Fearscape by Nenia Campbell Page A

at night?”
    “ I just used Google,” she said hotly. “I would never — ”
    “ Calm down. It's all right. I don't mind you Googling me. In fact, I find the idea very appealing.” He looked at her. She was too embarrassed to meet his eyes, let alone respond. Smiling now, he continued, “In response to your question, no. I no longer participate in the school's archery club. I run. I swim. I lift weights. Oh — and play chess, of course.”
    “ The intellectual sport,” Val said.
    “ Yes, quite. Though running is not without its merits. Supposedly, aerobic activity increases the formation of new synapses — and there's you. I bet you look amazing when you run.”
    And that sent a pang through her —
    (Tell me, why is it that you run? Is it to chase? Or to flee?)
    “ Come watch us sometime.”
    (I'd give a lot to)
    “ Perhaps I will.”
    (know.)
    ▪▫▪▫▪▫▪
    Running was amazing.
    Val admitted this to herself later, on the track field. She loved the way her body felt as she ripped through the air. There were moments, after getting good purchase on the track for a bound, that she almost felt as if invisible wings were unfurling from her back, giving her extra lift.
    She couldn't really blame Gavin for his interest, particularly since she had made it so clear that running was important to her. James certainly hadn't. She should be flattered, really.
    Curse her stalker.
    Curse James.
    Curse Lisa.
    It had been exactly one week since her fight with Lisa. The blonde girl had been ignoring her, both at school and on Facebook, and had thus far made no attempts at reconciliation. Clearly the expectation was that she, Val, should be the first to wave the olive branch. That was how it had always happened in the past. Well, not this time .
    She let out her breath. Pain knifed through her side, causing her to falter a little. After an hour of running she was starting to get fatigued. A leaden heaviness had settled in her calves and there was a lump in her throat that refused to yield to her frequent swallows.
    With a sigh that was part wheeze, Val jogged to the water fountain. It was a crude spigot, hanging over a wooden trough filled with gravel, but all that mattered was that the water was cold and didn't taste too much like undissolved zinc. She took a long, deep drink, cupping her hands beneath the steady stream of water to splash her sweaty face.
    “ Val, you're on fire,” Lindsay panted. “What's your secret?”
    Val lowered her hands, causing the excess water to fall against the gravel with a slap. “Anger,” she said, once she'd caught her breath. “Lisa is mad at me for some stupid reason. And I'm mad at her, too. I think.”
    “ You think?” Rachel, who had joined them early enough to hear the start of this conversation, lifted one dark eyebrow. “You mean you aren't sure?”
    “ No, I'm mad. But I'm also disappointed and kind of sad. We've been friends for a while.”
    “ Hey, if she's willing to throw that away over something that stupid — what got her panties in a twist again, you not wanting to date her precious James?” Rachel snorted. “That says more about her than you. She's not your pimp.”
    “ Yeah, I mean seriously,” Lindsay said, swiping her forehead with the back of her terrycloth wristbands. “I never really liked her, though.”
    “ How are things with Hi — with that Gavin guy? He still behaving himself?”
    Val looked at Rachel sharply but the near-slip appeared to be unintentional. “Things have been okay. He's been, um, very friendly. We talk in Art sometimes.”
    Though he'd been a little scarce lately.
    She didn't have his cell, and he didn't have a Facebook, so she only really talked to him at school. Sometimes he didn't even talk to her in Art at all, and she kept fearing that he, too, would lose interest in her, and end up kicking her to the curb.
    The thought made her feel terribly lonely. Without James or Lisa in her life, Val was suddenly, painfully