Free Changing Forever by Lisa de Jong Page A

when I saw her earlier this morning. I ran for another thirty minutes after I left her at her car, but I have a feeling another run might be needed before the day is over.
    I spot her hidden in the corner, surrounded by windows. Leave it to her to find the quietest, most desolate place in the library for us to meet. She looks casual with her hair pulled up in a ponytail, dressed in a worn Southern Iowa sweatshirt. She’s definitely low maintenance, but it fits her. That day when she ran into me, her big brown eyes were the first things I noticed. They’re always the first things I want to see.
    “I made it,” I say, throwing my bag onto the floor. Those eyes that always pull me in are on me now.
    “Are you expecting a band to come in and play a celebratory song?” she teases, tapping her eraser against the wooden table.
    “A smile would be nice.”
    Just like that, the corners of her lips turn up. She comes off as so tough, but yet I seem to find ways to loosen her up. “Happy now?”
    “As much as I can be in this place.” Some of the familiar heaviness weighs on my chest again. I try not to think of happiness … it’s a pipe dream for me.
    “What’s your story, Drake Chambers?” she asks, twirling her pencil between her fingers. I swear she’s seeing right into me; I just hope I’m not that fucking transparent.
    I shrug. “Maybe I don’t have one.”
    “Everyone has one.”
    “Not everyone has one they want to share,” I say, looking down at the wood table. Really, no one knows my story, and Emery isn’t going to get her name on an exclusive list.
    She nods, staring off into the rows of bookshelves.
    “Do you still need me to fix your car?” I ask in an attempt to change the subject.
    “Do you still want to fix my car?”
    “Of course. I’ll take a look at it after we leave here.”
    “So are you ready to get started on this? I kind of know what I want to do, but I need to do some research.”
    I rest my elbows on the table, leaning in as close as I can. “You got to go first last time. I think we should start with your football lesson.”
    “Funny, Chambers. Don’t forget we’re in the library.”
    “Doesn’t matter. I’ll flip your lessons around. We’ll work on tackling another day,” I say, watching her eyes go wide. I fucking love how simple words affect her. She reminds me a lot of the good girls from my high school. They were always the most fun to tease.
    “Okay, I’ll play. What do you want to teach me?”
    “The difference between offense and defense.” I pause, watching her expression shift to that of someone who’s in the second hour of a long presidential address. I’m going to get a rise out of her no matter how hard I have to try. “I’m the quarterback, so I’m in charge of leading the offense down the field. Our job is to get down to the end zone as often as possible. The defense’s job is to make sure the other team doesn’t score. The offense has to score more than their defense lets the opposing team.”
    “Sounds easy enough.”
    I shrug, leaning in closer. “It’s not nearly as easy as it sounds. If someone isn’t where they’re supposed to be, or if one guy isn’t playing like he should, we lose. Consider it a bigger scale team project.”
    She tilts her head, seemingly hanging on my every word. As a smirk forms on her face, her eyes seem to brighten. “So am I on offense or defense?”
    “I always have the ball, Emery. Always.”
    She shifts her eyes to the window, doing her best to avoid me. It’s the truth. I always have to be in control. If I’m not, all I feel is chaos inside, and I can’t even think. I get the feeling that Emery is the same way so it will be a miracle if we get out of this able to stand each other.
    “Well, let’s see if we can work on your passing skills. How is your portion of the project coming along?” she asks, focusing her eyes back to me.
    “I just need to pull some facts from the web, and I’ll be all