Read Online Fearless by Chris O'Guinn - Free Book Online Page B

suit was secure.
    The coach ignored them. “Today, we’re working on endurance instead of speed. I just want to see how many laps you can do.”
    The guys ignored him because Jimmy was making farting noises with his armpit and that was hilarious. Sometimes I wondered if I was an alien being who had been sent to live among these primitives. If that were the case, I was going to have to have a very serious chat with my parents when I got back to Weirdonia or wherever I was from.
    I went to the mark I was sent to and prayed to the Flying Spaghetti Monster that my suit didn’t come off when I dove in. It just didn't feel very secure. Or, rather, it barely felt like it was on at all. At some point though, I really did have to catch a break. I was just sure of it.
    At the whistle, I dove in and thankfully everything stayed in place. I shot forward like an arrow, and I noticed how much less drag the Speedo had. It made me want to see how fast I could go, but then I remembered the coach’s instructions. I set a modest pace instead, hoping I could do enough laps that I wouldn’t embarrass myself too much.
    I noticed Jimmy in the lane next to me racing along at top speed. My heart sank. Of course there were going to be athletes like Captain Sexy there who would smoke me and do like a hundred laps and the coach would be disappointed and I would be kicked off the team and still be out my birthday money because life is just like that.
    At least the whole stupid team experiment would be over.
    I was beginning to tire on my fourth lap. It was then that I noticed Jimmy wasn’t in the lane next to me anymore, it was Bailey. He was also zipping along at top speed, though I guessed he would lose in a race against Jimmy.
    I suddenly realized the pack of idiots had been so busy horsing around that they hadn’t heard the coach’s instructions. Maybe, then, I wasn’t doomed to be the worst swimmer on the team. Optimism wasn’t a philosophy I had much use for, though.
    After practice, which I have to admit I kind of enjoyed, Lancaster pulled me aside. I wilted, looking down at my toes as I walked over to him.
    “Look, I know what you’re going to say. I wasn’t being a team player. I should have tried to make friends with the guys. I told you, I’m no good at teams.”
    Was Lancaster actually smiling? “I was going to say, great work today. Thanks for actually listening.”
    I stared at him. “Huh?”
    “The toughest thing about making a team is getting them to listen to me. I’m happy that you’ve already got that part down.”
    I felt a very warm tingling of pride. “Er, thanks, coach.”
    “There was just one thing.”
    “Yeah?”
    “Your friend there, Liam? I know his kind. I just have to warn you, I don’t put up with drug use on my team.”
    “Huh? Oh! No, I don’t do drugs.” I get stupid enough without them.
    “Good, because we do random screenings.”
    “All right, but like I said, nothing to worry about with me.”
    I showered off, mulling over practice. I’d slipped on the wet cement, but stayed on my feet. I had managed to avoid losing my suit in the water. I’d made the coach happy. All in all, I thought things went great. Maybe this wouldn’t all end in disaster.
    “Hey, matchstick.”
    It was Jimmy. I glanced over at him as I buttoned up my jeans. The narrow-eyed look on his face told me I was in trouble. The fact that he was flanked by Javier and Kent told my highly-tuned bully-sense that I was in for it.
    “It takes more to make this team than being the coach’s pet,” Jimmy told me with a sneer.
    I looked down, very sad that a good-looking guy could be such a dick. “It’s not my fault you’re so busy yanking other kids’ suits down that you can’t hear what you’re being told.”
    It was about a second before I realized my inner monologue had become a very badly-timed vocalization. Liam really was having a bad influence on me. I was getting so comfortable that I was letting my guard