Unclaimed by Laurie Wetzel

Author:Laurie Wetzel [Wetzel, Laurie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: JUV026000, JUV058000
ISBN: 978-1-940014-31-9
Publisher: BookBaby
Published: 2014-08-11T00:00:00+00:00

***

As Kelli and I make our way to choir, many eyes are still on me. Even though I avoid looking at them, they take turns whistling Justin’s song as I pass by them. Even though he’s thousands of miles away, he’s made it feel as if he were right next to me. It’s as if he wants me to know there’s no place I can hide from him.

“So,” Kelli says. My insides twist in knots, hoping she’s not going to bring up Justin again. “If you won’t talk about your swoon-worthy admirer, what did you and Norway do yesterday?”

When I think back to my time with him, it makes some of the dread of the day melt away, enabling me to take a deep breath. Even though MJ’s not here, just thinking of him makes me feel safe. “We sort of had a date.”

“What!” she fumes. She grabs my arm and yanks me to a stop. She narrows her eyes and glares at me.

I get why she’s mad. If I were half the friend she is, I would have called or texted her during my date, as she has done on hers—from the bathroom or during some moment the guy wasn’t looking. But MJ consumed my every thought when we were together.

He claims a lot of them when we’re apart too.

“Sorry,” I mutter a weak apology. I’m not sorry I didn’t tell her; I’m sorry I hurt her feelings.

“I spent hours yesterday panicking, searching for you, thinking you’d been destroyed. And you were on a date? With him!” Kelli’s pupils dilate. Blackness spreads over her calming blue eyes as her body shakes.

On reflex, I step back from my friend. “Why did you say destroyed?” And how did her eyes change? What did Justin do to her? What did he tell her?

After a moment, she sighs and runs her fingers through her hair. Then her body stops shaking and her eyes return to normal.

“I’m sorry,” she says. “I just hadn’t expected that. But I should have after seeing your faces last night.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s obvious you’ve fallen off the deep end for him. I’ve never seen you look at someone like you looked at him. It was like the old Maddy was back. If things keep going like that, I’m sure you’ll end up married someday.”

I ignore her remark about the old me and instead focus on me being married to MJ. I’ve never really thought about marriage before. What would it be like to spend the rest of my life with him? My heart starts to flutter. I like the idea much more than I should. He deserves someone better than me. I wouldn’t even know how to love him. I don’t even know how to date properly.

“What makes you so sure? You didn’t see his face when he walked out last night.”

She lets go of me and smiles a bright, genuine Kelli smile, and I know she’s come back to me at least for the moment. “I didn’t need to.

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