My Butterfly Read Online Free PDF Page B

rock back and forth on the asphalt.
    I didn’t hear anything, so I looked up. She was still smiling at me, but her smile looked less soft and more suspicious. I stared at her staring at me. If this were some kind of staring competition and the winner got his way, I was determined to win.
    Just then, her smile widened, and she nodded her head.
    I stood there dumbfounded. I was pretty sure that that meant yes —even in girl talk, but I couldn’t be certain.
    Her eyes faltered for a moment but then returned to mine, and as if she had been reading my mind, her next word was all the confirmation I needed.
    “Okay,” she softly said.
    “Really?” I asked.
    There was a part of me that felt as if she were pulling my leg.
    She nodded her head again.
    I stared at her for another, full second. Then, I quickly scooped her up into my arms.
    “Will, what on earth are you doing?” she squealed.
    She was laughing, so I figured I was okay.
    I hurried over to my truck, pulled open the passenger’s door and gently set her down onto the seat. Then, I closed the door and ran over to my side and threw myself behind the wheel.
    “What are you doing, crazy person?” she asked, as I jammed the keys into the ignition.
    “We’ve got to hurry, before you change your mind,” I said, only semi-joking.
    I saw her out of the corner of my eye toss her head back and laugh. And within seconds, I was peeling out of the parking lot and heading toward the little diner at the edge of town.
    ...
    Donna’s was filling up, no doubt because of all of the people in town for the parade. Julia and I quickly found a corner booth and slid in. A few seconds later, I watched as a shorter boy with shaggy hair and a Donna’s Café polo noticed us and shuffled toward our booth.
    “Hey, man, congrats on your guys’ win,” the boy said after he had planted his feet at the end of our table.
    I looked up at him. He had a cheesy grin on his face, and he was wearing a pin with our mascot on it.
    “Thanks,” I said, through a smile.
    “Hey, Adam,” Julia warmly said.
    “Hi, Julia,” the boy replied, cowering a little.
    He looked at her a little too long with that cheesy grin of his. Julia had already returned her eyes to the menu, so she didn’t even notice. I cleared my throat, which seemed to do the trick. It broke the boy’s stare, and he started instinctively scribbling something onto his little notepad. It couldn’t be words.
    His pen eventually stopped, and he looked up and caught my stare. I was pretty sure I had a puzzled, though now slightly intrigued, look on my face. It was interesting how he had been so drawn to her to the point that I might as well have been invisible. But I couldn’t be mad at him. He probably only saw what I had always seen in her.
    “Uh, I’ll just give you guys some time to decide then,” the boy said, smiling awkwardly.
    I watched him jam the little pad of paper back into his pocket and scurry off.
    My eyes fell back onto Julia then. She was still looking at the menu. I had a smile on my face that I couldn’t imagine wiping off.
    “Cheeseburger or chicken strips?” she asked me, without looking up.
    I heard her, but her words sounded more like a song than a question, so I failed to answer her.
    Her eyes eventually turned up toward mine, and soon, her lips broke out into a smile.
    “Cheeseburger it is,” she said.
    She glanced at the paper menu one more time and then slid it behind a ketchup bottle against the window.
    “So, how does it feel to be a state champion?” she asked.
    My eyes faltered, and a laugh followed.
    “Pretty good,” I admitted. “But I’m not so sure it’s better than this.”
    She stared at me for a second and then laughed.
    “You’re ridiculous,” she said. “I know that every one of you guys have been dreaming of a basketball state championship ever since the day you picked up a ball.”
    I lowered my eyes and chuckled to myself.
    “Julia Lang,” I said, pausing and then