“You’re in a good mood.” Fletcher commented to Holly as she pulled herself out of the pool. He handed her a towel and then sat back on the bench beside the pool.
Holly patted her hair. “I am.” She said, contentedly. She stared out over the deserted pool. “I really am.”
Good. After the football game last week, Fletcher had been worried about her. She had seemed distant, and he had seen something in her that he recognized. He had seen that she was trying to figure something out. He had wanted to help, but she hadn’t come to him for it.
“Join me.” Holly suddenly said, tossing the towel on the bench beside Fletcher. She stood up and dove into the water, coming up again and shaking out her hair before staring hopefully at Fletcher.
“No.” He told her, quickly shaking his head. Ever since she had told him that she had been frequenting the pool, she had been trying to get him to swim with her. He always refused. He didn’t want to use the change rooms at a public pool.
Holly pouted at him. “Boo!” She took a breath and ducked under the surface. Then she was off doing laps again.
“Sorry.” Fletcher muttered under his breath. He sighed and rested his head back against the wall. The lights, high above his head, flickered slightly, and the smell of the pool filled his throat. It was familiar, and reminded him of better times. He and Holly used to take swimming lessons when they were little. That was the last time Fletcher had set foot in a pool.
At least Holly got back in. He thought with a smile. He returned his gaze to the pool and watched as she reached the other side and turned around. She didn’t even forget anything.
* * *
“Fag!”
Fletcher stiffened, his hand gripping his gym bag tightly. Taking a deep breath, he turned his head to look at whoever had shouted. A group of kids had entered the locker room, and they were all sneering at him.
“What do you want?” Fletcher asked. He was grateful that he had finished changing already. He didn’t want to strip with this group of morons around. He shoved his gym bag into his locker and closed the door.
“Teach wants to talk to you.” One of the boys told him. When Fletcher tried to walk past him, he put out an arm to block his path. “I wonder what it could be about.”
Fletcher looked at the boy with a steady gaze. “You guys are really original, you know that?” He rolled his eyes at them. Just let me leave.
Another boy grabbed his shoulder and pushed him into the lockers. “I’ll bet he’s going to tell you to stop changing in here.”
“Yeah, everyone’s complaining about it.”
No, they aren’t. Fletcher rotated his shoulder, testing to make sure he wasn’t hurt.
“He’ll probably tell you to use the girls’ locker room.” All the boys started to laugh.
Fletcher froze where he was standing. No. He suddenly felt his body go cold. They were just joking, right? Mr. Bevins wouldn’t make him use the girls’ room. The school would never let him do that.
Even though Fletcher knew that the boys were just bullying him, he was afraid. He pushed past the gang and ran for the door. As he reached it, it swung open. Fletcher flinched when it almost hit him.
“Hey.” It was Lance. He was looking down at Fletcher with a surprised expression. “What’s going on?”
Fletcher shook his head and dashed past him. He couldn’t even think about his problems with Lance right now. It wasn’t important.
He looked around the gym and spotted Mr. Bevins. He hurried over to him. “Mr. Bevins.” He called out. “You wanted to talk to me?”
Mr. Bevins looked up from his clipboard and smiled when he saw Fletcher. “Yeah, have a seat.” He nodded at a bench and Fletcher did what he was told. “I’ve been watching you run.” He jerked his chin to indicate the perimeter of the gym.
Fletcher blinked at him. “Uh, yeah?” That’s all? Just my running? He wondered if there was something wrong with the way he ran. Mr. Bevins wouldn’t sit him down about it unless it was going to cause an injury, but Fletcher didn’t think he was that bad.
“Have you considered joining track?”
“Huh?” Fletcher blinked at him. “Track?”
“Yeah. You’re fast. The team could use someone like you.” Mr. Bevins pulled a sheet of paper from his clipboard and handed it to Fletcher. “I’m the coach, and I know there’d be a place for you.”
Fletcher looked at the piece of paper. It was an information sheet about the team. “Um, okay.” He stood up, still staring at the sheet. As he walked back to the locker room to put it away, Mr. Bevins’ words sunk in. “I know there’d be a place for you.”
A place for him. Fletcher hadn’t even realized that was what he was looking for.
As he reached the door, Lance came out. He stopped, blocking Fletcher’s way. “Hey.” He said again. “I need to talk to you.”
Fletcher was in such a daze that he nodded. “Sure.”
“After school.” Lance told him. “I’ll come over.”
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