Waiting for Perfect (14 page)

He must see the
confusion across my face because his grin drops, and he adds, “Oh.
 
Was that your first one?”

I frown.
 
“Yeah.
 
I guess so.”

He pats me on the
back and stands.
 
“Well, you
handled it like a champ.”
 
He
extends his hand.
 
When I grab it,
he helps me to my feet.
 
I wobble
unsteadily for a moment, and Sebastian grips my upper arms to steady me.
 
“Whoa, I’ve got you.
 
You’re okay.”

I peer up at him
while my eyes try to focus.
 
He
loosens his grip on me and slides his hands slowly down my arms.
 
My skin tingles under his touch.
 
He draws his hands away and runs them
through his dark hair.

When I realize I’m
still gazing up at him like some lovesick bimbo, I take a step back.
 
“Thank you,” I say quickly.
 
I look down to the ground and notice
he’s wearing the same blue Adidas he wore the first day I met him.
 
That seems like such a long time
ago.
 
So much has happened in the
last two weeks.
 
I feel like my
whole life has changed.

He takes a step
toward me, hooking his index finger under my chin and lifting my face to meet
his.
 
“I know that was scary.
 
I dealt with them for months before I
left San Antonio.
 
If it happens
again, you can talk to me.
 
Sometimes it feels good to talk to someone who understands.”

Staring into the
deepness of his brown eyes, I nod.
 
“Yeah, that was very scary.
 
Thank you, Sebastian.
 
I
think I would have passed out if you hadn’t been there.”

“No problem.
 
I’m glad I was.”

The bell
rings.
 
He bends down to scoop my
backpack from the ground and throws the strap over his shoulder. “Come on,” he
says.
 
“I’ll walk you to your
class.”

I try to take my
bag from him.
 
“That’s okay.
 
You’ve been awesome, Sebastian, but I
don’t want you to be late for your class because of me.”

He tightens his
grip on my backpack.
 
“No way,
angel.
 
I’m making sure you get to
class okay.
 
No discussion.”
 
His dimple indents as he smiles.
 
I can’t seem to take my eyes off it.

“Okay,” I say.

At this moment, I
think I’d agree to anything he suggested.

NICK

I’m already at my
desk in Physics when I see Kendra at the door.
 
She’s taking her backpack from someone and thanking him.
 
When he turns to walk away, I see it is
Sebastian.
 
I wonder what the hell
he’s doing walking her to class.
 
Maybe he told her what happened with Ryan and the lawsuit.
 
I hope not.

I wanted to talk her
into pressing charges against Ryan, but after I saw her and Lexi this morning
in Calculus, I realize she probably has enough on her plate.
 
I still think she should have that dick-munch
arrested, but Sebastian’s right.
 
It should be because she wants to, not because she feels pressured to.

The sight of her
and Sebastian together annoys me.
 
Badly.
 
I don’t like the way
she smiles at him.
 
I’ve seen him
play too many girls, and I don’t want Kendra to end up one of them –
especially not now while she’s going through all this bullshit with Morgan.

When she enters the
room, I notice her make-up is a little smudged around her eyes.
 
I wonder if she’s been crying and why.
 
She takes her seat next to me, dropping
her backpack on her desk and taking out a notebook.
 
Then, she glances at me and gives me a smile.

“Hey, Nicolás!” she
says happily.
 
I wonder why she’s
so happy if she’s just been crying.

“Hi,” I say.
 
“You know, I think you’re the only one
in the whole school who calls me Nicolás.”

She pulls a pen from
her bag and shrugs.
 
“I like
it.”
 
She begins to tap the pen on
the desk like a nervous habit.
 
Or
maybe she’s keeping beat to some song she’s got stuck in her head.
 
I’m about to ask her if she’s been
crying, when she says, “So you called me on Friday.”

That catches me off
guard.
 
“Yeah.
 
Candace gave me your number.
 
I hope you don’t mind.”
 
I eye her reaction to see if she minds.

She shrugs
again.
 
“No, I don’t mind.
 
I’m sorry I didn’t call you back.
 
I was really busy this weekend.”
 
She gets a pensive look on her
face.
 
“I didn’t know you and
Candace were friends.”

I adjust my feet on
the chair in front of me and sit up straighter in my seat.
 
“Well, we’re not really.
 
She gave me a ride to my house after
school last week.
 
We had
yogurt.
 
Anyway, she gave me your
number.”

The teacher begins
the class by telling us we’ll be writing an essay on Max Planck and quantum theory.
 
Kendra grunts and scrunches up her face
to show her disgust with the project.
 
I try to contain a chuckle.

As our teacher
continues to detail the requirements for the essay, Kendra leans over to me and
whispers, “So why did you call?
 
You said it was urgent.”

I whisper back,
“Yeah, never mind about that.
 
I
was going to ask you something, but it’s no big deal.
 
Forget it.”

She looks at me for
a second longer, gauging if she should drop the subject.
 
I hope she does.
 
Then she nods toward the teacher and
says, “I hate physics.
 
I’m going
to flunk.”

“No you won’t,” I
whisper.

The teacher turns
to face the class and I shut up, not wanting to get into trouble. The fact that
Kendra hates physics gives me a great idea.
 

When the teacher
turns back to write on the whiteboard, I add, “You should get help from the
student tutor.
 
I hear he’s really
good.”

Her eyes light
up.
 
“Oh, you know him?”

I nod.
 
“Yeah, he’s a total genius.
 
He’ll help you a lot.”
 
I revel in my excellent scheme.

She smiles and
whispers, “Awesome.
 
Thanks, Nick.”

The rest of the
class period is spent outlining the essay and pulling some information from our
textbook.
 
I jot down some notes,
but I know I won’t get much work done in class.
 
I usually work better when I’m by myself at home, so I save
it for later.

As the class ends,
I gather my things and stuff everything in my backpack.
 
I still want to ask Kendra if she was
crying earlier, but she seems okay now.
 
And I still want to know if she’s going to press charges.
 
That would really save my ass.

She picks up her
bag.
 
“I need to talk to Mr.
Reynolds about that tutor.
 
Wait
for me?”

“Sure,” I answer
immediately, thinking I sound like a boy with a crush and hating myself for
it.
 

We walk up to the
teacher, and Kendra asks if she could have the tutor’s contact
information.
 
He darts his curious
eyes from her to me and then back to her again.
 
“Sure,” he starts.
 
“But he’s standing right next to you.
 
Why don’t you ask him?”

Kendra looks over
to me, perplexed.
 
“What?
 
You?
 
You
are the
student tutor?”

I smile.
 
“Wow, sorry for the shocker.
 
Is it that unbelievable?”
 
The look on her face is not what I
expected.
 
I thought she’d be
surprised, but she looks completely incredulous.

She shakes her
head.
 
“No.
 
I mean, I know you’re smart.
 
You’re in two of my classes, but
tutoring?
 
It’s just… well, why
didn’t you say anything before?”

I feel my smile
fade.
 
I didn’t think she’d mind,
but the way she’s acting makes me think this was a really bad idea.
 
Nobody ever wants me, so I guess I
wouldn’t be surprised if she doesn’t either.
 
“There are a couple of other tutors if you don’t want
me.”
 

A big grin spreads
across her face.
 
She puts her hand
on my arm, and the feel of her touch makes me wish for all the things I want
from her but know I can never have.

“No, you’re great,”
she says.
 
“I’d be happy to study
with you.”
  

It makes my heart
happy to hear her words, to know she’s choosing me.

We start walking
out into the hallway.
 
“This week
I’m kind of slammed with work and stuff, but maybe next week?”

Alone time with
Kendra Voss?
 
Anytime.
 
“Uh, yeah, that will work for me.”
 
I’m trying to stay cool, but inside, I’m
giggling like a girl.

Students are
rushing to class or heading out to the parking lot.
 
I don’t think Kendra has a sixth period, and she confirms it
by saying, “Well, I’m out of here.
 
You’ve got one more, right?”

I nod.
 
“Yeah.
 
Spanish.”

“Okay, well, I’ll
see you tomorrow.”
 
She smiles and
starts to walk away, but I stop her.

“Kendra!” I call
and run to meet her.
 
I’m standing
too close, and when I’m looking down at her like this, she seems so small and
fragile…and gorgeous.
 
I take a
step back to keep a comfortable distance.

“Hey, can I ask you
something?”

She pushes a strand
of her brown hair behind her ear.
 
“Sure, what’s up?”

“Are you okay?” I
say it quietly.
 
I don’t want a
bunch of people overhearing us.
 
“I
mean, since the whole thing with Ryan?
 
You seem different, well, understandably, of course.
 
I just…I just want to make sure you’re
alright.”

Her head sinks into
her shoulders slightly.
 
I know
I’ve made her uncomfortable.
 
“Yeah, Nick.
 
I think I’ll
be fine.”
 
Her voice is soft.
 
It doesn’t convince me.

Her eyes look
pained.
 
I instantly hate myself
for even bringing it up.
 
“What
that cock-licker did to you was totally unacceptable, Kendra.
 
You have every right to go after his
ass.”

A small laugh
escapes her, and she cocks her head to the side in the cutest way to study
me.
 
“Like I’m really going to kick
his ass, Nick.
 
Anyway, isn’t that
your department?”
 
She giggles.
 
I feel like an asshat for making her
think I’m a fighter.
 
I’m not.
 
The Morgan prick just deserved it.

I remain
serious.
 
“I don’t mean for you to
kick his ass.
 
I mean go after him
legally.
 
Have that crap stain
arrested and thrown in jail.”

Her face falls as
she listens to me.
 
I can tell
right away she wants no part of it.
 
With her fading smile, my hopes for getting that lawsuit dropped fade
too.
 
Shit.

“Listen,” I
continue, “just think about it, okay?
 
I know you just want to forget about this, but he really needs to pay
for what he did to you.”
 
Why can’t
she see it like I do?
 
He needs to
pay for violating her like he did.
 
He’s the lowest form of evil, and she’s…perfection.

Her skin is creamy
and flawless.
 
Her hazel eyes are
big and bright.
 
Pink lips grace
her perfect mouth, and her golden brown hair is wavy and soft.
 
I can’t stand it another minute.
 
Her beauty captivates me, and the need
to touch her is inescapable.
 
I
reach my hand up slowly toward her face.
 
I’m staring directly into her eyes when I say in a low voice, “You
deserve so much better, Kendra.”
 

She doesn’t take
her eyes off mine.

The back of my hand
is almost touching her cheek, but I stop myself before making contact and bring
it back down to my side.
 
She draws
in a quick breath when she realizes I was about to touch her.
 
She looks around us warily, probably
not wanting any of her friends to see us.
 
That thought pisses me off a little, and I try to focus back on Morgan.

My voice comes out
a little harsher than it should.
 
“And what if he does this again to some other girl, and no one’s there
to stop him?
 
The guy is a sick
bastard.”

She looks
surprised.
 
She looks angry.
 
I don’t know why she’d be angry with
me.
 
She’s the one that freaked out
when I almost touched her a moment ago.
 
And about Ryan, I’m just trying to do what’s best for
her.
 
Why can’t she get that
through her head?

I continue, despite
the look of grief on her face.
 
“If
he thinks he got away with this, he could do it again.
 
Maybe he already has.
 
You can do something about this,
Kendra.”

She shakes her
head.
 
“Stop!
 
Nick, please stop.
 
I can’t think about this right now.
 
I know what you’re saying is true.
 
I’d hate for this to happen to anyone
else, but I just don’t want to think about it anymore.”
 
She puts a hand over each ear and
closes her eyes like she’s listening to music that’s too loud.
 
“I can’t think about this
anymore.”
 
With that, she walks
away, leaving me standing in the hallway wondering what the hell just happened.