Lost (7 page)

“It's gonna be all right. I don't know how, exactly, but it will,” Ed said, looking from Gaia to Tatiana and back again. He wondered how long Gaia would allow Tatiana to get away with her insensitive behavior.

“I hope you're right,” Tatiana said with a sigh. Ed wanted to reach out and shake her. He understood that she was upset for her mother, but it was Gaia's dad who was in a coma. Wasn't it blatantly obvious that they should
both
be comforting
her?

“Why don't we change the subject?” Ed said loudly, forcing a grin. Gaia squeezed his hand in approval and loosened her grip a bit.

“I'm in,” she said, looking out across the gym again.

Tatiana shot him a confused, somewhat irritated
glare, her forehead creasing just slightly. Like, how dare he interrupt her? Well, Ed dared because he loved Gaia. And because Tatiana was behaving with an odd lack of sensitivity to the situation. And because he wasn't particularly in the mood to witness a gym class bloodletting.

“Do you still want to go to Heather's this afternoon?” Ed asked Gaia, wrapping his other hand around the top of hers. “It might be good for you to focus on something else for a little while.”

Gaia took a deep breath and blew it out through her nose. “Yeah, I guess we could still do that,” she said, dropping her feet heavily from the bleacher step she was sitting on down to the next step. “I just want to check on my dad first.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Ed said.

“Tatiana! You haven't played yet! Get down here and sub in!” the gym teacher, Mrs. Argeski, shouted out from the court below. She reached down with her wrinkled hand and itched the badass scar on her leg that had been the inspiration of urban legends among the student body for years.

“But Mrs. A.—,” Tatiana began.

Don't argue, just do what the woman says,
Ed silently commanded. He couldn't wait for Tatiana to step away.

Mrs. Argeski crossed her arms over her nonchest, and her beady blue eyes focused on Tatiana, her mouth set in a grim line. Ed could practically feel the
chill in the air. Mrs. Argeski was a person one didn't argue with.

Tatiana rolled her eyes and finally shoved herself away from the bleachers. Ed was relieved. Tatiana was only exacerbating the already uncomfortable situation. The moment she was gone, Ed shifted his weight toward Gaia, turned his knees toward her, and squeezed her hand once more.

“Can you believe her?” he asked quietly, glad to have Gaia to himself again.

“I know. I mean I always knew she was self-centered, but that was ridiculous.” And with that, Gaia turned her head toward the court as if to signify that the subject was closed. Ed was amazed at Gaia's ability to keep things to herself. He could never do it. But if Gaia was finished talking about Tatiana, then so was he. Besides, dropping the whole Tatiana issue freed Ed up to lavish all his attention on Gaia and do everything to help alleviate her stress—like offer to make a junk-food run.

“Is there anything you need? Ring-Dings, Yoo-Hoo . . . Krispy Kreme, maybe?”

Gaia smiled weakly. “Thanks, I'm good,” she said. She lifted their entwined hands between them. “This is kind of nice.”

Ed blushed slightly. “It is, isn't it?”

“We almost look like a real couple,” Gaia said.

“You mean the kind that sits really close together
in the cafeteria and feeds each other french fries and makes everyone around them vomit?” Ed asked.

“Not that kind,” Gaia replied, her eyes dancing again.

“How about matching T-shirts?” Ed suggested, arching his eyebrows.

“No,” she replied.

“ID bracelets?”

“No way.”

“Can I get a tattoo of your name on my—”

“No!”

Gaia laughed. And when she laughed, her whole face changed. She lit up. She became even more beautiful. Ed's heart grew warm and tingly just watching her until she came down into a simple smile.

“Are we the kind of couple that kisses in gym class?” he asked, sliding in closer to her.

Gaia looked down at his lips, the smile pulling at the corners of her mouth. “Maybe . . . ”

Ed's pulse pounded in his ears as he leaned in toward her. Forget about jokes. Public displays of affection were a much more effective distraction from grief. But just as his lips were about to touch hers, the bleachers around them started to shake. Someone heavy was loping his or her way toward them from above.

“I hear you can fight.”

Ed pulled back to see a seriously big guy with seriously greasy hair plop down at Gaia's other side. His bare knees were covered with dark hair, and his calf
muscles bulged as he rested his pristine Nikes on the step in front of them. He cracked his knuckles as he looked Gaia over from head to foot.

Ed felt his face flush crimson as Gaia dropped his hand and turned toward the new guy. The oily loser from hell. Who was this person? Where had he descended from? And why did Ed feel like his hand was a lot emptier than it was?

“So?” the guy said to the silent Gaia. “Can you?”

“Fight?” Gaia asked. There was already a challenge in her voice. A cockiness. She already knew she was going to beat the crap out of this guy. But who the hell was he? And where did he get off sitting down next to Ed's girlfriend as if he weren't even there?

“I only ask because I'm a black belt and I'm bored,” the guy said, tilting his head quickly to the side in something like a shrug of the skull.

“And this has what to do with me?” Gaia asked.

Nothing,
Ed told her telepathically.
This guy and his belt have nothing to do with you. Doesn't he recognize a good canoodle when he sees it?

“I want you to show me what you got,” the guy said, lacing his fingers together. He turned his hands inside out and stretched his arms forward, then looked at the mat in the far corner of the room. His eyes turned playful, challenging. Even—
gulp
—flirtatious?

Ed reached out for Gaia's hand and caught air. She
was already standing. She was already on her way down the bleachers, heading for the mat. She was already flexing her fingers.

Ed looked down at his hands and sighed, trying to ignore the hollowing out of his heart. So much for distraction by smooching. Instead it looked like there
was
going to be a little bloodletting in gym class.

I
didn't want to kick Jake's ass. Not particularly. At that moment I really wanted to kill Tatiana. So much for the sister figure thing. Although I suppose sisters occasionally want to kill each other.

But seriously-where does she get off treating my father's coma like it's her personal tragedy? Sure, her mom is close to my dad, but he's
my
father. It makes me sick just thinking about it, but if I got into it with Ed, I'd end up venting all my anger on him. And he doesn't deserve that.

But Jake's different. I have no problem venting my anger on him. Sometimes you just have to kick a little ass. And luckily for me, Jake offered himself up. It was a prime opportunity to vent all the repressed anger I had been on the verge of spewing all day.

Plus there was the added bonus of wiping that cocky grin off his smugly tan face.

the air parting around his fists as he threw swift punch after swift punch

Old-fashioned Throw Down

GAIA NOTICED THE CURIOUS STARES
of her classmates as Jake followed her along the wall, over to the wrestling mat in the corner of the gym. It was the girls, mostly. Probably wondering why the hot new commodity was even bothering to talk to Gaia Moore of all people. Just wait until they saw what she was about to do to him. He probably wouldn't be so revered once he'd been put down by a girl. Once he had a shiner the size of her fist. And maybe a couple of other bruises for good measure.

She could already feel the adrenaline pumping through her veins the moment her foot touched the squishy, rubbery surface of the mat. She curled her fingers and clenched them, then uncurled them again. When she turned around, she expected to be looking right into those light blue eyes with their teasing glint. Instead she was looking at the top of Jake's head. He was sitting on the edge of the mat.

“What are you doing?” she asked.

He yanked at the laces on his Nikes. “No shoes,” he replied.

“Uh-uh,” Gaia said. “Nope. I fight shoes on.”

This was not going to be a karate match. This was
going to be a good old-fashioned throw down.

Jake slowly grinned and retied his laces. “All right.”

He stood up, and when he faced her, Gaia had to admit—to herself—that his size really was impressive. The muscles in his arms were healthy and defined, and his shoulders dwarfed her. Still, she wasn't afraid. Not Gaia. She was actually a little excited.

“Begin,” Jake said.

He moved his left leg back in one smooth, almost graceful motion and raised his fists. This guy was by the book. Gaia took her stance as well, her nylon gym shorts swishing as the legs rubbed together, and she and Jake started to circle the mat. Gaia kept her attention on his fists and his eyes all at once. Most fighters told you what they were about to do with their eyes. But just in case Jake had a poker face, it was a good policy to watch the fists as well.

She was not going to make the first move.

Jake blinked, and Gaia's arms moved up just slightly to block the first punch, aimed at her face. Then the second, aimed at her gut. It was a split-second combination but no problem for Gaia. Jake took a little hop back, then quickly tried another combo—two quick jabs, both blocked. Gaia was impressed. Usually people didn't attack that quickly and in such fast succession. Jake wasn't interested in feeling her out. He wanted to show her he was ready.

“Come on,” he taunted, hands raised. “Are you gonna hit me or what?”

Gaia threw a right hook at his face, which he swiftly ducked, then an uppercut, which he swiftly dodged. Her third punch caught nothing but the tip of his ear. Jake dipped his head, swung up again, and smiled.

“Not bad for a chick,” he said, the grin widening.

Gaia flattened him with one crack kick to the face.

Jake lay on the ground for an instant, stunned, and a few people over in the bleachers cheered. Gaia looked up and saw some of the guys clapping and hooting around Ed, who sat sullen and staring. His face was slowly turning purple. Apparently this whole fight scenario didn't exactly sit right with him.

“Okay, that's it,” Jake said, pushing himself to his feet.

Unfortunately Gaia didn't have time to ponder Ed's feelings. When she looked at Jake again, he was clearly pissed off. His brows were low over his eyes, and his face had darkened with a humiliated flush. She could see his biceps bulging under his T-shirt sleeves. Gaia smiled. This was getting good.

He was fast. Too fast for a guy his size. Gaia could almost hear the air parting around his fists as he threw swift punch after swift punch. Her responses were there, but she found herself actually
thinking
about the fight. Thinking about her next move and his and how to counter it. She never had to think in a fight. It was always on instinct.

Suddenly Jake backhanded her across the jaw, and she crashed to the ground, rolling onto her side. She
had never seen it coming. It felt like the bottom half of her face had disconnected from the top. Her hand instinctively went to her jaw as if she were trying to hold the thing on as a red-hot flash of pain crossed her vision. She looked up at him, unable for the moment to mask her surprise.

“You done?” he asked, stepping over her and looking down at her with a cocky little smile. She could tell what he was thinking—too easy.

“Not likely,” Gaia replied. Now she really,
really
hated him. She pushed herself to her knees and glared up at his smirk. “Just getting started.”

“Oh, yeah?” Jake replied, unconvinced. He put out his hands, palms up, and waggled his fingers at her. “Bring it on,” he said, bending slightly at the knee.

Gaia glanced around and saw that a little audience was forming around the mat. The volleyball game had stopped, and even Mrs. Argeski was watching them with interest. Probably psyched that after all this time someone was actually working up a sweat in her class.

Gaia stood and jabbed a kick right to his face, which released a satisfying grunt of surprise. He was knocked slightly off balance, so she quickly swung a left, but he turned away from it and her arm kept moving, taking her around with it. Meanwhile Jake reeled back and sidearmed her right in the jaw. Again. Gaia's head snapped back from the force of it, but this time she managed to stay on her feet.

Not for long.

Grinning, Jake punched her hard in the gut and Gaia doubled over, feeling like her stomach was about to come out her back. As if his knuckles had left an imprint on her skin. She coughed, struggling for breath, and as Jake grabbed her by the back of the neck and yanked her up again, one thought crossed her reeling mind.

These are not karate moves. He's street fighting me. He's a street fighter.

Jake shoved her forward again, trying to toss her to the floor, but she turned right and spun out of it, her arms flailing for balance. She gasped for air and hunted for a focus point as the room spun around her. Before it ever had time to come to a stop, Jake kicked her right in the face, and she hit the floor on her hands and knees.

What was going on here?

Still dizzy, Gaia got right up but kept her head down and rushed him, intending to basically tackle him to the ground and get this over with, but he grabbed her around the waist and suddenly she was upside down, soaring through the air with a damn good view of the raftered ceiling above. Jake tossed her like a bag of laundry over his shoulder and she landed on her back behind him, looking up at the staring faces of her classmates. The somewhat-embarrassed-for-her faces of her classmates.