The Black Coats(11)
Drew looked down at her, playfulness lighting up his features. “That’s good, because I don’t want to have to turn you in to the authorities.” He raised an eyebrow and nodded at Ms. Bork, who was humming while she stocked the young-adult book section. As he turned back to watch the librarian, Thea took a moment to really look at him. Dark brown hair in a neat cut framed his face, and his lean body showcased his Roosevelt soccer jersey perfectly, raised triceps filling out the triangles of black and gold. On his chest sat a giant cartoon hornet.
Thea felt a pang in her heart at the sight of it. The back of her closet was filled with a dozen tracksuits, each emblazoned with that stupid grinning insect. “Pretty strong words coming from a man with a giant bee on his chest.”
Drew gestured to the hornet. “I call him Little Honey, and he’s pretty good at what he does.”
“And what’s that?”
“Reading old sci-fi books. Driving on empty roads.” He was still holding his tray in his hands. “Are you going to invite me to sit down?”
She shifted. “Uh, sure. Are you positive you want to sit here? Isn’t your team missing you?”
Drew sat with a yawn. “Probably. But one can only talk about Call of Duty for so long. Besides, why would I want to sit in the beautifully remodeled cafeteria filled with natural light when I can sit back here with you, gazing at the wonder of”—he looked at some of the shelves surrounding them—“Numerical Analysis in Boundary Value Programs.” He burst out laughing, an infectious grin transforming his face. “Really? This is where you eat lunch?”
Thea couldn’t help but chuckle as well—Drew’s laugh was contagious. “I sit here so I don’t have to answer any dumb questions, like, for example, ‘Why are you sitting here?’”
Drew spread out his food.
“Do you just make yourself comfortable wherever?” Thea inquired.
He took an enormous bite of his cheeseburger. “I try to. What about you, Thea Soloman?”
Thea shrugged. “I’m not really comfortable anywhere.”
Drew raised an eyebrow. “Then I think we’re a perfect match.” Thea blushed. He hastily continued, “I didn’t mean it that way. Sorry. It’s just, you make me nervous.”
Thea almost spit out her apple. “I make you nervous? I don’t even know you, and you just came and found me at my . . .”
“Soul-curdling lunching spot? I mean, can you blame me for wanting to get to know a girl I first saw jumping into the Bucket with all her clothes on to retrieve a lost schedule? I mean, who wouldn’t want to know more about that person?” He sat back in his chair, looking serious for the first time since she’d met him. “I thought I knew everything there was to know about this stupid school. I just moved here at the beginning of the semester—my senior year; thanks, Dad—and was only looking forward to graduation. But then I saw you climb out of that fountain and something changed in me. I don’t know what it was, but the thought of having the same exhausting conversations with the same people I always eat with was suddenly so depressing. I don’t want to hear any more about how Gabe Anders thinks varsity soccer should be seniors only or who Mirabelle Watts made out with this weekend. I just can’t. You know?”
Thea did know all too well about how conversation that used to flow smoothly could become a minefield between two parties, with her pretending to seem interested and them trying their hardest not to mention Natalie.
Drew finished the rest of his cheeseburger.
“You ate that whole thing already?” Thea was incredulous.
He licked his lips. “I’m almost always starving.”
Lunch flew by as they slowly learned about each other in small, careful questions; Drew was the youngest of three brothers. He lived with his dad, a public defender. Thea told him a little about herself, but she didn’t mention Natalie, though she was sure that he knew about her. Everyone in this school did. For almost thirty minutes, Thea forgot to feel alone. Everything about Drew pulled her in: the way he looped his arm across the back of his chair, the way he stabbed his french fries with a fork, the way she could tell he was smart just by how he spoke. He was a current that she enjoyed being pulled into.
With a cautious smirk, Thea shoved the last bite of her sandwich into her mouth. “So how is it that we haven’t run into each other all year?”
Drew shrugged as he stood. “I think that’s what happens in a huge high school like this. There are so many kids that you never get to meet anyone outside your immediate circle. I kind of resent that.” Drew heaved his enormous backpack onto his shoulders. “Anyway, what are you doing right after school today? We don’t have practice on game nights. Want to grab a coffee, take a walk?”
“I’m sorry, I can’t. I have a commitment.” Thea frowned.
A shadow of disappointment crossed his face. “A boyfriend type of commitment, or like a date-with-old-math-books kind of commitment?”
The flutter of excitement that ran up her spine was followed by a twinge of guilt that she would have to lie to him. She’d just met him, for God’s sake. “Not a boyfriend kind of thing, but a commitment nonetheless. I’m sorry. Maybe some other time, like a weekend night?”
Drew’s face visibly brightened. “Yeah, we could do that. It’s a date.”