Page 1 of False Promises

1

CARTER

Moving my legs out of the way, I bent forward to grab the pen that had slid from my fingers and landed on the linoleum floor of our class. Mr. Bell, the math teacher, was talking about something I couldn’t care less. I was usually a straight A student, but these days, my attention span in class lasted about ten minutes.

My chair squeaked, and Dahlia, my childhood best friend, turned around with a hypnotizing smile, her copper curls floating over her shoulders. She raised a finger to her lips. “Cart, stop squirming.” Her eyes widened as she watched me, asking a silent question. Are you okay?

I shrugged and stared at her. I knew she would be able to read my wordless reply. Yeah. Preoccupied. Don’t worry.

Is it the band?

I shook my head once. I didn’t want to tell her what it was about. The source of my distraction had long red hair, the color of fire. And moss-green irises I was always willing to get lost in.

Yes, lately, I’d started having feelings for my best friend that couldn’t be categorized in the friend zone anymore. Well, it started almost two years ago. Blame it on my hormones, my growth spurt, or my age, but at fifteen, I was having a hard time staying indifferent to her with each passing day.

And the other night, she smiled at me in a way she never had done before, and it messed up with my composure. So much so that I had to leave the room and pretend to take a leak to calm the throbbing in my lower body. Yeah, Dahlia Ellis was bothering me in ways I’d never felt before.

Last weekend, when I climbed in through her bedroom window and we spent the night with each other—in a bunking together kind of way, like we’d been doing since we were little kids without our parents knowing—I couldn’t sleep. All I did was picture how she’d react if I kissed her. What her lips would taste like. How soft her skin would be under the pads of my fingers. If she would let me touch her in ways I’d never done before. It was pure torture to have her sleep next to me, our heads pressed together and our hands connected, and not do anything about it. When I yearned for so much more. For hours, I just watched her sleep, enjoying the closeness we’d always shared.

Just the sound of her steady breathing was enough to send waves of warmth through my body.

Dahlia turned around, switching her focus back on our math teacher while I lost myself in yet another daydream about her.

I fidgeted with my pen, tapped my foot on the floor, twisted strands of my hair between my fingers, scratched my nape. Anything to prevent my thoughts from going to places that would harden parts of my body as her floral scent enveloped me.

The bell rang, and I risked a glance at my notebook. There was nothing there except for some ideas for a new song I was working on. And doodles. Of guitars and hearts. I sighed. I was now the guy drawing hearts in his books.

I had to tell Dahlia how I felt. Soon. Or I would combust. This had become an impossible situation while being around her as much as I was. Because Dahlia and I, we hung out together. All. The. Time. And we had music practice in our spare hours on top of that. Just the two of us. When we were seven years old, we formed the Ellis and Hills Band. And these days, we were getting attention on the music scene. So far, we’d performed at festivals and events. At weddings. We got interviewed on the radio last year and played our first original song. One day, we would tour the world and become as famous as all our country music idols.

Now on my feet, I picked up my stuff, ready to bolt out of there. One more class and the day would be over. My breathing hitched as a small hand grabbed my elbow.

“Cart, where are you going? You sure you’re all right?”

I led Dahlia to a corner of the hallway, and she positioned herself before me, her fingers rubbing my scalp like she always did when I was tensed. Shivers traveled down the length of my spine. This girl. Everything she was got me addicted. My eyes locked on hers, and her shiny pink lips curled into the most blinding smile. All aimed at me. I blinked, trying to break the spell. If I didn’t, I would kiss her here and now.

The only thing preventing me from being honest with her was my fear it could jeopardize our relationship. Our friendship. And what if she didn’t mirror my feelings? Was I ready to learn the truth the hard way?

“I am. Just a lot on my mind. That’s all.”

Dahlia nodded, withdrawing her hand from my hair.

I missed the contact. But relished the space she put between us.

Love was so confusing. It always appeared simple in songs and movies. Even my parents made it look easy. But the truth was if I couldn’t understand my own feelings, how would I be able to express them the right way?

Phoenix and Addison, our school’s only twins and our best friends, joined us, and I thanked them mentally for their timely interruption.

Addison averted her eyes. Since she’d cornered me in the locker room after gym class a few months ago and kissed me, she’d been avoiding me. That day, I freaked out and ran away without a word. I felt bad for doing so, and now it seemed too late to apologize. So, we were stuck with this awkwardness between us whenever we were around each other.

“Hey, you two. We’re having a bonfire tomorrow night. Are you coming?” my friend asked.

“I can’t. I promised my brother Jeff I would help him fix his truck,” I said.

Addison addressed Dahlia. “And you? The entire football team will be there, and I need some girl company. Plus, it would be fun to ogle them when they play a game, shirts versus skin.” She waggled her eyebrows, and Dahlia snickered behind her hand.

“Addi, you know the rule. I’m not allowed to go unless Cart comes along.”

“Dah, your mama loves me. She trusts me with her hair but not to look after you? Why isn’t she letting you come to the parties with me? I’m not over-six-foot tall like Cart, but I can throw a mean punch.”