“I’m going to get a detention, aren’t I?”

“No, I’ll make sure it’s cool. Mr. Thomas is a huge sports fan. He’ll understand.” We have to fight against the flow of traffic the entire way back to her study hall, but I don’t even have to bargain with the teacher considering Mr. Thomas is so busy explaining the answer to a problem, he doesn’t even see Kinsley slip back into the room. I can thank Shannon for being one of the few students to care about calculus on a Friday afternoon.

Since I don’t have to get back to my own study hall, I sit on the floor next to Kinsley’s locker. I’m flicking through my texts when Becca nudges me with her foot. “You again,” she says with a smile on her face. “You’re really doing this, aren’t you?”

“Why does everyone keep doubting me? She’s an awesome girl. I can’t be the only one to notice.”

“Honestly, I’m glad it’s you, Rhett. I trust you. We haven’t been friends for a really long time, but you’ll take care of her. That much I’m sure of.”

I pull Becca into a hug, making sure to mess up her hair, and piss her off. “I knew you didn’t still hate me. I promise I’ll never make you eat another stitch of dirt as long as I live.”

Becca gives me the stink eye, pulling away from me as she fixes her messed up curls.

Kinsley pauses before sliding in between the two of us to get to her locker. “What was that all about?” she asks, curiously.

Becca gives me an evil grin. “Rhett was just telling me how hard he cried while watching The Notebook last night.”

I give her credit, she’s quick on her feet. Between her comeback at lunch, and this one, I realize how much I’m going to enjoy getting to know Becca again. In only two days I’ve managed to repair a friendship and gain the girl I’ve always wanted. I’d say week one was a success.

Becca’s finished at her locker, but Kinsley’s still struggling to get into hers. “Let me help, what’s the combination?”

She looks up at me with her big brown eyes, thankful for the help, though a little embarrassed she couldn’t get it open on her own. “Um, it’s four, twenty-two, nine, eleven.”

I twist the lock back and forth as she rattles off each number, popping it open on the first try. “There you go, Sunny.”

“Thanks.”

“Sunny?” Becca asks. “Where’d that one come from?”

“Rhett’s picture of me.”

I wrap her in another hug. “And she smells like coconut and sunshine”.

Becca snickers. “You two have it so much worse than I thought.”

Kinsley finishes with her locker, and shrugs her shoulders. “I don’t mind the nickname. I spent a year of my life being called much worse.”

“What did they call you?”

Kinsley glares at Becca before she has a chance to open her mouth. “Don’t you even tell him, Becca,” she warns with a stern look. She’s pissed and it’s kinda cute.

“Now I have to know,” I tell them. “Who do I have to beat up for picking on you.”

My girl remains silent, so I look to Becca for an answer. “They called her flash,” she tells me, as she breaks out into a fit of hysterics.

“Why?”

Kinsley storms off. “Thanks a lot, Becca,” she murmurs.

Becca throws her hands in the air. “Oh, come on, Kinsley. It’s been like four years. Nobody even remembers anymore.”

“What does flash even mean?”

“She’s going to kill me anyway, so I might as well just tell you. On second thought, I’ll let her decide how much she tells you. To make a long story short, she forgot her underwear this one time and flashed a bunch of people.”

I tip my head back, laughing. “That’s not so bad, but I’m definitely getting her to give me the details. That’s for the info, Becca.” I hurry to catch up to Kinsley, wrapping my arm around her shoulder and pulling her close. “Don’t worry, Sunny. I go commando sometimes, too. It’s very refreshing.”

She gasps, her hand covering her mouth before she instinctively pushes me away from her. “I can’t believe she told you! I’m going to kill her.”

Becca finally catches up, but she doesn’t stop to listen to the earful Kinsley has for her. “Text me about the game. I’ll pick you up.”

Aggravated with the both of us, Kinsley stomps off toward my truck. Only she’s going in the wrong direction. “Other way, killer,” I tell her. I make sure I stay a few steps behind her, hoping she cools down by the time I get her all to myself. We have a lot to talk about, and I don’t waste any time on stuff that doesn’t really matter.

Just as she climbs into the passenger seat, I stand next to her, helping her click her seatbelt into place. With my best puppy dog face, I reach for her hand. “Don’t be mad, Sunny.”

She tries hard not to laugh at me, but I can see a crack of a smile forming on her lips. “Will you please get in the car,” she pleads, but even I know she’s not actually mad anymore.

She’s still quiet when I pull out of the parking place. This isn’t how I wanted today to go. “Are we good? Or do I need to tease you some more to get you to talk to me?”

All at once, it comes pouring out of her. “So I forgot to wear my cover up. Big deal!” As animated as she’s ever been, her hands fly into the air as she explains the situation that earned her the title of flash. “I was a cheerleader in middle school for a hot minute. Basically until I met Mandi. Anyway, we wore maroon granny panties over our regular underwear to cover us up. It’s a safeguard so when we did jumps, and our skirts flew up, there wasn’t a show. Only I forgot to put mine on one day, and it just so happened to be the very same day I wore my first thong. I bared my naked ass cheeks to the entire gymnasium. All while they chanted, “flash, over and over again. I even chanted along with them at first because I thought they were talking about one of the guys on the court.”

It’s actually a lot worse than I thought it would be. I can only imagine how mortified she must have been once she realized what was happening. “I’m a little bit sorry I missed it. Does that make me a creep?”

She covers her face with her hands, sliding down in the seat like she’d rather melt into the floor boards than sit next to me. “I’m really glad you weren’t there. It’s bad enough half the student body was.”

I reach over and squeeze the spot on her thigh, right above her knee, that makes her squirm. “You’re feisty when you’re mad, you know.”

“My brother and sister would agree. I should probably apologize for yelling at Becca.”

“It’s actually cute. And I wouldn’t say that about most chicks. Usually, it’s enough to drive me nuts, but not you, Sunny. You make me hot.”

“Ohmigod. You did not just say that.” She sits back up, holding onto the dash she’s laughing so hard. “Wait, you were supposed to turn down Sycamore Street to get to my house.”

I glance at her out of the corner of his eye. She’s going back to my house. We need to talk and there’s something I want to show her. “I thought we could hang at my house.”

“Oh, I don’t know why I assumed we were going to mine,” she says, quietly.

I pull into my driveway, and help her out of the truck. She hops down, hesitantly. “Don’t worry, it’s fine. I want you here.”

Holding her hand, I take her through the front door, even though we never use it, but she’s a guest and should be treated like one. First, her eyes take in the staircase that wraps around the foyer and then they end up on the crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling above our heads. It’s always reminded me of something that belongs in a Las Vegas hotel instead of inside a house.

“This is really nice, Rhett.”

“Thanks. My mom’s an interior designer. She redecorates constantly. Sometimes the walls change colors while I’m at school. Once I thought I walked into the neighbor’s house by mistake.”

She follows me into the kitchen where mom has a plate of chocolate chip cookies waiting along with a note. “Want a Coke?”