01. Chasing Nikki (3 page)

At the
mention of weed, I suddenly wished I had some.  I could use a little escape
right now.  It was one thing to have cute babes hanging all over me, another
entirely to have my grandma raving over how good-looking she thought I was.  It
was a little creepy. 

My thoughts
were interrupted by a new figure stepping from the house.

Grandpa
Johnson was imposing.  He was tall and fit, with short, salt and pepper colored
hair.  I could hear his boots hitting the porch as he crossed and made his way
down the steps toward us.

“They’re
here, Warren!” my grandma called to him.

“I can see
that, Caroline,” he replied gruffly.  He bent to hug my mom.  “Welcome home,
Tori, sweetheart.”

“Thanks,
Dad,” she replied happily.

Grandpa
moved away from her and turned to look at me.  He scowled, and I lifted my
chin, determined not to let him walk all over me.  “Chase,” he said in a low
voice.

“Warden,” I
replied with a sarcastic nod, telling him I knew exactly what his intended role
was in regard to me.

His jaw
clenched, but to his credit he didn’t give into my goading, and there was an
awkward silence before Grandma spoke again to my mother.

“We’ve
prepared the upstairs for you to live in.  Your dad and I rarely even go up
there anymore, so feel free to arrange your things however you would like. 
Anything of ours you don’t want to use can be taken to the attic.”

“No worries,
Grandma,” I said.  “We hardly own anything these days.  I think Mom sold almost
all of our stuff, didn’t you?” I cast a glare at her as I walked over to open
the U-Haul.  “Two couches, beds, office stuff, and our clothes.  Not much
left.”

I grabbed a
box and headed toward the house.

“I’m sorry
about him.  He’s a little angry,” Mom apologized for me as I passed by.

“Don’t
worry.  We’ll teach him some manners,” I heard Grandpa reply, and I shook my
head in disgust and kept on walking.

I was
lounging on the bed in my new room with my iPod earphones in, listening to rap
music early that evening.  I was exhausted from moving everything in, and I
just wanted to go to sleep, but my mom appeared in the doorway.

“How you
doing?” she asked after I pulled one of the ear buds out so I could hear her.

“As well as
can be expected.” I shrugged.  “Why?”

“Grandpa
wants you to go help him with the evening chores.” She had the decency to look
apologetic as she said it.

“Ugh,” I
answered with an eye-rolling sigh as I sat up.  I grabbed my shoes next to the
bed and began putting them on.  “I guess it’s time to let the warden work the
evil out of me.  Wait.  Doesn’t that make him an exorcist?”

She actually
snickered at that comment, and I scowled at her.  I took my hoodie off the back
of the chair and headed out the door.

“Hey,” she
said, stopping me.  “Take it easy on him, okay?”

I raised an
eyebrow in disbelief.  “Take it easy on
him
?”

“He opened
his home to us because he loves us.  He may show it in different ways, but that
doesn’t mean it’s any less real.  Besides, he’s not the one you’re really mad
at, so don’t take your anger out on him because he’s an easy target.”

I snorted as
I walked down the hall.  “I don’t think anyone would ever call him an easy
target.”

I entered
the giant barn and looked around for Grandpa.  I didn’t see him, but I saw the
old brown mare I used to ride when I was younger, eating in her stall.

“Hey,
Mitzi,” I said, calling her by name as I walked over to pet her.  “Do you remember
me?”

She bumped
her nose against my chest, and I knew she was searching for goodies in my
jacket.

“Sorry,
girl.  I didn’t bring anything with me this time.  It’s nice to know the old
man still treats you good though.”

“The old man
has some carrots for her in the bucket on the shelf behind you,” my grandpa’s
voice broke into the moment.

“Oh,
thanks,” I said, staring at him before turning to get a couple.  He came and
stood beside me, while I fed her.

“She’s a
good ol’ gal.  I don’t have much use for her anymore, but I can’t seem to get
rid of her.”

There was an
awkward pause, neither of us really knowing what to say to each other.  Grandpa
gave a sigh and went to sit on a bale of hay, gesturing for me to sit across
from him.

Here it
comes,
I thought, but I kept my mouth closed and did as he asked.

“So you’ve
been in a bit of trouble lately,” he started, and I could feel myself getting a
little frustrated.  “Now before you go snapping at me, why don’t you hear what
I have to say first?”

I didn’t
trust myself to speak, so I just gave him a curt nod.

He
continued.  “I know you’ve been through a lot in the last few months since your
dad died.  I’m also aware of what it’s like to lose someone who’s close.  It’s
okay to grieve, and everyone should.  There are lots of stages to go through,
and while I don’t know where you are, if I were to guess I’d say you’re angry
and hurt.  I think you’re trying to numb your pain.”

I couldn’t
say anything.  He was hitting the truth unbearably close, and I wasn’t ready
for this discussion.  I needed to get out of here.  I stood and headed toward
the door.

“Chase,” he
called after me.  “I’m not trying to counsel you.  I just wanted to give you
the opportunity to get off this ranch and do something else.”

This
surprised me, stopping me dead in my tracks.  “And what would that be?”

He walked up
beside me.  “I’m a volunteer coach at the high school.  I want you to come join
the guys on the football team for our spring weightlifting training.  I know
you quit last season after your dad died, but you have a great talent, and I
don’t think you should waste it.  The head coach has already agreed to check
you out as quarterback, since ours will graduate this year.  There would be a
lot of practices and summer camp too.  I’m not promising anything.  It would be
a lot of hard work and responsibility, but it would give you something to do
besides being here all the time.”

Anything had
to be better than that, and I used to love playing football.  “What’s the
catch?” I asked, wondering why he was going so easy on me.

“No catch. 
I just think it’ll give you something new to focus on.  Plus, we need someone
to step up and try for this spot.  This isn’t like the big city.  We have to
make do with what we’ve got.  That being said, we have a really talented line,
and I think our defense will hold their own too.  They’re a hard-working bunch
of boys.”

I didn’t
know what to say.  I hadn’t been expecting him to offer me a way out.

“You can
think about it for a few weeks still.  Weight training won’t start until the
first of May,” he added, when I hesitated.

“Okay,” I
replied with a nod.  I glanced around uncomfortably. “Mom said you wanted me to
help you with the chores.”

“I have most
of them done for tonight, but I’d like to give you a few regular ones to do.  I
thought you could help take care of the stalls in here, keep them mucked out
and lined with fresh straw.  There’s six stalls, but only three horses.  You
can put them in the empty ones or out into the corral while you clean.  It’ll
only take about twenty minutes to do each of them.”

He reminded
me where all the equipment to get the job done was located and showed me where
the new  trap doors had been installed in the hayloft, making it easier to
shovel the fresh straw into stalls.

“Does this
all sound okay to you?” he asked cordially.

“Sure.  I
can take care of it.”

“Thanks for
your help, Chase.” He clapped me on the shoulder and moved past me toward the
house.

“Grandpa,” I
called, and he turned to look at me.  “I’ll do it—play football, I mean.”

He stared at
me for a moment, and I thought I could see a slight smile playing near the
corner of his mouth.  “Good,” he replied, and he walked away.

Chapter Three

I’d
successfully survived my first three classes at Silver Creek High School, home
of the Fighting Timberwolves.  I had yet to see anything too impressive,
despite how much my mom raved about this place.

I walked
into my fourth hour history class and saw Brett Dodson, who I’d met in my first
hour, along with his super cute twin sister, Brittney.  They were both really
friendly, but Brittney’s boyfriend, Matt, didn’t seem to care for me much.  Of
course, that may have been due to the fact I kept checking his girl out during
class.  I didn’t plan on hitting on her since she was taken, but I thoroughly
enjoyed watching him squirm when she would flash shy smiles back at me.  It was
funny. 

Brett, on
the other hand, seemed as if he’d decided to take me under his wing. He’d
pretty much filled me in on the football team and what he felt their chances
were to take state next year, who was hot, and who was not, along with the best
places to go eat at lunch.  He waved me over to sit by him.

“Hey dude,”
I said, scooting into the available desk there.

“Welcome to
one of the most boring classes on the planet,” Brett said.

“Great.”

“Yeah, this
hour is perfect for a pre-lunch nap.  Of course, you might get an eraser thrown
at you if you do.  Mr. Ralston doesn’t take too kindly to that.”

I stopped
paying attention to him when a gorgeous, perky brunette entered the room.  She
was laughing about something with her friend, flashing a beautiful smile that
was all straight teeth and plump lips.

Suddenly the
day was looking up.

“Who’s
that?” I asked with a nod toward the door, and it was almost like she heard me,
turning to stare straight at me with her big brown eyes.

I knew it
was rude, but I couldn’t look away.   My glance traveled from her face, to her
loosely crimped, shoulder length hair, down over the tight black shirt and blue
jeans that showed off all her curves.  This chick was smokin’ hot!

“Don’t waste
your time, man,” Brett said, as the girl turned away and headed to a desk at
the front of the room.  “She won’t give you the time of day.”

“Why not?” I
asked, still staring at her. 

“Her name is
Nikki Wagner, and she’s sworn off any guy who plays football, even though she’s
a cheerleader.”

I gave him a
puzzled look.  “What does football have to do with anything?”

“She used to
go out with Jeremy Winters.  He’s a senior, and he was the varsity
quarterback.  I guess he decided their relationship was ready to go to the next
level, but she didn’t.  She caught him in his car with another girl.  When she
found out the guys on the team knew he was seeing that other chick behind her
back, she branded us all losers.”

I leaned
into my seat and crossed my legs out in front of me as I stared at her again. 
“So you’re saying she’s a good girl, then?”

“Yep.”

“Just as
well.  She probably wouldn’t like me at all.”  I made up my mind to forget
about her.

The teacher
entered the classroom right as the bell sounded and headed to the front.  “We
have a new student.  Mr. Walker, can you please come up here?”

I couldn’t
help the soft groan and eye roll that sent Brett into a chuckle.  I got up and
went, wondering why every teacher today had seen the need to introduce me in
front of the entire class.

“Everyone,
this is Chase Walker.  He’s new here, and you should all make him feel
welcome.”

I was
starting to wonder if they made the teachers rehearse this speech as part of
their job training. 

“Chase, why
don’t you tell us something interesting about yourself?”

Nikki was
staring at me intently, and all of my attention zeroed in on her.  I didn’t
even register the question until I heard Mr. Ralston call my name again.

“Chase?”

There were
snickers throughout the room, and I looked around.  “Something interesting? 
Well, let’s see.  I was arrested for underage drinking.  My mom decided some
good ole fashioned country living might be just what I needed so she forced me
to move here.”

“Uh, okay,”
Mr. Ralston stuttered, caught off guard by my reply.  “That wasn’t exactly what
I meant.  I was thinking more along the lines of things you like to do, or
activities you’re interested in.”

I turned to
look straight at Nikki and smiled.  “I like to do girls, and I’m interested in
football.”  I could hear the gasps of shock and laughter as I walked back to my
seat, leaving the teacher gaping where he stood.

“Dude, you
rock!” Brett said when I slid into my desk.

“He asked.”
I shrugged.  “I was just being honest.”

“Mr. Walker,
please see me after class,” Mr. Ralston spoke up with a disapproving look on
his face.

“Yes, sir,”
I said seriously, with all the politeness in the world.

When class
was over I saw Nikki stand up.  I waited until she was about to pass my desk
and stood, blocking her path.

“You’re a
punk,” she said, and I noted that I liked the sound of her voice.

“And you’re
a quick learner,” I replied, winking as I cast my gaze down her form once
again.

She tried to
push past, but I reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her against me. 
“Tell me you like punks,” I whispered into her ear.

“Let go.” I
did as she asked, but she didn’t move away, instead narrowing her eyes at me. 
“Do those lines really work for you, pretty boy?”

“The name is
Chase, and you should remember it because I’m coming after you, baby.”

Her face
flushed pink, and I knew then I had a true chance.  She wasn’t unaffected by
me, and I was going to wear her down.  She swallowed thickly, staring before
letting out a huff and walking away.