Melanie scowls at me, then at Torres, and then at Rose who now has a smirk on her lips. “Am I done?” Melanie snaps.
“Go about your day, Howard,” Torres says, then he turns to Rose and says, “So, Janine Rose. Picked up any new skills over the summer other than some extra sass?”
When Torres is done getting Janine’s answers, I leave the bench. I could have walked off like Melanie did, but I decided to be a good egg. The last thing I want is to be on Torres’ bad side, then again it seems like everyone is on his bad side. He’s a moody guy, and I see why Kendall used the term broody. He is definitely that.
As I walk, Janine steps up to my side, walking back to the track with me. “Hey,” she says, offering a hand. “I’m Janine.”
I hesitate taking her hand at first, but I end up taking it anyway and giving it a shake. “Amber. I’m, uh, I’m surprised you want to shake my hand.”
“Oh, that shit I said to Howard was just to get under her skin,” she says, flipping her hair over her shoulder. “I don’t have a thing about personal space. I just have a thing about self-centered, ignorant bitches in my personal space.”
We both laugh at the same time, stopping on the track. “Well, it’s nice to meet you, Janine.”
“Yeah. I saw you moving in yesterday. I was sitting in the student lobby, but you probably didn’t notice. I instantly recognized you, though.”
You did?” My brows draw together. “How?”
“Are you kidding?” she gasps. “Okay, long story short. I live in South Carolina and in my private league we often attended track meets in and around Raleigh. I remember people going on about the 200-meter sprints for one of the meets, and some were even betting on who would win, and everyone kept saying ‘Lakes! Lakes is gonna win!’ and I kept trying to figure out who Lakes was. Anyway, I finished up racing, went to watch the 200 and I figured out who you were. The girl with the wild, billowy hair, whose legs looked almost invisible as you ran. It was so insane. I’ve never seen anyone run so fast. You won the race, kicked the other runners’ asses.”
“Holy shit! Really? That is really cool!”
“Yes! All I kept thinking was ‘damn, I hope I don’t have to race her one day.’”
“You run the 200?” I ask.
“No—I’m more cross country. Much easier on the joints.”
“I hear that.”
A hand claps my shoulder and Kendall appears, grinning down at me. “Hamilton is cool as hell!” Kendall shouts.
“I wish we could say the same for Torres the Bitter.” Janine rolls her eyes.
“I swear it’s like you stole the words right out of my mouth,” I tell her.
“Yeah, what was with the attitude? Like, dude, no one forced you to be a coach, okay? Stop getting snippy with everyone and learn some morale.”
“That bad, huh?” Kendall winces. “Yeah, I was next to Foster’s group over there and she seems like a real cunt. Guess it was true.”
“Oh, she is,” Janine nods. “I always try to stay far away from her. It’s like she has a vendetta against younger girls. And Torres is just Torres. Class-A Asshole. I can tell he’s going to give us hell. On the one hand, that little attitude of his comes in handy for stuck-up chicks like Melanie. I always get a good laugh out of his interactions with her. All the other coaches coddle her and he just gives it to her straight.”
We all turn to look at Melanie on the bleachers as soon as Janine says her name. Once again, Melanie is talking to a crowd of girls, all of them absorbing every single word she’s saying. She points in our direction and frowns, and the other girls look with her, give us a big once-over, and then face Melanie again to lean in and whisper.
“Oh, how the stuck-up white girls weep,” Kendall says in a sing-song voice. “Ignore them.” She extends her arm, offering a hand to Janine. “I’m Kendall.”
“Janine, a not-so-stuck-up white girl. Nice to meet you.”
Kendall breaks out in a laugh. “Yo, Amber. I like her. She’s got that dry-humor thing going on. We should all go grab something to eat. I’m starving and I saw some of the other girls leave already.”
“I could use a bite,” I say with a shrug.
“Same. I’m down for lunch with you guys. My roommate is one of the Triple Threat Girls and she’s always asking me to go with her for food so that she isn’t seen eating alone. I always tell her no.”
“Triple Threat Girls?” I ask, confused as we turn and walk to the exit.
Janine laughs and then says, “Oh, man. You two have so much to learn.”