GUTTER GIRL

Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

McKenna

"Get behind the counter," I said with a hiss.
Jace froze like a deer in headlights. His mouth hung open and his blue eyes were wide. He was gripping his notebook so hard that his knuckles blanched. It was weird seeing this big, tough football player petrified.

But Jace was different, wasn't he? Different in a way that made something deep inside my body shift.

"Get back here." I motioned with my left hand. "Aren't you, like, the fastest running back on the team? Hurry up!" Jace threw the rest of his chili dog onto the tray, then bolted behind the counter. I grabbed his tray and set it on the counter behind me, then stepped to the register. Jocktastic was so big, my leg brushed against his shoulder as I took my place at the register. The contact sent an unfamiliar surge of energy right through my abdomen.

I could not freaking believe my elementary school crush was squatting down on the floor right next to me, his tight body brushing against my leg. Even more, I couldn't believe the mini fireworks session it was triggering in my belly.

"Welcome to The Hot Dog Shack, what can I get you?" Oh my gosh, had my voice just cracked? What the hell was going on with me?

Kyle scrunched his nose when his eyes landed on me. Joel and Beckett followed behind him.

"Nice to see you, too, Kyle." I rolled my eyes and stood with my hand hovering above the screen I used to enter orders. Kyle Walker was a star running back, much like Jace, only he wasn't nearly as nice. He used to be scrawny and had bad acne. Then, the summer before our sophomore year, he filled out, morphing into a six-foot-tall, tanned, blond-haired cover model. The only two things he knew besides football were how good he looked and how to be a massive jerk.

Meanwhile, Jace didn't seem to know how beautiful he was. Maybe that was why I'd always kept him in my sights while I was starring in the Twin River High production of My Invisible Life; too bad I was the only person in that four- year-long production.

"Goth Girl! Didn't know you worked here." Joel let out a chuckle. "I figured you worked at a funeral home."

I felt Jace's body flinch. Since the ignorant nickname Goth Girl surfaced so many years ago, I'd learned to ignore it when someone called me that, but Jace flinching; that took me by surprise.

And warmed my heart.
"This isn't a zoo. I'm not some exhibit that you can pay to stare at," I snapped.

"Like we'd pay to look at you," Beckett said.
All three guys started laughing.
I pressed my lips together and bit my tongue. As much as I hated to stand here and get made fun of, I couldn't risk losing my job by yelling at them. Especially when Derrick was in the kitchen.

Guys like this were another reason I wanted to skip town the second I graduated. They treated everyone like shit, only looked out for themselves. They didn't realize that they were in the best years of their lives right now. Everything was downhill after their star-studded high school experience. They'd soon have beer bellies and meaningless jobs.