Hold Her Hand

Reaching out, I took her hand. Her eyes widened as I entwined my fingers in hers. “I don’t care what anyone else thinks. You’re my girlfriend and I don’t want to hide that from anyone.”

Her cheeks reddened slightly before she looked away. She didn’t pull her hand away, tightening her grip on mine. “I’m glad,” she finally said. We walked a bit in silence before she glanced my way again. “I don’t want you to take this the wrong way, but this is going to make my life a lot easier.” I quirked my eyebrow at her. I’d been under the impression that it would be more difficult for her. I wasn’t exactly ‘top shelf’ in the eyes of the school and she’d undoubtedly get some scrutiny from friends and the others in school. She blew out a breath, sounding exhausted. “Guys constantly hound me for sex or worse, ask me out.” Her hand tightened around mine. “Now I have an excuse to turn them down.”

I forced a smile. That was good that I was helping, but I didn’t exactly like being reminded of how… popular… she was. “Glad to be of help,” I managed to say, earning a playful bump with her hip and an amused smile.

We might have gotten some looks as we headed to her class, but I wasn’t sure. I couldn’t care less about what everyone else was thinking at the moment. My attention was only on the smiling girl walking next to me. All too soon, we were standing in front of her first-period class. The warning bell rang at the same time. I was going to have to hustle if I wanted to get to my own class on time.

She released my hand before brushing back some of her blond hair behind her ear. “You should get going,” she said softly, looking up into my eyes as people passed us to get into the classroom.

“I suppose.”

Standing on her toes, she pressed her lips against mine. It was only a quick peck, but it was enough to get my heart racing. “Go on,” Kaylee said with a shooing motion and a smile. “See you at lunch,” she said before walking into the classroom. My eyes followed her, and I saw her look over her shoulder. The amusement in her eyes undermined the angry face she made as she shooed me again.

Grinning like an idiot, I rushed off to first period.