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wasn't about to let him get away with hurting me. I didn't care how big my crush for him was.
    He blushed then, and kicked at a clump of dead leaves on the ground. "I don't know why you think I tried to block...Oh, never mind."
    He said this to the leaves and jammed his hands into his pockets. When he looked up, he had to squint because the sun flickered through the tree branches, momentarily blinding him. A sliver of light briefly glowed golden over him, giving him unattainable, angelic appeal.
    "No need to explain," I said. "I already know why, anyway."
    He stared at me hard. "You do?"
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    The Stillburrow Crush
    by Linda Kage
    "You're embarrassed to be seen with me because you're so much better than I am." At his startled, appalled expression, I began to feel bolder. "You're the bank president's son and I'm just a mechanic's daughter. Isn't that why?"
    His mouth fell open. "But that's the stupidest thing I've ever heard."
    "It's not to me." I stomped my foot and scared a squirrel into darting up a tree. I wanted to cry. "You're a real snob, you know that?"
    "Snob?!" For a second he didn't move. I saw the brief flash of pain in the clenching of his jaw before his brooding eyebrows huddled down protectively low over his eyes.
    Then he snorted out a disbelieving laugh. Sucking his mouth around his overbite, he buried his hands in his hair and clutched his head. "I can't believe I'm hearing this."
    For a moment he was quiet, and then he laughed out another snort. But this time it was a harsher, more cynical sound. "This is crazy, Carrie. You don't make any sense. Why would I invite you to walk in the park and then not want to be seen with you?"
    "I don't know," I whispered. "Why did you?" My teeth dug into my bottom lip and I could feel moisture gathering at the corners of my eyes. My chin trembled.
    He opened his mouth but closed it again. "I'm sorry," he finally said, furiously rubbing that spot on the back of his neck. "I just had an idea. A bad idea, I guess." And he walked away, calling over his shoulder, "I've got to go."
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    The Stillburrow Crush
    by Linda Kage
    My breath caught in my throat as I watched him retreat. A voice inside me shrieked, "Go after him, Carrie. Call out,
    'Luke! What's your idea?'"
    But I did nothing. Numbed and a little shell-shocked, I watched him walk away until he disappeared around a house at the end of the block.
    Then I ran home, locked myself in my room and didn't come out until supper.
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    The Stillburrow Crush
    by Linda Kage

Chapter Three
    The next day right after lunch, I walked into Getty's General with a shopping list and a letter gripped in my hand.
    During church, Pastor Curry had talked about the sins of the father. There was an empty spot in the pew next to me and every time the door would open, admitting a latecomer, Mom would peer around me to get a look at who entered. But Marty never showed. So there I was, standing in the general store with Mom's hastily thought-up list and a note for my brother.
    I couldn't get you-know-who out of my head. So when Mom commissioned me to go pseudo-grocery shopping for her, I was more than ready for the distraction. Luke didn't attend the same church we did. He went to the chapel on Main Street. So I didn't have to worry about getting stuck staring at the back of his head during the service or anything.
    But that didn't stop me from thinking about him.
    By this time, I had come up with a plausible reason why he had visited me the day before. It must've been because of what I'd called him in the paper. He didn't want to be referred to as Lucas, so he'd come to my house and made sure I wouldn't do it again. That had to be the reason, right?
    But that didn't explain why he'd asked me to walk in the park with him. We'd discussed the whole Lucas bit before he'd asked for that stroll. So why had he asked? I was back at the beginning again. Biting my lip, I thought about it harder.
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    The Stillburrow Crush
    by Linda