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  In Algebra I was having a hard time focusing. I kept stewing over Jay, trying to figure him out. I saw him looking at Becca and I knew it’s just a matter of time before he made his move.

  “Brogen. Brogen! Please tell us the answer to number 5.”

  Oh crud. I snapped out of my daydream and saw Jay looking at me with a half smile. BUSTED. I must have been staring in his direction while Mr. Johnson called me out. Dang it! I sat straighter and scanned my paper “Um, 37.”

  “Correct. Please try to remain focused for the rest of class,” he chided me.

  I felt my cheeks pink up and wished I could run out of there and hide under a rock. Becca was snickering at me...officially putting her on my “People I Love to Hate” list. The bell couldn’t ring soon enough. I grabbed my things and headed toward my locker. Once I got there I rested my head on the locker door, needing a moment of solitude. I hated being caught in embarrassing moments, I liked to fly under the radar.

  “Excuse me.” I heard a male voice I couldn’t place. Turning around, not sure who to expect, Jay was standing in front of me and my heart began pounding rapidly in my chest. My brain was running through reasons why he was here. Maybe he was confronting me and wanted to know why I was staring at him? Maybe he wanted to heckle me like Becca? Maybe he mistook me for someone else? Maybe he wanted to confess his love to me? “You left this on your desk,” he held out my phone.

  “Wow, thanks. That would have cost way too much to replace.” I couldn’t look him in the eye, my nerves had buzzed to life. I couldn’t believe my body was reacting like this to the new boy toy.

  “No problem, I’m Jay by the way.” He held out his hand. I shook it gently.

  “Brogen. But you probably knew that after Mr. Johnson called me several times.” I decided to be brave and look up, it was only polite after all. But the second I saw those eyes up close, I knew I was in trouble. He was beautiful.

  Jay smiled his sly smile. “Yeah, Brogen, got it. Anyway, see ya’.”

  “Thanks again.” Jay waved and headed down the hall. My insides felt like they had turned to a puddle of goo. There was a confidence about him that made him even more attractive. I wished I could figure him out, but there were too many emotions getting in the way. I couldn’t tell if he’s genuinely nice, faking it, attracted to me, feeling sorry for me. Ugh, I needed to slow down my crazy teenage girl brain.

  “Spill it.” I nearly jumped 50 feet at the sound of Meg’s voice.

  “Crap, you scared me to death!”

  “Yeah, kinda’ funny cause I wasn’t even trying. So, what did the new guy want? Did he ask you on a date?” I rolled my eyes at her last comment. Jay turned back for a glance in my direction before rounding the corner. I let out a sigh, I must have been holding my breath because it felt good to puff it all out.

  Turning to Meg, I gave her a level look. “No, I spaced in Algebra,(because I could not stop staring at Jay,) and left my phone in class. He was just nice enough to return it.” I finished with my best fake smile.

  She returned the fake smile, added pointed finger in my chest, and said, “You like him! When’s the hot date?”

  “Ugh! What am I gonna’ do with you?”

  “Love me.” she grinned.

  “I already do.” The rest of the day went by quickly. Probably because my mind kept wandering to thoughts about Jay. I loved a mystery but I could not figure this guy out. He kinda fit in everywhere. He was so likable. There always seemed to be a crowd around him and he always had them laughing. I couldn’t understand how he did it, I mean, he was the new guy...it took years to advance ranks in cliques...he accomplished in a few weeks, what some have tried for years. I bet if I looked up the definition of Charisma, there would be a picture of Jay next to it.

  After school, Meg and I walked as far as our paths were the same before saying goodbye. I put on my headphones and walked the last 10 minutes toward home. When I saw our house, I began to slow. There was a car in the driveway, an older deep green Saab. My dad’s car. I hadn’t seen him in years and had no desire to see him now. Yet, curiosity made me wonder why he was here. I walked up the steps and went through the front door. Rather than hollering out, ‘Hi mom,’ I Iistened and approached like a cat stalking it’s prey. I slid off my backpack and crept toward the kitchen. I heard two voices, Mom’s and Dad’s.

  “I wanna’ see her more,” he said.

  “Why now? What selfish reason lies beneath all of this? Are you trying to impress your new bed buddy?” Mom was mad. I was grateful she was reluctant to throw me back into my dad’s arms.

  “No, is it a crime to want to see your daughter? I don’t think so.”

  “No, but it’s a crime to destroy our family, and stay away for more than 5 years. I don’t want your help now, I don’t need it, and I am not sure your daughter is ready for you to come parading back into her life. But that is her own decision, I cannot speak for her.”

  “God you are so frustrating. No wonder I left you.” That last part was mumbled but Mom and I both heard it. Ouch.

  “Get out. GET OUT NOW!” I hid behind the upholstered chair and heard my dad mutter something about lawyers and papers. Then the door slammed and my mom let out a huge sigh and hit her fist on the door.

  “Hey Mom, you ok?” I scared the life out of her because she jumped and let out a small scream.

  “I didn’t know you were home. When did you get in?” She looked from me to the door where my dad had just left.

  “A few minutes, long enough to hear you both argue. Are you ok?”

  “I will be. His visit caught me off guard. I mean we haven’t heard from him in years and suddenly he’s on my doorstep.” She sighed again, clearly trying to let go of the tension that built up inside from their argument.

  “Maybe you need a run? I can get my own snack and start on homework.”

  She laughed and smiled, “thanks ‘Mom’, I think I’ll do that.” She gave me a big hug and went upstairs to change into workout clothes. “I won’t be long and supper is cooking in the oven.” I waved bye to her and headed for the pantry.

  At dinner that night, I asked my mom why my dad was there. She truly seemed surprised to have seen him. “He says he wants more time with you. But why now? I just don’t get it.” I didn’t know either and I felt uncomfortable thinking about trying to build a relationship with someone I didn’t care for. She pushed her food around her plate, clearly still upset. “Change of subject...How’s school going so far?”

  “Ahh, not much happens the first few weeks.” There’s a gorgeous guy at our school and I can’t get a read on him which makes him occupy my thoughts even more… “I’m glad I have Meg in a few classes this year.”

  “I like Meg. She’s so good for you.” I nodded in agreement. “Are you going on a run after dinner?”

  “Yep. I’ll wash some of the dishes first since my food has to settle.”

  “Just some?!” She smiled at me, “guess I should take what I can get.”

  With the dishes done, I pulled my hair into a ponytail and put on my workout clothes. It was still warm from the late summer air so I wore my tank runner top and knee-length stretch pants. Tied my laces, strapped on my phone, and stretched on the front porch. I didn’t run yesterday and I had a lot on my mind today, Jay and Dad. I felt like a bottle of soda being shook up. The run would help let some of that pressure escape and calm things down. I took off running and headed toward the school. There was a large soccer field that I could run laps around before sprinting home. On my run, I kept replaying the Jay interaction over and over again. And when that would stop, I would hear my dad and mom arguing. I decided to pick up some speed. I didn’t want to run all night long and hoped the faster speed would clear my mind quicker. I found myself focusing on my breathing and the burn in my upper thighs. Before I knew it, I had cleared five laps on the soccer field and was headed back toward the house. Unfortunately, the sun had gone down and the street lights were the only light source illuminating my pat
h home. I was feeling the numb calm from deep within begin to wash the day’s worries away. I was not too aware of much else, just heading home on autopilot... until I saw two glowing eyes right in front of me and heard a snarl.

  Where the hell had this ugly dog come from and where was it’s collar and owner? He looked hungry, or angry. Fear trickled down my spine as I debated my course of action, run as fast and hard as I could...home was just a few blocks away, or stand my ground and not act scared...someone once told me dogs could sense your fear. I really wished I had a tasty rib-eye to give the pooch because he was eyeing me and I needed a very good distraction. My heart was thundering in my chest. The adrenaline from the run mixed with fear was probably gonna’ throw me into a heart attack if I couldn’t calm down. This dog looked vicious. Ok, no rib-eye, having trouble calming down...the only thing left was to make a run for it. I scanned ahead for my best route, I needed obstacles because this pooch could probably outrun me. As I looked to my left I heard a sound from the opposite direction and saw the dog had turned his attention to the right. There was someone standing in the shadows of a tree near the street. Crap! What if it’s an attacker, or the mutt’s owner. I didn’t want to stick around to find out. I took advantage of the distraction and started running. I heard the claws clicking on the pavement as the dog moved toward one of us. I didn’t dare look.

  I heard a scuffle behind me and a guy shouting at the dog and cursing as if he were in pain. Jesus, that dog was probably making a meal of that person. I knew I needed to keep running away but found my feet had stopped and turned to face the scuffle. I saw this body curled on the street, shielding their face, a stern dog inches away and approaching the body. I needed to help. I looked around for a rock or stick to hit the dog with. I saw a dead branch on an oak near the street and began trying to crack it off the trunk. Then I heard the squeal of tires, a high pitched yelp, and a thud. In place of the body and dog was a car stopped in the road. It’s headlights were on and had streaks of blood on them. The blood in my body turned to ice. I followed the light to find the devil dog lying still a few feet away. Oh crap, what about the body? Did this driver hit the person? I ran to the car and looked around it. The driver had exited the car and was checking on the person laying in a curled position on the ground. The only lights illuminating the scene were from the streetlamps and the blood streaked headlights. I stepped closer. There was blood everywhere. I could feel tears forming in my eyes and I was afraid the person in the road was dead. The driver was talking to the body, slurring his words and clearly intoxicated. The body moved.

  “Oh man, are you ok?” I asked the wounded guy laying in the street who had saved me. He rolled over and faced me. I was looking into those gorgeous eyes of the new boy toy. “JAY! oh crap, you need to get to a hospital.” I uncuffed my phone and began dialing with shaking hands. He looked terrible. There was lots of blood but it mostly looked like it was dog inflicted. I gave the 911 operator our location and fought back the tears. I gently moved my hand around his body to assess the damage. “I’m glad you were wearing jeans. It gave a little more barrier to that stupid dog and his teeth.” I scanned his body while talking to 911. “Did you get hit by the car?” I asked quietly, not wanting to engage the drunk man. Jay shook his head and then gave me a wry smile, “Brogen, do me a favor and go down the street. Tell my aunt I got hurt and am headed to the hospital. I live at 726, house number is near the front door.”

  “I don’t wanna’ leave you.“

  “I’m not goin’ anywhere. And it will be a few minutes till the ambulance gets here. I’ll be fine. Please,” he pleaded.

  “Ok, stay put and don’t die on me.” He chuckled at my doom and gloom comment. I ran down the street and found the house Jay mentioned. I rang the bell and it felt like 20 minutes had passed before someone answered the door.

  “Yes?” The older, yet beautiful woman asked.

  “Hi, your nephew Jay is just down the street. He’s been hurt. An ambulance is on the way.”

  She closed the door and followed me to where Jay lay. Tears were falling down her face. “What happened here! She reached out and took Jay’s hand.”

  “A dog came out of no where and attacked. No collar on it.” Jay said. He was looking a bit pale. I listened hard for the ambulance and could swear I heard it in the distance.

  “The dog is dead. This guy,” I pointed to the inebriated business man who looked like he wanted to leave the scene before cops showed, “came around the corner and hit the dog. You’re pretty lucky he missed you, Jay. Oh and thanks for stepping in as his chew toy and saving me.” He smiled at me and winked, “Anything for a babe in distress.” And I couldn’t hold back my chuckle. The ambulance showed up just then and made sure that Jay didn’t have any broken bones or sprains. The EMT’s commented on how he had several bites, lost a lot of blood, and something about a rabies shot. They took him in the ambulance and his aunt left to follow in her car.

  “Excuse me, can we get a quick statement from you Ma’am?” There was a tall and chubby police officer standing next to me with a notepad in his hand. I had been too busy focusing on Jay to even notice the cops arrive. The other officer was questioning the driver and asking him to walk a straight line. I gave a rundown of events to the cop. He offered to drive me home but I thought the walk would help. I didn’t live far from here. Jay had saved me by distracting the dog. Hopefully his wounds were not too deep. We got lucky with that drunk driver coming down the street when he did., He saved us from that terrible dog. I couldn’t believe I was thankful for a drunk driver, that was all kinds of wrong. I guess we were lucky to not have been hit by the drunk driver.

  Once inside my mom shouted a greeting to me from the kitchen. I took off my shoes and headed in for some water. Mom was unloading the dishwasher. She looked up and saw me, and dropped the platter that was in her hands. It smashed into jagged pieces all over the floor. “Damnit!” she said looking at the floor a quick second, then turned her focus back to me, “What in the world happened to you? Are you ok?”

  “I’m ok. A little shook up though.”

  “My goodness you were gone so long, I almost went looking for you.“ She tucked a strand of hair that fell out of my ponytail behind my ear. “You look awful. What happened ?” She took a step back to get a better look at me. “Is that blood on your hands?! Are you hurt? Sit down.” I sat obediently and felt tremors rising to the surface. “Drink some water.” I drank but the glass made a clanging sound as my trembling hands tried to place it down. “Listen, I just need to know if you are hurt?”

  “I’m not. I’m ok. But he’s hurt. He saved me.” The last part of that sentence was so quiet that it sounded like a breath.

  “Who? What the hell happened?” I felt cold tingles up and down my arm, across my chest. I felt panic and adrenaline mixing together to form a potent cocktail in my blood. And then everything went black..

  Chapter 4

  The next morning I awoke to the most delicious smell...bacon. I sat up and saw the light of the new day filtered through my sheer drapes. Everything was so quiet and peaceful. I laid there a few extra minutes appreciating the softness of my comforter wrapped around me. When I heard dishes clanging I grabbed my robe and headed downstairs. Mom was humming a tune while tending the stove.

  “Hey Mom.”

  “Hey! You’re awake. How are you feeling?” she asked.

  “Like I was struck by lightning yesterday...fizzled out.”

  “That’s to be expected. Take it easy today and be sure to get out for a walk. Maybe later you can tell me what happened last night, but first, time for breakfast.” I loved that my mom was not pushy and knew that I needed time to breathe and not relive the events from last night. I wondered if Jay made it home last night or if he had to stay at the hospital. I shook the thought away as I felt my heart rate picking up. I took some very slow and discrete breaths so my mom would not notice. Then I focused on an amazing plate of morning yums in front of me.

  “Thi
s looks amazing! I love your Saturday morning breakfasts, Mom.” She leaned forward and kissed my forehead.

  “You’re welcome. I like them too.”

  After cleaning up the breakfast items I took a very long and hot shower. I had no plans for the day since I didn’t feel well from yesterday’s events. I put on my sweats and an old t-shirt and snuggled with a blanket on the couch while watching movies. At lunch Mom brought home some chinese food and began asking about last night.

  As I recounted my interaction with the dog, she looked terrified Her face matched the feelings I had last night. I went on to explain Jay and the dog’s struggle, and finally the drunk driver who ‘saved the day’. “There are so many things wrong with this story. Like, who did that terrible pitbull belong to? (turns out the devil dog was identified by the cops as a pitbull) Why did they let him loose? Why was that guy driving drunk? And how did Jay end up being there at just the right time to save you?” She looked at me and I just shrugged and shook my head. “Well, do you recall much about coming home last night?”