Free Shattered Soul by Jennifer Snyder Page A

in
place.
    I did, however, leave Calvin one where his pack had
been sitting before I left for school.
     
    I took my time getting to school, only because I knew
from experience everyone would be asking what had happened to my
face. I wanted to avoid the stares and constant questions, along
with any sympathy or pity that might come with whatever answers I
chose to give this time, for as long as I could.
    I wondered what people thought, mainly the teachers,
when they saw me with black eyes and busted lips time and time
again. Hell, they probably thought I was just some punk kid who
deserved it.
    Deep down, there was a piece of me that sometimes
believed that.
    I forced the thoughts from my mind and crossed the
street, heading for the smoking trees. Crowds of kids were already
crammed underneath; must have been closer to the bell than I had
realized.
    I wove my way into the crowd searching for Trip, my
jaw dropped once I spotted him. Trip was standing with Miranda
Cooper! They were smoking cigarettes together and talking. I
grinned wildly, despite the shooting pain it caused in my lip.
Apparently, Miranda had remembered the other night and liked
it.
    “What’s up, man?” I greeted Trip while desperately
attempting to tone down the goofy grin on my face. I nodded to
Miranda next, “Hey.”
    “Hey,” she replied, taking another drag from her
cigarette.
    I pulled out one of my own and lit it.
    “Nothing much,” Trip said in a smooth, normal tone
for Miranda’s sake, but I could see how ecstatic he was by looking
in his eyes. “Your girl just pulled up a second ago. She was eyeing
over here, searching for you no doubt.” Trip grinned.
    My girl? Hopefully he didn’t mean Sidney. She was the
last person I wanted to see this early in the morning, especially
after Saturday night.
    “Who? Sidney?” I asked.
    “No.” Trip nodded to someone behind me. “Her.”
    I spun around to see Ali walking towards me. My heart
picked up pace at the sight of her. She wore a pale yellow jacket,
denim shorts, and right-out-of-the-box-white Sketchers. Her blond
ponytail swayed behind her as she walked, her books cradled in her
arms, and a shy smile played at the corners of her mouth—until she
got closer and saw my face.
    “Oh my god, Seth…what happened?” she asked, her pace
quickening.
    “You should see the other guy,” Trip said.
    I smiled. Good old Trip, always there for me no
matter what.
    “It looks worse than it feels.”
    “You should have seen him Saturday night,” Miranda
said, pursing her lips together while giving Ali a complete
once-over with her eyes.
    Miranda almost looked disgusted by Ali. Girls, they
could be such jealous bitches sometimes. Ali, however, didn’t seem
to notice Miranda’s dirty looks at all, or if she did, she didn’t
let it show.
    Ali reached out gently and touched the corner of my
left eye. Her touch felt feather light and cool against my skin,
unleashing a rush of excitement within me that settled in the pit
of my stomach, butterflies . I watched her
face carefully as she trailed her fingertips down my cheek and
towards my busted lip. Concern entered her gaze and she bit her
bottom lip.
    “Looks like it hurts,” she muttered, pulling her
fingers away.
    I took a drag off my cigarette. “Nah, I’m fine.” A
lie, I was still sore as shit, but I wasn’t about to admit it.
    Our eyes remained locked for a moment and the same
little shy smile stretched across her face.
    “So, did your parents say anything when you came home
Friday night?” I wondered, suddenly concerned about whether or not
she’d gotten into trouble.
    “No, my mom was busy writing and my dad was glued to
the TV watching some sports show,” she said, glancing around at all
the others enjoying their morning cigarettes before the first bell
rang.
    A small smirk broke free from me as I watched her
eyeballing everyone while she nervously chipped away at her pale
pink nail polish. Obviously, she wasn’t comfortable standing