Summer Alone (Summer #1) by Amy Sparling Read Free Book Online Page B

went to with Bayleigh and I know they think of me as Bayleigh’s dorky best friend. So the moment I saw them hanging out with their friends by the snack machines, I wanted to walk over and say hello. I could picture it all in my head: Becca Sosa with her gorgeous new hair and shimmery eye shadow coming over to welcome them to the coolest place in town, the place she works at because she is fun and outgoing and not a lame dork. Maybe they would see me differently because of it. Maybe, when school starts, Josh would say hi to me in the hallways and not just Bayleigh.
    It could happen.
    Only, it didn’t. Because I was too much of a freaking lame-o dork-o to walk over and say hello. I roll my eyes as I park my car and get out, ready to face another day of work. Working at a BMX track is so much more fun than I could have ever imagined, even if I am sucking at becoming a new person. If only I could talk to Bayleigh this summer, even if it was just through the phone instead of in person. If I could just tell her my plan I know she’d have some awesome advice for me. She’d cheer me on from the sidelines and pump me with the encouragement I need.
    I try to picture her voice in my mind, and think of what she’d tell me. “You can do it?” No, that’s too generically dumb and not at all what my best friend would say.
    “Earth to Becca!” I look up and stop just in time to avoid slamming into Braedon. He’s standing in front of me, hands on his hips, and one eyebrow cocked. “Dude, are you high or something?”
    “What? No.” I punch him in the arm and step around him since he’s blocking my way to the front counter.
    “Could have fooled me,” he says, tugging on my pony tail.
    “Why do you say that?”
    He gives me one of those looks like he thinks I’m a moron. “You walked in here in a daze like you were some kind of zombie or something. I said hi to you twice and you ignored it.” He twirls a finger around his temple, indicating that I’m crazy. “So I figured you were high, or I don’t know, maybe you’re sleepwalking or something.”
    “You’re dumb,” I say with a smile. I hate when he wears his yellow work shirt. He looks so good in yellow.
    “You tell me that like five times a day,” Braedon says, but he’s smiling so I know I haven’t really offended him.
    “Maybe that’s because you’re dumb five times a day.”
    He clutches his heart and throws his head back, his mouth twisting into fake agony. “Ouch, Sosa. So mean.”
    Ollie emerges from the back room, carrying two white boxes. “Would you two lovebirds knock it off? You’re gonna make me vomit if I have to keep listening to all this flirting.”
    “We’re not flirting!” I say, realizing that Braedon had said the exact same words at the exact same time. Ollie sets the boxes on the counter and gives us a disbelieving look. “Great. Now you’re talking in sync.” He makes a big dramatic sigh. “Guess I’ll have to start planning the wedding soon!”
    Braedon starts laughing which only makes my embarrassment about fifty times worse. But I guess laughter isn’t the worst reaction he could have had. At least he didn’t freak out and say ew , gross , or I’d rather die . So, I guess that’s one positive thing about being mortified by my boss. Luckily, the boxes Ollie brought in contained an assortment of donuts from the new bakery that opened at the other side of the mall, so everyone dives into eating the sugary goodness and quickly forgets about our supposed flirting.
    Well, everyone except for me. I do love hanging out with him every day but as I tell myself repeatedly: he does not like me. We’re just friends who like to goof off at work. I’m pretty sure all of his joking around with me is just that—joking around. Definitely not flirting. After the science partner fiasco of freshman year, I will never ever allow myself to think a guy is flirting with me unless he explicitly tells me that he is. For now, I’ll just sit