Crossing the Barrier (19 page)

Grabbing Sandra’s hand and holding on for dear life was the only way she knew how to block everybody else. Sandra was happy for her, but also concerned.

“Don’t worry,” Sandra said. “You’ll be fine.”

“Let her get out first,” a boy called from the front. “He’s been waiting long enough.”

Even the boys in the band were happy for her. After all, a lot of them fantasized about the cheerleaders and dancers on a regular basis. They didn’t admit to it, but Lily knew.

“Go,” Sandra whispered. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

“Okay,” Lily said, bracing herself for the wave that would be crashing into her the moment she let go of Sandra.

And it did.

Among the cheers of her bandmates, she grabbed her bag and ran down the aisle from her seat in the middle of the bus. Some slapped her on the back as she made her way to the front, and Lily internally winced every time someone touched her. On her face, she kept a smile as if she were happy about the cheers, but in reality she was now battling a huge headache from trying to push all their emotions away.

Finally, she walked out of the bus and looked at Malakai. He took a few steps away from his jeep, scratching the back of his head, all the while looking at her. He had changed and showered, and Lily couldn’t help but stare. She had always believed he was the most beautiful boy in school, but now, for the first time, she really noticed to what point his jeans fitted him so well and how wide and strong his chest looked under his blue T-shirt. She noticed how welcoming his smile was and how much he took her breath away, making her tingly inside.

She simply could not believe this guy liked her. Among all the girls in the school, he had chosen her.

“Go,” one of the girls said, giving her a gentle shove.

Lily made her way to Malakai and as she got closer, he opened his arms. She took the last few steps and walked into his embrace. As his arms closed around her, Lily put her head on his chest, just over his heart, and closed her eyes, taking him in, enjoying the feel of his mind against hers. She wished they could stay like this forever, but Lily felt the eyes of her fellow band members on her back.

“I stink,” she finally said, pulling away and looking up at him.

“I don’t care,” he said, bringing his hands to her cheeks and kissing her forehead.

“But I do. You mind if I go at least change?”

“No. I’ll wait for you.”

“Okay.”

Quickly, Lily ran to her car, put her clarinet inside, and grabbed her change of clothes. She made it to the shower at the gym, and ten minutes later, she ran back outside where Malakai was still waiting for her. Some of the band members were still there, putting equipment away, waiting for their parents, or talking in the parking lot before heading home. A few had made their way to Malakai. She recognized among them the biggest football fans of their lot.

“Well, I’m glad you caught that pass, dude,” one of the guys said. “I was sure it was a goner.”

“Come on, Terry, Malakai can catch anything.”

“Yeah, after tonight, I believe it.”

As Lily approached, one of them saw her.

“Okay, time to go now,” he said to the others, a huge grin on his face.

A few seconds later, Malakai took a step toward her, opening his arms. Lily walked to him, wrapped her arms around his waist, and put her head over his heart again.

“You smell good,” Malakai said, putting his cheek on her head.

“Thanks.”

He held on to her a while longer, at peace and content. Then Lily got a glimpse of both of them, lying down together in each other’s arms.

Slowly, he let go of her and began to rummage in the back of his jeep. A few moments later, he looked at her, a triumphant grin on his face, and shoved a couple of blankets under his arm.

“Come,” he said, offering her his free hand.

She took it, and he led them toward the gate to the football practice field. He felt so excited Lily was puzzled. They reached the green gate and passed it. When they reached the fifty-yard line, Malakai spread one of the blankets on the ground. He sat on it and offered Lily his hand, helping her down next to him.

“I love it here,” he said, pulling her into his arms and hugging her.

It smelled of freshly mowed grass and laundry. A small crescent moon shone in the sky. Most of the light was coming from the surrounding streets. It was so quiet out there; only the crickets could be heard.

“Do you come here often, I mean, when you don’t practice?” Lily asked quietly, leaning into his embrace.

She loved his arms around her. They were warm and strong, and at the same time gentle.

“Yeah, I do, every chance I get. I look around and replay the game in my head, or the practice if I come after practice. It helps me improve.”

Lily glanced around at the empty field. “I never come to the field when I don’t play. I never really thought about it.”

Letting go of her, Malakai grabbed the other blanket, rolled it, and put it on the ground. He then lay down with his head on it and pulled Lily down next to him, snuggling her against his side despite the heat of the night.

“I never thought I would be taking someone here,” he said with a chuckle.

“I never thought I would come here with someone.”

They stayed quiet for a moment, and Lily felt it again, this feeling of being home. It was coming from her as much as from him, as if, after so long being lost, they had found one another.

He really liked her, he genuinely did. He felt…complete when he was with her.

Lily’s heart began to feel too big for her ribcage. She felt like it would explode. She wanted to cry in joy and in fear. She was safe and loved. She belonged, there, lying on the empty school football field, with Malakai holding her against his side.

And she feared she would lose it all. She feared he would wake up one day, see this little band geek with this weird ability of reading feelings, and just walk away.

For one reason or another, she knew he was as afraid as she was, if not more. He was afraid he would be alone again, and she couldn’t understand why he would believe something like that.

His arms tightened around her, and Lily had a hard time breathing for a few moments. Then he released his hold, brushing his lips against the top of her head.

He didn’t speak. He didn’t need to. He just held her.

And that’s all Lily needed.

Chapter Thirty-Nine

MALAKAI

When he woke
up the next morning, Malakai wondered why the birds were so loud. Then he felt the warm presence against his side and smiled. He wasn’t in his bed but outside, holding Lily. He didn’t remember falling asleep, only that they had been talking and kissing, and talking some more. Having her in his arms, her soft body pressed against his was the most exciting thing he had ever experienced.

And it felt so right.

Fifteen minutes after they woke up, it took all of his willpower to finally walk her to her car and watch her drive away. The moment her car door closed, Malakai wanted to yank it open and pull Lily out for another hug, another kiss, another touch. He was still thinking of his night as he drove home, a grin stamped on his face. He would do it all over again if the sun wasn’t coming up.

When he walked into the apartment a few minutes later, he was surprised to see his father sitting at the kitchen table reading the newspaper.

“You’re home.”

It had been a month since Malakai had seen the sergeant last and he hadn’t expected him for another few weeks.

“Yes, I am,” the sergeant answered, putting his paper down. “I see you weren’t.”

Malakai internally sighed, sure he was about to get a lecture. Of all the days to be back, his father had to choose the one when Malakai hadn’t spent the night at home.

“No,” he answered, walking to the refrigerator and retrieving the orange juice.

“Care to tell me where you were?”

“At school,” he answered, taking a glass from the cupboard. “I slept on the football field.”

His father gave him one of his rare grins, surprising Malakai to no end.

“Was there a girl?”

Malakai hesitated a moment. He had never seen this playful side of his father before. The sergeant had always been so strict Malakai expected a reprimand of some sort, not questions about girls. He wondered what had gotten into his father.

“I’m not going to answer that,” he said slowly, looking down at the ground between them.

The sergeant chuckled, and Malakai looked at him.

“No, I guess you’re not. I raised you better than to kiss and tell. But you’re careful, aren’t you? I don’t need to give you the talk again, do I?”

The sex talk?

The sergeant was one of the most severe people he knew, and now all he wanted to do was have the sex talk?

Really?

“No, sir!”

Malakai had received it every year since he began high school and had expected to receive it again this year, but he had also expected his father to react quite differently when he found out he was seeing a girl, something along the lines of “Don’t bring her home to have sex or else.” Malakai waited for a moment, still expecting such a comment, but his father returned to his newspaper, signaling the end of this conversation.

With a shrug, Malakai filled his glass and put the jug of juice back in the refrigerator. He then took his glass and came to sit at the table across from his father.

“Something strange happened after the game last night,” he said with a frown.

“What?” his father asked, still looking at his newspaper and grabbing his coffee mug.

“I thought I saw Mum.”

His father’s hand stopped midway between his mouth and the table, and he slowly lowered the newspaper.

“What?” he asked with a frown of his own, putting his coffee back on the table.

“I could have sworn I saw Mum last night. Is that at all possible?”

“I don’t think so,” his father answered, growing distant for a moment.

“You never told me what happened to her.”

“No, I never did,” he said, taking his mug and bringing it to his lips for a sip. He then took his newspaper again as if nothing had just been said.

“Sergeant! What happened to her?”

His father looked at Malakai. “Junior, it’s better if you don’t know.”

“But I want to know.”

“I know you do.”

His father closed the discussion by returning to his newspaper. Frustrated, Malakai stood up and, grabbing his orange juice, left the sergeant to his reading. He would have slammed his door but knew better than to do it. He had done it once when he was fifteen, and the sergeant had removed his door for two weeks. He hadn’t liked the experience at all.

He went to his bathroom and took a shower, thinking about what he believed he had seen the previous night. The woman had stood there, looking straight at him, and she looked exactly like his mother but a little older. He wondered who she was and why his father still refused to tell him what had happened.

He was still thinking about it when he lay on his bed for a nap a few minutes later.

Chapter Forty

LILY

“Today, you’ll be
given a team assignment. I want you to choose carefully who you will pair up with as you’ll be graded on this piece,” began the AP English teacher on Monday morning, a week later.

Lily’s status as Malakai’s girlfriend was now one week, four days, and eleven hours old, and Lily had the impression of continuously floating on a cloud. Malakai was so much more than what she had expected. He was kind and patient and had taken her power very much in stride. In fact, he touched her every chance he had, which made Lily giddy. They were yet to repeat their football field episode, and Lily had to admit: she wanted it, a lot. She just wanted to be held close to him, kissing, talking, and spending more alone time with him.

Being with Malakai was so…uncomplicated.

He was sitting behind her, his fingers gently touching her back, and Lily would have sighed in pure pleasure had she not been in class.

While he was blocking everybody else, she still found it hard to concentrate. Malakai was so happy all the time he brought her to distraction.

“Now, I want you to write a five-thousand-word…”

The students groaning in protest made Lily aware her thoughts had drifted yet again.

“A five-thousand-word story, which is due two Mondays from today. It’ll give you two weekends to complete,” the teacher continued, speaking over the protests. “Should you finish earlier, I can give you an early review so you can improve your score.”

Lily grinned. She was looking forward to this assignment. Writing was something she greatly enjoyed, and she felt Malakai was eager to do it too.

“Now, here’s the prompt for your story: your main character wakes up in a concrete cell with no memories up to that moment. Everything else is up to you. You have five minutes to pair up, and the rest of the period to work on your outline.”