No Time to Cry Read Free

familiar.
    “
Jake
?” she whispered.
    His face broke out into a dazzling smile. “Yup, it’s me—Jake Macka. Don’t you recognize me?”

Three
    J AKE Macka!
Memories of the past tumbled through her mind like scenes from an old movie. “Is it really you?”
Dumb question
! she told herself. Her heart thudded, and her knees felt weak. “But you moved away almost two years ago.” She instantly recalled how disappointed she’d felt when his family had left Columbus. It was just before her relapse.
    “Well, a year and a half ago, actually. But my dad’s company moved him back last month. We’ve got a house over on Claremont Avenue. I’m going to Hardy High. You, too?”
    “Yes.”
    “Hop in. I’ll drive you.” He reached over and opened the passenger side door.
    Dawn thought for just a second about what her parents would say. But they knew Jake and his family, so she figured it was okay to accept his offer of a ride. She climbed into the car, still numb with the shock of seeing him. She’d had a crush on Jake in the fifth grade that had lasted until he moved. Now, seeing him again after more than a year, she could hardly think straight. He was taller, more muscular, and his shoulders were broader, but he had the same heart-melting smile and warm brown eyes that had always sent chills through her.
    “When I saw you walking along the sidewalk, I couldn’t believe it was you,” Jake said. “I told myself, ‘It’s just someone who looks like Dawn.’ But the longer I looked, the more I was sure it was you. It’s the hair. I always thought you had the prettiest color hair.” She touched her shoulder-length hair self-consciously. “You look great,” Jake said, easing the car into traffic. “How are you?”
    “I’m fine.”
    He pulled, up at a stoplight and studied her carefully.
    “No, I mean how are you,
really
?”
    Of course, Jake would remember her first hospitalization and diagnosis. Her entire class had sent her get-well cards, including an unsigned one with an adorable teddy bear on the front, which she’d always suspected was from him.
    “I heard you had a bone marrow transplant.”
    “You did?”
    “One of your friends called and left a message about it. I called you, but I guess someone forgot to tell you.”
    Dawn vaguely recalled an entry Rob had made in her diary, when she was too sick to write in it herself, about calls from lots of friends. Jake had been one of them.
    She felt a warm tingling sensation all the way down to her toes. Still, the last thing she wanted to discuss with him now was her health.
    “The doctors think I’m cured,” she said breezily, hoping to end the discussion.
    His face broke into a smile. “That’s terrific! I’d never known anyone with cancer and I thought you were brave—a real hero.”
    “Not me,” she said with a self-conscious laugh. “You were the hero.”
    “When?”
    “When you ran for the touchdown and Adams beat Harrison.”
    Jake laughed. “Talk about ancient history.”
    “Do you still play football?”
    “I switched to soccer when we moved to Cincinnati. Soccer’s a spring sport, but I’m the extra point kicker for Hardy’s football squad this season.” He glanced over at her. “You coming to Friday night’s game?”
    “I plan to go. Do you remember Rhonda? We’re going together.”
    “You’re the person I remember best,” Jake said.
    Dawn’s heart tripped, and she could feel a blush creeping up her neck.
    “Remember the school carnival?” Jake asked with a smile.
    “Of course! You dressed up like a clown and sat in the dunk tank to help us cheerleaders raise money,” she replied.
    “I almost drowned.”
    “You were a lifesaver.” He groaned at her little joke. “Is this your car?” she asked.
    “My parents got it for me when I turned sixteen this summer. It’s not much, but it’s mine.”
    She patted the worn seat. “I hope I can get a car when I turn sixteen.”
    He swung into the school parking lot,