Free A Fine Line by Courtney Brandt Page A

carrying a torch for something that wasn’t happening – always wondering what was really happening to Sam on campus…turning into a jealous, whiny girlfriend. Lucy didn’t want to be that girl. Plus, she had to admit, that if she was going to pursue things with a certain football player that had been invading her thoughts on a more frequent basis that she wanted to do so with a clean slate. If she wanted to pursue things…
     
    “You’re one in a million, Lucy Karate.”
    “Thanks.” A stray tear slipped down Lucy’s face.
    Her official ex-boyfriend kissed Lucy softly on the lips before pulling back and telling her, “Don’t be a stranger. Let me know how things go this season.”
    “I will.”
    Lucy drove back on Sunday actually in better spirits than she imagined she would be in. It was like even though she was already well into her senior season, that she had a new start and a fresh beginning. She thought about the past twenty-four hours and how completely random they had been. While she had gotten the whole jittery stomach thing when she first saw Sam, it was for different reasons than she usually had. There had been reminiscing of old times and inside jokes and with Sam’s roommate mysteriously missing, she had actually enjoyed one last night with her former boyfriend.
     
    Lucy walked to practice on Tuesday in optimistic spirits. Everyone was crowded around the director’s podium. Lucy whispered to Gina, “What’s going on?”
    Gina whispered back, “I don’t know, Izzo’s got some important announcement or something.”
    Mr. Izzo addressed the band, “Well, I’m sure you all noticed the new addition to the show on Friday…”
    He is so not going to play it off like he was a part of this…is he?
    He is.
    Lucy looked over and rolled her eyes at Tom, who understood the gesture.
    You have to admit, it’s better than getting detention.
    That’s true.
    “…I didn’t tell all of you because I wasn’t sure I wanted to go forward with things, but now that I’ve seen the crowd’s reaction, I want to officially include Tom and Lucy’s choreography into the halftime show. I think it will give us an edge at some of the competitions.”
    There was a small round of applause and murmurs of approval through the crowd.
    “Furthermore, I’d like to announce I’ve decided that we are going to attend the Lincoln County Marching Band Invitational. As some of you seniors can remember, this competition is far enough away that we will be incorporating it into an overnight trip. We will be passing out permission slips and information after practice.”
    With that announcement a cheer went through the band. The seniors had been doing their best to pass along the traditions and legends of the overnight band trip. It wasn’t that the band never went on trips, it just made the competition that much more intense. Lucy remembered back to her freshman year and how outstanding the show had been. Mr. Izzo only took the band on overnight trips when he thought they had a chance to compete against the biggest and most talented bands.
    Tom had joined Lucy, “No pressure on us, huh?”
    Lucy swallowed as the enormity of the situation hit her. It was one thing to show boat in front of an excited football crowd, but it was another thing entirely to dance at a major marching band competition – especially with judges directly on the field.
    Mr. Izzo finished up, “Okay, gang, let’s all get into the set at the end of the first song. I worked the drill over the weekend to make Tom and Lucy’s transition easier.”
    Lucy and Tom picked up their drums and began making their way across the field. Lucy nudged Tom as they walked near Drew, and whispered, “We really should apologize to him.”
    Tom shot Lucy a look, but shrugged, “Fine.”
    Lucy walked quickly to join Drew. She smiled at the junior, “We wanted to tell you.”
    Tom walked on Drew’s other side and agreed, “Sorry, dude, it’s just that if we were going