Rushed(129)

Instead of engaging them, I continue on, ignoring their catcalls.

“Hey!” Cory yells, waving with his arms. “Get your sexy ass back here!”

Sexy ass? What is that guy smoking? I've never been accused of being sexy in my life. I'm the girl who disappears, remember, guys?

I make it inside the school building and find my way to the locker hallways when what they were saying about me registers, and realization washes over me in a wave of awesomeness. It's the weight. I'd often been told by guys and girls alike that I was too skinny, so over the summer, I'd been a little more liberal when it came to eating. It's not like I went all out, but I also let go of my stupid fear of anything with carbs in it. I think my absolute favorite discovery, though, was pasta. Mom could make some mean spaghetti, especially when she paired it with a tomato and Italian sausage sauce.

Who knew that stuffing my face with food would have resulted in my becoming more desirable?

Walking through the hallways, I receive more stares and guys ogling me, but I ignore them and make it to my locker. It's new and a bit unsettling to get this much attention, and I'm not sure if this is all just some sort of fluke.

I’m fumbling with my locker combination when I hear the sound of footsteps to my right, but I put my head down, hoping they'll not make another wisecrack. I've hit my limit this morning.

“Hey, Chica,” a familiar, cheery voice chirps instead, and my mood lifts immediately. “Long time no see.”

I look up into the smiling face of my childhood best friend, Danielle Vaughn, and crack a huge grin. She looks cute today with her two blonde side ponytails and red skirt topped by a white blouse. Her legs are long and sexy, and the red heels she’s wearing only further accent them. I’m happy to see her since I haven't seen her all summer due to her family vacation.

Before I can respond, her eyes widen, her mouth dropping open in surprised admiration. “Good God, did you inflate those things or something?” she demands, staring at my chest. “Stuffed your bra with golf balls?”

I glance down at my breasts and then let out a laugh. “No,” I say. "Besides, golf balls? I'd hoped for at least oranges."

“Then what the hell happened to you?”

“I don't know. I just filled out a bit I guess. That, and I ate what I wanted for once.”

Danielle bites her lower lip, looking my body up and down. “Well shit, girl, put me on that diet then. You're smokin'!”

I giggle again at Dani's exaggeration. The girl can always crack me up.

“And I'll take that ripe ass while you’re at it,” she adds, smacking me on the butt. “Damn, it even wiggles now.”

I laugh harder and smooth out my skirt where Dani has rumpled it. “Girl, please.”

“Seriously. You've gotten so curvy, you could give Kate Upton a run for her money.”

“Okay, now you need to stop.”

Dani whips her tails, and I swear if the idiots in Hollywood ever want to make a young Harley Quinn movie, I know exactly who they should cast. Dani even knows who that character is—she introduced her to me. “I’m not lying to you.”

I stop fiddling with my locker and glance around. I see several guys looking our way. One of them even grins at me. “Well, you know what? Ever since I walked on campus, I've received non-stop stares from all the guys,” I tell her. “Isn't that just weird? I couldn't even get one to look at me, then I go away for the summer, and now the whole athletic department wants me? I walked by the Fountain coming in, and I thought I was going to start a riot.”

Dani shakes her head again. “Girl, I'm telling you. You were a stick figure when I last saw you, and now, you actually have some curves. And they're in all the right places.”

“Thanks,” I say. “I think.”

Dani grins at me. “Trust me, this year . . . you'll get laid, that's for sure.”

“So how was your trip to Italy?” I say, quick to change the subject. The last thing I want to think about is having pre-marital sex. Mom is overly religious, and that's one of the things she never shuts the hell up about. When my boobs started to get bigger, she even made a comment that she could 'see my dirty pillows' before half-smiling at the joke. I hadn't laughed.

Dani's grin twists into a sour expression. “It was alright . . . I guess.”

“What do you mean, you guess? You've been wanting to go to Italy since our sweet sixteen birthday parties. You talked so much about Michelangelo's David last year that I thought you were gonna hump the thing when you finally saw it in person.”

“Well, I had fun and all, but our parents made me room with Joseph.”

Joseph is Dani's brother and is actually pretty cute and sweet. He's a sophomore this year and is probably hanging out in the quad with his buddies. Like I say, he's nice. He just isn't my type.

“So what was so bad about that?” I ask. “I thought you loved your brother.”

“I do! But I don't love his farts.”

“Dani!” I protest, trying not to laugh too hard.

Dani scowls, her mouth drawing down into a little point. “Sorry. I can't help it. He was cutting those stinky things like he was slicing Swiss cheese. Or maybe aged Parmesan, considering where we were.”