Cross Country Hearts by Suzanne August

Author:Suzanne August [August, Suzanne]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Independent
Published: 2021-10-02T16:00:00+00:00

~.*.~

I want to talk to Melanie. I want to ask her about Jasper. Of course, I know she won’t answer, so I decide to call Georgia instead.

She answers on the second ring. “June! Where are you?”

“In Maryland.”

There’s a pause. “What’s in Maryland?”

I stand at the foot of the bed in Ren’s parents’ room. Slowly, I lower myself to sit on its edge and stare out the window. It’s past midnight now. “I didn’t know if you’d be up.”

I hear her snort. “Of course, I’m up. Melanie had this party—”

“Jasper’s friends,” I blurt. “Jasper’s friends are in Maryland.”

Another pause, this one long and agonizing. “So… you guys haven’t killed each other yet?”

Georgia’s smart. She has a sixth sense when it comes to people, and she must understand that I have no idea how I’m feeling right now. Yet, I know what I want to express, but how do I say it? How do I ask? I slouch forward and stare at my shoes. Then I notice that I’ve tracked mud into the room. Great. I switch my phone to the other ear, nervous.

“No,” I say, finally. “We haven’t killed each other yet.

“I don’t know if I like the sound of that.”

“How does it sound?” I get up, my eyes roaming the room. I kick off my shoes and shove them under the bed.

“I don’t know, but you don’t sound happy.”

I sigh. “Do you remember the summer Melanie worked downtown? Near Quincy market.”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“And she met that guy.”

“Yeah. Some random kid she worked with. He was a grade above us or something.”

“Did you ever meet him or… did Melanie ever show you a picture of him?”

“June, where are you going with this?”

There it is. I cross the room and grab the roll of paper towels. Ren’s parents are wise for keeping some in their room. Instead of cleaning up the mud, though, I stare at the wall, paper towels clutched to my chest. “Did you?”

Pause. “No.” She draws the word out. She sounds cautious.

I shove the towels onto the night table. “What happened to him?”

“I don’t remember,” she responds. “June, it was a long time ago. What does it matter?”

“I don’t know,” I say honestly. “I met Jasper’s friends today. One of them—he showed me a picture of Jasper and this girl. And the girl, Georgia. It was Melanie.”

“Are you sure?” Georgia’s voice hardens, growing into a mixture of seriousness and skepticism. “You know Melanie hates him.”

“I’m sure. He even called the girl in the picture Mel.” I pick up the towels again, then set them back down. How am I even going to clean up the mud with those anyway? But I can’t sit down. I start pacing the room. “I wanted to ask Jasper about it, but the thing is… I know Jasper hates Melanie. It doesn’t make sense.”

“You haven’t asked anyone about it?”

“Melanie won’t answer my calls, and Jasper… we’ve finally come to a point where we’re not always fighting. I don’t know how to ask.”

There’s another pause. “Well, something like this would definitely spice things up in our lives.

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