Back to You by Priscilla Glenn Read Free Book Online Page A

It was more than that. She didn’t carry herself like a freshman. Or a teenager at all, for that matter. She dressed trendy, but managed to do it with class, while other girls wore things that were tight and low-cut and made them look trashy instead of sexy. She seemed sophisticated, but not arrogant. She was quiet, but not withdrawn. He could tell she watched everything; she took it all in, assessing everyone and everything around her.
    And because of that, she shouldn’t have been smiling at him the way she did. She should have been afraid of him.
    Even that Jenn girl who was always with her gave him an uneasy look whenever he’d pass, or she would whisper vehemently in Lauren’s ear in either disgust or horror when Lauren would acknowledge him.
    Yet she still continued to do it.
    Lauren opened her locker, jumping back suddenly as a book tumbled out, and as she struggled to catch it, the other books she was holding scattered to the floor.
    Without thinking, he pushed off the lockers and walked toward her. She was crouched on the floor gathering her things, and he knelt down beside her, reaching out to grab the last of the books.
    Advanced Biology.
    “Here you go, Red,” he said, handing her the textbook, and she glanced up at him and smiled.
    “Thanks.”
    “You’re in Advanced Bio?” he asked as he stood. “Aren’t you a freshman?”
    Lauren stood on her tiptoes as she placed some of the books back on the top shelf. “Yeah. I’m a year ahead in sciences. It’s kind of my thing,” she said with a shrug, brushing the hair out of her eyes before pulling a notebook off the shelf.
    He leaned back against the locker next to hers, folding his arms. “Are you in Wendt’s class?”
    “Yep. Good ol’ Wendt,” she said with an eye roll, and he smiled. It was the first real conversation they’d had, and he found himself scrambling for a way to keep it going.
    “You ready for that unit test next week?” he asked.
    “I think so,” she said. “You?”
    Del laughed as he absently ran his fingertips over the vents on a nearby locker. “Me? No. I’m screwed.”
    She turned then, looking up at him with dark green eyes. It was the first time he noticed what color they were.
    “Do you want me to help you?”
    It took him a second to answer. “Do you want to help me?” he finally asked, genuinely confused.
    “Sure,” she said casually as she turned away for a moment to close her locker. When she turned back to face him, she pulled her books into her chest and looked up at him. “I can help you after school for a bit. I have practice at three, but if you’re free before then, we could go over some stuff.”
    He straightened up as he ran a hand through his hair. He had no idea what to say to that.
    She blinked up at him, waiting, and at the look in her eyes, he felt his shoulders soften. “Yeah, that’s cool. We can meet up for a bit after school today if you want.”
    “Okay.”
    “Alright, see you then,” he said, turning quickly as he walked way from her in a stupor.
    “Wait, Michael?”
    He froze as the oddest feeling settled over him. No one called him Michael. Ever. Not even his teachers called him by his real name. The only one who ever had was his grandmother. It should have bothered him that she didn’t call him Del. Michael was too familiar.
    But for some reason, he realized, Del wouldn’t have seemed right on her lips.
    He turned, and she was still standing at her locker, looking at him. “Where do you want to meet?”
    She’s actually serious about this , he thought before he finally said, “Um, you know where Palace Pizza is?”
    “Yep,” she said. “See you then.” And then she smiled her quintessential smile before she turned and walked down the hall, leaving him staring after her.

    By the time Del was walking up the sidewalk toward Palace Pizza, he had convinced himself she wouldn’t be there. She had been put on the spot back at her locker and felt obligated to offer him help.