Free My Blue River by Leslie Trammell

long before he found trouble or trouble found him.
     
    I walked over to interrupt Zeek and Jack’s conversation. Jack must have caught me in his peripheral vision because he was already turning to face me before I ever reached his location.
     
    “Hey, sorry to interrupt. Have you seen Aaron?” I asked.
     
    “He’s over there playing pool with some kids his age. I introduced him to as many non-lethal guys as I could. Don’t worry. After what you told me, I’m keeping an eye on him.”
     
    How sweet is this guy? He barely knows Aaron but cares enough to watch out for him . Anyone else probably could not have cared less. I found myself liking Jack entirely too much, but it was simply impossible not to.
     
    “Thanks. I appreciate your help.”
     
    “Hey, I consider it part of my job. I can’t have you guys leaving town or I’ll be jobless.”
     
    He tried to play off his kindness, but I didn’t buy it. I could tell as I looked into his eyes he was a caring and compassionate person. I almost felt ashamed of how much of a polar opposite I was from him.
     
    “Well, we can’t have you topless, JOBLESS, I mean, jobless.” I flushed cherry red.
     
    Hey tongue! How could you betray me like that?
     
    Being the gracious person he was he didn’t retort a single comment. He simply smiled as I left to find Claire as fast as my legs could carry me. I found her talking to Sallie. As I approached, they gave me warm smiles and patted the empty chair, indicating I should join them. I took a seat. I hated to admit that I felt comfortable with them. Despite the comfort, I didn’t really fit into the conversation. I didn’t know anyone they were talking about and I sure didn’t know what they meant by “barrel racing.” Although they tried to include me, I didn’t have anything to contribute to the conversation so I merely smiled and occasionally nodded.
     
    I unconsciously blocked their voices from my ears and started to observe the people in the room. I noticed several people had their own unique style and someone in western apparel was talking to a girl dressed in Goth. Okay, first, can we really revive Goth? Second, those two people would never be having a conversation if this was my home town . Third, this is weird. It’s like you can be yourself and still be accepted and it feels unnatural . It wasn’t at all the clique environment of my former high school—at least not at the same level. I suspected Aaron would fall into the “stoner” category but still hang with a guy like Jack. As long as he was alive, I didn’t care what category he fell into.
     
    “Right, Addy?” Claire asked.
     
    I tried to refocus, but I had no clue what she was talking about. “Huh? I’m sorry, Claire. I was lost in thought. What were you saying?”
     
    She smiled and nodded in understanding that I didn’t quite fit in yet and their conversation probably didn’t grab my attention. She didn’t seem offended. “I said Jack is working for your mom and dad, right?”
     
    “Oh, yeah, Jack the handyman. Yeah, he is.”
     
    Sallie put her hand on her chest and sucked in a breath. “You are so lucky. I’d do anything to get to look at Jack every day.” Her eyes glazed over as if she were thinking of a fantasy she had about Jack which was confirmed when she blushed and looked away. She shook her head to snap from the reverie.
     
    I stifled a giggle at Sallie’s gush over Jack then tried to downplay what I thought of him. “Jack? Um, yeah, I guess he’s an attractive guy. He’s pretty nice and fairly entertaining. The conversation is somewhat stimulating.” I was looking at him as I falsely described him. Jack was very attractive, very nice, very entertaining and extremely stimulating. I cocked my head to consider my next words. I couldn’t think of anything else to say or at least, anything that wouldn’t give me away. I looked at Claire who was shaking her head in disbelief.
     
    “What?” I