Sea Breeze 01 - Breathe

friends. “Hey, Amanda, how are you?”
    She smiled and shrugged. “Great! Finally a senior!”
    I smiled and wished I cared. “Yep, finally seniors,” I said, feigning excitement.
    Her eyes seemed sympathetic. “I’m sorry about everything that happened and all. Marcus told me some of it before he left because he wants me to watch out for you and call him if you need him.”
    I couldn’t help but smile at her words. “Your brother is very good, and I don’t deserve him,” I admitted, and turned to put the rest of my books in my locker before I ran late for class.
    She chuckled. “Yeah, well, that would be because he wishes you cared about him like you do Jax Stone.” She froze and bit her lip when she saw me wince. “I’m so sorry, I . . . Marcus told me not to talk about Jax. . . .”
    I shook my head. “No, that’s fine. People are going to talk about him, and I’m going to learn to deal with it.”
    She nodded, but she didn’t seem too sure. “Well, I had better get to class. I’ll see you around later, maybe. We might have some classes together.”
    I smiled and nodded. “That would be nice.”
    She grinned and turned to walk away, but then stopped and looked back at me. “I, well . . . Is, um . . . Okay, I don’t know if this is off-limits to talk about, but is ‘Don’t Cry’ about you?”
    My throat tightened as I remembered the song I had listened to countless times, curled into a ball as I let the memories wash over me. Lately I had stopped listening to it because it put me in a mood I could hardly escape. Sam needed me, and I couldn’t do that to him. I wanted to believe the song was for me, but I didn’t know for sure. I knew I had heard him working on the chords when we were together. But I wasn’t sure if it had anything to do with me.
    I shrugged. “I don’t know.”
    She gave a sad sigh and walked away. I took a moment to compose myself as the words filled my head. I had to get a grip and get to class. After several deep breaths, I turned and went to room 223. I started my day off this year with trigonometry. How exciting.
    After two classes of people asking me questions about Jax that I didn’t want to answer, the thought of going to a cafeteria where I was going to be the main source for Jax Stone info made me cringe. I stood at my locker longer than necessary, then went to the library instead. I could eat when I got home. I would begin on my homework. I slipped over to the tables and got out my trigonometry book and began working. My eyes, however, had a hard time staying focused, and I had to fight to keep them from closing.
    “Sadie! Wake up! Sadie!”
    I lifted my head to see Amanda frowning down at me.
    “Are you all right?” she asked, reminding me of her older brother.
    I rubbed my eyes and nodded. “Yes. I guess I need to get more sleep.” I knew I did, but I wasn’t going to until I got Sam to sleep through the night.
    “Well, come on, you’re late for literature, and Mr. Harris almost didn’t let me come get you. I told him you thought your next class was Spanish, and he agreed to let me come find you.”
    I smiled at her imagination. “Thanks.”
    She picked up my books and tugged on my arm. “Don’t thank me now. We may both be in trouble if you don’t hurry. And get rid of the I-just-woke-up stare. It’ll blow my cover.”
    I rubbed my face and nodded. We had to go to my locker first and switch out my books. “Why were you in the library, anyway?” she asked as I grabbed the correct books.
    “Because I didn’t want to face lunch and everyone’s questions,” I mumbled.
    She nodded. “Well, you were missed. The only reason you were not bombarded in the library was because by the time everyone figured out where you were, lunch was over.”
    I sighed and shut my locker door. “I want to go back to being invisible,” I grumbled, and fell in step with Amanda.
    Amanda frowned and shook her head. “Not gonna happen. You need to prepare yourself. The homecoming dance is next month, and you’re going to be hit big-time with requests to take you.”
    That wasn’t even an option. I wasn’t going to date anyone. I refused to go to any dance.
    “Well, help me get the word around that I don’t dance,” I muttered as she opened the door to the classroom and we went inside. Luckily, Mr. Harris only gave me a stern glare and said nothing. I slipped into the only free desk, behind a tall dark-haired guy whose head blocked my view of the board.