Crossing the Barrier Read Online Free PDF

head?”
    “Maybe. What am I going to do if it doesn’t come back?” Lily had a knot in her stomach just voicing the possibility.
    “We’ll figure it out,” Sandra said with a firm nod. “We always do.”
    Somehow, Lily wondered if Sandra was right.
    “Okay, now do tell me what else,” Sandra said, grinning at her.
    “Not a whole lot really.”
    She couldn’t get excited about Malakai’s visit anymore. She was too worried about her shields, but she told her friend what they discussed regardless.
    “Wow! That’s a lot for you to say ‘not a whole lot really.’ So, did you guys exchange phone numbers or something?”
    “No,” Lily said, glancing at her phone on the table next to her.
    “Any plans to see each other again?”
    “No,” Lily said, wincing. “I may like him and all, but I don’t think he likes me back. I mean, I’m me, clarinetist, band geek, not very interesting and all, and he’s him, star wide receiver, popular, drop-dead gorgeous and all. What would he want with someone like me? Besides, football players aren’t into band girls.”
    “You shouldn’t say that,” Sandra sadly said. “You’re more than that. Not all the guys want to date girls like Zoe, you know.”
    Lily chuckled. Neither of them liked Zoe St. Claire, who considered band members as second-class citizens. Lily was glad for the cheerleaders that Zoe wasn’t one of them; she would have certainly given them quite a bad name.
    “You know what? Maybe we could do a makeover for you, you know, something simple, but something that would make you look really good.”
    “Sandra, I don’t know,” Lily said, hesitating.
    “Of course you do,” Sandra said, standing up and walking to her. “You want Malakai to notice you, no? Maybe we should try something with your hair. Not something severe like when we have band practice, but something casual you could wear when we’re at school. It would be a nice change from the way you keep it down and about,” she said, grabbing Lily’s chin and moving her head to the right and left. “You know, you have the most gorgeous eyes in the world, them being so gray and all. We should find a way to show them off, too. I’m sure Malakai would find them intriguing.”
    Lily sighed. Sandra on a fashion mission was unstoppable.

 
     
    Chapter Seven
     
     
    MALAKAI
    “What was with you yesterday? Coach was pretty pissed. Then you hauled ass as if your pants were on fire,” Wes said, grabbing a couple of french fries and dropping them in his ketchup.
    For his only answer, Malakai shrugged.
    It was Friday night, and when Wes had asked him to grab dinner, Malakai agreed. He hadn’t had his friend to himself in so long; he hoped to catch up and finally tell him about his news.
    They were now sitting in their usual restaurant, the blue faux leather seat sticking to his jeans, the smell of grease drifting to his nose, and fatty food sitting on the table in front of them.
    It was the same old place, a place so familiar Malakai could have navigated it with his eyes closed, but the guy in front of him was different. Wes didn’t talk about football anymore; he didn’t talk about cars and road trips.
    “Me and Zoe, we got so wasted at the party last weekend. Dude, it was awesome. You really missed something.”
    Malakai doubted it. He couldn’t care less about partying. He didn’t care for the chaos, loud music, drinking, and drama. He liked to spend time with a group of friends in a place where they could all talk without having to shout at one another.
    And he cared nothing for Zoe.
    While Wes was going on and on about the girl, Malakai ate his burger and let his mind drift to Lily. He had the burning desire to hold her small body against his again, with her conscious and willing.
    Malakai had noticed Lily a very long time ago. He hadn’t known her name back then, but he clearly remembered seeing her walk into the huge high school on their first day of freshman year. She had been as lost