said, as if it was no big deal.
It wasn’t.
At least it shouldn’t have been.
‘Gotta get in line early,’ he said, to my surprise. ‘Haven’t you heard?’ He was studying me again. ‘Everyone’s talking about the dragon who spooked Suzanne.’ He jerked his head toward the bathroom, scene of the crime, which was closed off.
‘Oh, I did hear something,’ I said, trying to sound disinterested.
‘I thought you’d be all over that story, since it stars a dragon.’
I blushed. Again. ‘I like them better in fiction.’
‘Really?’ He couldn’t have sounded more skeptical.
I changed the subject. ‘So, any preferences? Flying? Perching?’
‘Kicking butt.’ He spoke with resolve. ‘I want to see a dragon kicking some bully’s ass.’
My mouth went dry. I had those prickles on the back of my neck again.
There couldn’t be any way that Derek knew my secret.
Could there?
He looked one more time into my eyes, hard, as if he was trying to tell me something. I couldn’t think what it might be. I couldn’t think of a thing to say.
Not one thing.
Derek smiled a little, that secret smile he seemed to keep especially for me, then turned and walked away. I stared after him, wondering.
Was Derek intense because he liked me? It was an astonishing possibility. I’d never had a guy like me at school before. In fact, I had so far shown a talent for liking guys who didn’t like me back. Or ran hot and cold about liking me back.
But Derek seemed to be interested. And he kept coming to talk to me. I didn’t think it was just about a dragon drawing. He also didn’t run hot and cold. He was consistent. I got my books out for class, pondering the possibilities. Just because it was strange and unusual for a guy to like me didn’t mean it was impossible.
Right?
* * *
Derek was right about one thing – the school was buzzing with the story and speculation was running wild. Some people thought the whole thing was a hoax, a story made up by Suzanne and spread by her friends to make her look special. But many people shared Meagan’s conviction that one of the guys at school must be a dragon shifter. Who was the dragon hidden among us? People really wanted to know – and in the absence of any real information, they were prepared to make something up that sounded plausible.
It would have been funny if I hadn’t been so terrified of being found out.
Suzanne was absent. I’d been right – Meagan had told the principal that she didn’t see anything, just Suzanne freaking out. Apparently, Suzanne had talked a lot about dragons attacking her and the principal had concluded that she was tripping on something. Her parents had refused to let her have a blood test or to have her seen by a doctor, so she’d been suspended for the day.
Her groupies seemed a bit shaken by their idol’s tumble from grace, and I overheard Trish defending Suzanne a couple of times. She even talked about identifying the dragon kid and ‘taking him down,’ which was pretty funny.
I wanted to see her try.
I just kept my head down – even if I found Derek watching me at every turn. You’d think I could have gotten control of my crazy blushing, but no luck. I spent the day as red as a lobster, hugging my secret close and avoiding conversation.
In other words, like usual, but more red.
On the upside, Meagan was Ms Popularity, everyone wanting to hear the story from her side. That she deviated from her official version, telling Jessica and others about the dragon, just made her a bigger hit. Trish and Anna were watching Meagan from a distance – like circling piranhas – but apparently didn’t dare get close to her.
Or maybe they were waiting for the Queen Bee to make a plan.
In math class, Trish was busy on her messenger, probably researching the Pyr for Suzanne. Everyone around me had dragon fever, and everyone was on the dragon’s side. And that was when I realized three things:
1. I could instantly and immediately
It wasn’t.
At least it shouldn’t have been.
‘Gotta get in line early,’ he said, to my surprise. ‘Haven’t you heard?’ He was studying me again. ‘Everyone’s talking about the dragon who spooked Suzanne.’ He jerked his head toward the bathroom, scene of the crime, which was closed off.
‘Oh, I did hear something,’ I said, trying to sound disinterested.
‘I thought you’d be all over that story, since it stars a dragon.’
I blushed. Again. ‘I like them better in fiction.’
‘Really?’ He couldn’t have sounded more skeptical.
I changed the subject. ‘So, any preferences? Flying? Perching?’
‘Kicking butt.’ He spoke with resolve. ‘I want to see a dragon kicking some bully’s ass.’
My mouth went dry. I had those prickles on the back of my neck again.
There couldn’t be any way that Derek knew my secret.
Could there?
He looked one more time into my eyes, hard, as if he was trying to tell me something. I couldn’t think what it might be. I couldn’t think of a thing to say.
Not one thing.
Derek smiled a little, that secret smile he seemed to keep especially for me, then turned and walked away. I stared after him, wondering.
Was Derek intense because he liked me? It was an astonishing possibility. I’d never had a guy like me at school before. In fact, I had so far shown a talent for liking guys who didn’t like me back. Or ran hot and cold about liking me back.
But Derek seemed to be interested. And he kept coming to talk to me. I didn’t think it was just about a dragon drawing. He also didn’t run hot and cold. He was consistent. I got my books out for class, pondering the possibilities. Just because it was strange and unusual for a guy to like me didn’t mean it was impossible.
Right?
* * *
Derek was right about one thing – the school was buzzing with the story and speculation was running wild. Some people thought the whole thing was a hoax, a story made up by Suzanne and spread by her friends to make her look special. But many people shared Meagan’s conviction that one of the guys at school must be a dragon shifter. Who was the dragon hidden among us? People really wanted to know – and in the absence of any real information, they were prepared to make something up that sounded plausible.
It would have been funny if I hadn’t been so terrified of being found out.
Suzanne was absent. I’d been right – Meagan had told the principal that she didn’t see anything, just Suzanne freaking out. Apparently, Suzanne had talked a lot about dragons attacking her and the principal had concluded that she was tripping on something. Her parents had refused to let her have a blood test or to have her seen by a doctor, so she’d been suspended for the day.
Her groupies seemed a bit shaken by their idol’s tumble from grace, and I overheard Trish defending Suzanne a couple of times. She even talked about identifying the dragon kid and ‘taking him down,’ which was pretty funny.
I wanted to see her try.
I just kept my head down – even if I found Derek watching me at every turn. You’d think I could have gotten control of my crazy blushing, but no luck. I spent the day as red as a lobster, hugging my secret close and avoiding conversation.
In other words, like usual, but more red.
On the upside, Meagan was Ms Popularity, everyone wanting to hear the story from her side. That she deviated from her official version, telling Jessica and others about the dragon, just made her a bigger hit. Trish and Anna were watching Meagan from a distance – like circling piranhas – but apparently didn’t dare get close to her.
Or maybe they were waiting for the Queen Bee to make a plan.
In math class, Trish was busy on her messenger, probably researching the Pyr for Suzanne. Everyone around me had dragon fever, and everyone was on the dragon’s side. And that was when I realized three things:
1. I could instantly and immediately
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