One Day One Eternity Read online

  One Day, One Eternity

  Rosalie Jardin

  One Day

  One Eternity

  A Glencoe City Novel Prequel

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  Copyright © 2020 by Rosalie Jardin

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  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

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  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

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  First Round Editing: Daja Terry, Sphinx Editing

  Second Round Editing: Magnolia Author Services

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  Cover: germancreative

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  For more information, please visit http://www.rosaliejardin.com

  To Kelly, Alex, and Kelsen

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  Chapter 1

  Monday morning. Adrian Campos was a wanted man.

  No, not that kind of wanted man. He’d done plenty of dumb things during his time at Peterson High School, but none so dumb that it landed him an indefinite sentence to Saturday detention. No, he was wanted for other reasons—the passionate, carnal kind. He wondered if this was how an antelope felt when it discovered the eyes of a hungry, stalking lioness. As he walked toward his locker, he found himself devoured by the ravenous gaze of girls standing nearby who locked him in their sights.

  He might have found it flattering if he weren’t so uncomfortable.

  His friends had warned him this might happen. Especially ever since Tanya Williams, co-captain of the varsity volleyball team with curves as dangerous as her serve, dumped him New Year’s Day. Sure, they’d only dated for like a month and a half, but it was a fun month and a half. And that midnight New Year’s kiss? Damn. The girl knew how to twirl her tongue in the sexiest of ways. But in the end, it was all for show. All she wanted was the satisfaction of telling her friends that she got a midnight New Year’s kiss from Peterson’s most desirable junior and once she got that, she cast him aside with a simple text—“we’re done.” When they returned to school the following week, Tanya made a concerted effort to ignore him. In her world, Adrian didn’t exist.

  The rejection stung. But she wasn’t the first to pull that crap with him, and she wouldn’t be the last.

  On the bright side (maybe?), there were plenty of others willing to take her place. That’s why all the girls were clamoring over him. He’d been single for three months—the longest he’d been without a girlfriend since freshman year. Not that being single bothered him. He’d forgotten how good it felt to just hang out with friends and live his life. From the jump, it seemed like high school was one steady stream of girls in front of his locker, twirling a lock of hair with a flirtatious finger, a pink tongue darting out and licking shiny, glossy lips. It wasn’t that he minded all the attention. It was good to be noticed—that’s what he told himself. And there was nothing wrong with a beautiful girl noticing you. But he was in no rush to get into another relationship.

  Tanya and her New Year’s kissing heist let him know that not all attention from women was good attention.

  Unfortunately for him, the girls in the hallway weren’t concerned with that. Word on the street was that there were running bets to see who would be lucky enough to snag him next. Now, that was freakin’ hilarious. He knew damn well that guys were always taking those kinds of bets, some of which he betted on. But girls placing bets like that? That was news to him. Then again, what did he know about girls anyway? Well, there was one thing that he knew for sure. If the girls had their way, his single days were numbered.

  But as all the girls looked at him, Adrian’s eyes were locked on her.

  A smile spread across his face as that familiar figure came into view. She stood at the locker beside his, fishing for a book so big that it had every right to break her in half with ease. He watched as she stuffed it into her sleek black backpack, her hair put up in a cute, messy bun to keep her long and wavy dark brown tresses away from her eyes. Her black-rimmed glasses sat squarely on the bridge of her nose, large and nearly taking up most of her face. Yet somehow they didn’t take away from the soulfulness of her chocolate-brown eyes. In that black pullover hoodie two sizes too big for her, she’d be called a “plain Jane” by the people he hung out with. Hell, even her name was a bit plain—Kay Glenn. But she could have been wearing Prada and it wouldn’t make a difference. In his eyes, it was all the same.

  She was beautiful.

  His friends would question his sanity if he admitted his crush out loud. They’d think he was an absolute weirdo for being enamored with a so-called nerd who never wore makeup, preferred comfort over couture, and had wavy hair for days. In their eyes, Adrian was too good for her. Adrian was supposed to date the “hot girls” like Tanya Williams, with their manicured nails, luscious flowing locks, and outfits straight out of a fashion magazine. But he couldn’t help himself. Whenever he looked at her, the world seemed to blur, and the other girls faded away. Only Kay remained, framed within a sweet, gentle softness fluttering within his heart, blissfully unaware of his admiration.

  “Morning, Kay.” Adrian watched as his locker mate fished out another large textbook. “Getting your morning workout, I see.”

  “Workout?” Kay kept looking forward. Disappointment gnawed at him. “What do you mean? Gym isn’t ’til fourth period.”

  “Hello? Those books you’re slinging are huge.” Could you please look my way already? “I should borrow one next time the workout room is closed. Do some arm curls with it.”

  He watched as the corners of her mouth twitched. He willed himself to stay calm, playing it cool. But seeing her struggle to keep it together pleased him. Kay was such a calm person. A little too calm. She could stay completely neutral even in the most amusing situations. She mainly kept to herself, studying in the library, keeping conversations at a minimum, never getting in anyone’s business. Adrian respected that. High school could be such a messed up place where everyone vied for attention and validation. But it annoyed him too. He wanted her attention and validation, and she seemed content with never giving it to him.

  “I saw that,” he pointed out. “One day, I’ll get that laugh.”

  “Umm-hmm.” Adrian drew in a breath as Kay shut her locker, finally looking his way. At six-foot-two, he stood head and shoulders above most students, even with that halo of black curls that framed his face. But those round eyes and that small smirk on her face threatened to bring him to his knees. “We’ll see.”

  “I guess we will.” The bell would ring at any moment, but Adrian was ready to risk drawing in the ire of the hall monitors just for another moment with Kay. But she’d never go for that. She was pretty serious about her studies, which meant she was never late for class. “See you at gym class later?”

  “Unfortunately.” Adrian threw her a confused look. Kay shrugged in response. “What? I’m not exactly good at sports like you are, Adrian.”

  His heart skipped several beats. She said my name. “You don’t have to be good. Just good enough to get a good grade.”

  “Right. I guess.” The warning bell rang out, putting an end to their brief conversation. With a small nod, Kay backed away. “Well, bye.”


  He watched as she disappeared down a nearby stairwell. Taking a deep breath, he grabbed his history book and made his way down the hall, the cold settling in. It was always like this whenever Kay left. An icy chill filled his entire body with an oppressive reminder of his cowardice.

  He could have any girl he wanted . . . and he wanted Kay.

  But Kay was the girl Adrian knew he could never have.

  Chapter 2

  Coach White was one of those coaches everyone loved but no one ever wanted to piss off. He had a reputation for being strict yet fair. Because of him, the football and wrestling teams were a force to be reckoned with, and had been for several years running. His teams made it into the playoffs every single year and sometimes, they’d go all the way and win the city championships. Coach White expected a lot out of his students and his students, protective of their favorite coach, never wanted to let him down.

  Unfortunately, his strictness extended into his gym classes with students who weren’t interested in playoff games or team excellence. They just wanted to survive his class, get a good grade, and move on to the next requirement. Coach White didn’t make it easy for them. In addition to making them do a ten-minute exercise routine at the beginning of class, he also made them run ten laps around the gym before moving on to the team activity. By the end of class, many students crawled back to the locker rooms, exhausted from the workout.

  Not Adrian. He loved having his favorite coach as his gym teacher. Coach White was like a second father to him. That old man knew how to bust his ass but Adrian knew he did it out of love, not malice.

  Besides, Coach White was not only infamous for his hard work ethic but also for his Earth Day challenge. As a school that preached the virtues of environmental awareness and conservation, it made sense that Peterson hosted a huge Earth Day celebration each year in April. Which wouldn’t have been so bad if the celebration wasn’t so damn boring. It’s like the principal made it a point to hire performers, speakers, and other random folks meant to ensure that students would have an awful time. Even worse, the event was mandatory. The school beefed up security to ensure no student skipped out and no one could leave until the bell rang at two-thirty.

  Coach White knew this and as the teacher with a gym class that took place just before the start of the event, he was in a position to offer mercy. As the longest-tenured teacher at Peterson High School, he could get away with a lot of things and he did just that.

  “As you all know, this Friday is our school’s annual Earth Day celebration.” Coach White’s voice boomed through the gym. Adrian and the other students stood quietly at attention. When Coach White spoke, you didn’t. If you did, the punishment was running five extra laps. “And as you may or may not know, I offer a little challenge on that day and that day only.”

  Adrian’s eyes darted to the end of the line where Kay stood. She always stood at the very end, away from everyone, dressed in her crisp red tracksuit and a white t-shirt. Always keeping to herself, minding her own business. How she managed to keep her gym uniform so good-looking, he didn’t know. Maybe she could teach him a thing or two about keeping his matching black tracksuit in good shape.

  Adrian shut his eyes, looking away. He wished he could just walk up and stand next to her. But tongues would wag if he did. The last thing Kay needed was attention she didn’t want.

  “My challenge is simple.” Coach White pointed to the double doors on the other side of the gym. If the students were allowed to speak, there would be a collective “ohh!” rising to the rafters. “I’ll have those doors wide open for ten minutes. And for ten minutes, you can leave with whatever you can carry. And just so we’re clear, because you teens always need stuff spelled out for you, I’m not talking about your books and backpacks.”

  Adrian knew damn well what Coach meant. When he said “whatever you can carry,” he meant “whoever you can carry.” Coach was a hell of a bodybuilder back in the day and he always loved testing the strength of his students. And nothing pleased him more than seeing daring students picking other students and carrying them out of the gym on their back. For him, it was a true test of strength and might.

  “You’ve got until Friday to figure out ‘what’ you want to carry,” Coach White continued. “Choose wisely.”

  Adrian snuck another glance at Kay. She looked absolutely unaffected by Coach White’s offer. Like she’d already resigned herself to terrible music and dry speeches. Then again, it probably wouldn’t bother her too much. Earth Day, however boring it would be, would give her a much-needed break from studying.

  And yet, knowing that he’d take up Coach’s offer while she stayed behind bugged him more than he cared to admit.

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  “So, which pretty lady are you carrying out of the gym Friday?”

  Adrian rolled his eyes at his friend, Jake Hill. In return, Jake’s eyes sparkled with impish glee. Why did Jake barge his way into his weight room to ask him that? That blonde-haired, blue-eyed rat bastard knew that he took his weight room sessions seriously. “Maybe you should focus more on your flabby belly than what I’m doing Friday.”

  “Excuse me? Does this look like a flabby belly to you?” Jake lifted up his blue tank, showing off his six-pack abs. As a fellow wrestling teammate, Adrian expected nothing less. He just liked to mess with Jake’s head. “The hell you mean ‘flabby’?”

  “Did I say ‘flabby’? I meant ‘stop asking me dumb questions’.” He couldn’t exactly focus on doing his sits-ups with Jake running his mouth.

  “I just want to know, man. There are plenty of ladies who would love to be whisked away from school by everybody’s favorite himbo.”

  “Didn’t I tell you not to call me that?” Ugh. That word—himbo. If it were up to him, no one would ever call him that, even if there was truth to it. “Anyway, I don’t know what I’m going to do. For all you know, I might just stick around for Earth Day.”

  “Seriously?” Horror spread across Jake’s face.

  “Yeah. Why?” Adrian finished his final rep, landing onto the mat with a small hop. He raised a mischievous eyebrow. “Are you asking me to carry you out of the gym?”

  “Screw you.” Adrian laughed as Jake cracked his towel at him. “Dude, you know I’m carrying Jen. She’ll kill me if I don’t.”

  “Well, duh. She’s your girlfriend!” Jealousy lodged inside Adrian’s throat. Jake and Jen had been together since sophomore year. In a school where partners were always changing, a steady relationship was unheard of. Must be nice, dating the same girl for a long time. “I’d be the first to call you a ‘dick’ if you didn’t.”

  “Right now, we’re not talking about me. We’re talking about you, Adrian. You’ve been single since New Year’s.”

  “I know.” The girls in the hallways reminded him every day. “It’s not that big a deal.”

  “Maybe not for somebody like me, but definitely for somebody like you.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “Dude, there’s a reason why everyone calls you ‘Big D’.” Adrian rolled his eyes. He hated that nickname as much as he hated the world ‘himbo’. “You’re the guy who can have any girl you want. Why be single if you don’t have to be?”

  “Because I don’t want anybody right now.” Jake’s mouth dropped. Adrian pursed his lips together, fighting off the anger surging inside him. It was like his friend prided himself on being the best friend of a man whore. Every conversation centered around his lack of a girlfriend and his involuntary celibacy. It annoyed the hell out of him. “Being single ain’t so bad.”

  “If you say so.” Jake wasn’t convinced and he wasn’t about to convince him. Adrian knew what he was doing. That was all that mattered. “But you’re going to carry someone out of the gym Friday, right?”

  “Maybe I will, maybe I won’t.”

  “Dude, don’t give me that! Just choose someone to carry out and let’s all go somewhere and have fun! Who knows?
You might end up liking who you choose and you won’t be single anymore.”

  Fat chance of that happening. There’s only one girl I want—and she doesn’t want me.

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  ***

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  By the time Adrian finished his workout, the school was just about empty, save for a few teachers, and the janitor doing his cleaning rounds. He was surprised to see Kay standing just outside the library chatting with Mrs. Simon, the head librarian. Adrian’s eyes zoomed over to the clock above the main office door—it was just after five in the evening. Had she been in there all that time? Probably so. If she wasn’t in class or the lunchroom, she was in the library working on an assignment or studying for a test.

  She was nothing like him, content with the bare minimum. And he knew he could be nothing like her. Even if he got his act together and started making those Cs into As and Bs, no one would ever see him as anything more than the himbo jock.

  Mrs. Simon must have said something amusing because the smallest smile pushed Kay’s cheeks up. At that moment, Adrian’s heart felt so full. She looked so sweet, smiling with both her eyes and her mouth. Mrs. Simon wasn’t a very nice person and never had a kind word to say to him or any of the other jocks in school. But he’d endure her crappy attitude if it meant finding out what made Kay smile like that.

  “Oh . . . hi, Adrian.” Adrian blinked, shifting back to reality. Kay was all alone and Mrs. Simon was nowhere to be found. “Just finish your workout?”