Loved Read Free Page A

just be letting out, and the halls would fill any second. That would make them less conspicuous. She wouldn’t have to worry about security, or a hall pass.
    On cue, the bell rang, and within seconds, the halls started to fill.
    The good thing about Oakville was that it was a world apart from that awful New York City high school. Here, even when the halls filled up, there was still plenty of space to maneuver. Large glass windows lined all the walls, letting in light and sky, and you could see trees everywhere you went. It was almost enough to make her miss it. Almost.
    She’d had enough of school. She was technically only a few months away from graduation, but she felt as if she’d learned more in the last few weeks than she ever would by sitting in a classroom for a few more months and getting an official diploma. She loved to learn, but she’d be just as happy to never go back again.
    As they walked down the hall, Caitlin scanned for familiar faces. They were passing mostly sophomores and juniors, and she didn’t spot anyone from her senior class. But as they passed the other kids, she was surprised to see the reaction on all the girls’ faces: every single girl literally stared at Caleb. Not a single girl tried to hide it, or was even able to look away. It was incredible. It was as if she were walking down the hall with Justin Bieber.
    Caitlin turned and saw that all the girls had stopped, still watching. Several were whispering to each other.
    She looked over at Caleb, and wondered if he’d noticed. If he did, he didn’t show any sign of it, and he certainly didn’t seem to care.
    “Caitlin?” came a shocked voice.
    Caitlin turned and saw Luisa standing there, one of the girls she’d been friends with before she moved.
    “Oh my God!” Luisa added excitedly, throwing her arms wide for a hug. Before Caitlin could react, Luisa was embracing her. Caitlin hugged her back. It felt good to see a familiar face.
    “What happened to you?” Luisa asked, speaking in an excited rush, as she always did, her slight Hispanic accent coming through, as she had only moved here from Puerto Rico a few years before. “I’m so confused! I thought you moved!? I texted and IM-ed you, but you never responded –”
    “I’m so sorry,” Caitlin said. “I lost my phone, and I haven’t been near any computers, and–”
    Luisa wasn’t listening. She had just noticed Caleb, and she was staring, mesmerized. Her mouth literally dropped open.
    “Who’s your friend?” she finally asked, almost in a whisper. Caitlin smiled: she had never seen her friend so flustered before.
    “Luisa, this is Caleb,” Caitlin said.
    “A pleasure,” Caleb said, smiling down, extending his hand.
    Luisa just kept staring. She slowly raised her hand, in a daze, obviously too shocked to speak. She looked over at Caitlin, not understanding how Caitlin could have snagged such a guy. She looked at Caitlin differently, almost as if she didn’t even know who she was.
    “Um…” Luisa began, wide-eyed, “…um…like…where…like…how did you guys meet?”
    For a second, Caitlin toyed with how to respond. She imagined telling Luisa everything, and smiled at the thought. That wouldn’t work.
    “We met…after a concert,” Caitlin said.
    It was at least partially true.
    “OMG, what concert? In the city? The Black Eyed Peas!?” she asked in a rush, “I’m so jealous! I’ve been dying to see them!”
    Caitlin smiled at the thought of Caleb at a rock concert. Somehow, she didn’t quite picture him there.
    “Um….not exactly,” Caitlin said. “Luisa, listen, sorry to cut you off, but I don’t have much time. I need to know where Sam is. Have you seen him?”
    “Of course. Everybody did. He came back last week. He looked weird. I asked him where you were and what his deal was but he wouldn’t tell me. He’s probably crashing out at that empty barn he loves.”
    “He’s not,” Caitlin answered. “We were just there.”
    “Really?