She narrowed her eyes and with an exaggerated groan, collapsed on her back into the tall grass of the meadow alongside the road.
“Joking!” I held up my hands in defense.
She was beat, her face a deep crimson-red and covered in beads of sweat. I had never felt better, completely in my zone. No matter how close Hilary and I were, we couldn’t be more opposite.
After a short sip of water, moistening my dry throat, I was eager to get moving again. “Come on,” I said. “We’ll walk back.”
She looked relieved, peeking open one eye. “Thank God.” Hilary gripped her knees to pull herself to a sitting position. “I have no idea how you do this every single day.” Hilary drawled out. She looked exhausted and completely out of her element.
“You’ll get used to it.” I grabbed her hands and pulled her to her feet. She would not get used to it, we both knew it, but I felt compelled to play along.
“Yeah, about that, I’m not so sure this is for me.” She wiped the back of her arm over her temple and wrinkled her nose at the moisture it collected. With a somber sigh, she dipped her head back and scowled up at the bright morning sun. “I’ll stick with the gym. Air conditioning and all, you understand.”
“You’re going to make me jog alone?” I feigned an exaggerated pout as we began walking back the way we came, toward my house.
“Very funny, it has to be annoying having me slow you down. Besides, I look ridiculous in these tiny shorts next to you. Look at that stomach.” Hilary leaned over, giggling and slapped me in the abs. “I’m freaking jealous!”
“You’re jealous!” I continued walking but raised an eyebrow, gaping in her direction. “You know what I’d give to have an ass like yours?”
It wasn’t a lie. My body may have been toned and tight from a mix of working out and good genetics, but next to her, I looked like a prepubescent girl. Hilary had the body of a grown woman and the confidence to flaunt it. The girl stood at least four inches taller than me and was built to suit any guy’s fantasy. Deep down, she knew it too.
“What the hell am I going to do, huh? I indulge a little at the bakery for the first time in my life and boom, ten pounds gained.” She sighed. “It didn’t really bother me until you-know-who decided to stroll back into town.”
“Right, it must be horrible to gain a little weight and have it go straight to your ass. I think your fan club has enlisted even more admirers because of it.” I chuckled, trying to reassure her.
But still, ten pounds? I didn’t see it. Hilary was being ridiculous. Her anxiety had less to do about the weight and more to do with Caleb, her childhood crush.
I offered a tight, supportive smile and continued down the road at a brisk pace, thankful she was picking up steam once again. The meadow beside us ended where the forest line began. The thick foliage and full branches of the tall trees offered occasional shade, but the heat beat down over my back, highlighting the sweat glistening over every inch of my exposed body.
Secretly, I loved it. The sensation of my stomach tightening when my legs stretched out and pounded against the rough pavement was euphoric. I could always get lost in the peaceful melody nature hummed in my ear. My day was just never the same when I skipped my morning jog.
“So, speaking of Caleb, how long are you going to wait until you finally make a move?” I smiled, tugging out my loose ponytail and pulling it up in a messy bun to keep my long hair off my back.
“Um, never.”
“Seriously? You spent nearly every day in high school crushing on the guy. He’s finally moved back to town. What the hell are you waiting for?”
“Exactly, I spent every waking moment pining for a guy that hardly even noticed me.” Hilary looked down, wiping sweat from her stomach while we went around the first curve. “Even when he did, he looked at me like I was a child.”
I offered a lopsided smile. “He’s only two years older than you. Do you really think age matters anymore? You’re all grown up now.” I pulled my lips up into an encouraging grin as I gave her an exaggerated once over. “You’re no longer a little girl. You’ve got to go talk to him, make a move before someone else snaps him up.”
She laughed, and a soft smile settled over her thoughtful expression.
Now that Caleb was back in town, I was fully expecting my confident best friend to disappear into the insecure girl she became whenever Caleb was near. It was always an oddity growing up and watching how quickly her sharp tongue could get tied up, leaving her either stuttering or frozen when Caleb would so much as look at her. We walked in silence for a few moments before I grew restless at her sudden lack of conversation. I hadn’t seen Caleb since he moved away a few years earlier, but there was plenty of talk around town about his sudden return.
“I heard the restaurant will be opening next week. Caleb sent an invite for a grand opening party.”
“I still can’t believe he bought the old place.” Hilary took a drink from her water bottle. “That place is a dump. My grandparents wouldn’t even eat there the last couple of years.”
I shrugged. “I’m actually excited to see what he has planned. The building looks amazing, and I heard he renovated the inside and added a bar.”
From what I’d been hearing, Caleb was turning it into a full-blown restaurant with an expansive bar and even had a dance floor built. The forty-minute commute to the city every time we wanted to go out would be no more. I was thrilled, I hated the long drive just to have drunk guys spill their drinks on me and throw out cheesy pick-up lines. I went out to dance and even that would always seem to get ruined. They never seem to take the hint, sometimes a girl wants to dance alone. It was as though they assumed if you don’t come with another guy then your begging to be picked up. Not the case, at least not for me.
Hilary continued walking, her expression indifferent. How was she not excited? She was the one that had to plead with me to go out with her all the time.
I jumped in front of her. “Come on!” She stepped back pursing her lips to hide a smile. “A real bar!” I shouted.
She shook her head at my antics and walked around me.
“You know it’s going to be great. We can go dancing. Plus, we’ll finally have a decent place to eat in this town,” I added and watched her expression begin to brighten.
Just as we rounded the second curve, indicating we were less than a quarter mile from my house, a large moving truck sped by blaring its horn. Hilary grabbed my arm and leapt off the road, practically diving into the grass, with me at her side.
Staring at each other and then the back of the truck in disbelief, I fell back panting.
Hilary stood up, brushing the grass from her purple shorts, shouting several explicit slurs but the near death experience caused my blood to pump so fast, the ringing in my ears blocked out most of her rant.
“What the hell!” Hilary yelled, her arms flailing furiously. “Dumb son of a ugh! He could have run us over!” She looked back at me, furious.
We had just began walking back to the road when two more trucks raced by, followed by a sleek black BMW with dark, tinted windows.
“Where the hell are they going out here?” Hilary’s breathing finally calmed.
“I don’t know,” I said, deep in thought.