Toe the Line(15)

I nodded. “That sounds like fun. I haven’t been over there yet.”

Soon after, we walked over to the scenic, rocky trail. Archie disappeared with Bree, and I was left with James, who was always interesting to talk to.

“Would you want to hang out this weekend?” he asked. “Maybe go to Abe’s Seafood Shack for some fish and chips?”

“You mean like a date?” I stupidly said.

“Unless you’d rather it not be. We could just go as friends. But yeah, to be clear, I’m asking you out.”

I wasn’t sure how I wanted to respond. But ultimately, I decided I had nothing to lose. “Yeah. Alright. That sounds like fun.”

“Cool.” He beamed.

We then returned to normal conversation.

After a while, Archie emerged with Bree, after doing God knows what.

When I realized how late it was, I hugged James goodbye. He offered to walk me home, but before I could answer, Archie came running over.

“You headed back to the house?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

“I am, too. I’ll walk you.”

“You’re leaving?” I said, surprised.

“I have to go to my internship tomorrow.”

“I didn’t realize you were starting so soon.”

“Yup. So I can’t be doing an all-nighter. Plus…” He winked. “I have to run at 6 AM sharp.”

James looked between us. I said goodnight to him again and made my way down the road with Archie.

I couldn’t stop my mouth. “You disappeared for a while with Bree. I didn’t think you were coming back.”

“Did my absence bother you?”

A rush of heat tore through me. Shit. Am I giving that impression? “Of course not,” I answered, laughing it off.

“I’m only hanging out with her because it’s…easy,” he admitted. “She knows me. I know her. There’s nothing to prove. It’s just a summer thing, and I know I won’t have to feel guilty at the end of the season when we don’t talk again until next year.”

I swallowed the bitter taste in my mouth. “Easy for the summer. I get it.” After some silence, I asked, “James is a good guy, right?”

“He is. A real good guy.” He knocked into my shoulder. “Why? You like him or something?”

“I’m not sure. But he asked me to go out with him this weekend, and I said yes.”

It was hard to see Archie’s expression in the dark, but his pace slowed. “Oh.” After a moment, he added, “Yeah… Like I said, he’s cool.”

“Okay. Just making sure.”

We didn’t say much else for the rest of the walk home.

After Archie and I went to our rooms, I tossed and turned for most of that night—thinking about James and me, Bree and Archie, Archie and me, and the various ways I knew my heart could end up broken this summer.

? ? ?

The following morning, Archie was already waiting outside when I emerged from the house at 6:05.

“Someone set his alarm,” I teased.

“Well, you gave me the extra hour. I told you I would. I don’t play games. By the way, who’s the late one now?”

After a minute of stretching, I turned to him. “Ready?”

“Lead the way.”

The extra hour of sleep had also done me good; I seemed to have more energy this morning. It didn’t hurt that I had one of the most gorgeous guys I’d ever laid eyes on as a personal chaperone, either.

We were two miles into our run, and everything was going smoothly until Archie suddenly slowed down and clutched his chest.

My pulse picked up. “Are you okay?”

He panted, pointing to the side of the road. “I don’t know. Can we sit over there for a minute?”

“Yeah. Of course.”

We planted ourselves on a large rock.

“What are you experiencing right now?” I asked. “Talk to me.”

His hand was still at his chest. “It just…feels like I can’t catch my breath.” He looked at me. “I think it’s a panic attack.”

“You’ve been through this before?”

He nodded.

I put my hand on his shoulder. “We should go back home.”

“No. I can’t let him see me like this.”

His dad. “Okay. We’ll stay here. It’s okay. Just breathe.” I rubbed his arm. “You get these a lot?”

“Only randomly when I’m under stress, but always at inopportune times.” He forced a smile. “Like running with you. I have a reputation as an asshole to uphold. I can’t have you thinking I’m some weak dude who gets panic attacks.” He flashed a crooked smile.

I was probably meant to laugh at that, but I couldn’t. “Did something specific cause you to panic?”

“I think this attack’s been brewing for a while now. But, in general, they come out of nowhere.”

With each minute we sat, he seemed to calm down a little more.

I remembered what my mom had alluded to briefly last night. “Is everything okay with you and your parents? Is something going on?”

Several seconds passed before he turned to me.

“Things aren’t okay.” He shook his head. “They’re not okay at all.”