Time Bomb(9)

Well, the girls who made snide comments about her clothes and the boys who laughed at her weight could have their opinions. She had opinions too. Each time she climbed on one of those stupid horses and ate a freaking carrot to make her father nod with approval, she thought about how she would never please anyone. No matter what she said or what she wore or how hard she tried. They had already decided she wasn’t good enough. And she was done trying to gain the approval of people who thought they could make themselves feel better by pushing her and then kicking her when she was down.

Cas pulled the stupid scarf from around her neck, jammed it into her bag, and yanked open one of the glass doors.

She was done with it all.





10:23 a.m.





Frankie





— Chapter 6 —


“HEY, KIDDO.” Frankie ruffled his sister’s curly blond hair and snagged a banana from the basket in the center of the table.

She rolled her eyes. “I just about gave you up for dead. Mom already did. She left fifteen minutes ago to help set up for youth group tonight. She said if you woke up before dinnertime to let you know.”

“Hey, I have to sleep now while I can. We’ll both be getting up at six a.m. next week.” He stopped peeling the banana. “Oh, wait. You’ll have to get up earlier, since you have to catch the bus, because that’s what freshmen do.”

Frankie dodged the napkin she threw at him and grinned as she called him a jerk. “I’m not a jerk. I’m a junior, which means I’ve done the dorky freshman thing. Now it’s your turn, and I cannot wait to make some popcorn, watch the show, and laugh.” He picked up the napkin, balled it, and pitched it into the trashcan. Nothing but net.

“You’re such a showoff.”

“Dad says that it would be a sin against God for a person not to use the skill he or she was born with. And I think we can both agree that I have skills.”

Bianca rolled her eyes, and Frankie laughed as he headed to the fridge to grab a soda.

“So which of those mad skills are you planning to use today?” Bianca asked. “Your fierce gluttony or your well-developed sloth?”

“I think sloth has already been accounted for, and gluttony is coming up next.” He shoved the banana in his mouth. His sister let out an eww and swatted at him the way he knew she would. After he’d chased down the banana with Mountain Dew, he added, “But if you need the rest of the agenda for your report to Mom, I’ve got practice.”

“Wait.” His sister’s brown eyes narrowed. “I thought today’s practice was canceled because you won some stupid bet.”

“You are correct, although not about the bet being stupid.” It had been smart and calculated. Frankie had made a bet that Coach couldn’t resist.

“As a result of my superior intellect and outstanding athletic prowess, varsity football practice was canceled for the day. JV, however, is still meeting, because they don’t have a leader with my vision and sense of purpose.”

“And you’ve decided your new purpose will be to crash their practice and show off your overrated athletic skills? Or are you going to sit in the bleachers and laugh your ass off as they trip all over themselves trying to impress you?”

“Neither.” Although both were totally viable options. “We’re going for the prize behind door number three.”

He chugged his soda and grabbed his car keys from the hook by the door. A couple of stops to pick up the rest of the things he needed, and everything would be ready to go.

“You’re going to prank the JV. You are, aren’t you?”

He turned and was struck by how tall Bianca had gotten. Not close to his six feet two, but taller than Mom. And she did a good impression of Mom, with the way her head was cocked to the side as if trying to decide whether she should finally call him on his crap. Mom never did, but Bianca wasn’t as willing to let him slide. If she kept up that no-BS mentality, his sister would survive high school without a problem.

But that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to try to snow her. With a smile, he said, “According to the Athletic Code of Conduct Handbook, hazing is not acceptable behavior at Hallwood High School.”

“And still somehow when you were a freshman, you ended up with shaving cream in your helmet and cayenne pepper on your jockstrap.”

Those were the days. Okay, maybe not the burning sensation that plagued him for days, but the rest. Well, everything seemed easier when he was a freshman. Now . . . well, that was then. This was now.

He turned and headed down the hall.

“Come on, Frankie. Tell me. What are you guys going to do to the JV?” She followed him into the garage. When he didn’t tell, she said, “Fine. Maybe I’ll just have to come down to the school so I can see for myself.”

“No.” His head snapped toward Bianca. “You’re not coming to school. Not today.”

“You might be the almighty captain of the football team, but you don’t own the place. I can go wherever the hell I want, and as it turns out, a lot of freshman will be getting new IDs today. So I might want to go and hang out with some of my friends who still have to get theirs.”

“You’re not interested in seeing your friends. All you’re trying to do is shove yourself into my life. Isn’t it enough that we’re already attending the same school and going to the same church group? Can’t a guy do anything without his family spying on him?”