Crossing the Barrier
Read Crossing the Barrier Online
Authors: Martine Lewis
Tags: #Literature & Fiction, #Genre Fiction, #Coming of Age, #Romance, #Contemporary, #Sports, #Teen & Young Adult
Text Copyright © 2016 Martine Lewis
Cover Copyright © 2016 Mayhem Cover Design
Cover Picture Copyright © 2015 John E. Faught
All rights reserved.
ISBN-13: 978-1-944940-00-3 (Paperback)
978-1-944940-01-0 (Ebook)
Cover Art: Mayhem Cover Design
Cover Photo: John E. Faught
Cover Models: Lexi Salmons and Damen Hannah
Editor: Erin Liles
Proofreader: Ronald Lewis
Manuscript: Martine Lewis
Publisher: BMJ Chanapi Press
Website:
www.martinelewisauthor.com
Twitter:
@authorMartine
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/martinelewisauthor
Email:
[email protected]
License Notes:
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This book is a work of fiction. People, places, events, and situations are the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or historical events, is purely coincidental.
Pour Nancy
Chapter One
LILY
“I wonder what
would happen if you lost your ability to shield.”
That simple question from Lily’s best friend, Sandra, almost got them killed. As Lily Morgan drove them to school for their band practice in her Mini Cooper, it took all of her limited driving skills to keep them on the narrow suburban road and not in the ditch.
“Let’s not ever mention that again!” Lily’s heart raced at the thought of it.
Sandra Jones was the best friend anybody could dream of. She was also everything Lily was not. She was outgoing, tall, and beautiful with her long, straight blond hair and blue eyes. She always wore the nicest outfits, and guys regularly asked her out on dates. She could have been part of the popular crowd had she wanted to, but she was perfectly content being in the marching band, just like Lily.
Sandra and her family, in addition to Lily’s uncle, Charlie, were the only people alive who knew what Lily could do: she had the ability to feel the emotions of the people around her. The only way for her to function and have a close to normal life was to build mental shields, which prevented the barrage of emotions from continuously assaulting her. Sandra knew how important shielding was to Lily, particularly in an emotion-infested place like high school.
“Just saying. I mean, you’ve been giving me the silent treatment since we left home. I had to find a way to make you talk.”
“Well, that’s not a good subject on a good day.”
“What’s eating you then?”
“My mother, again.”
“I don’t understand. Why don’t you take Charlie up on his offer and move in with him?”
“It’s my house, Sandra. If anything, she should be the one moving out.”
“Not going to happen, not until the courts kick her out. You know that better than I do. She’s not going anywhere.”
Her friend was right, unfortunately.
“Can we move on to another subject?”
“What did she want this time?” Sandra asked instead. “Another party to introduce you to your future husband?”
As Lily nodded, she could easily imagine Sandra rolling her eyes. If she hadn’t been driving, she was sure she would have seen her do exactly that.
“I don’t get it,” Sandra continued. “She’s not even your real mother.”
“I don’t get it either. Why does she keep throwing me at those guys?”
“Beats me. Did you say no?”
Lily remained quiet. She never said no. She still held the hope that if she did exactly what her mother requested, maybe one day she would approve of her.
Hope definitely made people stupid.
“When will you, Lily?” Sandra asked, turning toward her. “You deserve better than this.”
Lily sighed. She had tried to explain it numerous times before, but Sandra never understood. After all, Sandra’s mother loved her and was always so proud of her.
“David said football practice starts today,” Sandra said, changing the subject.
Lily felt her best friend’s eagerness at sharing the news, and she knew what was coming next.
“Malakai will be there.”
Ever since she had admitted to Sandra that she liked the star wide receiver over a year ago, Sandra brought him up every chance she had.
“Why don’t we talk about your love life for a change?” Lily asked.
“Oh, no, we’re so not. Yours is so much more fun.”
It was Lily’s turn to roll her eyes. “So, what else did David say?”
“They should begin practice around nine this morning.”
“They have it so much easier than we do,” Lily said, turning onto the access road that led behind the school.
“You got that one right. If they practiced half as much as we did, they would wear paths in the football field.”
“That’s probably why we practice on hot, steamy asphalt,” Lily said as they arrived in the parking area.
“It sucks, really. Why don’t we get to practice their amount of hours and they, ours?”
“Because what we do is more complicated?” Lily suggested with a smile.
Sandra shrugged and glanced out the window.
“Look at it on the bright side.”
“There is one?” Sandra asked, irony coating her tone.
“No!”
They were both laughing when Lily pulled into her usual parking spot.
Chapter Two
MALAKAI
As Malakai Thomas
drove to school, his fingers were tapping a rhythm of their own on the steering wheel of his jeep.
Finally, football training was beginning.
He glanced at the clock on the dashboard for the fifth time since he left home; he had forty minutes to make a ten-minute drive to school. He then looked at the speedometer; he was doing forty-five in a thirty-five-mile zone. He willed his foot to relax from the gas pedal as he clearly remembered his father saying over and over again that getting a ticket wouldn’t get anyone to their destination any faster. And the last thing Malakai wanted was to be late on his first day of practice.
A few minutes later, he pulled onto the access road to the back of the school. He parked his jeep in a spot close to the gym entrance, got out, picked up his gym bag, and closed the door. He then looked around for Wes’s Honda Civic.
Malakai was looking forward to seeing his friend and telling him about his good news. He had yet to tell anyone since his father was out of town, again, and he was eager to share.
It took only a moment for him to spot Wes’s car, and the second he did, he wished he hadn’t. Wes was there all right, but so was Zoe, and the two of them were kissing as if they didn’t need to breathe.