Pax patted Jaz’s arm and smiled. ‘I missed you too, and a cuppa would be great thanks, Sweetie.’
Jaz kissed his forehead before taking the empty cups back to his house. So much was going on lately and school would be over at the end of the year. She sighed. For some reason Jaz felt like her world was about to shift.
Chapter 23
‘Mind if I join you two?’
‘Hey, Tay, you don’t have to ask,’ said Anna as Taylor sat beside her, his half eaten lunch in his hand and his white school shirt half untucked.
‘To what do we owe this pleasure?’ said Jaz as she swept her hair back from her face.
‘Do I need a reason to visit my mates?’
Jaz and Anna glanced at each other, eyebrows raised.
‘I know I don’t normally have lunch with you two but I’ve just been feeling a bit out of place over there lately,’ said Taylor nodding to his usual table where four guys and a couple of girls were mucking about. ‘I don’t know, maybe it’s knowing that in another six months we will be out in the big wide world and I just don’t see myself staying in contact with them. You guys, on the other hand…’
‘Aww, you’re sweet,’ said Anna, touching Taylor’s arm.
‘So, why is Jaz looking so glum?’ he asked.
‘I’m not glum.’ Jaz felt both sets of concerned eyes on her.
‘Ah, hello? Yes you are. You’ve been sad the last few days and don’t tell me it’s got nothing to do with Ryan. I know you, you’re thinking about him,’ said Anna.
‘Why, what’s up with Ryan, are you two…?’ Taylor’s blue eyes probed for answers.
Jaz dropped her head on the table, narrowly missing her sandwich. ‘No we are not going out, dating or anything of the sort. We are friends…well at least I thought we were,’ she said sitting back up. ‘But now something funny’s going on and I haven’t heard from him since him and Pax had that heated discussion.’
‘See, I think you’re reading too much into it, Jaz. What Pax said was probably right, it’s just some family problem that’s got him messed up.’
‘I don’t know, Anna. It’s this feeling I have…and when I more or less asked him if I’d done something wrong he never replied. Most people would say “no, it’s got nothing to do with you” but he didn’t reassure me one bit. And Pax just about peed his pants when I sprung their conversation. If I didn’t know better I’d say they were talking about me.’ Jaz sighed. ‘Oh, don’t look at me like that. I know you think I’m nuts.’
Anna laughed as she reached her hand across to Jaz. ‘Honey, you’ve always been nuts, but I still love you. Look, Ryan’s a big boy who can take care of himself. I’m sure he’s fine. He said he’d be in touch, just give him time.’
‘Anna‘s right,’ added Taylor. ‘So bring back that gorgeous smile of yours. Besides I can’t take you to the ball looking like your pet’s just died now, can I?’
Jaz shrugged and smiled just for them. A girl couldn’t ask for better mates. ‘So have you found a tie yet?’ she asked Taylor. He was going to look so handsome in a suit and even better beside her.
‘I picked up a blue tie and a silver one as well. I’ll bring you home after school and you can pick the one that suits best.’
‘Cool, sounds like a plan.’
Taylor glanced across at Anna just as she finished her apple. ‘You wanna come with us?’
She shook her head and threw her core on her tray. ‘Would love to but Ricky and I are going to the library to do some research on a project. And NO it’s not what you think.’
‘So what do you think it is that we are thinking?’ asked Jaz cheekily.
‘Piss off, you know what I mean. Come on, I’m going to class. You two coming?’
Jaz and Taylor got up to walk with Anna. Jaz was feeling better, well she had her smile back, but still lurking in the back of her mind was Ryan. Part of her worried she’d never see him again, and that didn’t sit well at all. And if she was going to be an agent she had to do it for herself, not just to be able to see Ryan…right? Maybe Ryan was annoyed she hadn’t made up her mind yet? But she’d been thinking bloody hard about it. It was a pretty major career choice, scary and dangerous but also Jaz liked the idea of being able to help protect people. She’d like to be as amazing as Ryan. A secret super agent.
‘Jaz we’re in this classroom,’ said Anna from the doorway of their next class, the one which Jaz had just walked straight past. Whoops.