by Amy Sparling
Speaking of, I definitely need a distraction from worrying about two of those things. The girl thing – well I’m happy to think about her all day.
“Sounds good,” I say. “Let me get dressed and then we’ll head out.
The boys look at each other, their eyes matching expressions of excitement. “Yay!”
I take a quick shower and get dressed. When I emerge into the living room, my mom and Phil are getting ready to leave. Mom gives me a big bear hug, which is a little weird for her. We haven’t been extremely close in our lives, and that’s definitely my fault.
“I’m proud of you,” she says, squeezing my upper arms as she looks at me. “We’re going furniture shopping so we’ll be a while. You boys have fun today.”
I’m not sure why she’s proud of me, but I’ll take it. My mom was a little harsh on me when I first got here a month ago. I can’t say I blame her. Still, it’s nice to be on her good side again. She’s a great woman, and I never saw that when I was growing up. All I cared about was dirt bikes, and motocross was a Dad sport, not a Mom one.
Matt and Dylan tug on their shoes in the living room while they talk excitedly about which parts of the park they’re going to play on first. Mom and Phil leave after Phil gives me another twenty dollars just in case the boys want more than ice cream. I tell him I don’t mind spending my own money, but he insists. Man, this guy is nice.
“Do you guys mind if I invite a friend?” I ask the boys once our parents are gone.
“We don’t care,” Dylan says.
I pull up Bella’s name on my phone. She’s the last person I called and texted, so her name is right there beckoning to me to call her. “What’s the name of the park?”
“Broken Pines Park,” Dylan says.
I call Bella, and I try very hard not to listen to that little voice in my mind that’s telling me this might be a bad idea. She’s just someone I see at the dirt bike track, and someone I give riding lessons to. We’re not supposed to like each other. We’re not supposed to date. But a trip to the park to babysit two kids isn’t a date, right? If anything, it’s a chore. Being surrounded by kids at a park isn’t romantic at all.
“Good morning,” Bella says, sounding chipper. I wonder if she got a great night’s sleep after we finally got off the phone last night. I know I did. I fell asleep quickly and had a dozen dreams, all involving her and that one kiss we shared at the track.
“It’s almost noon,” I say.
“It’s still morning to me. Someone rudely kept me up late last night so I only woke up half an hour ago.”
“Wow, he sounds like a great guy,” I tease. “You should probably hang out with him today.”
“And what did he have in mind?”
“Broken Pines Park?”
“Really?” she says. The tone of her voice is very much indicative of the fact that teenagers, especially those who are legal adults now, don’t hang out at parks. Like I said… totally not romantic. So it’s no big deal that I’m inviting her, right? We’re just friends, doing a friendly thing.
“Yeah… I have babysitting duty today and I promised my step-brothers I’d take them to the park. I thought maybe you’d want to hang out. There’s ice cream in it if you say yes.”
“Well, I can’t say no to ice cream,” she says. “What time are you going? I’ll meet you there.”
“I can pick you up,” I say, reaching for my truck keys off the rack by the garage door. “We’re about to leave.”
“Nah, I’ll just meet you there?”
It feels stupid, but my pride is a little hurt that she doesn’t want to ride with me. “Are you sure? It saves gas if we take one car.”
She laughs. “That park is right behind my house. I can walk there.”
My pride is restored, if only slightly. I laugh, too. “See you soon.”
“Is that your girlfriend?” Matt says as soon as I hang up the phone.
“No,” I say, holding my keys. “Let’s go.”
“Then why did you look like she’s your girlfriend?” Dylan says.
“I didn’t look like anything.”
“Yes you did,” the boys say in unison.
“You kids want ice cream?” I ask.
“Yes!”
“Then don’t mention the word girlfriend again.”
I’m trying to be intimidating, but they just snicker and look at each other as if we’re sharing some private secret. Kids are the worst.
Broken Pines Park is surprisingly awesome. It reminds me a little bit of the Houston Zoo back at home, and nothing like the small park I imagined it would be. It’s huge, and it has several playground areas, all with different themes from outer space to animals to pirates. There are a few manmade lakes with wooden bridges that cross over them, and picnic tables with BBQ pits scattered around. One section of the park is for dogs, and my step-brothers want to visit that part first so they can get their fill of petting every dog in sight.
The main park road is lined with food trucks and little kiosks that sell balloon animals, jump ropes, battery powered fans, and everything a little kid could want. I text Bella and tell her that we’re in the dog park section, and she says she’s on her way.
My whole body feels stretched thin with anticipation. I talked to her on the phone for hours last night, but it wasn’t enough. It’s not the same as seeing her in person. Plus, I didn’t tell her about Team Loco last night. I don’t know why. I kept wanting to mention it, but I didn’t. Today, I will tell her.
Matt and Dylan are laying on the ground being attacked with Golden Retriever kisses when I finally see her.
She’s wearing black shorts and a white tank top that’s all sparkly and looks cute on her. Her light brown hair hangs loose around her shoulders, and even from several feet away, I can tell she’s wearing makeup. Her skin looks angelic, and her eyes are sparkly and her lips are pinker than usual. Glossier, too.
Did she get dressed up for me?
Every single time I’ve seen this girl it has been at the dirt bike track, where everyone is dirty and sweaty and not looking their best. Motocross is a sport, after all, and you get sweaty and dirty when riding. That doesn’t matter where Bella is concerned. Even covered in dirt, she’s gorgeous.
But this is some next level beauty right now.
“Wow,” I say. Like an idiot. I can’t believe the word just fell out of my mouth like that. I’m supposed to play it cool. We’re just friends, after all, and friends don’t comment on the other one looking absolutely gorgeous.
“Wow, what?” she says.
I have to save face, and fast. “Wow, you got here quick,” I say.
She points to the main road, which cuts right between a large suburban neighborhood. “I live right over there.”
“Cool,” I say.
She smiles up at me.
“You look beautiful.”
Crap. Again with my stupid mouth.
Bella blushes and tucks her hair behind her ear. “You look beautiful, too.”
“Do I?” I say, glancing down at my khaki shorts and Yamaha T-shirt.
She laughs. “Of course.”
My little brothers take this opportunity to come running up to us. We’ve only been here about fifteen minutes and they already smell like a sweaty boy’s locker room.
“Can we get ice cream now?”
“Sure thing,” I say. “Bella, this is Matt and Dylan.”
“Hi!” the boys say to her, and to my great relief, they don’t say anything else. I guess they can be trusted to keep their girlfriend thoughts to themselves after all.
They run ahead toward the ice cream food truck while Bella and I walk behind.
“I forgot you had brothers,” she says, her hands shoved in her pockets.
It’s a good thing too, otherwise, I might try to hold her hand.
“They’re my step-brothers,” I say. “I don’t know if I’ve talked about them much”
She kicks an acorn across the road. “I’m not su
re you have. Maybe you mentioned them once, but I always assumed you were an only child.”
“My mom lives with her husband, Phil, and his two kids. I didn’t really know them well before I moved here,” I admit. “We’re getting closer now, but they still feel like strangers. Plus Matt and Dylan are so young, I have no idea how to connect with them besides buying them ice cream.”
“My best friend has twin little brothers and they’re annoying. At least yours are fun to be around.”
“Give them time,” I say with a laugh. “They know how to get pretty annoying, too.”
“Do you have any other siblings?”
I shake my head. “My dad never remarried, and I don’t even know if he dates anyone, to be honest. He works a lot and keeps to himself. If he could marry his job, he probably would.”
Bella glances up at me while we walk, and the sunlight dances off the sparkles in her lip gloss. I’ve never wanted to kiss her as badly as I do right now. Not cool, Liam. Chill out.
Bella’s lips lift into a soft smile. “Isn’t it weird how we’ve spent like every day together this summer and we still don’t know much about each other?”
“Speaking of that…”
A look of alarm flashes across her face. I smile to show her that she doesn’t have anything to worry about. “I’ve been wanting to talk to you about something cool that happened.”
“Oh yeah?”
We’ve reached the ice cream truck and my brothers are practically bursting at the seams with their desire for sugary ice cream cones. I tell them they can get whatever they want, and their little kid energy ramps up to intense levels.
They order cones with three scoops and sprinkles and chocolate syrup on top. I’m pretty sure this is going to result in a massive mess at some point, but whatever. They’re kids. I want them to have fun, and hopefully their sticky hands won’t ruin the interior of my truck later on.
After looking over the extensive menu that’s on the side of the food truck, I order a mint chocolate chip cone.
“Ooh!” Bella says, looking at me with wide eyes that remind me of Matt and Dylan. I guess ice cream brings out the little kid in her. She turns to the guy behind the window. “I’ll have the same thing.”
“You gonna let me pay for it?” I ask, playfully poking her in the side. She didn’t want me to pay for her food at the dirt bike track.
She considers it for a moment. “Sure.”
It’s just a three dollar ice cream, and it’s not a big deal, but it feels like it is. She’s letting me buy her something. She’s letting me treat her like she’s special and not just some girl. This kind of makes it a date. But I keep my thoughts to myself.
The boys get their ice cream monstrosities and run toward a nearby park bench to eat them. I say a silent prayer that none of that chocolate gets all over my truck seats on the drive home.
Bella and I walk to our own park bench across from the boys. I need to keep an eye on them, but I also don’t want them hearing all my business. The last thing I need is for them to start asking if she’s my girlfriend again.
Bella licks her ice cream cone and I try very hard to stop thinking about kissing her. The feelings I have for her aren’t just skin deep. I’m realizing this as I watch her, while she looks absolutely stunning, sitting in the sun right next to me. This isn’t like me at all. I’m not the guy who falls for girls. I’m the guy who spends all my time working on my career.
I have to stop feeling this way. I have to stop crushing so very hard on her. Instead of sitting here watching her and thinking about how badly I want to kiss her, I need to change the subject. I say the first thing that comes to mind. “I got an offer from Team Loco.”
“What!” Her smile reaches all the way to her eyes and it makes me wish I’d brought this up sooner. “When? Liam! That’s amazing!”
“The other day,” I say. Her enthusiasm is infectious. Suddenly I wish I had told her about this last night instead of talking about all the pointless things I said to avoid this topic. “It’s probationary for one season, but if I get through it with no drama or anything, then I’ll be signed on for good.”
“Team Loco is pretty popular.” Bella turns her cone around, quickly licking up a few wayward drips before they go too far. “I think they’re even better than Team FRZ Frame.”
“I think so too,” I say. Why can’t I stop looking at her? Every single thing she does is adorable.
I pull my gaze away and glance at my brothers.
“I’m really excited for you,” Bella says. “This is big. You’ll be extra famous after next season.”
I chuckle. “It’s a catch 22, I guess. I want to race professionally, but I’m not exactly happy about the fame that follows.”
“Well don’t forget about us small town people when you make it big.”
I look back at her, and she’s watching me with the cutest expression. She’s waiting for something. I’m not sure what, but I know it’s the same thing I’m waiting for too.
Oh, screw it.
“I’ll never forget you,” I say. Then I lean over and kiss her as if we are electric and we need each other to survive. As if we’re magnetic and if I don’t make it very quick, we’ll get stuck together and I’ll never stop kissing her.
Not that an eternity of kissing Bella would be a bad thing…
When I pull away, she looks surprised, but in a good way.
“You taste like mint chocolate chip,” she says, staring right into my eyes. Right into my freaking soul.
“So do you.”
Oh man, I never want this summer to end.
3
Bella
I lick my ice cream cone so I have an excuse to look away from Liam. If it were up to me, I’d stare at the boy every second of every day. He’s just that gorgeous. He’s all toned muscles and crisp haircuts and cocky smirks that drive me insane.
I knew it the moment I first saw him at the bike shop, when he rudely cut in front of me in the checkout line. He’s since told me he didn’t realize he was cutting that day, and I believe him. But yeah, even back then, I knew he was hot. The type of hot that transcends regular guys in high school. He’s got soft dirty blond hair that’s just long enough to run my fingers through (not that I ever have, but man, I want to), and that sharp jawline that matches his streamlined muscles. I’ve seen him without his shirt on several times at the dirt bike track, and every time it’s hard not to stare. The boy is gorgeous.
A lot of professional motocross racers are attractive, but Liam Mosely is at the top of that list.
I can’t believe he got offered a sponsorship on Team Loco. Well… I guess I can believe it. He’s a great rider and he’s extremely fast. I guess the part I can’t believe is that he’s moving on, and I’m still stuck here.
While we sit here on this park bench eating our ice cream cones, I tell him I am so proud of him and so happy and that I can’t wait to see him wearing the Team Loco colors in the fall racing season. He tells me about the phone call he got and how the manager seemed like a cool guy who really had faith in him.
It’s extremely cool, and I’m so happy for him. But the more we talk about his future, the more I realize I don’t have a future lined up for myself. Sure, the days will come and go, and summer will soon be over. It’s inevitable. But what I am I going to do after that?
Now that high school is over, I feel so incredibly lost. I’ve never been someone who knew what I wanted to do as a career, unlike my best friend, Kylie, who has wanted to be a high school teacher for as long as I can remember. She wants to teach English or theater arts and she’s already registered for Texas State University, just like most high school seniors did this year. Everyone I know already had their college plans in place before we graduated.
I’m the lone straggler with no idea what to do. I’m that person the posters on the walls of guidance counselors everywhere warn you not to be.
“You okay?” Liam nudges me softly with his elbow. His ice cream is ne
arly gone, but I still have half of mine left. The boy eats everything much faster than I do. Maybe it helps that he’s not sitting here contemplating his boring future like I am.
“I’m just thinking about life,” I say.
He chuckles. “That’s a little generic. Anything specific?”
I look him in his hazel eyes and it feels like I can tell him anything. It doesn’t matter that he’s leaving after summer. It doesn’t matter that we’re not exactly dating, but we’re not exactly just friends either. He feels solid, like a rock that’s planted in the middle of a river. Like someone I can trust just as much as I want to kiss.
I press my lips together, trying to ignore all thoughts of kissing, and then release my secret thoughts. “High school is over and I have no idea what I’m going to do with my life.”
“Hmm,” Liam says. He pops the last bite of his ice cream cone in his mouth. “That might be beyond my scope of advice-giving.”
I laugh. “I know, right? All my friends are going to college or trade school, and I have no idea what I’m going to do.”
“What do you want to do?” he asks.
I shrug. “I literally have no idea. I don’t want to be a teacher. I don’t want to wear suits and work in fancy corporate buildings like my brother. I also don’t want to work some crappy minimum wage job, so I need an education. I just don’t know what.”
“I’ve always wanted to race motocross,” Liam says, glancing at his brothers who finished with their ice cream on the bench across from us. He leans back on the bench and stretches his arms out. “But you need a backup plan for that kind of career. If I get injured and can’t ride anymore or something like that—I’d need something to fall back on.”
“So what’s your plan B?” I ask.
He looks up as his little brothers run to a swing set to play. We can easily see them from here, so he leans back and looks at me, his arm still slung casually across the back of the bench. I desperately want to lean back too, and cuddle up in his arms. It would be so easy. But that would be weird. We can only be friends, and this isn’t a real date, I tell myself.
