Free Falling *Discontinued*

5|Pools of Gossip

"Are you guys going to join any clubs or sports team?" Skylar asked the next day during lunch, curiously looking at the guys.

"Dude," Preston said, his eyes widened as he pointed to André, "you should join the band since they have an opening for lead guitar."

I quirked an eyebrow in surprise. "You play the guitar?"

"And he can sing," Miles added.

André smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, I taught myself how to play the guitar as sort of a coping mechanism and the singing was something I sort of picked up along the way, too. I don't think I'm any good."

Eli snorted. "Please. You put Elvis Presley to shame."

"And the Beatles," Miles added again.

"How'd you know they have a band and there's an opening?" André asked Preston, trying to steer the attention away from him.

"I saw a sign up sheet when I went to sign up to be a member of the student council."

Miles whistled. "Damn, you don't waste time."

Preston shrugged. "I wasn't interested at first, but then I realized I had nothing else better to do, and sports really isn't my thing."

Preston was a little scrawny, and I couldn't imagine him bobbling up and down a football field or basketball court. Student council suited him well as he seemed like the type to want to dictate everything. Perhaps he could run for class president. Even if he hadn't been here the entire school year, people would vote for him just because he was a new face.

"Are you going to sign up?" I heard Skylar ask André.

"I'll think about it," he replied with a small shrug, dismissing the topic quickly. Skylar huffed and continued eating her food, but I knew she was going to persuade him to go through with it. Everyone at this table could see that André wanted to share his talent, even if he didn't realize it yet.

Caden nudged Miles. "You should join the wrestling team."

"Why wrestling?"

"There's a few spots open since Chad and a few guys left, and you have the body for it. We could use you on the team."

Miles smiled, thinking over the proposition. "For sure. I'll check it out."

Caden grinned. "Cool. Talk to Peter White. He's the captain. He's the blonde kid in our first period class."

I turned to Eli, shifting away from their conversation. "Are you going to join anything?"

He pushed away his untouched food and placed his elbows on the table. "I used to play football at my old high schools, but I don't think I should, or want to, anymore.

"Football season is coming up," I prodded gently, but made it seem as if it was no big deal. "Our team sucks ass. Maybe they won't if you're on it."

He looked at me for a minute, and I could see the wheels turning in his head as he narrowed his eyes. He sighed, but didn't say anything else, and went back to silently observing the interactions at the table. Letting it go, I did the same.

"Hey, Drew and Tommy," Kenny greeted, looking past my shoulder.

I turned in my seat and saw the two basketball players standing behind me. Tommy waved at Kenny and went around the table to start a conversation, but Drew just stood there looking like a deer caught in headlights. His posture was stiff as he greeted Kenny with a short nod.

Then his eyes shifted to me. "Can I talk to you for a minute, Cathy?"

I blinked. "Sure."

"Alone," he added once he realized I hadn't moved.

Sighing heavily, I planted my hands on the table and forced myself to stand up. I could feel the stares aimed at my back, but I remained unfazed, letting my face relax into an emotionless expression.

I followed Drew out the cafeteria and into the hallway. I leaned against the wall and propped one foot up, crossing my arms over my chest, waiting patiently for Drew to stop pacing back and forth. He was anxious, and I knew why, but I wanted to hear his excuse.

Boys always had an excuse.

"What is so important that you had to take time away from my eating period?" I inquired, now getting annoyed.

He nodded to himself as if gaining the courage to open up his mouth and speak. "I-I just wanted to talk about what you saw the other day."

I scrunched my eyebrows, feigning confusion. "What did I see?"

His hand shot up to his hair. "When you saw me and Ashlyn in the hallway the other day."

I paused for a moment, pretending to recall the unforgettable memory. "Oh! You mean when I caught you prancing about with your new side trophy?" His face paled and I almost laughed in his face. "Don't worry, I don't give a shit."

At those words, his shoulders sagged in relief and he dramatically placed his hand on his chest. "Thank god! If word got around that I was with Ashlyn, I would never be able to live that down. Thanks, Cathy, for keeping my secret." Drew smiled at me as if we were long time friends. "You know how rumors spread quicker than running water around here."

I didn't know if that was a shot at me or if he was just stating a generalization, but I was more furious that he thought I was keeping his secret for his reputation.

Pushing myself off the wall, I took a step towards him, and the smile on his face faded when he saw my dark expression. "I'm not doing it for you. You're an asshole for treating Roslyn like that, sneaking around her back to fool with the likes of Ashlyn Hamilton, of all people. I'm doing it because I don't want to be the one to start a rumor of you cheating so that you can twist my words and make I seem as if I'm jealous. It'll come out on its own. The truth always comes out."

Swiveling around, I stormed back into the cafeteria and plopped back down in between Skylar and Eli. No one asked me what Drew had wanted, and I was grateful, because I was fuming inside. No matter how hard I tried, I was still swimming in a pool of gossip, and it sickened me. All I wanted was to leave my past behind and start over, but yet I kept getting sucked right back into the eye of the hurricane.

Hell, maybe I should poke my eyeballs out seeing as I couldn't use them properly without catching someone in their act of deviance.

Tommy was telling Kenny and Miles some story about when he was in basketball camp when Drew interrupted with a cough.

"Alright, well I'll catch you guys later." His eyes shifted to mine.

I didn't look at him because I knew if I did, I would punch him straight in the face. Drew and Tommy left, and I glared at his retreating back.

"Cheating bastard," I muttered under my breath. It hadn't bothered me when I'd caught him with Ashlyn, but the nerve he had to shower me with gratitude for keeping his filthy secret angered me. It made me feel like I was his accomplice, like I was applauding him for his wrongdoings.

"Who was Drew's friend?" Preston asked while watching them take their seat at their table.

"Tommy Fields, Drew's best friend and a member of the basketball team. He's a pretty good forward, too," Brandon informed.

Preston nodded but didn't say anything more.

Lunch was over and I was grateful as the need to get out of the stuffy cafeteria and away from Drew's lingering gaze increased. Snatching up my skateboard, I waited for Skylar to throw her trash away before heading to our next class.

"What's wrong?" She sighed, pulling me to the side once we'd left the cafeteria.

"Nothing," I said with a shrug. "Just ready to go home."

"No, I mean with Drew. When you came back you looked like you wanted to hit something."

"He was just pegging me about some rumor. It was annoying."

She stared at me disbelievingly before dropping the subject. I was surprised she didn't try getting more information, but then again I was stubborn when I wanted to be.

~