I focused on bringing my heart rate back down and trying to act normal instead of weird now that we weren’t busy running.
Aaron came a little closer. “Listen, Rach, I just want you to know that…I wanted to ask you to dance with me at the winter formal. It’s not that I didn’t want to.”
I stopped and turned to him, trying to decide how I felt about the way this conversation was now going. “It’s okay,” I said quickly.
“ I’m sorry,” he went on, taking a step toward me. “You don’t know how much I wanted to ask you, but then…” He looked like he wanted to say something else. “I just couldn’t.”
So I had been right.
He met my eyes, and I noticed how close we were. “I just wanted you to know I wasn’t playing games or something.”
I gave him a small nod, not sure what else to say, but also completely spellbound.
I could’ve reached out my hand easily and touched his chest again. Part of me wanted to. Part of me felt mesmerized by him.
Just like that, all of those feelings for Aaron were back.
The truth was they’d never left.
My heart pounded, and he came even closer.
Like me, he’d gone silent.
Only the sound of our breathing could be heard.
Why couldn’t I tear my eyes off of his mouth?
Just then, I heard my dad’s voice call out to me. “Rachel!”
Uh oh.
The spell was broken.
I took a step back.
Dad didn’t like it when I ran alone in the dark. He was probably wondering where I was.
“Rachel!” he called again, this time louder.
Several neighbors’ dogs began barking.
I turned back to Aaron.
I did not want my dad to find us out here, in the dark.
He would not like the fact that I’d been with Aaron this whole time, or any boy for that matter.
Teenage boys were dangerous, according to him, and honestly, he was kind of right.
“I have to go,” I said, walking away.
Aaron tried to follow me, but I held up a hand and shook my head. “I can’t. I have to go. Sorry.”
Then I ran, leaving him behind.
As I got closer and closer to home, my brain began working soundly again.
I couldn’t believe I’d let us get that close to…
I kept running.
No, the more distance between me and Aaron, the better.
3
I tapped my foot, wondering where Aaron and David were.
They were late.
I checked my phone again.
No text.
Maybe their basketball practice had run over.
Sometimes their coach made them run punishment laps or made the whole team keep going through a play until they got it right.
That would explain the lack of a message from David.
My stomach grumbled for dinner.
Usually, we’d be home by now and sitting down to eat. They were never more than a couple of minutes late.
What was going on?
I walked back toward the gym. Ever since basketball had started, the cheerleaders had been practicing across the street at the middle school’s gym.
Usually, after I walked back here, the guys were already waiting for me.
As I approached the gym, I found David and Aaron. They were exiting the gym, and right away, I could tell something was wrong.
David wasn’t walking on his own.
Instead, Aaron and some other guy from the basketball team supported David between them.
My brother hobbled with each step, his face making it clear that he was in pain.
And if David was in pain, it had to be bad. He had to be the toughest person I knew.
“What happened?” I asked, going up to them. They stopped.
David grimaced. “It’s my ankle. I landed on it all wrong, and my weight went on it.”
I took a closer look at his bare foot. It looked about twice its normal size. “It’s pretty swollen.” I glanced up at him. “Do you think it’s broken?”
Just the question had him looking pretty bummed out. “I really hope not. But I definitely need to get it checked out.”
Aaron spoke up, sounding just as concerned. “It’s not your average sprain, that’s for sure.”
I got out of their way, and they got David all the way to his car. I opened the front passenger door for him, letting the seat all the way back.
Aaron and David thanked their friend. “Let me know how it goes, man.” he told my brother with a frown. “Hopefully, it’s nothing serious, and you’ll be back on the court in no time.” Then he left with a wave.
David dug into his gym bag and handed me his keys. “Looks like you get to drive, sis.” His voice came out husky, like he was in physical pain but also not happy about what this meant for him.
I took his keys, feeling bad for how upset he was. This was his senior season of basketball, and he’d gotten an injury in the middle of it.
After closing his door, I walked around to the driver’s side.
We rode home in silence.
When we got to the house, Aaron and I helped David out and to the kitchen, where Mom promptly freaked out in Spanish. She ran to the freezer and grabbed a large bag of ice but not before covering David’s ankle in salt.
“Mom, I need to go to the doctor,” he told her. “Salt’s not gonna do it this time.”
She knelt down and studied his leg. Then in Spanish, she said, “First things first. The salt will help with the swelling. I know what I’m talking about,” she replied firmly.
Several minutes later, his ankle didn’t look much better. I wasn’t sure who looked more nervous about it, Mom, David, or Aaron.
Then Dad came home. He took one look at it and shook his head. “Your coach called and told me what happened,” he said with a sigh. He turned to Mom. “I left the car on. We can take him to the ER.”
Mom and Dad left with David, and Aaron went home.
My little brothers came in. They were in elementary school, and like David and me, about a year apart. “We’re hungry,” Tito demanded. If they weren’t busy jumping from couch to couch, then they probably were in need of food.
I grabbed a couple of plates. “Okay, okay,” I said, heading to the stove, where Mom had left dinner ready.
While we ate, Mom texted me, asking me to help clean the kitchen and remind my brothers to take their bath and do their homework.
I desperately wanted a shower myself, but instead I began loading the dishwasher. Then I shouted up the stairs at my younger brothers with Mom’s message.
Finally, after I’d showered and done my homework, Mom and Dad came home with David in a big black boot. Dad and David sat at the table.
“So what’d they say?” I asked, emptying the dishwasher. My freshly washed hair made the back of my t-shirt wet. “It’s not broken, is it?”
David’s face gave away the bad news before anyone could respond.
“It’s not broken,” Mom replied. “But he won’t be playing for a while.”
She set her purse down on the counter with a sigh. “It’ll probably be a month or two before he’s back to normal. The doctors think he might’ve ripped a tendon around his ankle when he fell, but we won’t know for sure until his appointment at the ortho tomorrow.”
She began getting both of them dinner.
David sighed. “If I’m lucky, I’ll be better by the play-offs. And if I’m not…” He shrugged. Using his new set of crutches, he hobbled off to his room.
Dad sat at the kitchen table, looking weary. “Since he can’t drive, I’ll have to take you guys to school in the morning.”
Mom put her hands on her hips. “I guess I can pick them up. But I’ll have to wait for the boys to come home first, so I may be pretty late some days.”
I stood up straight. “You don’t have to do that, Dad,” I said. “I have my license, remember? I
can drive us.”
He didn’t seem so sure about that, though. “I don’t know, Rachel. There’s a lot of traffic in the morning…”
I scoffed. “You’ve let David drive since he was old enough and had his license.”
Mom gave me this look like she was trying not to smile but also warning me about how I went about asking Dad for things.
I waited for Dad to say something.
Mom set down his dinner plate. He thanked her quietly, and she grabbed her plate next.
“So?” I went on. “Can I, Dad? Please. David will be with me the entire time. It’ll be good practice for me for after he leaves for school. And you won’t have to be late for work.”
Dad took a bite of his dinner. I could tell he was thinking hard, probably wishing he had some good reasons of his own to say no.
But finally he nodded. “Okay. But only until David is better.”
I squeaked in excitement and went over to hug him. “Thanks, Dad! I’ll be careful. Don’t worry.”
I ran upstairs and let David know. He hardly looked up from his homework. Just let me know he wouldn’t be riding home with me in the afternoons. “I’m gonna ask my friend Ricky if I can ride home with him right after school. No point in going to practice right now. Coach says I need to rest it.”
So I’d get to drive home on my own, music on full blast? Cool.
Maybe Dad would finally see how responsible I could be, possibly even let me have a car of my own in time for summer?
I hated that David was injured and that he couldn’t play basketball for a few weeks, but maybe this was the perfect way for Dad to finally let me have some freedom.
4
The final bell rang, and I left English and headed toward my locker.
Just as I reached it, my eye caught David. Aaron was with him.
My locker was only a few feet away from where they were talking. I worked the dial and tried to listen. It seemed like a serious conversation, which was odd for them. They only got serious when it came time to discussing stuff like the NBA finals.
As I pulled open my locker, my brother’s voice carried. “Like I said, I’m sorry, bro. Ricky is gonna be giving me a ride home after school for now. Coach told me to keep my ankle iced and elevated as much as possible. The faster I recover, the faster I can play again. I wish I could keep giving you a ride home from practice, but maybe Frankie or one of the other guys can drop you off?”
Aaron didn’t sound so sure, though. “Yeah, man, no worries. I’ll ask somebody. And try not to worry too much about that ankle. I bet you’ll be playing again soon.”
They said goodbye, and I turned toward them. David was headed toward the front of the school, probably to meet up with his ride home.
Aaron stared after him. The way he exhaled and then glanced down for a little too long… I could tell this wasn’t the best news for him.
I didn’t have to ask him to know what was going on.
Ben and his brothers usually struggled more than anyone I knew. Their mom had always barely gotten by, and I knew she worked a lot of hours to cover the bills. Ben had his well-loved Jeep, and he took his brothers to school, but afterward, he had to get to work.
It wouldn’t be the first time I’d seen one of the Garcia brothers walk home from school. And I knew for a fact that Aaron hated to ask people for help.
All I knew was I wasn’t about to let Aaron stress over this or end up walking an hour after a grueling practice to get home.
As awkward as things had been lately between us, I still had the biggest soft spot for him. At the end of the day, he was my friend.
So I grabbed my stuff, closed my locker, and walked over. “Hey.”
He turned toward me, surprised. “Hey.”
“I couldn’t help but overhear what you and David were talking about just now,” I said, glancing in the direction my bother had left.
Aaron stumbled over his words for a second. “Oh, um—” he said, shaking his head like it wasn’t a big deal. “You don’t have to—“
“I can give you a ride home after practice,” I offered. “I don’t mind.”
He shifted on his feet and glanced away. Was it me, or were things more awkward than ever between us? I hated it. So much. “It’s okay,” he said. “I don’t want you getting in trouble or something.”
I could hear the uncertainty in his voice, but I considered what he said.
He had a good point. There was a reason my brother hadn’t just told him to ride home with me. Yeah, Dad probably wouldn’t love the idea of me in a car with a boy, but as well-meaning as he was, some of his ideas were kind of antiquated.
I knew in my heart I wouldn’t be doing anything wrong by giving Aaron a ride home. My parents knew him and trusted him. They would give him a ride home in heartbeat. “It wouldn’t be any trouble,” I replied. “I mean, we live right next to each other and I’m heading home at the same exact time so…”
He still looked kind of unsure.
“Aaron,” I told him, louder this time. That got his attention. “Just say yes,” I said with a smile, determined to get one on his face.
He shifted his weight. “What if your parents find out?”
“They won’t,” I reassured him. “Besides, we’re literally going straight home. Ten minutes.”
Finally, he seemed to relax like an inch. “Alright, then. Yes.”
My grin grew wider. I liked seeing him smile. A little bit of the weird tension around us disappeared. “Good,” I replied.
“Thank you,” Aaron said, meeting my eyes.
It made me happy to see him that way. No longer worried about this situation.
As we stood there, something shifted between us. I froze, lost in the way he looked at me. I remembered to breathe. Aaron Garcia seemed to have that effect around me. “Cool,” I said, trying to recover. “See you after practice then.” I turned and left, my heart pounding like crazy inside of me.
Already, I felt kind of anxious and unsure about the idea of us riding home together, but if I knew one thing, it was that it had been the right thing to do. That I was sure about.
Maybe Dad wouldn’t like it, but it was mostly because he probably would’ve chosen for me to stay secluded in a tower like Rapunzel if he could.
He had always been like that with me, his only daughter, and he probably always would be. But I was growing up, and sooner or later, I had to make my own decisions.
They were good decisions.
As far as I knew, I was just doing something nice. For a friend who deserved it.
Besides, he didn’t have to find out.
So I’d be spending a few minutes alone with Aaron every afternoon on our way home. That was it.
No big deal.
No need to keep my feelings in check because he was just a friend.
Most importantly, my brother’s best friend.
So as much as he took my breath away, nothing could ever happen.
We were just friends.
5
After cheer practice that afternoon, Scarlett walked back to the parking lot with me.
Meanwhile, it was finally starting to hit me that Aaron would be riding home with me. David wouldn’t be there. It would just be me and him.
Alone.
Scarlett’s mom waved at us from several feet away.
We waved back, coming to a stop to say goodbye.
Scarlett focused in on something behind me. “Who’s that? Wait, is that Aaron?”
I turned to see what she was talking about. Aaron stood by David’s black Nissan.
Scarlett grinned at me as she connected the dots in her head. “Wait. Is he waiting for you?”
I tried to play it cool, but inside, I was already freaking out a little. “Oh. Yeah. He usually rides home with me and my brother anyway. He didn’t have anyone else to take him home, so I told him he could ride with me until David’s ankle is healed and he’s driving again.”
Scarlett quirked a brow and grinned. �
�Interesting. That should be really interesting,” she said with a chuckle. Her voice became low. “So how are things between you two? Does this mean you two are gonna patch things up?”
I shrugged and pulled my cheer bag over my shoulder a little more. “What do you mean?” But I refused to meet her gaze.
She nudged me and crossed her arms. “Come on, Rach. I’ve noticed you two. And you guys have been weird since the winter dance. I still don’t get why you guys don’t just go for it. You two are obviously made for each other.”
I shook my head. “Scarlett…” I replied, trying to form an argument, but it was no good.
“Please,” she replied. “I remember what you told me, and I think it’s just an excuse. Who cares that he’s best friends with your brother?”
With a frustrated exhale, I replied, making sure to keep my voice down, “You don’t get it. My brother would freak out. Don’t you see? That’s why he never asked me to dance. It would create all kinds of drama. Not to mention my dad. It’s just…not worth it.”
She put her hand on her hip and gave me a skeptical look. “Not worth it, huh? That’s not what I’m seeing. As far as I can tell, you two are still just as crazy about each other. And for a good reason.”
Why was it impossible to cover up how I really felt about Aaron around her?
“I see how he looks at you,” she went on. “How you look at him. I saw it from the minute I moved here.”
Oh my gosh. Was it that obvious?
I glanced around, trying to keep it together and not believing we were having this conversation again. If I had let Aaron go, then she had to let this go too.
“Friends,” I said finally, nudging her back and trying to get my usual self-confidence back. “We are just friends.”
“Okay,” Scarlett said, taking a couple of steps towards her mom and raising her hands in self-defense. “But I still think you two would be like the cutest couple ever at Jefferson High.”
I shushed her, but smiled, glad this conversation was over. “Wrong,” I called after her. “That honor obviously goes to you and Ben.”
She turned back to me and laughed. “Yeah, we are pretty cute, huh?”
Dating Aaron & Other Forbidden Things (Garcia Brothers Book 2) Page 2
