a perv. My penance is short lived. I can’t look away. Oblivious to my stare, I watch her chest rise and fall with each breath she takes. When my dick starts getting hard, I shift in my chair and cover my crotch with my forearm.

  A throat clears from the doorway, and we both look up.

  “Hey, Brian,” Sarah says cheerfully.

  “Sup,” he answers her, but his eyes stay on me.

  Shit. He must have seen me looking down her top. I wonder how long he’s been standing there.

  “Hey, Will. Can I talk to you for a sec?” He sounds calm, but he looks pissed.

  Fuck. Sarah looks confused, but I shrug and stand. Grateful his presence killed my semi, I follow him into the kitchen.

  He opens the fridge and takes out a soda, leaning back against the door as he opens it. After a quick pull from the can, he sets it on the kitchen table and rubs his hand across his chin. I stand awkwardly across the table from him waiting for him to say something.

  “Will, can you bring me a soda once you’re done?” Sarah shouts from the family room.

  Brian smiles at the sound of her voice, his head tilted in the direction of it.

  “Ah, sure,” I reply.

  His smile turns into a smirk as he looks at me. “I saw you.”

  My eyes drop to the kitchen table. I don’t know how to respond to that.

  “Did you like what you saw?”

  There is no way I’m answering that question.

  “Look at me.”

  Shit. Brian’s always been cool to me. He’s a senior this year. Sarah and I are both freshmen. I look up at him, wondering if I’m about to get my ass kicked.

  “That’s my baby sister, dude.”

  I’m not sure what to say so I nod. That seems to work because his expression relaxes.

  He pulls a chair out and sits down. “Do you like her?”

  “She’s my best friend.” I answer honestly.

  He looks up at the ceiling. “I know that, Will, but do you like her as more than a friend?”

  I look back down. “I don’t know.”

  “Then you need to look elsewhere until you figure that out.”

  I nod and push off from the counter to head back into the family room.

  “Will.”

  I turn back. He’s standing now and reaching into the fridge to pass me the soda Sarah asked for.

  “Thanks,” I mumble, taking it.

  Sarah is looking up at me when I walk back into the room. I carefully set her drink down in front of her, making sure my eyes go nowhere near her chest.

  “What did Brian want?”

  “I wanted to know if he was going to try out for JV lacrosse,” Brian answers for me before heading upstairs.

  “Why couldn’t he ask you that in here?” she asks, lifting one brow.

  “Um, he didn’t want to disturb you.”

  She gives me a look that says yeah right. “So are you?”

  I’m confused. “Am I what?”

  “Going to try out?”

  “Maybe. Not sure.”

  “I think you should.” She smiles up at me.

  I nod and slump back down into my chair. I need to get through this chapter, but even after my talk with Brian, I’m finding it hard to concentrate. Do I like Sarah? I know I like her. She’s my best friend, but I think I might like her more than that.

  What sucks is she’s so different from other girls at our school. With them, it’s easy to tell how they feel about me. They look me with silly grins and giggle or blush if I talk to them. Sarah doesn’t do that. If anything, she rolls her eyes and makes fun of me instead. What’s the point of liking her as more than a friend if she doesn’t like me that way back?

  I slam my book shut, and she jumps.

  “Sorry,” I pause. “My head just isn’t into homework.”

  She sets her pencil down. “What do you want to do?”

  I feel like moving around. “Basketball?”

  She shrugs. “Okay, I’m going to change first.”

  I pack all of my stuff into my backpack and set it on the bench by their front door. Sarah comes back downstairs a minute later wearing some loose, track pants with stripes running down the sides and an old t-shirt. I’ve seen that shirt on her before. It’s just been awhile. I don’t think it pulled that tightly across her chest the last time she wore it. I look away quickly, wondering where Brian is. I follow Sarah outside to their shed, and she rummages around until she finds the ball.

  She passes it to me. “Think it needs air?”

  I try to dribble it before nodding. She turns and starts looking for the bike pump. Once she finds it, she passes me the needle. Once it’s ready, she starts pumping, and I can’t take my eyes off of her. Each time she pumps it, her boobs push together. She’s straining to get it as full as she can.

  For my own sanity, I take the pump from her to finish it off. She rolls her eyes at me. Thank God she can’t read my mind. Once the ball is pumped, we walk two streets over to a park with some basketball hoops. There’s an open one. Sarah grabs the ball from me and takes a shot.

  “Swish,” she grins, her hand still up in the air.

  I collect the ball and hold it under my arm. “What do you want to play?”

  “I don’t care. You pick.”

  I’m going to hell. “One on one?”

  “Sure.”

  I’m closer to the basket so I bounce pass the ball to her. She dribbles to the left, but I’m right there. She turns around so her back is to me and tries to push me back closer to the basket. I let her, only half-heartedly trying to get the ball from her. She turns and shoots, but the ball bounces off the rim. I grab it and dribble out to half court.

  She smirks at me, legs wide, ready to go whatever direction I go. Instead of faking either direction, I head straight towards her. She sucks at blocking, and I’m taller than her. I hold the ball above my head and laugh as she tries to jump up and knock it out of my hands. Sarah glares up at me and stomps on my foot, hard.

  “Fuck.” I drop the ball and grab my foot.

  She just laughs and runs after the ball.

  “You play dirty,” I snap when she makes her basket.

  She ignores me and does a celebration dance. Last thing I need to see is Sarah jumping up and down in a tight shirt. I can’t take my eyes off her, though. Maybe basketball was a bad idea. I ignore how cute she looks and try and think of her as one of the guys. Even if I liked her it wouldn’t matter. She only likes me as a friend. I try and think about other girls at school. I think a couple sophomores like me. Maybe I’ll ask one of them out.

  When we get to twenty-one, we stop and walk back to her house. She’s breathing heavy and her shirt is clinging to her back.

>   She pours us both cups of water from the sink. I watch as she gulps hers down, a thin trail of water running down her chin. When she finishes her cup, she gives me a wide smile. Her eyes are bright, her entire expression impish. I wish I had my camera. I follow her back out to the family room. I still don’t feel like doing homework.

  “Let’s watch a movie.”

  “Sure. You pick.”

  I walk over to their DVDs and flip through them before settling on Saving Private Ryan “This good?” I ask, holding it up.

  “That works. Want popcorn?”

  I smile, and she stands. Halfway to the kitchen, she looks back at me. “Should we ask Brian—”

  “Ask Brian what?” he says, walking into the family room.

  I hold up the movie.

  “Nah, I’m heading out.” He turns towards the kitchen. “Sarah, tell Mom I won’t be home for dinner.”

  “Where are you going?” she asks.

  He grins. “Got a date.”

  “With who?”

  He laughs. “Daniella Derrick.”

  My mouth drops. Every guy in our school is hot for double Ds. Sarah sees my expression and rolls her eyes before turning around towards the kitchen. That probably wasn’t a smart move.

  I peek around the corner to see if Sarah is there before turning back towards Brian. “Man, she’s hot.”

  Brian smirks at me for a minute, making me sweat, until he grins and says, “Yeah, she is.”

  He turns and leaves, and I get the DVD started. I wait to press play until Sarah is back in the room with the popcorn. She is a total bowl hog, always has been. The only way I ever get any popcorn is if she tosses it for me to catch. I’ve gotten pretty good at it. Sarah covers her eyes when they land in Normandy. When we watch movies like this, it’s my job to let her know when it’s safe to look again. I sit at one end of the couch, her feet in my lap. We’re still like this when her mom gets home.

  “Hey, kids. How was school?”

  We both groan, which makes her smile. She makes sure we’ve both finished our homework before going into the kitchen to start dinner. I lie about reading my history chapter. I’ll do it before I go to bed. Her mom doesn’t ask if I’m staying for dinner anymore. It’s a given. Sarah gets up to let her know Brian won’t be home for dinner. When she gets back, she smiles before putting her feet back in my lap. I almost jump when her foot brushes against my dick. I start thinking about things that turn me off: our principal, Brian kicking my ass, the Energizer bunny.