Katie's Glimpse (The Glimpse Series) (4 page)

“Oh Hallie, I’m so
sorry JT hurt your feelings.”

   She sniffed and
wiped her nose on my shoulder. I ignored it. I had no problem with icky. “I’ve
had a crush on him forever. I thought he brushed up against me in line on
purpose. I’m such an idiot,” she blubbered before pulling herself together and
letting out a deep breath.

  I let her go and
looked down at her sweet pixie face. My heart broke for her. She was sensitive
and had always worn her heart on her sleeve.

  “You are not an
idiot. He is, if he can’t see how great you are. God has someone special just
for you, and we both know it wouldn’t be someone like JT. You’ve got to be
patient.”

She gave me a watery
smile, reached over and cleaned off my shoulder where she’d previously wiped
her nose. “I’m sorry about that,” she said, rubbing her hand on her pants.
“Thanks for being such a great friend. I’m okay now.”

She gave me another
hug before getting in her car. She checked her make-up, gave me a small smile,
and drove away. 

I strolled over to
my car and slowly made my way home. My head filled with questions, and my
stomach filled with butterflies.

***

  “Mom, I’m home,” I
yelled, throwing my backpack down on the couch.

“I’m in my room,
honey,” she called from upstairs.

 Mom and Dad had
been married for twenty years. They’d been high school sweethearts and were
still so in love. I’d catch the two of them holding hands and kissing, but it
didn’t gross me out. It was all I knew. I was used to it. They were wonderful
parents, and I knew they loved me very much. I didn’t have many rules, just
keep my room clean and help with the laundry. I was respectful and didn’t cause
any trouble. An only child, I sometimes wished I had a sibling, but Mom had a
rough pregnancy with me, and her doctor suggested she not have more children.

We had what I
guessed was a normal life- school, work, church, dinners together, and regular
vacations in the summer. Our life was nothing extravagant, maybe even a little
boring, but we were comfortable, and I was content with that.

  I walked into her
room, where she was getting her school clothes ready for the next day. She
taught elementary school and was excellent at it. Always kind and patient, she
was loved by all of her students.

  “How was your day?”
she asked as I flopped down on her bed.

I grabbed her
pillow, hugging it to my chest. “Weird.”

  We had a great
relationship and talked about all kinds of stuff but not about guys. It never
really came up.

  “Weird, why’s
that?” she asked as she sat next to me on the bed. She reached over and began
to play with my ponytail. It was a habit she had ever since I was two and finally
grew some hair. She’d been afraid I was going to be bald forever.

  I informed her
about my day at school but left out Seth’s name. She was quiet for a moment, as
it all sunk in.

  “Sleeping Beauty,
huh? That was original. Who’s the guy?” she asked, sounding a bit concerned.

  I glanced up at
her beautiful sweet face. Her warm brown eyes shined with curiosity.

  I hugged the pillow
tighter and cleared my throat. “It was Seth Turner,” I murmured.

  Her hand paused in
my hair for a second before she resumed stroking it, but it was enough that I
noticed.

  She smiled
brightly. “I know his mom. She talks about him quite a bit. He sure is a cutie
too.”

  I couldn’t have
stopped my grin even if I had wanted to. “Yeah, he’s pretty cute.”

I sat up, ready to
leave, but she grabbed my hand. “Honey, I know this is something new for you.
We haven’t really talked much about boys and you’ve never dated, but don’t be
afraid. This is your last year of high school- have fun and make some memories.
I love you, and you know I’m here to listen anytime you want to talk about
anything.”

  “I love you too, Mom.
You’ll be the first to know if I need to talk,” I replied and bounced off to my
room, my grin still in place.

In third period
English the next day, whenever I glanced over at Seth, he was watching me with
a beautiful smile on his face. I was pretty sure mine looked more like a goofy
grin. When the bell rang, he walked me to the cafeteria and we waited in the
lunch line together.

  “You know what? I
almost asked you out last year,” he informed me.

  “What? Why didn’t
you?”

  He shrugged. “I
don’t know. You didn’t ever seem to notice me until yesterday.”

  I bit my lip,
wondering just how many times I’d missed the signs that he was interested in
me.

  “Well, I’m glad
you finally got my attention,” I said softly, looking over his shoulder as I
spoke. I couldn’t meet his eyes, I was too nervous.

 He noticed this and
adjusted his face, his eyes in line with mine. My heart pounded so hard, I was
afraid he could hear it.

  “Me too,” he
replied, his voice so low it was almost a whisper.

 Suddenly there was
no one around us. We weren’t in a noisy school cafeteria. We were alone in our
own world. We didn’t speak; we didn’t have to. The intensity of our shared gaze
said it all.

I heard a cough
behind me and the spell was broken. I shook my head slightly to clear my thoughts.
A giggle escaped me as I noticed the redness in Seth’s cheeks; he was actually
blushing.

  We grabbed our
food and headed to my normal table, where Hallie was already seated. She gave
an exaggerated wink when she noticed us together. He laughed, but I just rolled
my eyes as I slid in beside her.

Seth sat down beside
me and leaned forward to speak to Hallie. “Listen, I want Katie to come watch
me play tonight. Why don’t you come with her? You can keep her company in the
stands.”

  She laid her
sandwich down and replied, “Sure, I’d love to.”

  “Do you know anything
about football? Katie said she didn’t, and I’d like for her to know what’s
going on in the game.”  

  She patted my arm
and smiled sweetly like I was an idiot for not knowing anything about football.
“I sure do. My dad and I are huge college football fans. We watch every
Saturday, so I’ll be able to teach her a few things.”

  He smiled, pleased
with her answer, and began to eat his lunch. My smile couldn’t have gotten any
bigger.
How sweet, he’s already worrying about me.

I glanced over at
Hallie and she not so subtly wiggled her eyebrows. I managed to hold back an
unladylike snort and attempted to eat my lunch, but I was too distracted by the
feel of Seth’s knee touching mine under the table.

  He walked me to
class after lunch and as I got to the door, he reached down and grabbed my
hand. I froze, worrying it might be all sweaty, but as soon as he looked into
my eyes, I forgot all about my hand.

 “I won’t be able to
see you again until after the game. Will you wait on me by the fence when it’s
over?”

  “Okay. I’ll wait
on you.”

He stroked the top
of my hand with his thumb causing the butterflies in my stomach to go wild. He
gave me one more smile before walking away to his class. I stared down at my hand.
It tingled where he’d touched it.

***

  I was hooked after
watching Seth play that football game. I watched in awe as he ran down the
field, arms up, waiting to catch the ball before running into the end zone. I
learned his position was called a receiver.
Who knew I’d ever care?
He
scored three touchdowns for our team, giving us a win 24-7. I’d never yelled so
much in my life. He was very impressive. Hallie laughed at me the entire game.
She said she’d never seen me like that. Honestly, I’d never felt like that
before. I could picture Seth in my life, and it did something to me. We hadn’t
even gone on a date yet, and I already felt stirrings in my heart when I
thought of him.

 
I
waited by the fence, just like he asked me too. My nerves were so frayed I
thought I might cry.
This is not happening. It can’t be real.
My hands
were twisted together in front of me, pretzel style. I stared down at the ground
and took a few deep breaths to steady myself. When I raised my head, my eyes
locked onto his boyishly handsome face. In my distracted, nervous state, he had
managed to sneak up on me. He pulled my hands free from their tangle and into
both of his. I smelled the clean scent of the soap he used, and his wavy hair
was still damp from the shower. I looked into his green eyes and noticed they
were shining.

  “Katie, I’ve been
thinking about you all afternoon. I couldn’t wait to see you tonight.” My
stomach did a flip at his words. “Do you want to go get something to eat?” he
asked, his face hopeful.

  “Yeah, I do. I just
need to check with my dad first.”

I reluctantly
released his hands and dug my phone out of my purse. I dialed my home number
and waited nervously for someone to pick up. When Dad answered, I asked
permission to go out with Seth. He replied that he needed to speak to him
first.
Ugh! This is fantastic!
Dad was going to grill poor Seth over the
phone.

  “My dad wants to
talk to you,” I mumbled, holding out my phone.

 He eyed the phone
in my hand like it was snake about to strike. With a huff, he finally took it.
“Mr. Crane, this is Seth Turner.”

Feeling the heat
creep into my cheeks, I desperately wanted to find a hole to crawl in and hide.
How embarrassing, poor Seth...poor me!!
I studied his face for any
indication that he was angry, or that this had made him change his mind about
getting involved with me. He kept it blank, so I wasn’t sure what he thought.

I heard him respond,
“Yes, sir,” several times. I exhaled a deep breath when he ended the call and handed
back my phone. I watched his face with anxious eyes.

  He chuckled. “Come
on, let’s go. I have to have you home in an hour and a half.”

My shoulders sagged
in relief, like a heavy weight had been lifted. He took my hand, leading me to
a black Jeep Wrangler. He opened the passenger door and helped me inside before
jogging around the front of the jeep. Under the bright parking lot lights, I
noticed that he shook his head as he did.

Once he was inside,
I turned to him and groaned. “What did my dad say?”

He snickered,
looking quite amused. “He said he expected me to act respectful towards you,
and if not, he knew my parents and he had no problem calling them.”

  “No, he didn’t!” I
gasped out.

  He nodded his head.
“Yes, he did. He also told me that you’re a sweet and innocent girl and that
you are to remain that way.”

I was so furious at
my dad that a small growl escaped my lips before I had the chance to reign it
in.

Seth whipped his
face towards me. “Did you just growl?” he asked, laughing loudly.

  I looked away,
ignoring his question and his laughter.
If I jump out of a moving jeep, will
it kill me?
I felt as if I’d die from embarrassment anyway. I might as well
get it done quicker.

He reached over,
grabbing my hand. “Look at me, Katie.” I reluctantly turned to face him. “Don’t
be embarrassed. Your dad is only looking out for you. I think it’s great that
he wants to make sure you are kept safe, and you are safe with me.”

  The thought that I
wouldn’t be never crossed my mind. “I wasn’t worried about it,” I replied
honestly.

  “By the way, I
liked that growl. It was sexy,” he said, giving me a huge grin as he tugged on
my ponytail. I laughed and rolled my eyes at him.

  We pulled up to a
popular Mexican food restaurant. We strolled inside and he gave his name to the
hostess. There was a ten minute wait for a table, so we found a small unoccupied
bench and sat down to wait. I felt his thigh pressing against mine and I swallowed
nervously, my throat suddenly dry. He wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling
me closer to him.

Good grief, if he
tries to get any closer I’ll be sitting in his lap.
I smiled sweetly and promptly removed his
hand from my waist, setting it down on his leg. I patted it twice and smiled
again. He eyed me with a cocky grin before shrugging his shoulders. I laughed
at his attempt to play innocent. I knew he understood why I did it. I was so
not ready to be touched like that.

  Seth’s name was
called, and we made our way to the table. I pulled out my chair and sat as he
took the seat across from me.
Thank goodness we have the table between us. I
don’t think I could concentrate to eat or even speak with him plastered to my
side.

After we placed our
orders, he began to ask about the football game. Did I like it, did I see him,
and did Hallie fill me in on what was going on? I gave him the play by play of
the night from my perspective and told him I was surprised that he didn’t hear
me yell for him. He seemed impressed by my newfound knowledge and said he was glad
that I’d become his personal cheerleader.

When our food
arrived, we both dug in. He ate with gusto because he was hungry from all the
running. Me, I just loved food and wasn’t embarrassed to eat in front of
anyone. I glanced up between bites of enchilada to find his eyes on me.

  “You’re not really
like other girls I know,” he stated, his face unreadable.

I paused, the fork
halfway to my mouth. “What do you mean?” I asked hesitantly. I set the fork
down, my appetite gone, as I waited for his reply.
Oh great, here it comes.
He thinks I’m a total dork.

  “I’ve watched you
for a while and noticed a few things. Like right now, most girls order a salad
on a date and pick at it like they aren’t interested in food. Not you, you
order an enchilada and eat it like you enjoy it. You don’t pretend like some of
the other girls at school. They seem so fake and shallow with all their
giggling and hair tossing. It gets old quick. I’ve never seen you at a party or
even with a guy, at school or anywhere. That tells me how different you really
are from those other girls. Your dad was telling the truth when he said you are
sweet and innocent, and I like that...I like you,” he said, smiling sincerely.

  His words stunned
me.
Is he saying that he likes me for me, not for what I look like? Have I
finally met someone who sees the real me?
 

As he looked into my
eyes, I saw the hesitancy in his, like he was afraid he’d said too much. I took
a deep breath, he liked the real me, great. He was about to see the whole
package. “You’re right. I’m not like those other girls. I love to eat and don’t
think there is anything wrong with that. I don’t go to parties, drink or hang
out with guys. Honestly, I’ve never even had a real boyfriend and this is my
first date. A lot of people may think I’m boring or whatever, but I’m okay with
that, with me. I want to please the Lord with my life and if that makes me
different, I’m glad. I have Hallie, my parents, and a great church family and that’s
enough for me,” I said quickly and noticed his smile fell.

  “That’s all great,
Katie, really. I’m happy that’s how you are. But are you saying there isn’t any
room left in your life for me?” he asked quietly.

 I leaned towards
him, wanting him to understand. “Oh no, that’s not what I meant. I do like you,
Seth- a lot. I just wanted you to know that I’m happy with myself the way I am.”

Relief flooded his
face and he smiled. “Good, you should be. You seem like an amazing girl, and it
feels great knowing that you like
me
. So, you’ve really never been on a
date?”

  I smiled shyly and
shook my head. “Do you think I’m a loser?” I asked hesitantly.

  Seth’s eyes
widened. “No way, I’m glad! That means I got to be your first date and
hopefully I’ll get to be your first real boyfriend too.” He gave me a smile
that made my heart quiver.

  “We’ll see,” I replied,
unable to stop the blush that crept up my face.

  After a wonderful
dinner, neither one of us wanted the night to end. With slow steps, we trudged
out to the parking lot where he helped me into the jeep once again. He climbed
in on his side and started the jeep but seemed reluctant to pull out of the
parking lot.

I peeked up at him.
He saw it and grinned as he reached for my hand. “I guess I better take you
home now, or your dad might come looking for me.”

  I giggled. “He might.”

  He switched the
radio on. A country song played loudly through the speakers. The man sang
something about boys of fall, and I instantly liked it. “Is this song about
football?” I asked, listening intently to every word.

  “Yup, it’s
awesome. It came out a while ago but since it’s football season, you’ll
probably hear it all the time.” He took his eyes off the road, staring at my
face for a second. “Your eyes are amazing.”

  I gave him a small
smile and looked away. I wished he hadn’t mentioned them. I guess he didn’t just
like me for me, of course, what guy would? His comment made me wonder if my
looks were really what mattered the most to him.